Red Flag

Red Flag
Red pedestrian crossing warning flags.

Red Flag. © Copyright 2021 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Red pedestrian crossing warning flags.

This is a close view of some warning flags posted at a busy street crossing in an urban area. The idea is that pedestrians grab a flag and, I suppose, wave it at approaching motorists in the hope that they don’t get run over. Hmmm… The photograph exists for a couple of reasons. It is one of the neighborhood subjects that I encounter on my almost-daily walks. I always carry a camera and maintain some level of attention to potential subjects. To be honest, the great majority of those photographs are not and are not intended to be great — the real object is to keep my eyes open and to practice seeing.

The second reason for the photo is either a bit funny or a bit thought-provoking. Recently I have shared a few photographs featuring the color orange after being challenged to make pictures of that color by a group of fellow photographers. As I did this I realized that the boundaries of “orange” are a bit nebulous. Some things are, without any doubt, orange. But others that initially strike me as being orange start to verge on red, brown, or even yellow. There are not always clear lines between these colors. In any case, these flags first looked orange to me… but when placed in the context of other orange objects they began to seem more red.


G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist. His book, “California’s Fall Color: A Photographer’s Guide to Autumn in the Sierra” is available from Heyday Books, Amazon, and directly from G Dan Mitchell.

Blog | About | Flickr | FacebookEmail

Links to Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Information.

Scroll down to leave a comment or question.


All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others as indicated. Any use requires advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Join the discussion — leave a comment or question. (Comments are moderated and may not appear immediately.)

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.