Tag Archives: monochrome

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

Holiday Lights, Mercado de San Miguel

Image February 21, 2025 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

Yes, the Mercado de San Miguel is a tourist hub, and yes it is right next door to another hub, the Plaza Mayor. While you probably don’t want to spend your entire time in Madrid at such places, this mercado is kind of fun and has a lot to offer. Our favorite vendor sells vermut and skewered treats built around fascinating variations on the traditional gilda. If you go, embrace the crowdedness and enjoy the food.

On this evening we passed by a bit later — we were not there to eat, but instead were on a walk to some other locations. Surprisingly the crowds had diminished a bit, and we were able to enjoy the holiday decorations on the building as we walked along.

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” from Heyday Books, is available directly from G Dan Mitchell.

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

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

Rounding the Corner

Image February 18, 2025 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

Photo of a women walking on a darkened street in Madrid — “Rounding the Corner” — A woman walks around a corner on a quiet Madrid street at night.

Madrid is quite active at night — you’ve perhaps heard about the very late dinner hour there? We visited during the December holiday season, when the sun sets early, so there were even more hours of nighttime activity. I love to photograph urban areas at night, and these factors gave me lots of opportunities. Here a woman walks through a beam of light as she rounds a corner on a quiet street.

While it was possible to find quiet moments like this, many places in Madrid were packed with people during the holiday season, especially in the late afternoons and evenings. Major streets were filled with pedestrians and restaurants and bars were packed.

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 G Dan Mitchell.

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

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: New York City, Photographs: Travel, Photographs: Urban/Street

Old Tree, Central Park

Image February 14, 2025 G Dan Mitchell 2 Comments

We were in New York City during the holidays this past December. We had just the right amount of snowfall, an inch or so to create a mood but not enough to bring things to a standstill. We stayed not far from Central Park — perhaps a ten minute walk from the west past the natural history museum — and we visited on several mornings. I’ve come to understand how Manhattanites value the place as their portal to nature.

Much of the snow had melted by the time of this visit, but if you look closely you may notice a bit left on the grassy area under the tree. The park is full of remarkable groves and individual trees, but this specimen especially caught my attention. It is a very big tree and its branches spread widely over this area of meadow.

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.

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

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

Street Vendor, Madrid

Image January 30, 2025 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

Near the end of our December visit to Madrid we went on a long walk that took us to the famous El Rastro Sunday street/flea market in the Barrios de Embajadores area. From what I gather, this market has been going on for centuries. There is a small market square, but the main action takes place up and down nearby streets where scores of vendors are set up and thousands of shoppers completely fill the narrow streets.

If you like observing and photographing people and don’t mind working in close quarters, this event presents a plethora of visual opportunities. The market stalls are fascinating, as are the wildly diverse shoppers checking out them out. You can find almost anything here: clothes, toys, hats, cameras, phones, cookware, food, you name it. I photographed this vendor, sitting on a stool in an uncharacteristically minimalist “booth.”