Tag Archives: facade

Photographs: Europe, Photographs: Spain, Photographs: Travel, Photographs: Urban/Street

Au Natural Pizza

Image Leave a comment
Au Natural Pizza
“Au Natural Pizza” — Painted roll-up door on Au Natural Pizza, Sevilla, Spain.

You may have noticed that I photograph a lot of stuff like this, especially for someone who gets categorized as a “landscape photographer.” There’s a lot to say about that, but I’ll save it for the second paragraph. (Those who follow me on social media will have to click through.) This beautifully painted roll-up door and facade are on a small shop along a business street in Sevilla, Spain. That harsh light is seems fairly typical there at this time of day.

So, why does a “landscape photographer” photograph all of this city stuff? A full answer is longer than a paragraph, but here are a few thoughts. For one, like many photographers I am fascinated by the basic “material” of photographs — the textures, colors, shapes, form, composition, light, and so on. And these things are present everywhere, including in cities. I also do not limit my concept of “landscape” to the natural world. As such, these are “urban landscapes.” I’m also fascinated by what these scenes tell us about the people and cultures with which they are associated. To keep it simple enough for this paragraph, they illustrate both similarities among and difference between cultures.

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 | Instagram | Flickr | Facebook | Threads | Post | Email

Links: Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Info.

Scroll down to share comments or questions. (Click post title first if viewing on the home page.)

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

Photographs: Europe, Photographs: Spain, Photographs: Travel, Photographs: Urban/Street

Bar Bistec, Sevilla

Image Leave a comment
Bar Bistec, Sevilla
“Bar Bistec, Sevilla” — Bar Bistec, a cafe-bar in Sevilla, Spain.

On this morning we crossed the wide canal near the old part of Sevilla where we were staying, and wandered through a newer (less-old?) section of town. After visiting the farmer’s market, we walked through an area with shops and restaurants, then followed streets that paralleled the canal and took us into what one well-known travel writer might describe as “workaday” neighborhoods.

This establishment was in one of those areas. To an American it might seem odd that it was, if my memory is correct, almost next door to a large church — but that’s not so uncommon in Europe. I like several things about this subject, including the arrangement of rectangles, the colors, and the signs. But above all else is that intense daytime light of summer in Spain.

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 | Instagram | Flickr | Facebook | Threads | Post | Email

Links: Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Info.

Scroll down to share comments or questions. (Click post title first if viewing on the home page.)

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

Photographs: Architecture, Photographs: Europe, Photographs: Italy, Photographs: Travel

Detail, Duomo of Orvieto

Image Leave a comment
Detail, Duomo of Orvieto
“Detail, Duomo of Orvieto” — Detail of a twisting column from the facade of the Duomo of Orvieto, Italy.

As per the common pattern, the hilltop town of Orvieto Italy has a large “duomo” on a central square. As is also typical, the facade of this church is packed with remarkable visual features — statuary, columns and arches, and fascinating details like this twisting column. Much of it is high enough that it can only be seen at a distance, but this bit is right for eye-level viewing.

You can read about these places and look at pictures of them for years (as I, a late-in-life traveler, did) and not really understand the effect of their physical reality. In particular, if you imagine them in the times when they were first created you start to understand how astonishing and even magical they must have been (and still are). It is remarkable that those who produced a structure that depends so much on massive scale for its effect also had the energy to attend to such tiny details with so much precision.

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 | Instagram | Flickr | Facebook | Threads | Post | Email

Links: Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Info.

Scroll down to share comments or questions. (Click post title first if viewing on the home page.)

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

Photographs: Europe, Photographs: Italy, Photographs: Travel, Photographs: Urban/Street

Fond Antico

Image Leave a comment
Fond Antico
“Fond Antico” — Diffused light on the shaded facades of buildings along a narrow Bologna street.

I photographed this bit of Bologna architecture on a “random walk” during our 2023 summer visit. In the morning we headed out with no particular destination in mind, just expecting to wander and see what we might discover. We had a vague plan to start near the two famous towers not far from the central piazza, and then we just kept going until we came to the edge of the old part of the town. We turned around and began to improvise a different route back.

I can’t tell you exactly where I made this photograph, since by this time we were following our instincts rather than a map. We changed directions as we saw interesting things, and our route was anything but direct. I was first intrigued by the arched doorways on this building, but the light also fascinated me. The combination of reddish earth tones and light reflected from other buildings on the narrow street reminds me of walking the narrow canyons of the American Southwest.

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 | Instagram | Flickr | Facebook | Threads | Post | Email

Links: Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Info.

Scroll down to share comments or questions. (Click post title first if viewing on the home page.)

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