Alien Cat's photostream  

I liked how the harsh light was illuminating this wall, giving it almost a "fish scales" texture. I bracketed trying to reproduce the exact scene I had in front of my eyes and found -1EV at 30" and ISO 200 to be the winning exposure. You can barely see the building in the background -- exactly as it looked like when I took the shot. I framed the image this way - with the lit part in the middle - because I wanted to show how everything else but this wall was surrounded by darkness. I also needed to avoid the street lamps on the left side.

Another pretty detail (like the fountain or the wrought iron stair bannister) in a creepy environment. I bracketed and -5/3 EV at 30" rendered the exact scene. The ISO is 200 (100 was too low, but I didn't want to have too much noise). It was hard to focus on the pot in the dark (I forgot to bring my flashlight) but I somehow managed to do that. I think there's a stark contrast between the graceful pot design and the eerie darkness all around it. It also helps to give the place a sense of "abandoned, haunted castle" or something -- a sort of reminder that once there was life.

Another pretty detail (like the fountain or the wrought iron stair bannister) in a creepy environment. I bracketed and -2/3 EV at 30" rendered the exact scene. The ISO is 200 (100 was too low, but I didn't want to have too much noise). It was hard to focus on the pot in the dark (I forgot to bring my flashlight) but I somehow managed to do that. I think there's a stark contrast between the graceful pot design and the eerie darkness all around it. It also helps to give the place a sense of "abandoned, haunted castle" or something -- a sort of reminder that once there was life.

As I was walking around, the reflections in the cellophane behind this window caught my eye. It was very dark and they almost looked like ice encrusted on the window's surface. The window is slightly centered this time because I wanted to include the creepy, pitch-black darkness just around the corner on the right. Again, the scene is just as it looked in real life -- I bracketed and -2EV at 30" and ISO 200 gave the winning exposure. I think this shot is interesting in that it suggests a narrative. Why is the window "wrapped" in cellophane? Is anybody living there? It kind of hints that the place is abandoned, which is the mood I'm going for. However, the real answer is that the condo is old (built in the 1940s) and they never replaced the windows. So some people resort to tricks to keep the cold, the heat and the bugs out of their apartments...

I thought this was an interesting, different shadow. Instead of tree branches or leaves, we have that "sticky", almost graphic pattern. A floodlight hit the terrace and trellis on the right side in a way that it got reflected on the front wall. I liked how the "sticks" are trying to make their way into the window and look sort of threatening, like a weapon or something. The scene is exactly as it was in front of my eyes -- I bracketed and got it with a 30" exposure at -1 EV.