I absolutely love contrasts in light. Dark and light, hard and soft, warm and cool. One of my favorite times is just before sunset really gets going. The layers of atmosphere start to warm up the light in the western sky, but the east is still blue and wonderful. There is this smooth transition from warm to cool that you can see in today’s photo. The west, to the left is very strong and warm, but towards the bridge you see a normal and wonderful day.
Sometimes on our journeys, we come across obstacles. A way that can only be walked by a single path. This path can at times be scary, dark and lonely. It can fill us with a sense of unease. The path can be broken, uneven, difficult to navigate in the darkness. We risk falling down. We risk making our lives worse. We risk hurting ourselves or the ones we love. But for those of us who are brave…the light is patiently waiting.
Pamela asked what I wanted to do for my birthday…I said go to San Francisco (of course). Aside from being my favorite U.S. city, it’s perhaps one of most comfortable cities for me, almost like I am called there; pulled by some cosmic force. I am very lucky, because we made the pilgrimage to The City, Pamela and me. Lucky because we are able to make the trip, both physically and financially. Lucky because I have a wonderful spouse that understands my love of wandering and wants to share in it. Lucky because we have each other to go to, Pamela, me and The City by the Bay.
When I travel, I usually have a very loose idea of what I want to see. I don’t make concrete plans, everything stays very fluid…I am a Pisces after all. My general mode of transportation is almost always walking. I prefer to see a city by foot. I often walk so much I end up destroying my feet for weeks to come after my adventures. I am learning the importance of good socks and proper fitting shoes. One morning when we were walking around I shot this street scene in New York City. The light is dramatic, but otherwise it’s street much like you would see in any city. I think that simplicity and the wonderful warm light are what I love about this shot. To me it screams New York in the morning.
The thing I always have trouble remembering his how gorgeous light becomes the lower it is in the sky. I say I have a hard time remembering because outside of places like Iceland, you have such a very short window of nice light. The quality changes so much, so rapidly it is often difficult to keep up on one subject, much less when you are someplace like the National Mall. With such a grand set of options, it’s difficult to decide what you are going to photograph at that perfect moment. This shot was while I was walking to the Lincoln Memorial for sunset. The sun was still strong in the sky, but you can easily tell the quality of light has started to change here for the better.
When I visited the grounds of the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden in Washington D.C., it was early morning and the museum wasn’t open. I have not have an opportunity to visit this museums collection, which is unfortunate because I really enjoy contemporary and modern art. I did get to visit the open courtyard which immediately made me think of ancient Rome and the Colosseum.
The outside looks like some sort of alien vessel landed in the National Mall. It’s an odd mix that makes me think about the architect’s intent. Artist’s intent is a topic that has been on my mind lately. I am traveling to Barcelona soon and I can hardly wait to see first hand many of the seminal works of Antoni Gaudi. What are these designers trying to bring into the world…it truly fascinates me.
2013 is going to be a big year! Last week I returned from my first trip to Europe in 2013. The first of several international trips I have planned this year to photograph new places for this blog. I visited Geneva, Switzerland for two wonderful days. Next month I am all set for Barcelona, Spain. Some people in my life think this is interesting, others think it’s fun, while others believe me to be completely crazy. Regardless of outside opinions, it is something that I can’t keep from doing any longer.
When I got to Switzerland it was cold, grey with rain and snow and the bus website said my bus didn’t start running until 2pm Sunday. I woke up at 8am the first day (no need to get up early for sunrise) and sat in my hotel room feeling completely defeated. I was only there for two days and the weather stunk. For all the preparation, travel time expense and excitement, I sat there and knew I had failed. The only thing was I hadn’t failed at all. I was still in my hotel room. The failure existed entirely in my mind but threatened to poison the whole trip! I told myself I had come halfway around the world to photograph Geneva and I was damned well going to do it! In the end I had a fantastic time. A cold, wet and fantastic time. And the number 5 bus WAS running just on a limited schedule.
Chris Guillebeau recently wrote on his blog, “Sometimes you just need to pay attention to the discontent and see where it leads.” I have been feeling that discontent for a long time now, but I have been ignoring it. Even when I listen I often put off things or announce defeat before I have even started. I allow resistance to beat down my true self. 2013 is going to be a big year, because I can no longer not take action. I have to listen to this thing, whatever it is, inside me that keeps saying, Travel and Photograph. It’s wasn’t perfect in Geneva, but it never will be, and wonderful things happen when you simply try. Have you been putting something off, or announcing something a failure because the conditions weren’t perfect? I would really like to know.
Today’s photo is of the United States Capitol Building in Washington DC, USA.
I have had a desire to try this for some time. When Pamela and I vacationed in Maui, we went to the beach, just a few blocks from our Condo to attempt to capture a photograph of the spirit of the ocean.
She is infinite and dark, beautiful and terrible all at once. This was the best I was able to do, but it was a first attempt. I like this photo because it represents to me possibility. There is an idea here I want to explore more.
I hesitated posting this because this one of very personal to me, for a variety of reasons.
I have very much favored the work of several notable abstract expressionists, most personally Mark Rothko. His color fields speak to me on a visceral level, something older than I am, something ancient inside of me. I want this photo to feel the same, it does not.
This is also a pretty big departure from the other work I generally do. Though this fits into my travel photography, it is uniquely different.
I consider this photo a success even though it isn’t exactly my intent. Even when we fail, the results can be unexpectedly wonderful!
I am not sure why I like this building so much, but Lake Point Tower, in Chicago just off of Nave Pier really caught my attention. It was early morning just after taking this shot of Navy Pier and walking to get some coffee that I saw the early morning light reflected off of this curvacious building. While most photos of the structure you will see look black, the reflective nature of all these windows made the building look truly golden. I actually took this zoomed further out, but ended up liking a tighter and more abstract crop.
At one point in my life, I wanted to work on Wall Street. For a portion of my younger years I had an…interesting love of Michael J. Fox’s character Alex P. Keaton. This included a brief case to carry my school supplies, dressing in clothes more intended for church then normal school days and regular reading of the Wall Street Journal. Needless to say I was very popular in the 6th grade, or as I like to look at it, I have never been afraid to express myself differently then those around me. Thought the briefcase was left behind years ago, I still to this day find myself doing things a little differently then others. I didn’t think much about the contrast when I was at the New York Stock Exchange, photographing, but it strikes me now how what WAS and what IS in our lives is constantly changing. Then again, isn’t everything.
