Blue and gold reflections of a downtown Boston building.
Riding around on a typical Hop-On-Hop-Off tourist bus, I did my best to photograph the unique downtown Boston building reflections from the open second level. I’m no stranger to big cities, having lived in downtown Chicago for many years during my working career. However, I do not recall seeing so many varied styles of buildings and unique design and reflections as I saw in Boston.
I was never able to get off of the bus, study the building angles and do what photographers call ‘walk the scene.’ Most of these photos were happenstance, seeing a possible scene coming up, looking through the viewfinder of my Sony camera and clicking away on motor drive. Many wasted shots, but some that appealed to me. I would seriously enjoy going back to Boston and spend some time concentrating on their beautiful downtown scene. There would be additional benefits, like great seafood and many ethnic restaurants.
What a crazy conglomeration of varied colored buildings and with an amazing, unexplained abstract reflection in one building.
Passing along in the Hop-On-Hop-Off bus, I continued to take photos. This photo was seconds after the lead photo was taken, capturing more reflections.
What an amazing reflection in this Boston building. I was not able to get off of the bus to see the building that was reflected in this building facade.
Photographers often juxtapose the old and the new in their photographs. Here, an old building is reflected in a distorted fashion in the windows of a newer building.
This is the one photo shown so far that was not taken from the tourist Hop-On-Hop-Off bus. Another example of contrasting the old with the new.
Hey, where is the rest of this tall building??
This image is a bit complex for the viewer to understand. In my opinion, it is OK to confuse the viewer. However, I’ve learned people either accept it as OK to not know what something is and the challenge to figure it out, or they do not. Some…. do not even accept black and white images…
The above is a photo of a tree with a modern building behind it and the reflection of another building in the windows. I agree it is a bit busy and not a show stopper.
Another photo taken driving around on the tourist bus. A very loose rule I have is if color is not a critical contributing part of the image, make it a black and white. This is more a study of shapes.
What Else Can you See in Boston?
The actual Cheers TV set from Hollywood was transported to the Boston bar the series was modeled after when the TV sitcom ended. It is a very popular and crowded bar.
Here is a link to the original Cheers theme song, just in case you want it to go through your head the rest of the day. Cheers Theme Song
Cheers TV set, Norm’s corner.
These may not look like special flowers initially, but they become more special when you learn they are hand blown glass from the 1800’s. There was much more of interest in the Harvard museum, but little great photography…. I was told this visit was a must….
Visiting the Surrounding States
Part of the goal visiting Massachusetts was to knock out some last remaining states we had never visited. We have now visited 49, I think Delaware is missing. To knock out an additional state, we visited Connecticut. Knowing very little of state we did not really know where to go. We therefore chose Mystic, Connecticut, the home of the famous 1988 movie with Julia Roberts, “Mystic Pizza.” Mystic Pizza, the movie We traveled many thousands of miles to get here, via Ireland Scotland, Iceland, Greenland, Newfoundland and did not go inside. (It was the tour of the “…lands'”) This is as close as we got. It was raining and we were off to another restaurant.
The famous Mystic Pizza joint from the 1988 movie fame.
Abstract Images
They say that photography can teach you a bit about yourself. After years of building my website, I found that my largest gallery is ‘Abstracts’. Harold’s Abstract Gallery. My second largest gallery is Harold’s Black and White Gallery . While in Mystic I searched for and found a situation I last saw in 2008. I took 149 photos of this scene to capture the three photos below. I do not like photographing places the guidebook tells you about and I do not like going to the places made famous by Instagram. However, such visits are sometimes a requirement when visiting some states or countries for the first time. My preference is to search out my own photo, ‘found photos,’ often abstracts.
This is a rope dipping into the water of a harbor. On one end of the rope is a boat, the other end is tied to the dock. The gentle rocking motion of the boat periodically dips the rope into the water making what I view as a very simple, abstract photograph. Two police wandered by and inquired about my actions.
Don’t worry if you do not get it or like this series of photos. I’m comfortable enough with them and I like them very much. However, I am always interested in the reaction of others and never offended at your reactions, just amused. What are YOUR thoughts on this series of photos??
The drops make different patterns on the water when dripping into the harbor. I found it mesmerizing.
Here is my original photo of the same subject taken in 2008.
I left these two people as I leave you, looking at my photography, studying my photos and happy I’m not trying to make a living at this craft.
Thank you for your interest in my photography.
Next up is Costa Rica.
I was looking for the “like” button for every photo. I understand the obsession with the shapes, especially the line dipping into the water.
Thank you for continuing to read my travel blogs, Reid. I may have started my travel photography with you when climbing Mount Teewinot in the Tetons… or was it Mt Owen?
Very cool bus by shooting 🙂
Not a bird in sight. But I’ll make up for that when I post Costa Rica…. soon I hope.
I thought the unique reflections of the buildings were interesting and playful. I didn’t even mind the black and white ones. The first and last rope dipping in the water made nice photos.
You are who I was thinking of for not being a big fan of black and white photography. That’s OK, many people aren’t.
Thank you again for sharing your adventures and photography.
Seems to be my favorite in this series is the reflection of the church on the other building.
Keep on keeping on!
Always glad to hear from you Lou. You are the reason I post on Saturday night, so you can read them in your Sunday morning routine. Next up is Costa Rica.
that went exactly as planned… Sunday morning.
I really liked the reflections in the buildings and the water.
Did it feel good/nostalgic to be back in a big city?
I went to Boston once and met Benjamin Franklin. He was greeting everyone to his town, nice guy but changed you for pictures. LoL
Yes it did feel good being back in a big city. I would prefer to be in NYC, or Chicago again…. but things are not what they used to be….
I consider one of the attributes of a great photographer is to see things that ordinary people never even notice. Your skill at abstracts, shows that you have that ability.
I love this quote by famous photographer Minor White – “One should not only photograph things for what they are, but for what else they are.”
Nice photos. Good eye.
harold: I really enjoyed the buildings photograpy. they seem very puzzle like. also your explantion included in the photos helped me enjoy the photo more. you are a good writer. lastly the abstract photos enjoyed once I knew what I was looking at, i.e. a drop of water. maybe for me, abstracts are easier to appreciate when I have some idea of what I’m looking at. but then one might say it’s not an abstract then. but for me that’s how I enjoy an abstract.
thanks again for sharing Boston.
Hey there Sharon, Thank you for the detailed comment and taking the time to look at my blog. I’ll have another tonight on Costa Rica, then more travel will get in the way of blogs for a while.
I rather like your abstract series of rope in the water. You have a knack for seeing and then photographing interesting combinations of patterns and colors in various scenarios, be it nature or cityscapes. Thanks for sharing your adventures and photography with us. — Shane
I’m amazed at the quality of photos you captured from the top of a bus! Kudos! I’ve also done a lot of that kind of photography in our travels. The most daunting was sitting on top of a bus in Dubai in 114 F heat. I about fainted. Love the color photos. I must admit I struggle with black and white but I do really like the boat line series a lot. And the one of the couple at the end is great. I love people shots. This blog shows your many sides of photography and I like them all. Thanks Harold!