Stuck In Customs » France

After the Opera

tratcliff — Sun, 14 Sep 2008 04:40:54 +0000

It was a perfect, although slightly cool, evening as everyone was streaming out of the theater. It seemed like the sort of thing that someone should be taking a picture of… so I am glad I was there to do it!

Louis and the Ferris Wheel

tratcliff — Wed, 10 Sep 2008 00:40:54 +0000

I always wanted a good ferris wheel shot! It’s surprisingly hard to shoot these things. You would assume that it’s just a slam dunk with a long exposure and spinning lights… but it’s not that easy! I’ve thrown away hundreds… until finally it worked out magically one night in Lyon.

Some More Old Favorites from France…

tratcliff — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 02:53:53 +0000

Yesterday’s photo brought back such good memories I thought I would serve up one of these too, in case you missed it the first time around!

Alone around 10 PM - Just me and this tempting French creperie

tratcliff — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 02:53:09 +0000

It is my favorite thing in the world to wander around foreign streets at night… all alone… just me and my iPod. I’m much too weak to avoid passing by these little creperies without stopping in for a fresh French pastry… I mean, who in their right mind could avoid that?

The river than ran through Lyon at midnight

tratcliff — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 04:07:04 +0000

I walked around Lyon at midnight with a Russian friend. We were so busy at the conference most of the time that the first chance we had to shoot together was when the streets were almost empty and the river was black.

He saw me walking with my camera attached to my tripod and the strap hanging down. He winced, saying he saw one of his friend’s cameras just drop off the head and crash to the ground. He forced me to wrap the strap around the tripod just in case… and I still do that to this day, thinking about is disapproving Russian scowl. I don’t need to see that it my mind’s eye…

Le Magic Horoscope

tratcliff — Mon, 04 Aug 2008 04:27:19 +0000

I was in the back alleys of Lyon, the old district, when this little fortune teller in a purple box appeared. The machine was making rather scary ambient droning sounds intermixed with a screeching mechanical whirring that rumbled from the inside. I was rather nervous while taking a shot of it, but I kept my wits about me then moved on.

A Small Carousel in a France

tratcliff — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 23:12:42 +0000

It was just past 10 PM on the wet streets of Paris as I was getting lost on purpose around the streets near the Church of the Sacred Heart. I bobbed and weaved through various little alleys, streets, and tiny bakeries (where I would just have to stop for a moment), before finding my way to this little faire. There was a small carousel spinning away with tiny little French children screaming wonderful things…

The Grandeur of Notre Dame

tratcliff — Wed, 21 May 2008 02:45:14 +0000

This is the tiny little hillside chapel of Notre Dame de Lyon. It was a healthy walk to the top all by my lonesome with my tripod and ipod. It was once again one of those places where you are not supposed to use tripods. But I simply state that I am on a mission from God, and then they generally back off either in awe or confusion.

Parisian Blue Skies over the Rodin Chateau

tratcliff — Sun, 27 Apr 2008 17:08:28 +0000

It was a perfectly beautiful day on my first visit to the Rodin museum in the heart of Paris. I’ve always liked his sculptures, and the way they were spread among the lush grounds of the chateau was rather… French. It was a good day of exploration!

Dante’s Gates of Hell

tratcliff — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 13:12:07 +0000

This is Rodin’s huge famous La Porte de l”Enfer, also known as the Gates of Hell. I found it off to the side of the Musee Rodin in Paris while I was in a tempestuous mood.

The sculpture depicts a scene from Dante’s “The Inferno”. It contains over 180 of his finest sculptures. If you look closely towards the center of the top, you can see “The Thinker”, one of his most famous.

The Extravagance

tratcliff — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 03:11:33 +0000

The interior of the Notre Dame was vast, golden, and could not possibly fit through the eye of a needle.

The Dark Tower

tratcliff — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 22:09:10 +0000

Shot deep in medieval Paris after night had fallen…

Merry Christmas from Notre Dame

tratcliff — Sun, 30 Dec 2007 15:17:51 +0000

Don’t miss the giant Christmas tree in front!

I tried my best to sneak inside and go up top with the gargooyles, but the guards at Notre Dame are tough to trick… REAL tough!

A Frenchman and My Shadow at a Magical Booth in Paris

tratcliff — Fri, 28 Dec 2007 17:26:51 +0000

I thought this was a cool and mystical place. I added no light and changed no colors. You can see my shadow there on the left of the glowing booth of mysteries.

The Red Carpet

tratcliff — Sun, 23 Dec 2007 01:27:37 +0000

Shot on a long walk back to my hotel after dinner in Paris…

Dark Matters of the Church

tratcliff — Wed, 12 Dec 2007 14:30:04 +0000

Seen at the cusp of night in Lyon.