Chasing Shadows
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Category Archives: Photos
The Prettiest of Them All
Approaching the subject.
Getting closer.
Well, hello lover…!
Let me see if I can get a long shot of you.
OK, maybe from across the street?
Can’t get the Crown but please admire the masonry. This the tallest brick building in the world.
Appreciate the details.
More details…
Salute to the flag! And here are the radiator caps…
Behold the Eagles!
The Crown.
If you love architecture and Art Deco, you’ll LOVE the Chrysler Building, on the East Side of Midtown Manhattan, in New York City. The Chrysler was designed by architect William Van Alen and completed in1930. The Art Deco ornamentation at the crown of the Chrysler is considered a masterpiece of Art Deco architecture. It is based on features used on Chrysler automobiles. On the 31st floor, the corner ornamentations are replicas of the 1929 Chrysler radiator caps. The corners of the 61st floor are graced with eagles, replicas of the 1929 Chrysler hood ornaments.
Another outstanding feature of the Chrysler building is its terraced crown, composed of seven radiating terraced arches. The entire crown is clad with stainless steel. The flush windows, the stainless steel crown, the spire, and the eagles were all fabricated from sheet metal shops on the 65th and 67th floor. Unlike other buildings, the Chrysler was virtually sculpted by hand. A true work of art. I think it is the most beautiful building in New York and perhaps the world, although I haven’t seen all the buildings in the world…
So, given my strong admiration for The Chrysler, when I was in New York this past summer I decided to photograph it up close, which proved to be VERY difficult. The massive structure is squeezed between other buildings and so tall that standing across the street from it won’t allow you to shoot its whole extension. You can get the building but not its beautiful crown. And when you get the crown, you cut half of the building. That’s why I decided to photograph it in parts. I also didn’t have my 300mm lens with me on that trip so I wasn’t able to get some of the details as I would have liked. C’est la vie! I still owe it to myself a decent set of pics of The Chrysler, which shall happen the next time I’m in the Big Apple.
Cee’s Odd Ball Photo Challenge: 2016 Week 39
That’s an Odd Ball if I’ve ever seen one…
Weekly Photo Challenge: Nostalgia
I rarely feel Nostalgia. I’m the kind of person who is always looking ahead, rarely looking back. Living in Southern California for the past five years, one of the rare occasions I feel a little nostalgic is at the beginning of Autumn. Everything about Autumn is magic and I especially miss the beautiful spectacle of leaves changing colors, something I took for granted in the 30 years I lived in the Washington, D.C. area. Here are some photos of our neighborhood, in the D.C. suburb of Potomac, MD. They were taken in mid-October, when the leaves were just beginning to change colors. Our house was the last one on the right, next to the woods. A very tranquil place, where families of deer often came to visit… Sigh… 
Oversized Art
Image
Thursday Doors – September 29, 2016
Madrid doors.
Sense of Style
Some of us get our sense of style very early… 🙂
“Filtered” Fun
I’ve been playing with photoshop filters and just loved this effect, using the “Negative” filter from the “Photographic Effects” set.
And here’s the original, which I thought had lots of competing elements –lines, shapes, texture and shadows. The filtered version highlights shapes and lines while keeping texture and shadows in a supportive role. Agree?
Photo taken at the Getty Center, Los Angeles, CA.
Our Lady of the Angels
Last week I took advantage of the fact that I had to be downtown to also visit and photograph a few of LA’s landmarks. The Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels was one of them.
In 1996, renowned Spanish architect José Rafael Moneo was commissioned to design a new cathedral for Los Angeles to replace the Cathedral of Saint Vibiana, severely damaged during the 1994 earthquake. The fact that the 5.6 acre site overlooked the Hollywood Freeway did not deter Moneo. Just as many European Cathedrals are built near rivers, Moneo considered the freeway as Los Angeles’ river of transportation, the connection of people to each other.
Using elements of postmodern architecture, the church and the Cathedral Center feature a series of acute and obtuse angles while avoiding right angles. The tapestries that adorn the cathedral walls were created by artist John Nava. This is the largest collection hanging in a Catholic place of worship in the United States. The “Communion of Saints” consists of females and males of all ages, races, occupations and vocations the world over. Saints from the Renaissance period are intermingled with people from the 1st century and the 20th century.
The cathedral was almost empty and very quiet when I visited. I wonder what it’s like to be there for mass when it’s filled to capacity, on Christmas, Easter, and other holidays.
Faith
I was shooting some photos at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels –will have a series on that later– when this scene caught my eye. I am not a practicing catholic but I respect people with strong faith. That’s what I sensed there.
Shoot 'N Go 