Charing Cross tube stop
Just a quick post today - one of many tube stops I visited while in London. I love signs, and the London Underground sign is one of the coolest. I processed this one a little differently than normal, going with a really smooth, somewhat blurry background...I thought it looked kinda cool! Have a great weekend everyone and thanks for the visits and comments this week!
Real Country Music
This is totally not the photo I was going to post today, but I was working on this shot last night for the fun of it, and just got so into it that I wanted to get it out there! I guess it’s my sign addiction rearing it’s ugly head again. This isn’t a magnificent photo in any sense of the word, but something about it just got to me - so here it is. I took this while wandering around Broadway Avenue in downtown Nashville, TN. If there were ever a street dedicated to REAL COUNTRY MUSIC, then Broadway would be it. It must be heaven for some people. I’m a rocker myself, but when I get the camera in hand, it’s hard not appreciate all this!
This is a single exposure that I ran through HDR Efex Pro and made it pop a little, then into Color Efex Pro for a Tonal Contrast Filter, and some final adjustments in Aperture around saturation and some selective sharpening. Good fun messing with shots like this!
Have a great weekend and thanks for all the visits and comments this week, I sincerely appreciate them!
It's the little differences
As you have read here before (assuming this isn’t your first visit, that is - and if it is, thanks for stopping by!), I love taking pictures of signs. I have no idea why, but I just really like them. Street signs here in the U.S. are rather boring most of the time, but in Madrid’s historic old town they are these cool painted tiles which are mounted on buildings. They just have the street name and some cool little painting. So different, and so cool! I took a lot of pictures of them. This one was near the church of San Gines, which is one of the oldest churches in the city. It reminds me of a little quote from Pulp Fiction - it’s the little differences...
Vincent: But you know what the funniest thing about Europe is?
Jules: What?
Vincent: It's the little differences. I mean, they got the same s**t over there that we got here, but it's just...it's just there it's a little different.
Madrid Metro - Gran Via
Just a quick post today - this is one of the entrances to the subway in Madrid, or actually, the sign for one of the entrances. I like signs and this one just caught my eye. Have a great weekend!
Lost in Madrid
Half the fun of travel is the esthetic of lostness. ~ Ray Bradbury
It’s easy to feel lost when you are in a new country. Things look different, things feel different, and in a lot of cases things are different. That was definitely the case for me when I was in Madrid. Though I didn’t really get lost - at least, not for long - I sure felt out of place often. I studied Spanish a lot in school growing up - since I live in Texas - and felt fairly confident that I could speak it pretty well. It works in Mexico. The challenge is that they speak true Castilian Spanish in Spain as opposed to the Latin American-type Spanish found in Mexico - at least I think that’s what it was! It sure sounded different! It was beautiful to hear, but all my years of Spanish in school were really no help. They might as well have been speaking Polish or something. Anyways, I got by ok but it was considerably more challenging than I anticipated. Oh well, it was still great to see such a beautiful city! And it's a great place to wander - and get lost - with a camera.
Oh yeah, and I took this photo of a sign. I just like signs.
Parking in Seattle
I take a lot of shots of signs, because I like them for some reason. I saw this parking sign hanging off the side of a building in Seattle, as I was walking back uphill towards my hotel. I snapped a few from a distance, but when I got closer I noticed that the neon was reflected in the window, and thought that it looked cool. So, here it is! I ran this single exposure through HDR Efex Pro, just to grunge it up a little, and liked the way it turned out. These little shots are fun sometimes, especially when you find something that has a gritty, abandoned feel to it! Just a quick snap and a quick post today - thanks for stopping by! Have a great weekend!
Buckingham Gate sign
I love signs and find them interesting, so I randomly grab shots like this one when I am traveling. I took this one just steps away from Buckingham Palace in London recently. Just a quick shot as I was walking around the area. I liked how the light was hitting it. I enjoy taking shots of the "big things", but enjoy the little, overlooked and nearly forgotten stuff just as much.
City Garage
Here’s a fun little shot for a Friday! This place sits right next to the Interstate, in a little town called Salado, TX - about 1 hour north of Austin. I have driven past it a million times (ok, maybe not a million) and always wanted to take some shots there. Who wouldn’t right? It’s cool looking for sure, with all the vintage signs and rust. Ah, rust...how I love thee. Anyways, as I mentioned in yesterday’s post, I had to go to Dallas earlier this week (about a 3.5 hour drive) and when I saw this I figured there is no time like the present, so I stopped for about 15 minutes and fired off a bunch of shots. I had dreams of getting inside and finding even more vintage car stuff, but unfortunately it was closed. However, the exterior is pretty rocking as you can plainly see, so I was happy to break up my drive a little and fill my soul with some sweet photo time.
Hatch Show Print
There are some great signs along Broadway in downtown Nashville, TN. I am a fan of signs, as I said in my post yesterday, and thought I would follow up that post with another one. Why not right? This is the sign that hangs outside of the store by the same name - Hatch Show Print. Hatch Show Print is a Nashville institution and one of the oldest working letterpress print shops in America. They are well known and easily recognized for their concert posters that they have done for years - way back to Johnny Cash and before him. It's a great little shop and so after getting several shots from outside, I went inside for a closer look. The people there are as nice as can be, and let me walk around and take whatever pictures I wanted - which was quite a few! If you are ever in Nashville, be sure and stop by - oh, and bring your camera!
Austin Motel
Well, after 8 straight posts all about Carmel (and the area nearby), it's time to take a short break and make sure this doesn't turn into a blog just about Carmel - though I think I have enough photos left for it! Yes, it is beautiful, and yes, I will post more pics of it (and probably soon!). I struggled to think of what is the appropriate shot to post next, after all this West Coast stuff, and I never really came up with anything that made sense, one way or another. Truthfully, I guess it doesn't really matter. This is mostly a blog about photography, so as long as I am posting a photo I assume you will let me slide, right? :) So, how about a little shot from Austin, my home? I still have a bunch of shots from a bunch of places to share - and another big trip just around the corner - but there's no place like home. Austin is a great town, and it has a lot of character. Our town motto is "Keep Austin Weird", and we are trying our best to do so. Come hang out sometime. You'll love it, even with all the weird stuff here. As the sign says, it's "so close yet so far out".
Betty Boots
Nashville is a nice little town, and the main drag down along the river is Broadway, home to many country music establishments and western wear stores. I'm not into either one, but I am a big fan of bright neon signs so I cruised along the drag for a bit and snapped away happily. Although I was not in a western shirt or boots, I was mostly ignored except by the panhandlers, so it was all good! This place caught my eye and after some time in the "lab" I thought I would share it, hope you enjoy it! Thanks for stopping by!
Welcome to Hye, Texas
I found this little spot en route to Fredericksburg up in the Texas hill country. We were cruising along and when we came through this tiny little town, I knew I wanted to stop. There was not much there - 1 or 2 buildings basically - but I find these places interesting. I did not have enough time to seriously explore the area, so I snapped this quick shot which I found on the side of the building.
Pizza boy!
I have come to realize I have a thing for cool old signs, or at least interesting looking ones. I saw this one while strolling around the South Congress area of Austin. It sits outside Home Slice Pizza, which is darn good by the way. I have several more random sign shots from my travels, so I think I will sprinkle them in here and there, just to mix it up!
Chocolate bokeh
Just a fun pure blur or total bokeh shot from Ghirardelli Square in San Francisco, CA. It was mid-day when I was there, so it was bright, sunny and crowded, therefore it was tough to get the shots I really wanted. I guess I'll have to go back! By the way, the chocolate was good!