Monthly Archives: January 2012

Shanghai Street Scenes

I was impressed by the magnificent old buildings of the Bund and the sleek towers of the new architecture; however, my heart was drawn to the other side of Shanghai. While I felt I was intruding on their lives, I was blessed with the opportunity to share a small morsel of ordinary life.

I wish I could talk to them … find out about their lives
I saw similar buildings throughout my travels. Notice the laundry?
Something about this shot attracts me; I think it’s the old man’s eye contact with the poodle. I also like the lines created by the steps.
I bought his bread in exchange for this shot
Taking a break from work
One of the side streets off Nanjing Lu
A common scene

 

Shanghai Buildings

My friends had to drag me away from the Bund area of Shanghai. I wanted to photograph every single building from every possible angle. Most of my shots were snap and run and because I’m still a fledgling photographer, most of them are pretty awful.

Shanghai Confluence

I like this shot, taken from the large river walk (promenade) along the Huangpu River facing the Bund. It shows the confluence of the old architecture (1920s) with the modern. The new building doesn’t compete with the old; I believe that it accentuates the beauty and character.

Shanghai

I struggled with this image, trying to clean it up, make the buildings sharper, get rid of the mist, make the river look better…… and I finally realized that NO! this is what I saw and felt. I took this during my first day in China after a walk along Nanjing Lu. This is Shanghai in misty rain. I am looking at the Pudong Skyline located on the east side of the Huangpu River. Behind me are the beautiful old buildings of the Bund.

I was in China for 5 1/2 weeks and never saw the sun; occasionally I saw a hint of blue sky. Not every day was overcast like this, however; many days the skies were simply flat gray. I wonder if I stayed there for a year, would see the sun and blue skies? It must happen because I’ve seen spectacular images of blue, sunny, panoramic views. This image, though, is my experience. It casts a bit of mystical mood for me…a softness which I like.

Shanghai in mist

Elle

I love this shot of Elle, even though she isn’t in focus. We were at a local restaurant and I was playing around with my new lens; she is a toddler, moving quickly, and I was shooting in low light conditions. The hat is in focus and I wish that I had a sharp focus on her eyes. Even though there are technical problems with the shot, it remains one of my favorite pictures of my granddaughter. I purposefully cropped so that she is not directly in the center of the image. Looking at it now, I might shift it so that she is more on the right, looking into the frame.

My First

For those of you who are young, this may not interest you. Somewhere around 22 months ago, my world was turned upside down. I’d been warned. I said, OK sure, it will be wonderful. Believe me, there was nothing in my prior experience that could have prepared me… not even birthing and raising my two very active sons (whom I adore by the way). But there’s a special kind of love that happens when one holds her first grandchild. I don’t know if it continues with the 2nd or 3rd or 15th; I just know the incredible, indescribable joy this little human being has brought into my life.

My first look at her perfect little toes, March 14, 2010