User:Frank Schulenburg/Northern California on Wikipedia

English: Northern California on Wikipedia was a photo exhibition shown between March 23 and May 14 at the Museum of Northern California Art in Chico. The exhibition featured a selection of Frank Schulenburg’s works between 2012 and 2023. It was the first solo museum exhibition of a Wikipedia photographer.

Deutsch: Northern California on Wikipedia war eine vom 23. März bis zum 14. Mai laufende Fotoausstellung im Museum of Northern California Art in Chico. Die Ausstellung zeigte eine Auswahl der Werke von Frank Schulenburg zwischen 2012 und 2023. Sie war zugleich die weltweit erste Einzel-Museumsausstellung eines Wikipedia-Fotografen.

The photos in the exhibition

		Point Reyes Lighthouse 2012 Prior to coming to the United States in 2008, Schulenburg used an analog film camera. This photo of Point Reyes Lighthouse was taken in April 2012, only a couple of months after he bought his first digital camera and started taking pictures for Wikipedia. It is still widely used on the different Wikipedia language versions, mostly in articles about the lighthouse itself, but also in articles about the horror movie The Fog which was filmed in 1979 in Marin County, and other places in California. Point Reyes is, by official records, the windiest and foggiest place on the Pacific Coast.
		Dawn Patrol 2012 This photo was taken at the 2012 Sonoma County Hot Air Balloon Classic in Windsor, CA. In addition to being used in the article “Wine Country” on the German language version of Wikipedia, it is being used on the Danish Wikipedia as an illustration for how to heat up a hot air balloon.
		New Clairvaux, Sacred Stones 2013 During his first years of living in California, Schulenburg focused on covering places with particularly interesting backstories. An example is this photo of the chapter house at the abbey of New Clairvaux. It was reconstructed with stones that were brought to California in the 19th century by William Randolph Hearst. Hearst had a medieval building in Spain disassembled, then shipped the stones to the United States, in order to build Hearst Castle. The Great Depression led to Hearst exhausting his capital, so the stones found their way to Golden Gate Park. In 1994, the Cistercian-Trappist monks of Vina, CA, started the restoration project called “Sacred Stones”. In 2011, the final stone of the was set into the ceiling.
		Point Montara Light 2013 This is one of several photos in Schulenburg’s lighthouse series. In order to visually convey context, Schulenburg presents the lighthouses in relationship to the ocean, whenever possible. Both this and the Point Reyes lighthouse photo feature a curved element drawing the viewer’s eye to the subject of the image.
		The Bridge 2013 In addition to being featured on Wikipedia, this photo has long been used by Air France on its in-flight entertainment systems for flights to San Francisco. Uploading images to Wikipedia under a free license means that everyone can use those works as long as they honor the terms of the license (in this case: re-sharing under the same license as the original, and giving appropriate credit to the creator), even for commercial purposes.
		The old and the new Bay Bridge 2013 Eastern span of the San Francisco–Oakland Bay Bridge. The original Bay Bridge opened in 1936. It was replaced by a new span in 2013. This rare night shot, taken during the replacement process, won the 1st place in the national Wiki Loves Monuments photo contest in 2013.
		Tule elk cow at Tomales Point 2015 A tule elk cow (Cervus canadensis nannodes) at Tomales Point, Point Reyes National Seashore. Tule elk were the dominant large ungulate (hoofed mammals) in California prior to the arrival of the Spanish. By 1870 they were thought to have been eradicated by hunting. However, in the ensuing years, a single breeding pair was discovered in the southern San Joaquin Valley. As a result of successful conservation measures, tule elk herds can be found in several parts of California today.
		Old Crissy Field Coast Guard Station in the fog 2015 While showcasing the old Coast Guard Station at Crissy Field, this photo also gives the viewer the understanding of the necessity of the building’s construction at this specific site. Dense fog can make a ship’s entrance to the San Francisco Bay treacherous. In wanting to convey this context, Schulenburg waited for this distinctive weather pattern draping the Golden Gate Bridge in ghostly mist.
		Urban coyote in Bernal Heights 2016 A coyote (Canis latrans) in Bernal Heights, San Francisco. Schulenburg took this shot while on assignment for the nonprofit organization Project Coyote, then uploaded it to Wikipedia. In August 2017, this image became the cover photo for the Speak for the Animals magazine.
		Juvenile brown pelican in flight 2016 A juvenile brown pelican (Pelecanus occidentalis californicus) is shown gliding above the waves of the Pacific Ocean at Bodega Head. Brown pelicans came near to extinction in the 20th century. Today, the recovery of its population in the United States is considered an outstanding example of a successful conservation effort.
		Orthodox chapel at Fort Ross 2016 The orthodox Holy Trinity St. Nicholas Chapel at Fort Ross in Sonoma County is part of the Fort Ross State Historic Park. Originally built in the mid-1820s, the chapel was destroyed in the 1906 earthquake. In 1970, a restored version of the chapel was also entirely destroyed by an accidental fire. This photo shows the reconstructed chapel, built in 1973.
		Sonoma chipmunks at Samuel P. Taylor State Park 2017 A juvenile and an adult Sonoma chipmunk (Tamias sonomae) at Samuel P. Taylor State Park in Marin County. This image was taken as part of a joint project with biologist and fellow Wikipedian Achim Raschka from Germany. Raschka wrote the text of the article on the German language Wikipedia, while Schulenburg provided the photos and videos. When asked about the project, Schulenburg stated: “Cooperating closely across disciplines is what I truly enjoy about my journey as a Wikipedia contributor.”
		Golden Gate Bridge as seen from Marshall’s Beach 2018 Before moving to Chico, CA, Schulenburg crossed the Golden Gate Bridge many times during his morning and evening commutes. This photo is part of a series of images he took to illustrate different aspects of the structure. Other photos include: views of Lime Point Light beneath the bridge, the installation of the moveable median barrier system in 2015, and the construction of suicide barriers started in 2018.
		Interior of the San Francisco Columbarium 2019 Showing places that many people couldn’t visualize without an image is part of taking photos for an encyclopedia. This image shows the interior of the San Francisco Columbarium (a repository for human ashes) north of Golden Gate Park. The building contains more than 8,500 niches for cremated remains, many of which showcase creative dedications, photos, and other personal items.
		Veraison of Zinfandel grapes 2019 Veraison (the onset of ripening) of Zinfandel grapes in Dry Creek Valley, Sonoma County, CA. This photo illustrates the article “Veraison” on the English, German, and Mazandarani Wikipedia language versions, as well as the article “Zinfandel” on the Swahili, Turkish, English, and French Wikipedias.
		Wine cellar of Schramsberg Vineyards 2019 More often than not, Wikipedia articles about agricultural topics lack photos. Wikipedia simply doesn’t have enough volunteer photographers that are specialized in this area. This image was taken as part of a series of photos to illustrate California wine industry-related articles.
		Fort Point casemate 2019 A casemate from the Civil War Era at Fort Point National Historic Site, in the Presidio of San Francisco. This image was a finalist in the national Wiki Loves Monuments photo contest in 2019.
		Pine trees on the slope of Cinder Cone 2020 According to Wikipedia, scoria is “a pyroclastic, highly vesicular, dark-colored volcanic rock that was ejected from a volcano as a molten blob and cooled in the air to form discrete grains or clasts.” This photo shows two pine trees growing on the slope of Cinder Cone, a 700-foot-high volcanic cone of loose scoria, in Lassen Volcanic National Park.
		Painted Dunes and Fantastic Lava Beds 2020 Painted Dunes and Fantastic Lava Beds, at Lassen Volcanic National Park, as seen from the edge of Cinder Cone’s crater. Painted Dunes consists of layers of oxidized volcanic ash, which became so vividly colored when hot ash fell on a bed of lava flows.
		Northern pintail drake in flight at Llano Seco 2021 According to the book Introduction to California Birdlife “the more than 600 bird species on the California state list represent about three-quarters of the […] species that have been recorded in continental United States.” Yet, when it comes to Wikipedia, many articles about birds need more or better photos. Be it bird-in-flight images like this one, or photos of eggs, chicks, and birds in different plumages – Wikipedia would benefit greatly from more bird photographers sharing their works with the public under a free license.
		North face of Mount Shasta 2022 Taken in January 2022, this photo shows the north face of the volcano Mount Shasta (Karuk: “Úytaahkoo”). It is part of Schulenburg’s personal project “Thirty-six Views of Mount Shasta”, aimed at showing the volcano viewed from different locations, in various seasons, and shifting weather conditions. The photo is being used on a number of different Wikipedia language versions, including the French, German, and Czech Wikipedia.
		Historic Quincy schoolhouse 2022 The 1905 historic schoolhouse (formerly “Quincy Grammar School”) in downtown Quincy, Plumas County. In general, the smaller and more remote a place is, the less likely it is to have good visuals to illustrate it in a Wikipedia article.
		The California State Capitol during blue hour 2022 In February 2021, Schulenburg became a U.S. citizen. He states: “This photo will always be special to me, as my citizenship ceremony took place in a building near the Capitol. Whenever I see this image, I’m reminded of that important moment in my life.” The picture illustrates the article about the California State Capitol on several Wikipedia language versions, including the English Wikipedia.
		Winter scenery near Lake Helen in Lassen Volcanic National Park 2022 Since 2005, Schulenburg has been writing articles for the German language version of Wikipedia. One of his long-term projects, started in 2019, has been to improve and update the article about Lassen Volcanic National Park. “My goal is to share the beauty of Northern California with people around the world”, Schulenburg says. “I feel very fortunate to live in this wonderful place. Taking photos of the amazing natural features around me is my way of giving back to the community.”
		Flooded walnut orchard in Butte County 2023 One way of volunteering for Wikipedia as a photographer is to document current events with a camera. This photo shows a flooded walnut orchard, after several atmospheric rivers hit California in January 2023. It illustrates the article “2022–2023 California floods” on the English Wikipedia.
		Sutter and Sansome at night 2023 A night shot of downtown San Francisco, taken handheld at ISO 3200 on a full-frame Leica M11 rangefinder camera. This image illustrates the article “Night photography” on the English Wikipedia.

Framing and hanging

Timelapse of the hanging (22.47 MB)

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  Dean Willson framing one of the photos for the exhibition
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  Hanging the framed photos on March 20, 2023

Opening Reception on March 24

Short video sequence with impressions from the opening night (59.72 MB)

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  Payton Walton telling the story behind the shot while one visitor scans the QR code that leads viewers to the Wikipedia articles where the images are being used
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  Frank Schulenburg talking about the importance of providing context when taking photos of buildings for an encyclopedia
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  Explaining the difficulties of taking bird-in-flight pictures with a DSLR

Views of the exhibition

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Video interview

On April 26, 2023, videographer Jason Weinrich from Watershed Media shot a video interview with Frank Schulenburg at the Museum of Northern California Art

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