Tag Archives: city

Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Urban/Street

Twilight in the Urban Forest

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Twilight in the Urban Forest

Twilight in the Urban Forest. San Jose, California. January 4, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Trees and the side of an office building are illuminated by evening light reflected from the windows of a nearby building.

There is more than meets the eye in this photograph, and even when you think you have figured out why there is more than meets the eye I think there will still be more that you may not yet have noticed. I’ll continue to be enigmatic and say that “all is not what it seems in this photograph.” :-)

I will say that I made the photograph while wandering around downtown San Jose, California on an “urban photo walk” over the weekend, hunting for interesting street and urban images. This and all the photos I made that afternoon and evening were made in traditional “street” style using a 35mm prime.

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

keywords: afternoon, building, california, city, county, downtown, evening, san jose, santa clara, urban, tree, forest, reflection, shadow, building, office, windows, side, sidewalk, plant, evening, golden hour, stock, illusion, twilight

Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Structures and Objects, Photographs: Urban/Street

Hub Cap City

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Hub Cap City
“Hub Cap City” — The Hub Cap City store in San Jose, California

The Hub Cap City has been a landmark of sorts on old San Carlos Street west of downtown San Jose for many years. I think it is easy to see why… :-)

(Update 2026: Sadly this storefront is no more. “Hubcap City” lives on, but in a different location, where it is now more or less a lot full of old stuff on a nondescript street corner.)

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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” (Heyday Books) is available directly from him. Blog | Bluesky | Mastodon | Substack Notes | Flickr | Email

All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others.

Ideas, Morning Musings

What the Heck is Dan Shooting!?

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Some of you who like my landscape/nature work may wonder what the heck I’m doing with the “urban photography” that I’ve posted here during the past few weeks. Get ready for more – there are currently about 10 photographs of similar subjects in the pipeline. Perhaps some explanation is in order.

This isn’t really a new thing for me – I’ve posted urban and “industrial” photographs in the past. (See the night photography section in my Gallery for some obvious examples, and also take a look at some of the “City” photographs while you are there.) Quite a few of them are what I think of as urban landscape photography, and to some extent I approach making these photographs much the same way I approach nature and landscape shooting. I wander about looking for stuff that appeals to me, often looking for effects of light, pattern, or color – and then I photograph it.

Besides the obvious subject differences – yes, I do realize that dilapidated buildings are not the same as aspen forests – I shoot differently, at least for some of this photography. While I do sometimes cart a tripod into urban environments, more often I travel light – ironically perhaps, usually lighter than I do when I go out for a weeklong pack trip! I generally do not use a tripod, I virtually never carry all of my lenses, and sometimes I just go out with a prime or two.

I hope you enjoy this change of pace, and that in some way you can see connections to my photographs of the natural world. (There is actually a long philosophical discussion I could have about that very topic, but I’ll spare everyone…) In any case, I’m sure that the flow of landscapes and nature photographs will resume in a week or so.

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” (Heyday Books) is available directly from him.

G Dan Mitchell: Blog | Bluesky | Mastodon | Substack Notes | Flickr | Email


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

Photographs: San Francisco

Embarcadero Buildings and Bay Bridge

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Embarcadero Buildings and Bay Bridge

Embarcadero Buildings and Bay Bridge. San Francisco, California. July 3, 2008. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Color photograph of buildings near The Embarcadero and the Bay Bridge in San Francisco – photographed from AT&T Park.

keywords: san francisco, california, usa, bay, waterfront, embarcadero, condos, condominium, apartment, window, building, oakland, bridge, tower, cable, scenic, travel, stock, roof, reflection, urban, city, downtown, home, light, king, street