Tag Archives: block

Photographs: Structures and Objects, Photographs: Urban/Street

Bench and Cinder Block Wall

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Bench and Cinder Block Wall - A bench, chained to the sidewalk, in front of a cinder block wall with male/female symbols.
A bench, chained to the sidewalk, in front of a cinder block wall with male/female symbols.

Bench and Cinder Block Wall. San Jose, California. December 28, 2011. © Copyright 2011 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A bench, chained to the sidewalk, in front of a cinder block wall with male/female symbols.

This is one of “those” photographs – it probably completely baffles many who like my landscape and nature photography… and perhaps a few others as well. ;-)

I’m not quite sure why I wanted to photograph this little scene. The color palette, mostly fairly drab except for the pink circle, seemed a bit different. The almost random gender symbols (as much of them as you can see) on the wall behind the bench seem odd and surprising. (There was probably once a shop in this building that was connected to that sign, but it is no longer there.) If we want to get philosophical – and why not? – the juxtaposition of an unoccupied bench with those symbols could be read in a variety of ways, and the fact that the bench is cabled to the ground is also interesting. In any case, that’s my story and I’m sticking to it.

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer whose subjects include the Pacific coast, redwood forests, central California oak/grasslands, the Sierra Nevada, California deserts, urban landscapes, night photography, and more.
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Text, photographs, and other media are © Copyright G Dan Mitchell (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Commentary, Ideas, Thinking Aloud

When Inspiration Takes a Vacation

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It happens to (almost) everyone. The pendulum sometimes swings towards enthusiasm, inspiration, and creative work that almost seems to flow all by itself. But pendulums swing both directions, and one of the prices we pay for doing creative work is having to cope with the inevitable dry periods when enthusiasm, inspiration, and creativity are nowhere to be found, periods when you can find yourself questioning your talent and abilities. (I think that one characteristic of “mature” artists is that they understand this cycle and are less likely to be undone by it – both because they are familiar with its existence and because they have learned ways to deal with it.)

I don’t claim to be the definitive expert on this issue, but I have some experience with it in both photography and music. There is much more to be said about this than I have space for here, but I thought I’d share a reply I wrote in a forum where a poster posed the following: Continue reading When Inspiration Takes a Vacation →

News, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: Sierra Nevada, Photographs: Sports, Photographs: Yosemite

Rope Across Horsetail Fall?

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Photographing Horsetail Fall has increasingly become “the thing to do” in Yosemite Valley for quite a few photographers this time of year. Horsetail is a seasonal waterfall that drops from near the eastern end of El Capitan in Yosemite Valley, and for a few weeks each winter may catch the setting sun to produce quite a visual show when the conditions are just right. I’m not going to offer a how-to for photographing Horsetail – good ones are available elsewhere, and as beautiful as the sight can be, I have a sort of “been there, done that” attitude towards it at this point.

Which is not to say that I won’t point my camera that direction if I find myself in the area! I did so for a few minutes last weekend, even though it was well before the time when the sunset show begins, and even though it was the middle of the afternoon. I happened to be photographing something else below the fall and after I finished I looked up and noticed that the flow of water over Horsetail was as strong as I’ve seen it. I had a long lens on the camera, so I pointed it up and made a few photographs.

Here is the odd thing… In the photographs made with this telephoto lens I can clearly see that a long climbing rope ascends from the right to the first ledge that the water hits, crosses the ledge, and continues its ascent to the left of the fall. It appears to be a fixed rope that someone left in place, and I can only wonder about possible explanations. Did someone have to leave it behind earlier in the season? Did someone leave it with the intention of coming back and traversing through the fall?

If it does remain much longer, there may be some disappointed photographers who find a glowing rope draped across their photographs of the fall this season…

Fixed Rope Across Horsetail Fall
Fixed Rope Across Horsetail Fall

Fixed Rope Across Horsetail Fall. Yosemite Valley, California. January 16, 2011. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

This photograph is not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

G Dan Mitchell Photography
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Text, photographs, and other media are © Copyright G Dan Mitchell (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.


Photographs: New York City, Photographs: Structures and Objects, Photographs: Urban/Street

Broken Window and Cinder Blocks, High Line Park

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Broken Window and Cinder Blocks, High Line Park
Broken Window and Cinder Blocks, High Line Park

Broken Window and Cinder Blocks, High Line Park. New York City, New York. August 14, 2010. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A broken window in a brick wall with cinder blocks behind, High Line Elevated Park, New York.

This odd window set against a solid cinder block wall was alongside the High Line Park in the Chelsea area of Manhattan. I am always intrigued by odd brick patterns, including those where someone has painted the bricks. The image of the smashed window “opening” to a solid wall was also compelling, and in a larger print there are some very interesting patterns, colors, and textures in the broken glass and the bits of paint on the window.

This photograph is not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

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