More Paris Street Photography

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!

The very top of Notre Dame Cathedral, looking west.

More Cluny Museum – Stained Glass

Photography, Travel

Above: Visitors take in the colorful array of stained glass, July 8, 2013.

Once again the weekly photo challenge lends itself nicely to the Cluny Museum in Paris, France: Saturation. Saturation is a pretty simple concept, the intensity of color relative to brightness. A vibrant flower or dramatic rainbow would be saturated. Completely unsaturated would be black and white.

My last post dealt with lines and pattern of Musee De Cluny architecture. There is also a small stained glass room inside the museum. The nearly pitch black ambiance dramatically increases the vividness of the centuries old glassworks.

Storytelling was the main function of these colorful creations. Most depicted people, many seemed to deal with religious or revolutionary subjects, and more then a few dealt with violence.

The overthrow and subsequent beheading of a king.

Perhaps symbolizing the temptation from satan.

Perhaps symbolizing temptation from satan.

Cluny Museum: Lines and patterns.

Photography, Travel, Uncategorized

Above: Cascading light and rough masonry from Cluny Museum architecture create lines and patterns. I like how the busts on the left and lady on the right direct the eye toward the smaller lady nearly dwarfed by rock.

Located in Paris, France, Musee de Cluny occupies two gorgeous buildings, the 1st century Gallo-Roman baths of Lutece and the 15th century townhouse of the abbots of Cluny.

The highlight for me was the amazing architecture of the building, one ceiling in particular.

The the many triangles with inlaid s-patterns are perfectly suited to the Weekly Photo Challenge: “From lines to patterns.” The following photo uses a simple tactic. Setting the camera flat on its back, to get as much of the roof as possible.

A ceiling in the Cluny Museum in black a white. July 8, 2013.

A ceiling in the Cluny Museum in black and white. July 8, 2013.

The ancient busts have long seen wear and tear.

Jardin du Luxembourg

architecture, Photography, Street, Travel

The Luxembourg Gardens: The second largest public park in Paris and home to Luxembourg Palace, where the French Senate convene. A popular place in Paris to spend a sunny day. Be careful where you walk, most of the grass is off limits to pedestrians, resulting in quick intervention by a security guard.

Fountains and flowers occupy the central area, backdropped by Luxembourg Palace.

Enjoying sun and scenery at Luxomberg Gardens, July 6, 2013.

2013 marked the 100th anniversary of the Tour de France, the iconic bicycle race which traverses France. To commemorate the milestone large photos of the race from every generation were mounted on the fence surrounding Jardin du Luxembourg.

While they were all very lovely to look at, creating a visual snapshot over a century of change, I found the most interesting photo involved what hid behind.

Sharing a kiss behind a Tour de France photo dated July 29, 1950.

Complementary colors crossing the street

Photography, Street, Travel

Street photography is one of my least proficient genres. And judging by the amount of blurry pictures I took on my trip I need to use a faster shutter speed or take more time. Likely the latter.

There is an old adage “f8 and wait,” referring to the f8 aperture which provides a fairly large depth-of-field (the amount of the imagine in focus.) This is a valuable tip, if you’re stationary. I think for me a fast shutter speed would be more valuable since I’m often moving with the subjects.

WIth all that said, this next shot literally passed me up, and I grabbed the only – almost sharp – shot I could.

Crossing a street in Paris a family of four, being led by the dad in a large hurry, hustled by. Without even bringing the camera to my eyes I shot a single, hip-level frame, which does a nice job emphasizing the children. Even without being sharp I absolutely love the complementary colors of the kid’s clothing.

Color theory states warm colors – yellow, orange, red – will appear closer in the frame, even when in the background. So the pedestrian in the yellow shirt is a strong figure.

I like the shot, but 1/125th of a second was not fast enough.