A City by the Bay

Snapshot a a hazy skyline of Panama City by the Panama Bay one lazy overcast morning in Panama City, Panama. Photo by ©Omar Upegui R.

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Wedding Table

Snapshot of a wedding table at Mi Pueblito with an empty bottle of champagne the day after the Big Day. Photo by ©Omar Upegui R.

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Kerosene Lamp

Photo by ©Omar Upegui R.

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A Choppy Sea of Concrete

“The way to think is the way we see, and will make better photographs when we spend as much time honing our minds and our hearts as we do memorizing the buttons on the camera.”  David des Chemin, professional Canadian photographer.

I saw it when I was returning from El Dorado Mall one suffocating afternoon.  The building was being torn apart after it had been abandoned for over four years when the El Triángulo financial group went belly up.

I was lucky that there is a traffic light right in front of the building.  Fortunately the light was red, so I had a few minutes to look closely at the construction site.  Immediately a picture of a choppy sea popped into my mind.  I said to my self secretly, “I have to return to the sea.”  Three days later I went back.  The photograph was already in my head; all I had to do was press the shutter and the picture would migrate from my head to the camera.

This is what I saw.  I used my DSLR Canon EOS Rebel T2i in automatic Program mode and also activated the Monochrome feature for a black and white image.  I’m still wet behind my ears with the new device.

Snapshot of a rubble of broken concrete at an old warehouse being restored near my house. The concrete looked like the choppy waters of a body of water. This is what I saw in my mind before I took the picture. Photo by ©Omar Upegui R.

Photo by ©Omar Upegui R.

Photo by ©Omar Upegui R.

Photo by ©Omar Upegui R.

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The Victory Sign

Photograph of a group of young men having fun at the Cinta Costera in front of a marina at the Panama Bay. It was early morning, and the sun was just breaking in on the horizon. Photo ©Omar Upegui R.

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Converging Lines

As I continue my journey through the exciting paths of photography, I’m more aware of the power of lines.  Our surroundings are full of lines, the only problem is that our eyes have not been trained to see them.  In a certain manner, these lines remain invisible until discovered by a “line seeker.”

There are several types of lines such as:  straight lines, vertical lines, horizontal lines, diagonal lines, converging and diverging lines, arcs and semi-circle lines, zig-zags and odd-shaped lines, curved lines, group of lines, repetitive lines and suggested or implied lines.  Each one of these lines create a pleasing impression to a photograph viewer.

Yesterday afternoon I “discovered” a cluster of converging lines in our bedroom’s standing fan.  It’s been there for years, but I never saw the lines embedded in the electrical appliance.  I decided to opt for a black and white phtograph to capture the beauty of these lines.  This is what I saw in our master bedroom late yesterday afternoon.  Here we go.

Photograph of the cluster of converging lines found in our master bedroom's fan. Photo by ©Omar Upegui R.

In this picture, take notice of the reflections of the lines on the fan's blades. Photo by ©Omar Upegui R.

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The Beauty of Lines

In my humble opinion, photography is about capturing textures, patterns, shapes, tones, color, light and lines.  The sum of all these attributes makes a photograph worth looking at, and maybe raise a few eyebrows.  I’m not there yet, but that’s my point of reference.

While visiting the premises of the Santo Tomás Hospital, I was mesmerized by the beauty of six exquisite white columns at the main facade of the building.  In the early lights of a Sunday morning, they reflected the light in a magical way.  For almost half and hour I couldn’t get my eyes off the regal edifice.  There, before me, was beauty—the beauty of the lines.

This is what I mean.  Take a close look at the columns of this magnificent building located in Panama City, Panama beside Avenida Balboa.  Here we go.

 

Photograph of the main facade of the Santo Tomás Hospital in Panama City, Panama. Photo by ©Omar Upegui R.

Take a look a the strength of this picture depicting the thickness of the columns of the structure. Photo by ©Omar Upegui R.

The beauty of these white vertical lines speaks louder than words. Photo by ©Omar Upegui R.

Like good wine, the passing of time has only enhanced the beauty of this building. Photo by ©Omar Upegui R.

Take notice of the dance of light on the fair columns. Photo by ©Omar Upegui R.

The black and white colors are perfect to highlight the aesthetics of the columns. Photo by ©Omar Upegui R.

For this post, I decided to use black and white photographs in an effort to display the elegance of the columns.  Tomorrow, I will include color and see what effect it has on the appearance of the structure.  You decide which selection best describes the Santo Tomás Hospital.  Good Day.

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Composition in Black and White

Photograph of a water fountain in front of the House Museum of the Banco Nacional de Panamá in Panama City, Panama. Photo by ©Omar Upegui R.

“Composition in photography is the strongest form of seeing.” — Master of Photography Ansel Adams

Originally this picture was shot in full color.  After analyzing the beautiful tones of black, white and grays, I decided to use PhotoFlexer, an image edition software, to switch to black and white.  The change was dramatic.

I’m presently reading and enjoying the magnificent and visually stunning prints created by famed Ansel Adams and Minor White. Both were passionate in the use of black and white photographic techniques in their work.

Ansel Adams talked about “visualization” in the art of photography.  He said visualization was seeing the picture in your mind’s eye before tripping the shutter of his camera.  He shared his views about his work, saying that his pictures were feeling in black and white.

In the future I plan to learn and develop my skills in shooting photographs in black and white.  Their visual impact is absolutely spectacular.  Expect more pictures in black in white in tomorrow’s post.   Good Day.

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Hippocrates on a Wall

During a recent visit to my wife’s doctor for her regular checkups, I found a pleasing sculpture of Hippocrates on a wall of the hospital.  It was softly lighted in yellow and blue.  I knew this artwork was there, so I was prepared to take a picture of the Father of Medicine.

As I was retouching the image to enhance its contrast, brightness and light, I thought it would be interesting to add several photographic effects like Sepia and Black and White with my PhotoFlexer software.  I finally came up with three versions of Hippocrates.

This is what I saw on a wall of Hospital Nacional in the neighborhood of Bellavista.  Here we go.

Photograph of a statue of Hippocrates on a wall of Hospital Nacional in Panama City, Panama. Photo by ©Omar Upegui R.

A Black and White version of the Hippocrates photograph on a wall. Photo by ©Omar Upegui R.

A clean photograph of Hippocrates with a soft Sepia filter. Photo by ©Omar Upegui R.

The sky’s the limit with digital photography.  What you can do with an adequate image editor is absolutely amazing.  Good Day.

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Color or Black and White? That is the Question

On my last visit to my otorhinolaryngologist (nose, throat and ear doctor), I noticed  the facade of a recently built structure in the neighborhood of Bellavista. It was different from the boring buildings of the city.  Our contemporary buildings look all the same–giant match boxes with no charm at all.  I guess this is happening in many cities around the world.  Modern Architecture has lost its elegance and glamour, typical of the Italian Renaissance.

Since I was aware that this building was going to be in my path, I took my Birthday camera to capture its uniqueness.  It was around midday with a very bright sun.  Intermittently, there were dark clouds floating swiftly in the blue sky.  This brought bursts of light and shades upon the surface of the structure.

As an experiment, I wanted to view the subject in both color and black and white to compare their differences.   Now I’m not sure which I like  the most.  This is what my camera saw.

Photograph of an attractive building in Bellavista Neighborhood. (Credit: ©Omar Upegui R.)

Same photograph with soft shades of gray. (Credit: ©Omar Upegui R.)

A narrow walkway beside the charming building in Bellavista. (Credit: ©Omar Upegui R.)

Same photograph in black and white. The difference between color and B/W is impressive. (Credit: ©Omar Upegui R.)

It’s amazing what you can do with digital photography.  You have the power to re-create reality as you have seen in above pictures.  Good Day.

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