Tag Archives: urban

Photographs: Night, Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: Structures and Objects, Photographs: Urban/Street

Building 417, Green Shadows and Red Sky

February 17, 2010 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

Dilapidated Building 417 under garish green light and reddish sky, Mare Island Naval Ship Yard, Vallejo, California.

I think this photograph probably includes some of the most bizarre lighting that I’ve encountered at Mare Island when doing night photography there. The majority of the light comes from the right, from artificial light that has been roughly color corrected to appear relatively white, at least by comparison to some of the other light colors in this image. The garish green color comes from some add artificial light behind my camera position – the same light that appears in a recently posted photograph of Building 631 with it terribly peeling wooden walls. (One odd touch – note that the shadow of the tree that appears near the center of the lower part of the building is illuminated by this light, explaining the green tree.) The green tones also appear in the stripe of paint along the upper edge of the old loading dock, in the small #417 sign at the peak of the building, and in the less-dark portions of the tree at upper right. Then the sky ends up with odd reddish-brown light reflected on the bottoms of the moving clouds, and a similar tone is found on the wall pattern of the building in the background on the left side of the frame. Finally, though it is hard to see in this small image, there is a bit of sort of grayish-purple in the window frame at the right border of the frame.

This photograph is not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

keywords: mare, island, naval, ship, yard, historic, vallejo, california, usa, nocturnes, night, photography, structures, red, green, garish, artificial, light, sidewalk, street, lines, cement, wall, loading, dock, corrugated, building, 417, angles, architecture, windows, door, wall, tree, urban, north america, roof, sign, stock, minsy

Photographs: Night, Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: Structures and Objects, Photographs: Urban/Street

Brick Wall and Windows, Reflection

February 12, 2010 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

Night photography of structures in the “historic core” of the Mare Island Naval Ship Yard with reflection in a rain puddle – Vallejo, California.

A few times each year I have the pleasure of photographing at the Mare Island Naval Ship Yard with The Nocturnes, the San Francisco Bay Area night photography group founded my Tim Baskerville and now an important resource for information about night photography, night photography workshops, and fine night photography. During the first weekend of February I joined a small group for a visit to “the dark side” at Mare Island. In contrast to typical shoots there, this time there was no moon. However, since it had rained earlier in the day the clearing clouds and left-over reflecting puddles provided special conditions that aren’t usually available.

This scene is probably familiar to almost anyone who has shot at Mare Island. The brick wall and windows belong to the museum located in the “historic core” of the facility at the corner of 8th and Nimitz, where the huge overhead structures were used to move heavy equipment and parts to the ship construction area along the waterfront.

This photograph is not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

keywords: mare, island, naval, ship, yard, historic, vallejo, california, usa, historic, site, 8th, street, nimitz, avenue, night, photography, nocturnal, the, nocturnes, window, frame, brick, wall, museum, building, architecture, scaffold, crane, sky, cloud, water, rain, puddle, pool, reflection, sidewalk, railroad, tracks, stop, sign, asphalt, urban, industrial, old, stock, san francisco, bay, area

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

Central Courtyard, Rain, Curved Window – Getty Center

February 11, 2010 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

The central courtyard of the Getty Center on a rainy day as viewed through a curved window from the entrance rotunda.

The typical arrival at the Getter Center is via the tram from the parking area, and after leaving the tram and walk up the shallow stairs most people first enter this round, glass-enclosed space from which I made this photograph during my rainy and foggy visit to the Center near the very end of 2009. I shot this view into the wet and almost deserted courtyard through the curved windows using a wide angle lens. I was thinking about several things as I made this photograph: the angular vertical shapes of the outdoor buildings, the perspective lines of the balconies and the pool receding toward the very foggy distance, and the dissonance of the curved window and especially the curving and sweeping “lines” of the window frames.

This photograph is not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

keywords: getty, center, los angeles, california, usa, museum, winter, travel, urban, art, rain, cloud, fog, wet, reflection, column, window, pane, curve, floor, tree, table, chairs, umbrellas, mist, building, architecture, structure, balcony, railing, stairs, person, fountain, water, sign, stock, rembrandt, his, pupils, exhibit

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

House with Window, Purple Trim, and Plastic Tree

February 8, 2010 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

An old suburban home with barred window, purple trim, brick steps, and plastic Christmas Tree – San Jose, California.

I made this photograph on a late afternoon/early evening “photo walk” from my home. This is an interesting and perplexing building. It is a very unusual home, as you can see from the unusual room line and the shapes at the end of the rounded eaves. Someone perhaps once put a lot of thought and effort into creating such an unusual building – unlike most others in the area. But as the place has aged the result has not been wholly wonderful. The purple paint isn’t necessarily a bad thing – just a bit unusual – but it is quite worn. The tiny plastic Christmas tree to the right of the front door is a strange touch; it still has a very small string of lights attached. And things are a bit off-kilter. The room angles don’t quite match up and the grate over the window tilts to one side. Although this was originally a home, I can’t really tell for sure if it is still a home or if it has become some sort of office or business.

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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.

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