Carew Tower--Week 2

This week, I spent some time with a longer lens, grabbing closer shots of the building, and focusing on detail inside and outside.

The detail inside the building is incredible. There is some interesting ornamentation on the outside, but really the emphasis there is on vertical growth and modern materials. Inside the building, you can see the extravagant foray into 20th century modernity.

The lighting in the arcade area is amazing. You can see some of the detail on the perimeter lighting--the stylized golden leaf themes above the fixtures, and the mixtures of gold, reds and browns. The center of the arcade ceiling has a silver colored ceiling with crossing, metallic strips, bouncing light off of the ceiling.

Along the "skywalk" portion of the arcade, there are a number of art deco reliefs, showing stylized figures in classic poses. The accompanying technological elements reveal the art deco merging of art with machine.

As you exit the arcade are towards the west entrance, you pass through a large doorway, outlined with a large swath of Rookwood tile--an element you find in a number of Cincinnati buildings, and a welcome addition to such an art deco masterpiece.


Finally, as you glance at the shop entrances on the west corridor of that arcade, you will see these stylish light fixtures on warm wood panels. Keep in mind that all of this detail is just in the arcade area where the shops are in the plaza. I hope to show you some of the detail in the Hilton itself in a few days!

Mainstreet--University of Cincinnati

Looking Northeast on Mainstreet at the University of Cincinnati. Thank you for viewing my photos. Please feel free to join me on facebook, too! Uploaded with PhotoQueue http://flic.kr/p/h1V1q1

UC Campus on an Angle

I found another perspective on this shot, but the tripod location and the mini-ball head wouldn't allow me to get a landscape or portrait orientation. After looking through the viewfinder, I realized that the angle would make for an interesting shot. http://flic.kr/p/gjFeu3

St. Peter in Chains Cathedral--Color

http://flic.kr/p/f6cKaP

Learning Architectural Photography

I have a confession to make. I'm a serial blog creator. That may not seem like much of a confession, but if you only knew what that represented in "great ideas" and abortive efforts--the loneliness of the inconsistent blogger. I've started blogs on writing, on library science, on research, on local sites, and on a variety of photography topics.

Well, here's another one.

*****

I took up photography in August of 2010. It's easy to pin that date down, because it was the occasion of a big family trip out to Colorado. I'd been trying for about 30 years to do something creative. I tried my hand at art, landscape design, music, and writing, but I found that I either stunk at these pursuits, or I lacked the passion to maintain them. Writing is one I kept coming back to, only problem was I didn't like to write.

Anyhow, in August of 2010, I picked up a camera on our family vacation, and I couldn't put it down. I found myself getting out of bed early to go and shoot, and that's highly unusual for me. I researched and read everything I could get my hands on. I started a pro account with Flickr. I began to add lenses and light modifiers to my collection. I shot everything that did or didn't move.

So here I am now, trying to learn architectural photography. I work in downtown Cincinnati and I have plenty of opportunities to work on this. I keep running into problems though--problems with access to buildings, converging vertical lines, ignorance of architectural history and trends, the elements, crowds, security, gear limitations, etc. I research and ask questions, but the progress is slow.

That's why I'm starting this blog. I want a place where I can direct and share my education as it happens. If I have to struggle to learn some of this, I hope it helps some of you. I look forward to sharing this journey, and seeing some really cool photography.

Good luck,

Rob