shop on cuba mall

shop on cuba mall, originally uploaded by Lester Ralph Blair.

We (me and my wife) always stayed on Cuba Street when visiting on holidays. We booked into what was then Trekkers Backpackers. We slept on bunks with plastic covered mattresses, $22 a night. Cuba Street was noisy, dirty, brassy and somehow very appealing, it still is. Above is a shop in the Cuba Mall, I find the ambiguity of the mannequin behind the grill appealing too.

first photo

first photo, originally uploaded by Lester Ralph Blair.

When the weekend arrives, and my day job is in the background, I start the day walking with my camera. I like to take a photo within a few hundred metres. It seems to set my focus, like a bloodhound on a trail. This photograph is one such "first of the day". When it comes to photos I'm like a beachcomber in search of something but I don't know what, and I don't always know whether my accumulation has that something I'm looking for. Once home the process of sorting and discarding the days detritus continues until I am left with an ever decreasing set of possibilities

billboard

billboard, originally uploaded by Lester Ralph Blair.

Here it is the pole that I saw, the angle of the welded mitre. It is an impressive size, because of the winds and the big bill board. This gives it a second function, a place to paste posters, new ones everyday.

Bar open

Bar open, originally uploaded by Lester Ralph Blair.

This is the kinda sign that sticks in your mind. I don't know if it fits in Wellington. But I always look up when ambling past. I have not as yet gone wandering in so I can't say what the bar is like.

street & apartments

street & apartments, originally uploaded by Lester Ralph Blair.

An example of tidy pipe work on McDonald Street. I am a fan of this apartment block too. I have photographed this building before. It is a design by the architect Ernst Plischke. His work featured in an exhibition at the City Gallery in 2004, here is a link for a short write up Auckland Museum. I am sure that his work has helped give Wellington a certain 'Look'. Just as poles with pipe and strapping give a certain look.

some place else

some place else, originally uploaded by Lester Ralph Blair.

This photograph was taken on Cambridge Terrace, just round from all the bars and cafés on Courtenay Place. It doesn't look like the entertainment centre of Wellington, it looks like some place else. It soon will be, an apartment high rise with views to Oriental Parade, and that will be nice.

lamp composition

Lamp composition, originally uploaded by Lester Ralph Blair.

One step forward or one step backward and the photograph is something else. The image in the viewfinder ends up as shapes, lines and colours on paper or monitor. But at the same time it is still strongly connected to the experience of standing there and looking. That is the magic of photography for me.

Ten to nine

Ten to nine, originally uploaded by Lester Ralph Blair.

Ten to nine and it was Saturday morning when I took this photo. And it soon will be again, I'm looking forward to that. That's the way of life when your passion is outside of your work, and that is ok. It is always good to have something to look forward to.

number 91 bus

number 91 bus, originally uploaded by Lester Ralph Blair.

The sculpture could have been isolated I guess with a blanket of cloud as a backdrop. But it is on a busy downtown corner and I want to make you feel what it is like to be here, with a number 91 on the way to Upper Hutt. That blue too is about right with that much orange, just a yellow pole to separate them. The sculpture is called "Protoplasm" by Phil Price.

transport

transport, originally uploaded by Lester Ralph Blair.

One can read into this whatever one likes, cycling, buses, or cars. I prefer walking, it's the journey rather than the destination that interests me. I took the photo though because I like the shape of the sign. It appears to be made out of galvanised water pipe and it still looks bright.

substantial building

substantial building, originally uploaded by Lester Ralph Blair.

There is a substantial building on Aro Street. It is set well back with a line of cypresses following the steps to two imposing doors. From the iron gates the visual effect is symmetrical, and as a photo, clichéd . But with a wide angle lens, standing on my tip toes and aiming over the wall, everything changes. A 10-22mm zoom has become my weekend lens of choice. I tend to see potential photographs according to the lens I have on the camera.

steep

steep, originally uploaded by Lester Ralph Blair.

For some visual refreshment I left my usual habitat and wandered in the direction of uphill. I do not know why I felt to take this photo. Maybe just the anticipation of what may be around the corner. And the tall building in the distance was enticing. That is enough for a photograph. Just an intuition. I like to print a few different photos out. What I initially think of as being winners, may be discarded after a couple of days and others I feel are a wasted shot, grow in my favour, this is one of those.

zoo

zoo, originally uploaded by Lester Ralph Blair.

My wife has a compulsion to look at spiders, We went to the zoo to see the new intake of 'Tarantula Spiders' There were several furry types of the species in glass cabinets. A staff member of the zoo was allowing one of the larger creatures to walk comically up his arm. I found the pelicans more photographic. I like the way the zoo has been landscaped. Pine trees on a hilltop always get to me.

The past

The past, originally uploaded by Lester Ralph Blair.

Going through Civic Square, and past the art gallery, towards the harbour and looking to the left, there is a lawn. It is called Illotts park. There is a remnant of a building there, preserved as a design feature. I like this idea of mixing the modern with the past, or even building on the past, where last century building façades are incorporated into high rise architecture. It is also strange how the present style becomes attractive after about twenty years.