Phoneography and Non-SLR Digital Photo Challenge: Black and White (Architecture)

20 October 2014

Lens:

I. Some of my Last Photographs Taken with my iPhone 4s

1. Solitary Tree, Longwood Gardens; Copyright © 2014 Sally W. Donatello All Rights Reserved/Lens and Pens by Sally

2. The Path to Somewhere, Meadow, Longwood Gardens; Copyright © 2014 Sally W. Donatello All Rights Reserved/Lens and Pens by Sally

II. Taken with my iPhone 6

3. UD Physical Therapy Building; Copyright © 2014 Sally W. Donatello All Rights Reserved/Lens and Pens by Sally

4. UD Physical Therapy Building; Copyright © 2014 Sally W. Donatello All Rights Reserved/Lens and Pens by Sally

Let me know which you prefer and why.

Pens:

I’ve written several times about my philosophy of architecture: its prevalence in the world of nature and human nature. My visual field is stolen by its elements, which fill my day-by-night attention at every turn. This post honors the convergence of our lives with the visual rhythms of architecture.

These features are so apparent, yet are usually unnoticed as we stroll or ramble or trot through our journeys. It’s usually innovative solo structures that force us to focus on the robust and unusual.

Line, shape, color, texture, and unity are overarching architectural themes. Each provides variations on aesthetics, contrast, pattern, proportion, scale, symmetry, tension, and visual effects. These are pervasive and all-encompassing, both in nature and human nature.

In the Lens section are my tribute to this very humanistic and naturally-occurring aspect of life. On a small level my new iPhone 6 is a perfect example of architectural innovation.  We continue to construct, invent and reinvent features as functional and visual components that stun our sensibilities. We savor and crave the new, but the normal and usual are just as complex and influential, at least for me.

The first two images were taken at Longwood Gardens. As I meandered through their end-of-the-season meadow, the wing spread and girth of the stately tree reminded me of some post-modernist buildings. The second photograph shows a path that is an entranceway to a wooded area with various shaped trees, producing thought of a small community of quiet souls.

The last two photographs were taken this week with my new iPhone 6. I went to see the University of Delaware’s nationally-reknown Physical Therapy Center, which is a visual architectural feast. While the Center is long-standing, this building is relatively new. These images were taken on the second floor, where I found a panoramic view and an expansive glassed wall. It’s a photographer’s heaven on earth, because the entire faculty is lined entirely in massive panels of windows. The light is spectacular.

While some people might say that I stretch the notion of architecture, it’s easy for me to see and surmise that nature influences human-made classically simple, traditional or more audacious contemporary designs. Those relationships gives me comfort. Those relationships sway my heartstrings and my own vision of reality.

Tip of the Week: Since my post honors architecture, I wanted to tell you about a nature photographer whose passion is shown in his latest book. Ingo Arndt’s Animal Architecture (2014) displays various aspects of Mother Nature, and focuses on their “wild” architectural features. The Guardian has a short article, “The World’s Best Animal Architecture—in Pictures” (22 April 2014), which shows images from the book. Click here to learn more about his work. Here is another book by Arndt:

“Nomads of the Wind, ” Ingo Arndt (2009)

View other entries for this week’s challenge:

http://chasinglifeandfindingdreams.wordpress.com/2014/10/19/rails-and-light-black-white-iphoneography-challenge/

http://sustainabilitea.wordpress.com/2014/10/20/phoneography-and-non-slr-digital-devices-photo-challenge-black-and-white-french-chic/

http://streetsofsfphotos.wordpress.com/2014/10/20/the-art-of-eclair-bandersnatch/

http://completelydisappear.wordpress.com/2014/10/20/from-the-3rd-floor/

http://angelinem.wordpress.com/2014/10/20/phoneography-challengefountain-in-black-and-white/

http://forestwoodfolkart.wordpress.com/2014/10/21/phoneography-challenge-black-and-white-2/

http://austindetails.me/2014/10/20/black-and-white-in-color/

http://piecesofstarlight.wordpress.com/2014/10/20/phoneography-black-and-white-challenge-saves-the-day/

http://decocraftsdigicrafts.wordpress.com/2014/10/20/phoneography-challenge-black-and-white-2/

http://ohmsweetohm.me/2014/10/20/black-and-white-architecture/

http://nwframeofmind.com/2014/10/20/iphoneography-monday-10-20-14/

http://artifactsandfictions.com/2014/10/21/mother-nature-as-an-architect/

http://19planets.wordpress.com/2014/10/20/cat-silence-002-october-2014-haiga-for-phoneography-monday-black-and-white/

http://zimmerbitch.wordpress.com/2014/10/22/playing-with-the-in-between-bits/

http://allkindsaeverything.wordpress.com/2014/10/22/phoneography-and-non-slr-challenge-balck-and-white-3/

http://uniqueartchic.com/2014/10/23/mono-pastel-abstract-flowers/

http://sciencealcove.com/2014/10/dog-sledding-black-white/

http://angleandviews.wordpress.com/2014/10/25/black-and-white-cat-flashes/

Note:

If you’d like to join the Photo Challenge, please click here for details. If you have any questions, please contact me. Below is a reminder of the monthly schedule with themes for upcoming Photo Challenges:

1st Monday: Nature.

2nd Monday: Macro.

3rd Monday: Black and White.

4th Monday Challenger’s Choice (Pick One: Abstraction, Animals, Architecture, Food Photography, Night Photography, Objects, Portraiture, Still Life, Street Photography, and Travel).

5th Monday: Editing and Processing with Various Apps Using Themes from the Fourth Week.

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