An Old Route 66 Landmark

Picture: Route 66 Azusa Foothill Drive-in Theatre Marquee Sign, California

Here is the Route 66 sign that I photographed on Saturday. I don't know when they turn on the lights, but lights would have been perfect for this type of backlighting. I was going to write about what happened to me here last week but I was busy trying to finish up a freelance project with a San Francisco interactive ad agency, inbetween the digital photo production stuff.

So I was up at the famous Route 66 landmark last Tuesday morning after mailing off a few submissions, when not more than two minutes after arriving, an APU campus security guard pulls up near me. She asked me who I was and what I was doing. I just stated the obvious and told her that everything I was doing was protected under the 1st Amendment. She reported to her supervisor that I was "complying". Though she didn't ask, I explained to her the legal differences between shooting editorial photography and commercial photography. She was fine with it all, but reminded me that the grass was private property whereas the sidewalk two feet over was public property. Despite that, she told me that she didn't care where I stood and I could keep shooting. I guess she was letting me know in case I encounter some other guard in the future. She seemed interested in learning what stock photography was about and left afterward. Her explanation for coming over was that she wanted to ensure that I wasn't vandalizing the sign. Sounds fair enough. It is located in Azusa afterall.

Photo Tips:

1. If you want warm direct lighting on the sign try sunrise during the summer or sunset during the winter.