12. Scaffolds

Washington D.C. 6/16/08

"Scaffold" or "scaffolding" is one of my favorite words. It's ripe for metaphor, given it's positive connotations (supportive structure) and negative (criminal executions).

Scaffolds are useful and generally entirely utilitarian in design. Yet they can be beautiful in form even if the execution is crude. Repetition and symmetry are classical features of beauty in nature.

The relationship between a scaffold and a building is unbalanced but, again, symmetrical: the scaffold exists only to serve the needs of the more permanent structure, but is also necessary for the care and improvement of the building. The scaffold also obscures the design of the building, for which the scaffold may be resented and wished away.

To be a scaffold is to be required but unwanted, to serve only to be discarded. But a scaffold possesses one great and desirable trait: a purpose to which it is perfectly suited. We should all be so lucky.

11. In Flagrante

Washington D.C. 6/13/08

Yes, still milking the great light at Saint-Ex. This is a chocolate cake, and yet it didn't taste like chocolate at all. Don't get me wrong -- it was delicious. It's just weird to eat something that looks like chocolate, and is described as chocolate, but tastes like a mild spice cake.

10. Ballerina

Washington D.C. 6/16/08

Sometimes when I'm walking around town, taking pictures of flowers and statues and stuff, I think "Wow, I must look like a jackass. Or a college student with a photo assignment." I like the idea that I might still be able to pass as some jackass college student.

9. Tree Levels

Washington D.C. 6/16/08

My blog post titles are getting a little prosaic, aren't they?

8. Lion's Ruff

Washington D.C. 6/16/08

A baby lion fashions a mane from foliage.

7. Matches

Washington, D.C. 6/16/08

Men play chess in Dupont Circle. I like their inward focus, the symmetry in their posture, and the gentle focus on the game.

6. Cafe Collage

Washington D.C. 5:30 pm, 6/13/08

Another natural in front of the camera. His posture and clothes are so relaxed, and his gaze is so direct. The woman in front of him is working on a computer, but the scene makes it look as though she's sketching his portrait. I didn't ask him to pose -- I just shot this photo as I exited the restaurant next door (the title of the photo is the name of the cafe he's sitting outside). But he looks like he was waiting for me to photograph him anyway, doesn't he?

Again, the composition is weak -- I think I need less space above the subject. The car behind him dominates the field, and it's so boring! But this man is really riveting, so he saves it in spite of my mistakes.

The farther I am from the subject, the harder it is for me to make all the pieces work together. I prefer to photograph small objects up close. It's a great way to notice details I wouldn't otherwise. But it's also a bit of a cop out -- that's not really how I see the world, which is a lot more complicated than a label on a bottle or an ornament on a car.

5. Sun Slat Portrait

Washington, D.C. 5:30 pm, 6/13/08

I absolutely hate having my photo taken. I'm not photogenic. I have a way of tensing up that always makes one eye look bigger than the other, or like I have no neck, or like a cow chewing cud. So I understand it when other people don't want to have their pictures taken, and I completely understand when they don't like the resulting photos.

So I feel a little bad posting this photo, because the subject didn't like it and won't appreciate it. But I love it. It's really natural and joyful and while my composition leaves something to be desired and her face is a little out of focus, look how happy she is! And the light through the window slats is interesting.

My sincerest apologies to my friend. But I couldn't help it.

4. Rioja

Washington D.C. 5pm

It was a little oaky for my taste, but the lettering on the label's pretty cool. I like the light through the blinds and the wrinkles in the paper. Cafe Saint-Ex is a great place for taking pictures -- great light, cool details, interesting people. Plus, I was drunk.

3. Wallach Place

Washington, D.C. 7:15pm

If you're going to paint your house bright blue, you should indeed plant luscious pink flowers out front.

2. Hood Ornament

Washington, D.C. 6:30 pm

When I think of Jaguar cars, I think of metrosexual middle-aged corporate vice presidents and their bleached blonde mistresses. Expensive but pedestrian, and somewhat predictable. I'm surprised at how aggressive the Jaguar logo is up close. You can even see the pointy fangs! It's weird that a luxury car brands itself with such a violent image -- I fear for the defenseless Ford Taurus parked mere inches away.

I like all the reflective surfaces competing with each other -- the houses and the cat in the hood of the car, the taillights of the Taurus bouncing off the front of the cat. I can't decide if I mind that the hood ornament needs a polish. I'm a fan of imperfection, and I wasn't trying to photograph a Jaguar ad here. On the other hand, my senses of symmetry and perfection just want shiny smooth surfaces from this little hunk of metal.

1. Front Porch

Washington, D.C. 9pm

I took about 50 photos from my porch during the storm, but only a handful caught the light on the clouds.

That ancient jeep on the left is a neighborhood fixture; it's got a sticker for In 'n' Out Burger on the rear bumper, so I associate it with good stuff in California.

The tree across the street has great texture. I'd never noticed it at all before.

I love the wrought iron on my porch. It's a little bit romantic.

Less than a minute after I took this photo, the hail was coming down so hard it was bouncing into the foyer.

Update: The jeep does NOT have a sticker from In 'n' Out on the bumper. It does, however, have a window sticker in the shape of California (and a bumper sticker for Bertha's Mussels). Apparently, the combination of California and a beat up jeep make me think of In 'n' Out Burger. Not a huge leap, in my opinion. I could go for a Double Double right about now.