Tag Archives: germany

Interior, St. Lorenz Church

“Interior, St. Lorenz Church” — The interior of the St. Lorenz Church, Nürnberg, Germany.

During our time in Germany in late 2024 we made a side trip to Nürnberg, Bavaria. This is the site of what I understand to be the most famous of the German Christmas markets. We wanted to visit since we were in Germany during the market season. The Nürnberg market(s) is(are) extensive. The huge main market is in the Hauptmarkt square, but the festivities spill over onto other streets in the city. But the markets aren’t all that is worth seeing in this city, and on this day we visited several historic churches.

Our first stop was the St. Lorenz church, an impressive medieval church. It was damaged in WWII but restored, so that you might not notice that anything has changed. It is a Lutheran church, but it feels quite similar to many European Catholic cathedrals, having the same immense scale, columns, vaulted ceilings, and natural light. I made this photograph to show the huge columns and the open feeling created by the light streaming through the many windows.


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.

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Munich Christmas Market

“Munich Christmas Market” — The evening crowd at the Munich Christmas Market.

Among other things, we timed our late-2024 trip to Europe to coincide with the Christmas market season. We had heard about these events for years, and this was finally our opportunity to see some of them as we visited various cities. Our main targets were in Germany, but before we were done we also saw some in France and Spain. They are everywhere, and the basic theme is similar despite regional variations. (Gluhwein in Germany becomes vin chaud in France.)

Munich was the final Germany city we visited this time. We were not there primarily for the Christmas market — we planned to attend a concert, go out to dinner, and generally experience the place. But on the first afternoon our walking route took us right through this main market. It was crowded, to the point that it was hard to walk. Vendor stalls lined the street, selling all kinds of holiday items, from food and drink to Christmas ornaments and warm gloves and socks.


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.

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

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The Pegnitz, Nürnberg

“The Pegnitz, Nürnberg” — Buildings along the Pegnitz River in Nürnberg, Germany.

While we were in Heidelberg, Germany back in November and early December, we took several side trips. Early on we spent three nights in Alsace, and we visited Munich before we moved on to France. Midway through the stay we took a side trip to Nürnberg, the site of one of the largest and best known German Christmas markets. While there we saw much more than just the holiday festivities — there is a lot to see in this city.

Nürnberg is a very large, modern city, but it is built around the original old town, a central area within the original city walls. (Much of the old town was destroyed in WWII, and today it holds some old buildings, some modern reconstructions, and a lot of newer buildings.) The Pegnitz River runs through the center and bridges frequently cross it. It seems to be a pretty sedate river, and the water is still enough to reflect the old buildings that stand along its banks.


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.

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

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Zigaretten

Zigaretten
A cigarette vending machine along a street near Heidelberg, Germany

Zigaretten. © Copyright 2022 G Dan Mitchell.

A cigarette vending machine along a street near Heidelberg, Germany.

I cannot say if these things are still around in Germany, but they were back in 2016, much to my surprise. (I haven’t seen anything like them in the USA in years.) This is another “rediscovered” photograph that I came across while going through older files. One side effect of that is that I’m not quite exactly sure where I made the photograph! I think it was in a small village up the Neckar River from Heidelberg.

One challenge that I like to play with is making photographs out of subjects that seem superficially very mundane, here a vending machine attached to a wall. But there are a few layers of “what else” this photograph is. I contend that the play of light and shadow is both compositionally interesting and actually kind of “pretty.” And the subject itself makes me think about how times have changed from when I was younger and smoking was ubiquitous.


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.

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

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