Tag Archives: shadow

Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Night, Photographs: Ocean & Coast, Photographs: Structures and Objects, Photographs: Urban/Street

Mare Island Buildings With Moon Shadows

February 9, 2009 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

Shadows from moonlight passing through shipyard structures fall across walls on historic buildings at the Mare Island Naval Shipyard, Vallejo, California.

I have shot almost this precise scene previously, and under similar circumstances – on a night photography shoot with The Nocturnes, the SF Bay Area night photography group led by Tim Baskerville. Last night we were back at Mare Island Naval Shipyard (MINSY) again, this time with perhaps 40 photographers.

After meeting up with everyone and getting organized, I wandered over near the MINSY museum to shoot some brick walls, shipyard structures, and – especially – the shadows cast by the nearly full moon on the ground and the building walls. It was to be a short shoot…

I composed this one with interest in the paired shadows on the walls – one on the green section and the other higher on the brick section – and the contrast between the brick colors and the green wall at the right. I also wanted to include the metal roof beyond and the power plant smokestack in the distance – and, of course, a few star trails above – and I was (and am) intrigued by the combinations of vertical, horizontal, and diagonal forms. I made this first exposure – nearly five minutes – and then set up a second shot while waiting for the dark frame exposure to finish.

After getting the second shot I framed another that included a different section of the brick wall and shadows plus the base of a huge steel shipyard structure. With everything ready I pressed the shutter… and something didn’t sound right. The camera didn’t make an exposure. I tried again – still nothing. At this point I checked the display and found the Canon “err 99” message that can crop up from time to time. The usual solution is to remove the battery, the lens, and perhaps the CF card and then try again – it almost always works. This time it didn’t. I tried a different lens. A different battery. I finally determined that something had gone very wrong with the shutter mechanism, which simply wasn’t opening. Argghhh. So, after making two exposures I packed up, walked back to my car and did the 90 minute drive back home.

Today I put the 5D a box and shipped it off to Canon. We’ll see what happens. I’m sort of inclined to get a 5D II and keep this body for backup after it is repaired. But wouldn’t you know it… while bodies were available last week from several vendors for about $2700, they all seem to be gone now. Double argghhh…

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: mare island, naval shipyard, historic, navy, building, structure, wall, roof, window, ladder, smoke stack, chimney, boarded up, covered, drain, downspout, wire, sidewalk, shadow, full, moon, moonlight, moonshadow, star, sky, trails, night, photography, light, urban, architecture, california, usa, vallejo, green

Photographs: Death Valley, Photographs: Desert, Photographs: Structures and Objects

Schoolhouse Windows and Sky

February 7, 2009 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

Schoolhouse windows and sky – Rhyolite, Nevada.

Back in April 2008 my brother and I spent several days photographing in and around Death Valley National Park. (I try to visit DV every April, and I’m hoping to be there again this year.) On this morning we got up early and drove to the historic ghost town of Rhyolite before dawn and spent a few hours photographing the old ruins, starting with pre-dawn light and continuing well into the morning. (When we finished we headed over to nearby Beatty, Nevada to get breakfast and gas, the latter at a much lower price than back in DV.) The old school house is one of the buildings that has withstood the ravages of the desert better than others. Despite losing windows, roof, and much else the building still stands – among the destroyed ruins of many other buildings. This photograph, made very close to actual dawn, looks through the interior of the building by lining up windows on a couple walls, with the nearby hills and high morning clouds seen beyond.

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: ghost town, abandoned, school, rhyolite, mine, mining, nevada, death valley, national, park, structure, wall, window, sky, cloud, blue, light, morning, crack, stucco, wood, weathered, pattern, hill, mountain, ridge, shadow, travel, historic, history, scenic, architecture, frame, sill, stock

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

Plastic Covered Window

January 20, 2009 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

Plastic covers the window of a stucco house being remodeled in San Jose, California.

This photograph was taken literally within walking distance of my home – I know this because I walked there! At first the slanting shadows dropping from right to left across the wall caught my attention. Then the interplay between the shadows and the deep textures of the stucco wall caught my eye. Eventually, I began to like the plastic sheet (obviously put there to protect the glass from paint) and the way it obscures the interior of the building. In the end I can’t make up my mind whether the photo is simply a geometric/texture study or perhaps something a little more mysterious.

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: plastic, sheet, tape, mask, masking, window. curve, white, frame, curve, glass, frame, brick, arch, wall, stucco, texture, shadow, paint, scraped, peeling, construction, remodel, willow glen, san jose, california, usa, urban, street, structure, building, house, home, stock

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

Winter Tree Shadow on Purple Wall

January 12, 2009 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

The shadow of a winter tree falls across a purple wall in a San Jose, California parking lot.

On Saturday, as I wrote earlier, one the subjects I focused on during my urban photography walk was the shadows of winter trees, which seem to be everywhere this time of year when the sun is so low in the sky. The wall of this building really is this wild shade of purple, and I like the way the tree shadows fall across it and are offset by the almost monochromatic asphalt of the bit of parking lot showing at the bottom of the frame.

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: purple, wall, brick, cinder block, lines, horizontal, vertical, pattern, structure, parking lot, winter, tree, branch, shadow, leaves, parking lot, asphalt, willow glen, san jose, california, usa, urban, street, architecture, stock, color

G Dan Mitchell Photography

Tag Archives: shadow

Mare Island Buildings With Moon Shadows

Plastic Covered Window

Winter Tree Shadow on Purple Wall

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