Andrea's trip to Berlin - Summer 2006

This is a shot Annabelle took of Encarna and Dr. Bruce. Encarna thinks Dr. Bruce looks like Jim Carrey. So, I pulled up some photos online and I think she's right. We printed these photos and gave them to Dr. Bruce. He didn't know who Jim Carrey was. He thinks he looks like Jack Nicholson. Well, maybe a little.

This is by the entrance to the Rathaus Neukölln U-Bahn, across the street from a shopping mall. It is a wonderful spot to capture photos of people. I love that Ms. Striped Tights is still, but the people on the left appear to be speeding past.

Practicing Alex Webb

I was trying to play with the different colors of light. I took a few shots - most were too dark for my liking. I like the right wall going from out of focus, back in, then back out. Also captured my friend Encarna on the left.

Geometry

I'm practicing framing here - and also some geometry. The colorful flower pattern caught my eye first. But then all the shapes and lines popped out at me.

Aaaayyyy!

I don't know - I just like this one. It's a sticker in a dark hall of a hinter hof. The exposure took a long time and I didn't have a tripod. Trippy.

Nesting

This nest is low to the ground (the bottom right hand corner is the concrete ground). This was taken in a hinter hof that appeared to house artists. So, is this a human-made nest, used as a planter? Or, did the neighborhood cats or dogs just empty out the tasty eggs?

I took several photos of this, playing with different angles and different distances. This one felt most comfortable to my eye.

For super stars only

This is an old brewery that was renovated and now houses several restaurants, clubs, shops, and a movie theater. The star captured my attention first. Again, I took several shots. This one is a bit crooked (I hope no one gets sea-sick) but I like the angle.

What next?

This is the movie theater at the old brewery. Perhaps these two are discussing whether to have dinner, do a bit of shopping, or head home for the night.

I'm practing people shots. It's not something I'm comfortable with. Basically, I have two choices: 1) ask for permission, or 2) be sneaky. When I've asked, I get mixed responses. So, this one illustrates the sneaky approach

Shopping cart

This hof is overgrown with clover and grass. I love the worn paint on the door. I imagine a mother with a few children using this cart to get her groceries home, but feeling too tired to return it right away. She'll use it the next time she goes shopping. Or, it could have been left by a drunk teenager who stole it.

Keeping secrets

This is on the front of a house. I wonder what is locked in this metal box. The electrical panel? The gas meter? A secret treasure?

Despite the unattractive concrete wall, the vines are thriving. Soon the vines might grow over the box to hide it. I enjoyed walking around this neighborhood because it had plenty of green space: grass, clover, vines, bushes, and trees.

Peek-a-boo!

Or is he just wiping his brow? I'm not sure they even noticed what I was doing.

As I mentioned previously, many people ride bicycles here. It's important for pedestrians to stay out of the designated bike lane. Otherwise, they will be yelled at and perhaps even hit.

Fore!

A Stalinist building. It's tattered. I fear another tile will fall on Martha at any minute. Yet the balconies overgrown with vines give it a bit of charm.

What would it be like to live here? Many of the buildings in this area (Friedrichshain) look identical - impossible to identify one from another but for the street numbers. Or perhaps, by the amount of erosion.

Music to my eyes

I loved seeing records - how often do we see LPs anymore? And I loved that it was so important to this man to read the details, that he put his reading glasses on. I didn't wait to see if he bought it.

A slice of Berlin life



This is in Kreuzberg - a beautiful floral shop, lots of bicycles (many people ride bikes in Berlin, and they have their own bike lane), and people waiting to cross the street. If you look closely in the left side, you can see Dr. Bruce's hat.

Garbage for the children
This is in a Turkish neighborhood. Berlin has the 2nd largest Turkish population in the world, second only to Istambul. This mural is on a kindergarten housed in a building that was previously a parking garage. You can see the entrance to a playground off to the right.