Urban Vistas: Boston and Vicinity

Color in the Late of Autumn

2011-11-25T15:46:00.000-08:00

November in New England is the Late of Autumn, when the residual colors of fall linger a bit more, and are gone before month's end. This year, the early autumn was rather subdued. None of the usual brilliant colors of past years, such as in my Autumn Hues posts from 2009 (Part 1 and Part 2).

This year, it seems that the colors peaked during the Late of Autumn.

Below: Colors in the canopy of the mature street trees in my neighborhood:

Below: The colors are at their peak in the little forest in the city around the corner:

Below: Three glimpses at the late autumn colors in Boston's Public Garden:

Evening on the Verge of Spring

2011-04-11T20:25:00.000-07:00

March 18, 2011

When finally the snows of winter had left us by late March, the barren ground was once again visible. Beginning the day after Christmas, we the white blanket piled up week by week in snows that never seemed to end.

March 18th, in the still bitterly cold evening, I caught this view in Boston's Public Garden. In the foreground is dry lagoon. The afterglow of sunset is visible down the axis of Newbury Street, puncuated by the tower of the Church of the Covenant.

Spring officially is officially here in 3 days. But the real rebirth of spring is a few week away, after we endure yet another April Fool's Day snow!

The Almost Spring

2011-04-11T20:13:00.000-07:00

Spring officially begins with the equinox on March 21st. But in New England, winter is still roaring, its cold winds blowing over snow-covered fields and around the urban canyons, as the people scurry about clad in parkas, scarves and wool hats.

But sometimes in late March, or at least in early April, the season of “Almost Spring” arrives. There are the first signs of live re-emerging from the barren brown earth.

This is one of my favorite moments of the year. The potential energy of nature is at its greatest. It’s as though everything is almost ready to bloom, but instead nature carefully tests the air. A few crocuses emerge, flowering close to the brown soil finally feeling the distinctive warmth of a spring sun. Stronger in intensity than the winter sun, the radiant warmth is lost in the chilled air, trying but not yet succeeding in escaping winter’s grasp.

The trees bud, but are not ready to leaf out. This is the shy half of spring.

Come the second half of April, the shyness passes. All manner of trees and flowering shrubs and spring flowers burst forth. Before May Day, the trees will be fully leafed out.

But, these first weeks of April are when we can take hope from all the potential of beauty that surrounds us. Life is rebirth in spring, for nature, and for me.

Below: The crocuses, first flowers of spring, stay low to the otherwise barren earth. A warm day may be followed by a snowy day, in the Amost Spring.
Below: In a classic rural farmland vista 35 miles north of Boston, the brown fields are finally visible after months of dormancy under its white winter blanket. No color is visible in the Almost Spring.
Below: The plump red buds of the maple tree in front of my home, in contrast the the bright blue sky of the Amost Spring.
Below: Green buds on the sapling in the foreground and the yellow buds of the great willow in the background. We are only a week or so from everthing leafing out.

Tracks in the Snow

2011-01-23T19:32:00.000-08:00

As a transportation engineer, I have always been fascinated by railroads, particularly as they fit into urban and rural landscapes. Compared to modern highways, rail lines are much narrower and therefore were built less intrusively.

In the winter, it becomes somewhat obvious whether a rail line is used or not. Here in Cambridge, we have two infrequently used freight branch lines. Running through the campus of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and East Cambridge is the Grand Junction Branch, with about 2 to 5 trains per day. In the western portion of Cambridge, running through the reservation at Fresh Pond in the Watertown Branch, which is recently abandoned.

The picture above on the right and the first two photographs show the Watertown Branch. The first photo below shows the rail line cut into the rock that makes up the core of a low drumlin forming the southern boundary of the glacially-carved Fresh Pond. The second, just a few hundred feet from the first, finds the tracks in a flat terrain. The final photograph is looking down the Grand Junction branch from Hampshire Street, just outside Kendall Square.

Longfellow Bridge

2011-01-02T22:23:00.000-08:00

The Longfellow Bridge is perhaps the most distinctive bridge crossing the Charles River between Boston and Cambridge, Massachusetts. With its large steel arches and distinctive towers (that give the bridge its nickname “salt and pepper”), it is more massive and rises higher above the water’s surface than its upstream and downstream neighbors. This elevation provides some of the iconic skyline views of Boston.

(The photograph above right is from the Massachusetts Department of Transportation’s website describing the upcoming repairs to the bridge.)

For me, the 102-year old Longfellow Bridge is my way to work. It’s a “multi-modal” facility as we say in the transportation field. It has 4 lanes for motor vehicles, two tracks of Boston’s Red Line subway (or metro as they call it in some countries), two bike lanes, and two sidewalks. Being a multi-modal transportation engineer, I find myself crossing the bridge almost daily – sometimes driving, most often on the subway train, sometimes riding my bicycle, and occasionally walking. My photographs reflect all four modes.

Below: Riding my bike into work early on Sept. 21, 2010, I caught the towers of Boston's Back Bay bathed in the light of the sunrise. The two tallest buildings are the John Hancock tower (left) and the Prudential tower (right).

Below: Walking over the bridge on a bright and warm New Year's Eve 2010, this view back captures the towers of Boston's financial district behind Beacon Hill, all framed by the Longfellow Bridge's distinctive "salt and pepper" towers).

Below: Stolling over the bridge towards Boston on a picture-perfect July 4, 2010, this view captures recreational boats in the river and another view of Beacon Hill in front of the towers of downtown. Look very close and you can pick out the gold dome of the Massachusetts State House.

Below: A close-up of the ornate detailing of the bridge railings. (Also, Dec. 31, 2010.)

Below: Taken while driving home over the bridge from work, one of the towers is silloeted by the setting sun.

Below: Taken from the train platform of Charles Street station looking west from Boston into Cambridge, this is my all-time favorite photograph of the bridge [and is included in a previous blog post]. The Red Line subway and roadway cross the Charles River. First thing that moved me was the striking lighting effect created by eclipsing the setting sun with a lightpole, bathing the view in a warm yellow light. And the back-lit cloud over the steam power plant across the river. And the peaceful and empty view with only one young woman standing on the platform, no traffic on the bridge --- all in stark contrast to an otherwise bustling Saturday in Boston. It was Aug. 18, 2008, and I was on my way to see the movie Vicky Christina Barcelona in its first week of release.

New York's Riverside Drive and Park

2011-01-01T13:46:00.001-08:00

Christmas afforded me a change for another ever-so-brief return to my home town, New York City. So I am taking a little liberty with this post of urban vists about 230 miles from Boston.

On Christmas day, between opening presents and supper, we had a chance to stroll along Riverside Drive and Riverside Park. Located on the upper west side of Manhattan Island, this area has more in common topographically with Beverly Hill than the rest of the flat urban plate on which the famous skyscrapers are built. Here, there are steep hills, revines, and sudden drop-offs. But the urban fabric is pure NYC; no mistaking that!

Here, we start with some views up and down river along the mighty Hudson, which ebbs and flows along the west side of the isle of Manhattan. I was a cold and overcast day, and views are dreary, but none the less, spectacular. As a engineer, I was fascinated by the Riverside Drive viaduct which carries this parkway near 100 feet (30 m) high above the city streets. Built in 1900, with gracefull, repeating arches, the structure possesses an eligance missing in most present-day engineers roadway bridges.

Walking through Riverside Park had the feel of Central Park, if it were streatched out, made much hiller and relocated to the banks of the Hudson. I could tell in the texture of the park, the lanscape vocabulary of park lamps, benches, and railings, there the hand of Fredrick Law Olmsted was present. Olmsted was the landscape architect for NYC's Central Park and the Emerald Necklace in Boston.

One innovative idea, not noticed by most park goers, is that a rail line runs under the park in a tunnel. Thus, the park is partly built on what we now call air rights. This line, formerly New York Central's West Side Line (the north end of the now famous High Line), now feeds Amtrak intercity trains from upstate New York to Penn Station.

Below Left: View downriver, with the tower of Riverside Church high about the waters of the Hudson.

Below Right: View upriver, with the George Washington Bridge visible

Left: Close-up of Riverside Church

Below: Riverside Drive runs high above Manhattan Valley near West 125th Street on a great steel viaduct.

Below: The hand of Olmsted is clear in the elements of Riverside Park, from the stone arches to the lampposts and railings, all reflective of his work in Centeral Park.

Fall Landscapes at Mount Auburn Cemetery

2010-11-18T10:57:00.000-08:00

Here in my home town is one of the most beautiful cemeteries in the United States. The Mount Auburn Cemetery in Cambridge, Massachusetts blends beautiful landscape vistas that take full advantage of a post-glacial terrain of hills (drumlins) and ponds (kettle holes).

The offical website sumaries its history: "Founded in 1831, it was the first large-scale designed landscape open to the public in the United States. Today its beauty, historical associations and horticultural collections are internationally renowned."

"Our founders believed that burying and commemorating the dead was best done in a tranquil and beautiful natural setting at a short distance from the city center. They also believed that the Cemetery should be a place for the living, "embellishing" the natural landscape with ornamental plantings, monuments, fences, fountains and chapels. This inspired concept was copied widely throughout the United States, giving birth to the rural cemetery movement and the tradition of garden cemeteries. Their popularity led, in turn, to the establishment of America's public parks."

I took a late fall day off from work and spend part of the mornning strolling around and capturing some of the scenery. Below are some of them, featuring the last fall colors. (See other photos in my post from last year: El Día de los Muertos.)

Late Fall Foliage in Boston's Public Garden

2010-11-13T16:24:00.000-08:00

The Public Garden never fails me! Four seasons a year, it is always photogenic. I am so lucky, working a couple of blocks from this historic park. Many a lunch time I find an excuse to stroll through its pathways, and take a few photos.

Last week started out cold and rainy and feeling like winter was trying to break into the city and hold us in its chilly grip. But, by the end of the week, the sun returned and temperatures rose. After a morning meeting that ended too late on Friday, I took a spin around the park, capturing the beauty of the late fall foliage.

Byways in the Fall

2010-10-27T22:23:00.000-07:00

One of my favorite contexts to view the bright colors of the fall foliage is in the linear context of byways, be they pathways, streets, or highways. Following are a few of the views I captured early during that period when the early hints of color mix with summer greens.

Below: Returning home from New York in early October, just a touch of fall colors tinge the wooded hillsides along Interstate 84 in Connecticut

Below: A mix of fall color lines the pathway in the urban wilds near Belle Isle Marsh in Winthrop.

Below: Early colors in the mature canopy along the pathways of Boston's Public Garden.

Below: Sun streaking through the foliage above a country lane in the midst of urban Cambridge.

Below: A fall view along a path on the campus of Stonehill College in Easton, Massachusetts

Mills along the River

2010-08-21T18:50:00.000-07:00

Many New Hampshire towns grew up along rivers, where mills took full advantage of the available water power. Milford retains a little bit of urban character with its little active business district near the river, including some attractive old mill buildings in restored condition built right on the banks of the river.

We stopped at the Red Arrow Diner in Milford after our climb of Pack Monadnack Mountain. Very good sweet potato fries and nice coconut cream pie.

Below: the nicely restored mill buildings line the river. The Red Arrow is just out of the view to the right.

Urban Evening Concerts

2010-08-13T20:55:00.000-07:00

Last weekend I was fortunate to attend open air concerts on two sucessive nights up in Lowell, Massachusetts. Lowell is one of several old mill towns in New England. Fortunately, there has been a lot of reinvestment in the city, resulting in a lot of adaptive reuse of the old mill buildings. Lowell also tries hard to attract visitors to the city with cultural events including the Lowell Folk Festival and the Summer Music Series.

Last Friday, I caught two women singer/songwritters/guitarists. Patty Larkin, a fantastic guitarist and based locally in Mass., opened the show. Suzanne Vega followed, and I just loved her music ... a perfect blend of creativity with a dark edge and a joyousness bordering on just a little crazy at times. And her lead guitarist was great, adding not only lines and textures but all sorts of just the perfect noise and distortion to complement the mood and lyrics of the songs! I'm a bit of composer and guitarist, but how I wish I could write and perform like Suzanne!

On Saturday, it was Herbie Hancock (see photo above right). Not only is he a great pianist, but equally great at composing and arranging. He played a good bit of material from his current CD, The Imagine Project, which was a delicious blend of jazz, fusion and traditional music from all corners of the globe. He and his band played for about 2 1/2 hours, and we could have all enjoyed another couple of hours of it.

So here's a few photos from my two nights listening to music in Lowell.

Below, the stage is ready for Friday night's show.

Below, a tall smokestack rises above one of Lowell's many preserved mill buildings.

Below, sunset, as we all wait for the music to begin.

Below, Patty Larkin playing on Friday night.

Below, Herbie taking an extended piano solo on Saturday night.

Dawn on the Charles River

2010-07-27T18:40:00.000-07:00

Usually, it's at sunset when I find myself riding my bike home from work along the Charles River in Boston. (See these other posts: Sunset on the Charles, Part 1 and Part 2, and the Twisted Willow at Sunset).

But a week ago, during a spurt when my cat decided that breakfast must be served at 4:45 am, I used the time to go out and enjoy the cool, quiet of dawn. I just loved it. Almost no one around, so quiet and peaceful. Especially along the banks of the Charles River here in Cambridge, the temperature was pleasantly cool at this early hour. So, here I am (at right) looking barely awake just before 6 am after sunrise. Below are some of the scenes of the peaceful dawn on Sunday, July 18th.

Below: The newly risen sun, about to be obscured by cloud cover, is reflected in this view downstream right at the famous "head of the Charles."

Below: the sun peaking through the canopy of a sprawling willow.

Below: The view downstream after the clouds had fully obscured the sun.

Below: Looking upstream at the graceful triple arch Eliot Bridge. Charles Eliot was a famous landscape architect who was instrumental in the creation of Boston's Metropolitan Parks System, which included the linear parks lining the banks of the Charles River Basin.

Below: Early morning sunshine reflects off the boathouse next to the Eliot Bridge.

Sunset at the Beach

2010-07-07T20:40:00.000-07:00

Sunday, July 4th, we spent the evening walking Revere Beach (north of Boston) and stayed to enjoy the sunset. We were treated to the visual effect of an ever shifting palate of colors, both in the sky and clouds over the water (in the east) and over the marsh (to the west). We call this the "pink moment," inspirted by a friend from Ojai, CA, who introduced us to that term.

Above right: A rainbow in the sky points to a couple walking along the ocean's edge.

Below: The clouds above appeared like a giant watercolor, maybe by someone influenced by Monet.

Below: Dramatic steaks of light and shaddow across the cloudy sky to the west.

Below: Two views to the west. I love the dramatic contrast of light and shadow.

Churches of Santa Fe

2010-07-05T13:38:00.000-07:00

In the end of May I found myself in Santa Fe, New Mexico, attending a family wedding. Santa Fe has an interesting history that weaves Native American and Spanish cultures into the ethnic stew of the present-day southwest in the US. Perhaps most unexpected was that Santa Fe was settled by Europeans before my hometown of Boston. The City of Santa Fe was founded in 1610 while Boston dates from 1630.

The architecture of the churches particularly caught my eye. Typical of the southwest, the palate of the facades consists of earth tones, reflecting Spanish architecture and local materials. The results are a very appealing simplicity in these sacred spaces. Following are samples of these churches.

Above right: Simple interior of the Santuario Diocesano de Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe (Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe).

Below: Exterior of the Santuario Diocesano de Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe.

Below: San Miguel Mission Church, recognized as the Oldest Church in the United States San Miguel Mission, dates from the early 1600s.

Below: The St. Francis Cathedral Basilica

Right: The famous spiral staircase in the Loretto Chapel. It was constructed in the 1870s. As the taped recording in the chapel tells the story, the chapel was built without a stairs to the choir loft, and this required climbing ladders. This was ok for men, but this chapel was used by nuns. As the referenced web site states, "many carpenters were consulted for a solution, but all of them felt that a traditional stairway would take up too much room." What to do? "The Sisters sought divine guidance, and on the ninth and final day of their Novena, a mysterious carpenter appeared who designed and constructed a circular stairway to the loft. His 'miraculous stairway' contains 33 steps in two full 360-degree turns, with no center support, nor is it held from the sides. Upon completing the stairway, the carpenter disappeared without receiving payment for his work." It still is a mystery to architects and structural engineers as to how it is self-supporting. In recent times, they added braces so it does not collapse with the vibrations on traffic on the street outside.

Sunset on the Charles, Part 2

2010-07-04T21:36:00.000-07:00

A few more views from my bike ride home along the Charles River in Boston. Always seems I'm heading home just around sunset. These views are from June 17, 2010.

Sunsets on the Charles River

2010-06-05T23:56:00.000-07:00

Whether I take the subway home or ride my bike, I'm often heading home along or across the Charles River near sunset.

Between Boston and Cambridge, the Charles River Basin is lined by parks, the most famous being the Esplanade. This consists of parkland along the riverbank as well as a series of small islands and lagoons. It also features the Hatch Shell, a large bandstand where the annual 4th of July concert and fireworks are held.

Below: Charles Station on the MBTA Red Line, the only above-grade station on this subway line within Boston Proper, affords a wonderful view of sunsets on the Charles River.

Below: A twisted willow on one of the Esplanade islands is silhouetted against the sunset sky over the river. This was on a ride home in March 2009.

Below: A footbridge crosses the lagoon between the riverbank and one of the Esplanade islands.

Below: A delicate pink light on the horizon is reflected in the wide section of the lagoon that separates the bank from the islands. Another photo from a bike ride home.

Below: The tree canopy frames a view west into the dusky sky, with the Harvard Bridge (Massachusetts Avenue) and the high rise dorms of MIT and Boston University in the background.

Below: Ducks swim in the river near the Harvard Bridge, which carries Massachusetts Avenue over the river. Interestingly, the Harvard Bridge is not near Harvard University, but instead adjacent to MIT. Apparently, there was a contest between the schools for naming rights, and given the plain profile of the bridge, it was the looser of the contest that carries its name on the bridge over a century later.

In the Mist Outside the Science Center and Other Photos of a Sunny Friday

2010-05-30T14:01:00.000-07:00

Friday afternoon before Memorial Day, I scheduled a late afternoon appointment near home. That gave me the opportunity to just stroll around on a most beautiful, warm, sunny late day in spring! Living a short walk from the campus of Harvard University, I headed in that direction.

Right: sunlight in the tree canopy over Harvard Street.

Below: a view through the mist of the spray founation outside the Harvard Science Center. I spent many a hot afternoon here with my toddlers who enjoyed a bit of the cool spray. Also, Memorial Hall in the background is also famous as the "analog" structure from which the CG version of the Great Hall at Hogwarts was created for the Harry Potter movies.

Below: a young woman finds the stones of the fountain a convenient place to sit while making a call.

I Don't Think We're Still in Cambridge, Children!

2010-05-23T19:16:00.000-07:00

That's the feeling I have everytime I walk into this little isolated part of my current home town of Cambridge. This little neighborhood is off the beaten path, partly bordered by the sprawling campus of Harvard University. While the rest of Cambridge is very much a city -- high rise buildings, the subway, closely spaced building, itsy bitsy back yards -- I enter this area and everything changes!

This was a favorite place to stroll when my children were little. First, it was quiet! All those city noise of traffic and people and activity are gone. The houses feel like I'm in the suburbs, maybe an older suburb with a slightly rural character as afforded by the canopy of very mature trees. Some trees, like the one on the right, have grown into the street, beyond the curbline. This never happens in the rest of the city.

There are lawns and real backyards. There are even some single-family houses, which are a rarity in a city of triple deckers (3-family homes with one unit on each floor).

I still enjoy strolling here, and did so today on this beautiful, sunny Sunday in May. Thought the photographs you can join me on a stoll through this part of Cambridge which doesn't feel like we're still in Cambridge.

Urban Evening

2010-05-22T10:50:00.000-07:00

It is evening when my workday is finally over and I can leave my environmentally controlled office (visually isolated from the world outside) and enter the urban environment of this great city where I am employed. Many days, I'm rushing home and take everything for granted. Other evenings, when I have some time, I stroll, taking in the scenes as though I was a tourist here for the first time.

Here are some evening photos. All but the park were taken just last Thursday.

Above left: The classic Boston Back Bay skyline reflecting into the Charles River, as seen from the Massachusetts Avenue (Harvard) Bridge. The tower on the left in the Hancock and on the right it's the Prudential (the results of a rivalry for tallest building in Boston between these two insurance companies in the 1960s). To the left of the Hancock tower is the old Hancock tower with its lit single spire.

Below: A view across the lagoon at the Public Garden as the shadows of evening fall.

Below: Up close, the Hancock tower's glass facade reflects its plaza and the buildings around it.

Below: A view down St. James Avenue, with the Hancock tower to the right.

Below: The evening setting sun backlights clouds over the Boston Public Library and the Old South Church.

A Brief Return to New York City

2010-04-12T17:20:00.000-07:00

New York City is, for me, the ultimate urban vista. The intensity of development and activity in Manhattan is virtually unmatched. Also, having been born in "the city" as we call it, some details just say NYC to me, even if the rest of the view could be in any of a dozen major cities around the globe.

Last Saturday, I made a brief return to my hometown for a family gathering. Maybe someday, I can return for a longer stay and enjoy seeing again the iconic urban fabric that is Manhattan.

Above left: The sun has just set over the Hudson River, and behind some of the "average" towers of the west side of midtown.

Below: A rooftop view from the outdoors portion of a penthouse lounge, a mere 15 stories up. In most of the world, 15 stories (180 feet or 60 meters) would be fairly tall. But, in Manhattan, it's nothing!

Below: Zooming in to a classic rooftop water tank, a detail very typically New York.

Below: Murals can be found throughout the city, particularly on industrial buildings, such as this sign factory.

Below: a rooftop view from only 15 stories high is diminished in the canyon of taller towers. The red lights are on Broadway, heading for Times Square.

The Coming of My Favorite Season

2010-03-21T09:45:00.000-07:00

Ah, spring is finally here! For me, spring is the season of hope. The season of potential. Little green buds emerge from the ground, and weeks later, grow into the first flowers of the year. The landscape is still mostly brown and gray of the winter groundcover. Yet these first flowers inspire hope.

It reminds me of looking at my babies when they were new to this world. They were a bundle of potential -- what would they become? What would they be like?

So, too with the first buds of spring: what wonderful flowers will bloom? And what will this new year be for all of us? Here is a sampling showing the coming of spring here in the city. (Some other photos are included in my Other Thoughts blog: "Almost Spring!" and "A Beautiful Day in March.")

Below left: The happy faces of my daffodils blooming in the sunshine of a warm 1st day of spring. Below right: some crocuses blooming in the yard next door.

Below: My jonquils (march flowers) a few days before they bloomed.

Below (4 photos): Sampling of crocuses popping up all over Cambridge.

Below: The buds in the trees foretell leafing out in April.

Below: After 4 days of warm weather, the yellow forsythia blooms are showing. We call this lot the "forest." In the city, even a 1/2 acre that is not developed is like a 100-acre forest to us urbanites.

Below: The warm weather brings every one out from their winter hibernation. Left: The first day of spring and temperature is in the 70s (over 20 deg C) and the banks of the Charles are littered with sunbathers. Note the leafless trees. Right: Another sign of spring: music in the park! On my lunch stroll through Boston's Public Garden, a jazz trio is playing.

Below: On a warm day in March brings out a couple of rowers (see lower left) on the Charles River where Harvard University lines both banks.

Below: A warm last day of winter and I'm riding my bike home from work when I stopped along the Charles River Esplanade to get a backlit photograph of a footbridge. (My favorite picture of this footbridge is bathed in the pink light of sunset -- see my post "Sunset Along the Charles River")

Below: I came home late to find my jonquils blooming. Here is a flash lit night photo of them.

Sugar Snow

2010-03-06T15:32:00.000-08:00

The other day we got just a dusing of snow, something I call sugar snow. It reminds me of the texture of confectionary sugar dusted on a pastry.

While the region from New York to Virginia seemed be getting pelted with one big storm after, way up here in the Boston area, we got rain, rain, and more rain. No shoveling, no slipping on ice, but no snow days off either. So, when we got this little bit of snow this week, I captured a few views of the sugar dusting of Boston Common.

Newly Fallen Snow

2010-02-20T19:53:00.000-08:00

Nothing is as pure and beautiful as newly fallen snow. I can just sit and watch the gentle flakes fall, turning everything -- lawns, trees, streets, sidewalks, houses, cars, lawns, and even the trash in the gutter. Especially in the city, the transformation can be most dramatic.

After our winter drought, we had a little bit of snow again in the Boston area.

Below: Snow falling in the halo of a street light and covering steets, sidewalks, cars, and the roofs of houses.

Below: close-up of falling snow covering the branches of a tree.

Below: The next morning, snow covered tree limbs contrast with a bright blue sky.

Below: Snow covered lawns in the Public Garden complete the winter sceen of a Back Bay skyline.

Winter Drought

2010-02-14T11:21:00.000-08:00

We usually think of droughts as happening in the summer. With no rain for weeks, lawns and flowers and crops dry up and wither. But, droughts can happen even in the freezing cold of winter.

While Washington, DC, and the surrounding areas were pounded by 2 to 3 feet (0.7 to 1.0 meters) of snow, the Boston area missed out on the entire storm. What snow we had graddually disappeared, melting little by little on the colder days and then disappearing when we got a brief thaw.

Now it's freezing cold and again and snowless. These photographs in Boston's Public Garden illustrate what a winter drought looks like: the brown lawns, bare trees, and fozen ponds, but no snow. It's not the kind of sceen you'll seen on any Christmas card where the snow is always beautifully white and freshly fallen!

Below: The snowless lawns are brown and the lagoon is frozen solid in this view looking down Newbury Street.

Below: A little contrast of morning and evening showing the same view. The church spire is that of the Chuch of the Covenant. The evening view was in December while the morning view is February.

Below: A comparison of the lagoon bridge in a snowy winter (left, Jan. 2009) and a winter drought (right, Feb. 2010)

Below: A close-up of the brown lawns and bare trees. One advantage: a young couple taking a shortcut across the fozen lagoon.

Below: During a winter drought, there's no snow for skiing (except at the facilities with snow making equipment). If you can't ski, at least you can skate: a business man did just that on his lunch hour.

Industrial Strength Photography

2010-01-30T14:48:00.000-08:00

The bad side of town. The oth-er side of the tracks. The place you don't want to go during the day, much less at night. The place where the tow lot always seems to be, you know, the one where they've towed your car to, and it's late and you take a cab to and you have this feeling "this is where organized crime goes to eliminate their opposition!" Every city has its industrial area.

Where else would you go to sell your scrap metal? Not far away, you can buy used car parts: doors, fenders, hoods (automotive recycling)

My personal favorite is "radiator man" -- no one has a better selection of used units!

The '50s through the early '70s saw highways cut through urban neighborhoods, often through the industrial zone. While this 50-year old elevated highway is showing some rust and exposed reinforcing bars, the properties in its shaddows often show more distress. Built to rush commuters home to the suburbs, these highways cut up urban neighborhoods and condemmed them to decades of economic and social distress.

This view, within 10 blocks of my home, could be somewhere in the 3rd world, perhaps the suburbs of Lima, Peru or Tiajuana, Mexico. How to tell it's not the 3rd world? There would be perhaps dozens of people in the photo.

Urban Wilds: The Wilderness Around A Frozen Fresh Pond

2010-01-24T19:43:00.000-08:00

Even within the city, one can find wilderness views that evoke a more rural setting than where you are standing. Fresh Pond is in the western extent of Cambridge and part of the water supply system. A hundred years ago, ice was harvested in winter and shipped around the world. Today, the pond itself is fenced off, but its perimeter contains a fringe of urban winderness, a small wild in the midst of the city.

. Below: A gatehose on the shoreline

Below: The only open water in the otherwise frozed solid pond.

Below: Tracks run through it -- a rail line through the woods next to the pond.

Below: red berries add color to the snow covered landscape.

Below: Reeds mark the snow-covered shoreline.

Below: Sun setting peeking through the pondside woodlands.

One Building or Two

2010-01-14T19:31:00.000-08:00

Driving around Boston recently, I saw this interest-ing view. Taken from Travelers Way in the South End, looking from Harrison Avenue towards Washington Street, one sees this slender tower in Back Bay.

On the top, the glass and steel Hancock Tower, at 60 stories, it is New England's tallest building. But, it looks as though the lower floors are of a different design consisting of a masonry facade.

But what is it? Well, it's a new building called "The Clarendon" located one block closer than the Hancock Tower. But from this angle, the width of the two buildings exactly line up, as though they were one building, the product of a somewhat scitsofrenic architect!

Winter Sunlight

2010-01-07T16:23:00.000-08:00

I love working with the low angle of the winter sun as it reflects off the urban landscape. When shooting directly into the sun, I can get a deeper contrast between the lit and unlit backgrounds. With reflected sunlight, I find the glare can add a little magical twist, making building faces and columns glow.

This post contains some backlit photos I took today, allowing the glare of the sun to transform the everyday scenes around me into something more interesting.

Below: Sunlight reflected off the walls of the canyon we call Tremont Street in Boston. Note how the backlight makes the ornimental acorn-shaped street lights glow.

Below: The columns of King's Chapel in Boston are aglow in the reflected sunlight shining down Tremont Street. I like the contrast of the red fire alarm light against the neutral background.

Below: In the Granery Burying Ground, the reflected sunlight backlights a small patch of the snow-covered turf.

Below: Sunlight peaks between the branches of a tree...almost mascarading as a lit street lamp.

Below: The old and new Hancock Towers rise above theother Back Bay buildings, eclipsing the sun, only partially shining on the snows in Boston Common.

Below: A band of sun rays illiminate a narrow corridor through the Public Garden, as evening approaches.

Winter Coming

2009-12-16T18:12:00.000-08:00

Winter is coming. The leaves are down and the ground is bare. But a beautiful landscape is still beautiful even in its mimimalist unvegetated state. Even in the midst of a cold rain on a December day. Witness these footbridges over the Muddy River in the Back Bay Fens, part of Boston's Emerald Necklace.

Meanwhile the frosty nights of December have caused the lagoon at the Public Garden to start to freeze. I just about shiver thinking about it.

With the evening sky reflected in the frosted waters, this view down Newbury Street contrasts the siloette of the spire of the Church of the Covenant against a sky of purple charcoal clouds and a pale rose sky.

The Golden Sunlight of December Afternoons

2009-12-10T20:09:00.000-08:00

The late afternoon sun in winter has become one of my time for photography. I may be freezing in the frigid air, but the golden light of a nearly setting winter sun brings out such a warm glow in urban background.....even abandoned factories can look beautiful.

These are photos from last December along the canals in Lowell, orignally in a post in my blog Other Thoughts. Lowell was a big mill town along the Merrimack River. A series of canals weaved though the industrial district, providing water power to the mills.

These photos contrast the old industrial buildings bathed in golden light with the blues of the canals and sky.

The Colors of Spring and Autumn

2009-12-05T20:09:00.000-08:00

Our two most colorful seasons draw their hues from different palates. Spring (my favorite) features a softer mix of whites, lavenders and pinks. Autumn is bolder with its bright yellows, oranges and reds. Here is a side-by-side of the same tree I captured this year in April and November.

Autumn Hues -- Part 3 - Past Peak

2009-11-20T18:26:00.000-08:00

The best colors of fall happen at "peak foliage," which is a somewhat elusive time. Often the weather is rainy or the wind blows away many of the leaves. The period after the peak is often thought to be mostly dull, uninteresting colors and a lot of bare trees. But, this year I've found that interesting colors even after the peak.

Below: 3 views showing the changes over the last 3 weeks at the lagoon in Boston's Public Garden. Compare this view to the same view in part 1 of Autumn Hues.

Below: a promenade in the Public Garden. Compare this to the view a few weeks earlier in part 1 of Autumn Hues

Below: even a view with mostly bare trees includes subtle background colors against a blue sky, particularly where reflected in the lagoon.

Below: a leaf-covered path along the banks of the Charles River.

Below: bare trees line the Charles River on a bright 15th of November.

Autumn Hues, Part 2

2009-11-04T17:44:00.001-08:00

This fall, the weather has been warm and cold, we've had rain and even snow. But, I have been trying to take in as much as possible of the foliage around me. New England is blest with four distinct seasons, but the best ones don't last long. Whenever I can, I try to capture the colors and scenes that capture my eye.

The Hues

The autumn hues feature bright reds, yellows and oranges, as seen below.

Each species of tree and shrub has its own distinctive color. The maples, with their bright oranges, tend to steal the visual show. But the yellows make my favorite backdrop. And even the duller reds have their own beauty.

Building Blocks

Taking a close look, you can notice that the individual leaves are not a single color, but their own little palate mixing several hues.

More Autumn Urban Streetscapes

Below: With a towering canopy over Brattle Street, my photo captured a fellow bike rider.

Below: Fallen leaves line the sidewalk and street on a sunny afternoon.

Below: Brilliant red foliage steals your attention.

Below: Bright yellow canopy over a meandering lane through Mt. Auburn Cemetery.

Autumn Hues in the Urban Streetscape

2009-10-30T16:33:00.000-07:00

While spring is my favorite season, the fall in New England is the most photogenic season. Just Google “fall in New England” and you’ll behold the classic scenes of hills, farms, quaint villages and the countryside in brilliant colors.

While the spring palate features subtle hues of white, lavender, and yellow greens, the fall plate is much bolder: bright yellows, oranges, and reds framed with some browns and greens. It’s our little visual concession while the temperature is plummeting and winter’s blustery winds and snows are just around the corner.

The classic autumn photos feature rural scenes, but the brilliant hues of the autumnal transformation are striking even in the urban streetscape. And this fall did not disappoint.

Bonus feature: Why do the leaves fall off trees in autumn? Because the tree say "time to go" and sever the ties! Click here for more info.

Gardens of Boston and Cambridge

2009-10-13T17:11:00.000-07:00

As much as I love gardening, I love admiring the work of other gardeners. From spring to fall, I'm looking for interesting displays or just creative angles on the familiar. During our brief summer this year, I always had my phone's camera at the ready to capture the blossoms that attracted my glances.

We start out with some views from spring around Cambridge.

Flowers of summer

Horticultural displays in Boston's Public Garden. I'm so fortunate to work near the Public Garden, allowing me to take strolls at lunchtime or after work.

Summer flowers in Cambridge gardens taken on my strolls around the city.

Barrier Beaches and Oceanscapes

2009-09-24T18:31:00.000-07:00

Summer and beaches. Vacation time, relaxing in the warmth of the sun. With the very short summer we had here in the Boston (Massachusetts, USA) area, I only had a couple of visits to the beach.

Still, beaches are beautiful in any season or time of day. Being fair-skinned, I tend to visit the beach in the late afternoon or early evening when the sun’s burning rays are much less intense.

Many of the beaches along the east coast of the US are classified as barrier beaches. The largest and most famous of these is Cape Cod, a long peninsula extending line a bent arm off the coast of Massachusetts.

A barrier beach is are typically a narrow strip of sand between the ocean and a tidal lagoon or marsh behind it. It is formed by wave action. The waves roll up the shoreline and desposit sand. Eventually it builds up to form a dune.

The two beaches I visited this year are both barrier beaches. Revere Beach is the gem of its namesake city and the oldest public beach in the US. Good Harbor Beach is a small, community beach in Gloucester, a city known for its fishing industry.

Even with much development around each beach, the aerial photos reveal the classic barrier beach configuration of a narrow sand bar.

Here are a few pictures from my trips to the beach.

Above: Revere Beach

Below: Good Harbor Beach

Above: View of the town of Nahant on a peninsula off the coast of Revere Beach

Below: A house, typical of fishing communities (complete with widdow's watch) built on a rock cliff overlooking Good Harbor Beach

Below: a small island offshore from Good Harbor Beach.

Below: Views of the dunes at Revere Beach (left) and Good Harbor Beach (right)

Below: Sunset at Good Harbor Beach (here I am, standing in shallow water, risking a water-soaked cell phone if a big wave breaks on me!)

Above and below: Sunset at Revere Beach. Time to go home.

Sunset Along the Charles River

2009-09-05T15:34:00.000-07:00

The fading days of summer mean the sun sets earlier. While I'm sad that what little of a summer we had around Boston is coming to an end, the early sunsets mean some great photo opportunities on my bike ride home from work.

The best part of the trip is riding west (into the sunset) along the Esplande, the park made famous for Boston's 4th of July celebration at the Hatch Shell. Here's a few shots from last Wednesday's ride.

Below: Evening light peaks under a footbridge

Below: The pinkish light of sunet reflecting in the pool.

Below: Two views approaching the Harvard Bridge at Massachusetts Avenue.

Below: A full moon among the skyscrapers of the Back Bay skyline.

Cambridge: Massachusetts or England?

2009-08-30T15:23:00.000-07:00

Context. In photography, cropping out the context can transport a scene in time and space. In movie making, we know that the shots are framed to crop out the suspended microphones, crew members and other equipment. Placing old cars on a cobblestone street with period buildings can transport you in time to the 1930s or ‘40s. Toronto is frequently used for city shots, as its urban architecture is similar to that found in many US cities.

Cropping the surrounding buildings from a photograph of a garden in the city may give the impression of being in the country. It’s what you leave out that often defines the shot.

Here in Cambridge, the campus of Harvard University features many architectural styles that illustrate the school’s English roots. Cropping out the busy streets of the city (with obvious American cars and signs), produces scenes that could as easily be encountered in England as in Massachusetts.

Above and below: Scenes from the Divinity School.

Above and below: scenes from Harvard Yard.

Below it's the Charles River, not the Thames. But the Weeks Footbridge would be equally at home over either river. Some high rise towers in the background hint this is an American scene.

Below, this Harvard hall could be right out of a London scene, perhaps with Peter Pan leading the children out of the dormer window to Never Land. The US style traffic signal and sign say otherwise.

Waterscapes Along the Charles River

2009-08-25T20:10:00.000-07:00

The Charles River provides a surprisingly great variety of waterscape backdrops to the urban fabric of palates of greater Boston. The classic view of the Charles Basin includes the Hatch Shell and the Boston skyline. Yet a short 10-mile bike ride along the riverbank pathway system rewards you with a variety of vistas.

Below: marshes line the north bank in this view from the Brighton section of Boston.

Above: a willow tree on the Esplanade near Back Bay is silhouetted by a Marsh sunset.

Below: a month later, a woman and child relax under a different willow tree on the south bank in Watertown.

Above: One of my favorites is a view into the sunset at Charles Station on the Longfellow Bridge. Taken only a few hundred yards from the Hatch Shell, this view is something you will never see on a post card. I just love the warm, yellow backlighting of the setting sun (eclipsed by the light pole).

Below: The falls at Watertown, framed by the wonderful spring palate of leafing trees on a warm Saturday in April.