inspired photography with just enough perspective
North Vancouver city hall and civic center are designed with a minimalist theme that evokes the modern designs of someplace in Scandinavia. To get here I crossed the Vancouver Harbour in a ferry and trekked up the hill for about a kilometer or so. Turning around I had a panoramic view of Vancouver across the bay and jagged rocky peaks at my back, it’s hard to imagine a more scenic location in a cosmopolitain setting. These are my impressions of the architecture at the North Vancouver city hall.
I almost ruined our mini-vacation by booking a hotel room about 90 miles away from our destination. It was a good thing I checked out the drive using the hotel address on Google maps the day before we left. When reality sunk in I begged and pleaded my way into the last hotel room at our original destination. Not knowing the town I didn’t know what to expect, however this is the first thing we saw when we approached the check-in desk. I came back to take this photo early the next day when the lobby was empty. This is the lobby of the Casa Monica in St. Augustine, Florida.
This is what happens when you focus the lens in the wrong direction. Actually, at the base of this building is a colorful sculpture that I was determined to capture, but instead focused up as I was captivated by this building. (Hey, I’m from a small town.) My mind wanders from time to time, and sometimes I just gotta go with it. You know, that whole right brain, left brain thing…
In Florida where I live it seems that a lot of small banks have been purchased by big Canadian banks. They’ll put up a new sign and logo which I then recognize as Canadian. Other than the new logo, the buildings are fairly nondescript as many local banks tend to be. However, when I walked by the same bank on a busy street in Vancouver, well, there’s something to look at. In any case, here’s to the architecture of Canadian banks…, in Canada.
It was with these words that our guide (an upperclassman two weeks away from graduation) introduced us to the dining hall at Flagler College, a four year liberal arts school with the distinction of having some of the most impressive architecture in Florida. The college was built as the Ponce de Leon hotel for the well to do back in the gilded era. Imagine eating your tacos before class surrounded by priceless Tiffany widows and fourteen carrot gold chandeliers. From the looks on some of the faces at lunch when we dropped in, they couldn’t have cared less.
This is the entrance to Castillo de San Marcos in St Augustine, Florida. I got here for this shot just after sunrise. For a couple of hundred years this draw bridge was a crucial link to the outside, and for weeks it would be raised as the fort was under siege. Possession of the fort has changed six times through various treaties over the centuries, yet it was never defeated in battle. However, if you come here a couple hours after sunrise, you just might be defeated by the tens of thousands that visit this sturdy bastion daily. I wonder if the Spanish had that in mind when they built it.
Looking for sunsets can be a blessing and a curse. I find myself always mindful of the direction of the sun and the cloud layer, two prerequisites of a good shot. On this particular day I had very little to look forward to so, being on a mini vacation, I found myself in the hotel bar sipping a drink that was way too colorful. My resolved to ignore the hour gave in and I quickly headed up the elevator to snap this through the window of our 5th floor room which looked out across Flagler College in St Augustine Florida. I quickly performed the task, having given it that “college try” and made haste back to the bar before the next round. This is how I try to keep my priorities. No comments to this post will be accepted, …unless you’re buying the next round.
Architecture in a city can be pretty dynamic. It gets to the point you walk right by something that could be remarkable without really noticing. Such is the case with this building. As I walk by this most days, it appears typical glass and concrete, I couldn’t even recall where it is, nondescript. One night however I walked by and thought, where did this come from? A few blue lights and it’s a different building, who’da thunk? Seems the more I stop to notice, the more I, well…, notice. Funny how that works. Makes for a more interesting day, or night, as the case may be.
I received a jury summons yesterday for the exact same day I have a ticket to fly out of the country. I wonder if the judge will excuse me, or will I end up having to excuse myself from the boarding line. On the same day, there was a news item about a man suing his ex-fiance for her $48,000 engagement ring. I found my self turning the merits of that case over in my mind. (What that says about me we’ll save for another day.) Seems there’s a difference of opinion depending on whether your a man or a woman. All of this made it seem appropriate I should post this picture of the Court of Appeals…, or not.
I’m not the sharpest tack in the drawer. For a couple of weeks after I took this I couldn’t remember the name of this hotel. This is the lobby of the Pan Pacific in Vancouver. What caught my attention as I walked by was a banner outside which says Tea at Two. Expecting to see old world charm, or perhaps the queen, I headed in and was presented with this surreal scene. For whatever reason not a single hotel guest was in sight which had me glancing back at the door to make sure I was in the right place. In any case, I’m coming back here one day at two and ordering tea with my best British accent, assuming I haven’t forgotten the name of it by then.
