The majority of the photos that I post here daily are photos that I have taken myself. That’s because the point, for me, is to start getting in the habit of taking pictures on a daily basis and to get comfortable sharing those pictures with others. It’s also good because it forces me to look closer at my photography and to get better at it which is something I want to do.

However, today’s picture was actually taken by a photographer who is much more talented than me. It’s a photo of me that she took back in March as part of a project called I Live Here: SF. I wanted to put the photo up here because I think it’s a really great portrait photography project and I would love to see others check it out. The photographer is TangoBaby.

Tags: i live here sf, kathryn vercillo, Photos, portrait photography, smartchick, tangobaby

I am head over heels in love with San Francisco. I am passionate about the city where I live. I have known since before I first came here that this was the place where I was going to make my life and create my world. When I tell people that I have found “the one” and they learn that I am talking about a city, they have one of two reactions.

The first reaction comes from those people who have also had this experience, often from people who also live in San Francisco and feel this same way about the city. They get this knowing look in their eyes and we don’t have to say anything more about it because the understanding is just there. It’s the same as when you find “the one” person that you want to love forever and you tell that to someone else who has had that experience. You both just relate to each other through that common shared human experience.

And then there is the other reaction which comes from those people who have not found the city that resonates for them like San Francisco does for me. It is an amused reaction or a befuddled reaction. It comes along with statements like, “yeah but it’s so expensive in San Francisco” or questions like, “don’t you think you’ll want to try out other cities someday?”

To someone who has truly fallen in love with a place, these reactions just seem ridiculous. Yes, the rent is expensive and there are a dozen other things that aren’t great about San Francisco but don’t you see that I love everything about her despite some flaws? And why would I look for something else when I feel so incredibly absolutely safe and at home here in this city.

Not everyone gets to find “the one” – in romance or in a hometown. But nobody should ever stop looking because if you do find it, your whole life is altered. This happened to me with San Francisco. I got the chance to write about it a bit for a collaborative photo project that I was a part of here recently. The project is called I Live Here: SF and it’s photos of the people who live here and mostly love it here. Check it out to see the cool creative people that live in this city, the collaboration of those people’s words with the photographer’s pictures and the passion that exists when people truly do fall in love with the place where they live.

Tags: cities, creativity, i live here sf, i love sf, kathryn vercillo, love, photography, projects, San Francisco