Shutter Mike Photography

Moon Over Balboa

Balboa Park in San Diego is one of my all time favorite places for photography in general.  But the night photography opportunities in the park are some of the best of anyplace.  Throw in a full moon night and it is just extra icing on the cake.

There are quiet a few architecturally interesting churches in the greater Phoenix area.  Many from the middle part of the last century are of particular photographic interest to me.  They represent a time in architectural history when a building such as a church was truly designed to be a statement and a representation of the congregation and the community.  Today a little stucco slapped over a box and voila, you have a church.

The Capstone Cathedral has a colorful history to it which if you are so inclined you can read all about here.  It involves all the good stuff; a colorful TV evangelist, bizarre behavior, the voice of God and the downfall of an “empire.”  But the end result is still a great piece of architecture that makes for some interesting photography.

f/9.0 – 1/250 sec – ISO 100 – Focal Length 50 mm

I have never been to the Sistine Chapel, nor to Europe for that matter, so the image of the Chapel on this Vatican site truly amazed me.  I’m not sure if it is color enhanced or digitally improved in any way.  And I am sure it does not do justice to seeing it in person, but it is just cool to see until such time you can get yourself to Europe.

Sistine Chapel Panoramic View

Designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, Grady Gammage Auditorium sits on the campus of Arizona State University.  Although neither Wright nor Gammage lived to see the building constructed it was their partnership that brought the auditorium to life.  Originally designed as an opera house for Baghdad, Iraq, Wright adapted it to the campus of ASU as part of Gammage’s vision to create a university auditorium that stood out from all others.  It was Wright’s only public building in Arizona, the home of the western campus of his Taliesin School of Architecture.

The building reaches the height of an 8 story building and can seat over 3,000 people.  It has become Arizona State’s iconic structure with its prominent location at the intersections of Apache Blvd. and Mill Ave.  Today the auditorium plays host to everything from Broadway musicals to symphonic concerts to lectures and solo performances.

Above all else, Gammage Auditorium stands out to me because of its architecture, both exterior and interior.  From the repeated use of circles to the copper and pink tones that show their best in the setting sun this is a classic Wright design.

f/4.0 – 1/500 sec – ISO 400 – Focal Length 50 mm