Tag Archives: tree

Winter Shadows on Tiles

Winter Shadows on Tiles

Winter Shadows on Tiles. San Jose, California. January 20, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

The shadow of a winter tree falls on a tile wall in San Jose, California.

I was originally thinking of photographing redwoods yesterday, but instead I decided to save some gas and again photograph within walking distance of my home. (I may try the redwoods today – it seems like time to do some landscape photography again.) As I walked , the winter shadows of trees that appear nearly everywhere in the low angle mid winter light caught my attention and became the subject of perhaps half of the photographs I made. This is a very simple photo – simply the shadows of a nearby tree falling obliquely across some stone wall tiles.

On a slightly technical note, I took along a new lens, the Canon EF 85mm f/1.8 prime. I’ll have more to write about this lens in the blog before long, but for now I’ll say it is performing a bit beyond my expectations.

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: winter, season, shadow, tille, wall, grout, leaf, branch, tree, squares, pattern, geometric, swirl, rock, stone, yellow, red, abstract, nature, urban, street, willow glen, san jose, california, usa, stock

Pipe, Sidewalk, Wall with Tree Shadow

Pipe, Sidewalk, Wall with Tree Shadow

Pipe, Sidewalk, Wall with Tree Shadow. San Jose, California. January 4, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Early evening shadows from a nearby tree fall on shop wall behind leaf littered sidewalk and pipe barricade.

A theme on this day’s urban walk was the patterns cast by late afternoon tree shadows on a variety of walls. This example is very close to my home, and the scene is truly unremarkable – you might think of it almost as a “photograph of nothing.”

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: afternoon, building, california, city, county, downtown, evening, san jose, santa clara, urban, wall, stucco, texture, tree, shadow, pattern, pipe, barricade, sidewalk, line, litter, architecture, evening, light, cast, shop, store, willow glen, street. stock, leaf

Twilight in the Urban Forest

Twilight in the Urban Forest

Twilight in the Urban Forest. San Jose, California. January 4, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Trees and the side of an office building are illuminated by evening light reflected from the windows of a nearby building.

There is more than meets the eye in this photograph, and even when you think you have figured out why there is more than meets the eye I think there will still be more that you may not yet have noticed. I’ll continue to be enigmatic and say that “all is not what it seems in this photograph.” :-)

I will say that I made the photograph while wandering around downtown San Jose, California on an “urban photo walk” over the weekend, hunting for interesting street and urban images. This and all the photos I made that afternoon and evening were made in traditional “street” style using a 35mm prime.

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: afternoon, building, california, city, county, downtown, evening, san jose, santa clara, urban, tree, forest, reflection, shadow, building, office, windows, side, sidewalk, plant, evening, golden hour, stock, illusion, twilight

Storefronts and Tree, First Street

Storefronts and Tree, First Street

Storefronts and Tree, First Street. San Jose, California. December 26, 2008. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A dilapidated storefront and a tree along First Street in San Jose, California.

This is another in a series of photographs that may be a bit troubling for those of you who follow my landscape and nature photography. Try to think of it as “urban landscape” – that’s what I do! :-)

I have my oldest son, Brandon, to thank for this photo and others in this series. He is a big fan of what I call “urban hiking” – long walks in central city urban areas, often industrial in nature. We finally had the opportunity to do a three hour urban hike in the downtown San Jose area just after Christmas, and we both brought our cameras along. Several things caught my eye about this scene: the wild colors of the paint and some of the window decorations on the lower floor, the shape for the tree in front of the building, the wash of light from across the street and behind my position as I shot this, and the regular horizontal patterns of road, curb, sidewalk, windows, moulding, and more windows.

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: store, shop, building, windows, doors, reflections, pipe, merchandise, tree, trunk, branch, leaves, street, lane, sidewalk, curb, bricks, tile, store, downtown, urban, street, first, san jose, california, usa, stock