Quartering a Window Taxi
Along 9th Avenue in downtown Calgary, Gulf Canada Square’s dark panes of glass often provide a large mirror that abstracts the traffic heading east on the one way road.
I watched traffic for a while, looking down from the 12th floor of Banker’s Hall, until this taxicab drove by distinctive and separated from the other vehicles in that moment. The slight curvatures of the glass did the real work to create this warp of a simple scene.
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Watery Reflections of South Carolina
Ran across some beautiful, warm evening light when I was in North Myrtle Beach a few days ago. I was walking on the boardwalk around Prices Swamp Run and the reflections in the rippling water were beautiful.
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Abstract Zebra
I found this great faux zebra print and enjoyed creating this image out of the pattern.
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Glass: My fascination with photographing windows
As part of my ongoing fascination with glass, I am working on a collection of abstract images involving windows. Here are three photographs that have made it into the series so far.
I love these thick blocks of glass that are often found in homes. They are great for allowing light in while keeping the interior private. For me, they warp scenes on both sides of the glass and I love the effect. The crazy pattern in this pane is actually a plain window in the brown brick building about ten feet away.
These windows belong to an apartment building in Vancouver’s West End. I love the curves introduced into the reflections by these big sheets of glass.
This one strays a bit from the glass theme but I was drawn to the strange pattern created by the window frames from this angle at ground level in and alley in downtown Calgary.
I had the opportunity to work with glass (blown glass) for fun a few years ago and really enjoyed it. I love working it into my photography whether as the subject or as part of the supporting cast – it really is wonderful.
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Graffiti Photographs
I don’t actively hunt graffiti out but occasionally there is a piece that demands a second look when I see it. Whether because of the color, the shapes, the location or something less tangible, I have to photograph the occasional piece. Here are four pieces where I like the art and the way I captured them in a photograph.
An incongruous drawing in the bedroom of a long abandoned farmhouse near Gull Lake, Saskatchewan.
Railroad cars have no shortage of graffiti on them. This little bird and the weathered paint attracted me more than the larger canvases nearby.
This van’s delivery days are long past but it is doing great brightening up a back alley in an industrial section of Calgary.
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The Trees on Stephen Avenue
These structures are located in Calgary’s downtown at Bankers Hall. They are called The Trees and were erected in 2000. At 85 feet tall, they loom over the pedestrian street and command attention. They were designed to break up the wind in the corridor created by the street as it runs east to west through downtown.
A friend of mine is a painter and we went downtown yesterday to build a series of images that he can use for reference of a large canvas he wants to work on. It was a lot of fun to collaborate on the front end of his creative process. I’m looking forward to watching his vision come to life.
I really like the abstract forms that can be created out of the sculpture’s curves and the angular lines of the surrounding buildings. Combined with the reflections in the windows, there is a lot to work with for artists in many mediums.
