I was offered the unique opportunity to go all the way up in the dome at San Francisco City Hall. We were photographing a wedding at city hall and we were up on the 4th floor taking some pictures. Eventually, we started talking to one of the event staff while he was putting away chairs and he asked us if we wanted to go up into the dome area. This is a person that we had come to know over the years and was always super friendly to us and helpful. We had been friendly with him and helpful when he needed us to move out of the way so he could do his job. We decided that we definitely wanted to try it and the bride and groom agreed.
Long Climb up the Spiral Stairs at SF City Hall
With the newlyweds in tow we proceeded to climb the spiral staircase that takes you up near the top of City Hall. It was an amazing experience and quite a climb! As San Francisco City Hall wedding photographers, we frequently get asked by our newlyweds if we can take pictures up in the Dome. People don’t realize that the elevators don’t go up that far and you actually have to take the stairs. They also do not understand that this area was never meant for wedding photography or even visitors. It is mainly there for maintenance and lighting. The view from up there was incredible, like nothing we have ever seen before at SF City Hall. You really cant imagine how high up you are until you see it from that vantage point. Our newlywed couple enjoyed it as well. We took just a few photos of the bride and groom since we didn’t have much time. If you are afraid of heights, this is not the place you want to be! The railings are quite low and it is a very long drop.
This particular day also happened to be one of the hottest days in the history of San Francisco, so it was pretty hot up there, but totally worth the climb up the stairs. The Staircase to get up there is spiral and very tight turns. Of course it is not air conditioned which only added to the heat. But our bride and groom were real troopers and wanted to try it. We were glad they did and it lead to some San Francisco city hall photos that hardly anyone else will ever get! I recently spoke with this same staff member and he told us that he actually did get permission to take us up there as long as we followed the rules. I think in a sense he received the permission after the fact, but he still was not admonished for bringing us up there. I’m super happy about that because I would not want to get him in trouble. I think he has been working at San Francisco City Hall helping with setting up weddings for as long as I’ve been photographing them. I have seen him many times since and I don’t ask him anymore for access. No reason to push our luck.
Being Friendly Leads to Opportunities at SF City Hall
It just goes to show you how just being friendly to people that you work around can pay dividends. I am sure we will never be able to go up there again, but it was nice to see how it looks and fun experience. I don’t think there was ever any intention of using this upper area for visitors and certainly not weddings! For many years, we had been very courteous and friendly to this particular Event Staff member and it ended up paying off in an unexpected way. I still see this friendly fellow almost every time I met San Francisco City Hall you know it’s always great to say hi.
Update: We later found out that liability issues were the main reasons not to go up there. Apparently, anyone going up there needs to sign an insurance waiver in case something goes wrong. We were unaware of this and so we will not be doing this again. But at least we can say that we were up in the Dome of San Francisco city hall! We even have the City Hall wedding pictures to prove it! You can see the small railing which I am sure is the main reason for the caution.
Columns in the San Francisco city hall upper dome
Bride and Groom Wedding Photography in the Upper Dome