24 May 2013
Lens:
1. ISELab, UD Campus, iPhone 4s, May 2103; © Sally W. Donatello and Lens and Pens by Sally, 2013
2. ISELab, UD Campus, #2, iPhone 4s, May 2013; © Sally W. Donatello and Lens and Pens by Sally, 2013
Let me know which you prefer and why.
Pens:
Yesterday on an overcast and threatening day I strolled downtown, which is shored by the University of Delaware. Even with grey skies my goal was to savor the architectural treasures that are rising with a modernist flare. The campus has become a seamless blend of the old with the new, and this feat has been accomplished with splendid visual appeal.
In the Lens section are two images from that photo shoot. They fit well in today’s WordPress Weekly Photo Challenge: in the background. I was drawn to the almost-completed ISELab: Interdisciplinary Science & Engineering Lab, which meets the U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED Silver designation. This massive structure spreads itself (194,000 square-foot facility) for the better part of a block. The facility is awe-inspiring in its beauty and its promise for research.
I was drawn to the large swaths of glass that hid workers inside. The two images are different angles of the building that reveals what’s in the background.
I will return on a sunny day, which will give the space and structure a different visual appeal. Still, the grey skies did not lessen the building’s grandeur. Actually, a dramatic patina was cast in its favor.
Note: As always I welcome comments about this post or any part of my blog.
Lens and Pens by Sally 
Great photography!
Thank you.
Thanks for posting the photos. Of course, I like both of them, but I think I like the second one best due to the placement of the person in the yellow shirt.
Deborah, nice to hear from you and thanks.
Interesting shots. I prefer the 2nd shot–because the person is more noticeable. I love the juxtaposition of the human element with the structure–it gives a sense of scale and proportion to the shot.
Patricia, thank you and have a lovely day.
Beautiful architectural treasures indeed. A wonderful city with so much to see and discover.
Yes, our small town is transforming. Thanks, and hope that you enjoyed a lovely holiday weekend with your family.
Wow, how interesting shots!! Thank you very much. I always think that pictures which are taken through some other view present very intriguing perspectives on our perception of the world and sometimes that perspective can be so different from what we thought we saw in the first first place. I guess that is why , in a way, police have such a hard time getting any real reliable witnesses – because there is never one witness to tell the “real” story and even then it is not the “complete” story in any case. Eyes are such funny things – it is all a matter of perspective, I guess!
Thanks, for your insightful comment. I appreciate your visits.
I prefer both 🙂 Wonderful angles and the addition of the person is very subtle. Well done!
Tina, thanks and enjoy the rest of your weekend.
Great idea. I prefer the second picture as it seems to have more symmetry and geometry and you can see what the man is doing – a bit too much sky in the other one and the man is more self-conscious in that one, looking at the photographer…
Keep up the good work 🙂
Thank you, it’s a constant journey of discovery.
I like 1 because of the wider shot that shows clearly the layer of glass, which also gives it a greater depth and 2 for the sharper image and stronger colour. I’m trying to visualise how 1 will look if given similar treatment as 2, but I’m not too good at visualising it 😛
Thanks, I do appreciate your comments.
Beautiful ! I visit University of De. frequently as I market an LEED certified product and the Science Lab is beautiful! I like them both !
Really, you should let me know when you are going to be on campus.
I love this take on the theme of the challenge. The fact that the background is the foreground – or maybe the other way around, is great. My favourite is the second picture, partly because of the more saturated colours and a stronger composition. I think the mullions in the first pictures is a little visually distracting.
Otto, thank you–do you know the work of artist Myoung Ho Lee? He wanders around South Korea, and photographs trees. Then he presents them as treescapes, using foregrounding to show what would usually be background.
Lovely that you have a seamless blend of old and new and that the new is GREEN. I hope we are so lucky with the rebuild of our city.
I absolutely agree with you. Thanks.
I do love reflected photography … the notion that what’s behind the camera extends into what’s before the camera … these illustrate it beautifully Sally 🙂
Thanks, I was lured by that very notion: while the inside was unveiling itself, the outside was revealing itself on the inside. Reflections draw me into their narratives every time.
Super excellent ….
Thanks for the comment and visit.
I like them both. The lines of the first photo are very pleasing to me. I like the phantom-building look of the second.
janet
Thank you, and happy WordPress Challenge.
Brilliant shot …. I was going to enter something similar – but I didn’t feel 100% – and your photos is far better. I like the last one .. because of the reflection of the floor .. I think it’s – great choice.
Thank you, I encourage you to enter your image. Enjoy the weekend.
Great shots, as usual. I prefer the second because one has to do a double-take to really see the glass wall. The image gives 2 impressions : the first immediate take and then the savvy second moment of discovery.
PS: I like the first one also for its geometry.
Thanks so much and enjoy your weekend.
Second -It’s brilliant. Central and his polisher is clear.
Thanks, it was a bonus to have the workmen in neon colors. Have a lovely weekend.
Personally i like the second image more, its visually pleasing and the reflections are easier to make sense of without the lines running through it.
Thanks, I appreciate the comment and the visit.
My favorit is the first one!
Thanks, it was such an intense photo shoot.