Artscape Art
Throughout my career, in big cities, parking garages are a necessity. Having to drive from one assignment to another I have visited many of them. Another added benefit to the garage, they can offer an easy way to get high a higher perspective for a landscape or building photograph.
And they are visually fascinating.
While covering numerous assignments on a long Saturday at Artscape (about which entries will be coming) I had to take a break to transmit photos for a daily assignment. The slow walk from the Fox Building to the garage on Cathedral was hampered by the huge crowd, but I safely arrived at my car on the sun drenched top deck.
The excruciatingly slow elevator was not an option for the return to Artscape's street level to photograph the night's musical entertainment. The stairway silently beckoned, but not solely for descending. Photographic possibilities almost screamed from every floor.
(Nikon D2X, 17-55 mm lens @ 17 mm, 1/250th sec. @ f/9, ISO 200)
The starkly lit traffic barrel, out of place in a stairwell, took me by surprise. The various light sources, direct and reflected, made for an interesting photograph. Little did I know there'd be more.
(Nikon D2X, 17-55 mm lens @ 26 mm, 1/500th sec. @ f/9, ISO 200)
A few more floors and a plastic cup in the window sill draws my attention. The 6-in-the-p.m. light made for long, pleasing shadows. There is a lot going on in this photograph, but the simplicity of the circular cup lid brings it all together.
(Nikon D2X, 17-55 mm lens @ 26 mm, 1/125th sec. @ f/14, ISO 200)
Ground level and another possibility presents itself. The direct lot contrasts nicely with the backlit clouds reflected in the safety-glass window of the door. Looking at it just now the Abstract Expressionist paintings of Mark Rothko easily come to mind.
Are these great photographs of high artistic merit? That is not for me to say. Will I ever make prints of them and hang them on the wall? Doubtful. But they will linger in my mind, like the great amount of enjoyment making them brought me at the time.
Comments
My wife and I went to Artscape this weekend and this will be the last year we attend. There is no parking anywhere. We rode around for an hour looking for a spot and finally had to park down near Lexington Market and walk. The food is way over priced and not very tasty. Overall the experience was not a good one and it made up our minds not to return next year.
Posted by: Ron | July 23, 2007 10:15 AM
We had a very nice time at Artscape Sunday from 1:00-3:15pm
The crabcakes, hotdog, chicken strips, ribbon fries and snowballs! were good!! We parked on Eutaw at MLK Blvd. for FREE! You can't beat that.
Posted by: Taylor | July 23, 2007 10:52 AM
It is really not for me to say what I think about Artscape. That will be left to others who seem to be doing it well.
To be a complete waffler in the middle, I can grudgingly say good and bad about the whole thing. The garage I parked in filled up by 2:30 and I got there at 2:15. Most of the people were very nice. Some not so. Staying until 9:15 I can also say it was very, very crowded. My food was not great, but for the price I'd have liked a little more of it.
But feel free to express any opinions either way. It's no-holds-barred here at Photo Edge: Aid to democracy.
Posted by: Christopher Assaf | July 23, 2007 11:04 AM
Nice abstract images. I find myself doing this more often than not when in new environments. Often it helps me think more creatively and produce better images for my assignment. The joy of making any image that means something to you often outshines "another meaningless glimpse into the obvious."
Keep the blog rolling.
Posted by: Patrick Smith | July 23, 2007 11:24 AM
Enjoyed seeing the more creative side of you. (Especially like your analysis of how you got the shot)
I too have dozens of these types of photos, most average, some great, that only I get to see. I'm always looking for that different point of view or composition to capture and save just for my own enjoyment! Keep 'em coming.
Posted by: Rick Abraham | July 24, 2007 2:01 PM