Tag Archives: san jose

Saint Ansel of the Donut Shop

March 29, 2015 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

Sunlit donut shop interior with semi-concealed photograph

This photograph comes from a memorable little photo excursion… that started at my front door. Some years ago (wow, has it been five years!?) I decided on Christmas Eve day to go out for a walk with my camera. It was an afternoon of interesting light, and it seemed like something to do. As I walked through the familiar neighborhood several things surprised me. As I recall, the long winter shadows of trees were appearing on buildings everywhere I looked and they became a subject. And I also saw things in this neighborhood that I thought I knew so well — I’ve lived here for decades — that I simply had not noticed before.

There is something about having a camera in hand that changes the way I see. Usually it is all too easy to see “casually” without really considering or even really noticing what is right there. For example, I distinctly noticing for the first time the fronts of the upper stories of buildings in the small downtown business area. I had no doubt walked that street hundreds of times before without paying any conscious attention to them. As I walked past this little donut shop, beautiful late-afternoon light flooded its interior. Again, though I had been inside many times (yum! donuts!) this was the first time that I noticed the old Ansel Adams reproduction on the wall. (There is an earlier version of this photograph in black and white.)

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: Architecture, Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: Urban/Street

Building, Windows, Blinds

February 28, 2015 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

An urban building with vertical windows and blinds

I think I’ll stick with the black and white theme for one more day. This is a photograph I made five years ago. I remember stopping at this oddly plain little building on a walk not far from where I live. It was Christmas Eve day, and things were slowing down in anticipation of holiday festivities, so I went out on one of my local “photo walks” in the surrounding neighborhood. I do this from time to time for reasons that range from the desire to practice and tune up my “seeing” to wanting to see my surroundings more clearly — there is nothing like wandering with a camera in hand to encourage me to see things I would otherwise overlook. (One of the first times I did this in the neighborhood I was shocked to notice the upper stories on nearby business buildings that I had walked past for years.)

I think this must be some sort of office building, and perhaps behind these tightly shut blinds there is some sort of personal world that the rest of us cannot see. The outside of the building seems incredibly boring and lacking in any intentional design sense, yet the odd but functional windows start to look very strange when shot close up and without the rest of the building visible. The late afternoon sun was casting shadows from nearby trees to produce the mottled light.

Photographs: Music & Musicians

The Choral Project (and more…)

December 19, 2014 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

Members of the Choral Project raise their hands as they rehearse for a joint holiday concert with the San Jose Chamber Orchestra

I have more than one reason for sharing this photograph. First of all, I like the photo! I think it captures the focus, intensity, and joy of the chorus members as they raise their hands and sing this gospel number at a rehearsal for this week’s holiday concert.

And the second reason? To let my San Francisco Bay Area friends know about this wonderful joint holiday concert by the San Jose Chamber Orchestra and The Choral Project, an annual tradition that brings together both groups, wonderful soloists, and a diverse range of music, old and new and from all over the planet. Here is more information about the concert:

Winter’s Gifts: Evocations

Saturday, December 20 – 8:00 PM
First Presbyterian Church
1140 Cowper St.
Palo Alto

Sunday, December 21 – 7:00 PM
Mission Santa Clara de Asis
500 El Camino Real
Santa Clara

Photographs: Music & Musicians

Classical Musicians — Four Photographs

November 23, 2014 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

This post includes a set of four black and white photographs from my ongoing project photographing classical musicians.

Musicians backstage preparing for the concert.

Musicians backstage at the California Theater, preparing for a Symphony Silicon Valley concert

Timpanist Robert Erlebach and conductor Karen Kamensek consult the score during a break in a Symphony Silicon Valley rehearsal

Conductor Karen Kamensek and violinist Allison “Gigi” Dang consult the conductor’s score during a rehearsal break

G Dan Mitchell Photography

Tag Archives: san jose

Saint Ansel of the Donut Shop

Building, Windows, Blinds

The Choral Project (and more…)

Classical Musicians — Four Photographs

Photographer and visual opportunist. Daily photos since 2005, plus articles, reviews, news, and ideas.