iPhone Photos

Alaska, Iphone, Photography, Street, Travel

I have been pretentious when it comes to phone cameras. Always the last one I go for, often forgetting I have it.

That’s unfair of me. Camera phones continue to change our world in ways we can’t predict or fully understand. The ease, concealment and wide-spread use share the world more then any medium before. From pets to people, welcome parties to war zones, the game has changed.

“You finally have a video technology that can fit into the palm of one person’s hand, and what the person can capture can end up around the world,” James E. Katz is quoted saying in a 2011 New York Times article.

Here’s an edit of some of my iPhone images.

For only $29 you can look horrible like snooki too!

Broken. Me Too.

Colorful and salubrious bloody marry.

Worker on the tarmac.

Bikers prepare to leave Denali National Park.

The Palace at Versailles – Part One.

architecture, Black & White, Photography, Travel

Above: The private cathedral at the Palace of Versailles.

Chateau de Versailles is unlike anything I have ever seen. Enormous, gaudy, deluxe, extravagant, historical, overwhelming and beautiful, all barely begin to describe the centerpiece of the Paris suburb of Versailles.

Originally built as a hunting lodge for King Louis XIII, the Palace at Versailles was the official seat of power for courts and the government from 1682 until the French Revolution in 1789. Indeed, Chateau de Versailles played a large role in the anger French citizens had directed toward the aristocracy – and the resident King Louis XVI and his wife Marie-Antionette were forced to flee the palace, before both being executed.

Louis XVI was preceded by his grandfather, Louis XV, who allegedly foresaw the revolutions, as legend says he proclaimed “Après moi, le déluge,” which translates to “After me, the flood.”

This is first in a series of three posts with pictures from the Palace at Versailles.

Beginning the tour of the Palace, July 12, 2013.

Every square inch is decorated, and ceilings become canvases for colorful paintings. As well as the cause of a sore neck.

Statues and busts fill any available spot, often portrayed in classical greek style.

Statue, Palace of Versailles.

Weekly Photo Challenge: Layers

Abstract, Iphone, Landscapes, Photography, Street, Travel, Weekly Photo Post

Above: The silhouette of a tree creates abstract patterns as colors cascade across Green Lake in Seattle, WA.

Using layers effectively can be a powerful way to captivate an audience. The effect of taking a three-dimensional scene and rendering it two-dimensional can be greatly minimized by offering multiple layers as focal plains to create depth.

An easy trick to think about is having something in the foreground, mid ground and background. Shoot through objects like fences, window frames or tree limbs to instantly add depth. Clouds, fog and mist all help individual layers stand out from each other, and adding a reflection can quickly increase depth.

The edge of a window, clouds and shoreline make for three very distinct layers.

Reflections and multiple rooms with varied lighting create a confusing set of layers.

Multiple rooms with varied lighting and window reflections create a confusing set of layers.

Foreground, mid ground and background to create layers, with complementary colors to boot!

End Road

Alaska, Landscapes, Photography, Street, Travel

The scene begged to be pictured. A sign proclaiming the road is about to end with the appearance of nearly-infinite wilderness ahead. Yellow sky blending perfectly with the yellow traffic advisory.

Perhaps I could have included a little more of the road’s imminent end, but the composition’s subtle symmetry would have suffered.

In the end it’s nothing more then a little cracked asphalt, a sign, and a large field cleared for moose habitat. With striking juxtapositions.

P.S. There’s a new drop down “Categories” bar on my blog page. Picking any genre will show all the posts I’ve put in that category.

More Paris Street Photography

Photography, Street, Travel

Above: Color and form first attracted me to the setting below the Eiffel Tower, then a fellow photographer in a too-see-through dress added some unique content.

The post title says it all – street photography from beautiful Paris.

I really like how all the elements form an abstract nature: water jets slice through the frame, a young girl apparently in the path of large sliding figure, and the flat perspective give the viewer leeway in interpreting the image.

Statues, sprinklers and fun in the sun. July 9, 2013.

Cigarettes and coffee play an important role in French culture.

Intently writing and smoking in a Paris cafe.

Sometimes a subject catches you taking the photograph. That happened when a lady standing in lovely light with great hair saw me snap my shutter. Perhaps my favorite element in the image is the suitcase-pulling pedestrian in distance.

Getting the glare, July 8 2013, Paris.

Inside Notre Dame Cathedral

architecture, Photography, Travel

Above: The ceiling of Notre Dame Cathedral

I’ve been blogging about travels in Europe last summer – since my objective is to go mostly chronological this is one of my last posts from Paris, save film shots or missed images. This is also my last post from Notre Dame Cathedral. Today we travel inside.

With anything so grandeur it’s impossible to capture to the feeling of being there. Indeed that could be said for any photograph.

Arches and chandeliers inside Notre Dame Cathedral

The main altar inside Notre Dame from behind

The main altar front, complete with floor cleaning.

Notre dame has many altars, the following photo is one of the side altars.

Side altar, Notre Dame Cathedral, July 10, 2013.

Photographing inside Notre Dame Cathedral does require a somewhat advanced digital camera. The lack of light means shooting at ISO 1600 minimum.

Arches and a chandelier.

Halloween Special: Necropolis under Paris

Black & White, Photography, Travel

Above: Skulls and bones in the Paris catacombs.

“Arrête, c’est ici l’empire de la mort.”

“Halt, this is the realm of death,” the carving above the entrance to the elaborate labyrinth reads.

To set the mood:

It’s dark: the light from incandescent bulbs casting hard shadows. It’s warm and damp: 130 tight steps and 20 meters, or 63 feet, below the streets of paris – the temperature rises as water drops from the ceiling. It’s huge: The ossuary under Paris is the world’s largest, with over 2 kilometers of walkways and more then 6 million skeletons!

Originally a limestone quarry – likely where the stone to build Notre Dame Cathedral was mined – earth this deep dates from the Lutetian period, between 48 and 40 million years ago. During the French revolution there was a land grab, and cemeteries surrounding churches were dug up. The bones were then stacked in piles underground, and on April 7, 1786, the catacombs were established.

Long exposures create ghost-like figures, blurring the lines between life and death.

A sickly green accent light helps illuminate an untold amount of bones.

A family with surprisingly young children work their way through the catacombs.

A family with young children work their way through the bones of the catacombs.

Paris Street Photography

Photography, Street, Travel

Above: A kiss and some butt grab in Paris, July 10, 2013.

A quick post for today, some various street photography from Paris, France. Be sure and check out tomorrows halloween post, when we’ll visit the Paris catacombs, the world’s biggest.

I talked previously about my struggles with street photography, mostly blurry images. Some of these would benefit from being sharper.

What caught my attention for the first image – aside from the rich, wafting smell of tar – was the nearly archaic buckets these workers were using to patch street asphalt.

Using old wooden buckets to transport tar.

I wanted to capture the contrast between simplicity and depth for the next image. The elements all worked out, starting with the hair, to the face in the mirror, and unexpectedly the pedestrian crossing the street with a lawn chair.

Mopeds, pedestrians and tour busses.

Finally: I loved seeing people reading newspapers, always trying to get a decent photo.

Weekly Photo Challenge: Mt. Rainier Horizions.

Landscapes, Photography, Travel, Weekly Photo Post

Above: A riverbed in late fall offers little more then a creek winding into Mt. Rainier.

The horizon, like the end of a rainbow, is unreachable. Constantly changing – expanding and contracting, becoming more open or more obscured. Horizons inspire adventures and dreams, spawn stunning sunsets and create wonders.

Horizon is also the weekly photo challenge.

Paradise, located 5,400 feet up Washington’s Mt. Rainer, can supply spectacular views. As well as keep them completely hidden. I got a taste of both possibilities hiking there August, 2012.

Clouds lift, if only for a moment, to reveal a expansive view.

This time clouds descended to create a more abstract horizon line.

Again clouds create the horizon, no panorama today. Panorama Point, elevation 6,800 feet.

Paris from the top of Notre Dame Cathedral

Photography, Travel

Above: A gargoyle looks over Paris and the Seine River, with the Eiffel Tower far in the background.

Scaling the skinny 400-step spiral staircase in the west buttress of Notre Dame Cathedral is not easy. It is a fascinating, historical experience, and well worth the wait in line.

First stop is the chimera gallery – chimera meaning animal – which features an array of mythical creatures. At 46 meters, or 151 feet, above the ground you’re already above much of the Paris skyline.

The Chimera gallery is the same height as the Cathedrals main roof. The bronze statues visible are some of the 12 apostles.

The roof of Notre Dame Cathedral and apostle statues, July 10, 2013.

After crossing the gallery more stairs are in store. The top of the belfry is an impressive 69 meters, 226 feet, above ground. Here a full 360 degree view of paris is attained, as well as a feeling of helplessness if there were to be an emergency.

The roof of the previous picture can be seen leading into the cathedrals spire with the apostle statues. The Seine river winds out of the frame. The only thing more impressive then the view is realizing the tower is roughly 800 years old!