burnt embers

There is a narrow alley off Pandora Street that drops down into what at one time was a small valley with a creek, now fully paved. John’s Place, a restaurant, backs onto this area. I think there are apartments above the restaurant, but don’t know that for sure. The stairs in this photo are coming down from the street level out front, giving an idea of the minimum depth of the draw that held the creek.

I was framing a second shot, after having taken the bottom one when the woman came out the door and into my photos. I did not have the guts to keep on photographing while she came down the stairs to fetch something, but we did have a brief chat – “what is so interesting that you would want to photograph it?” In fact, the truthful answer would have been her, going down and up the stairs, or at least would have added some interest. Still, I like how she is hidden and her actions suggested rather than obvious in the first shot.

As to going around back to find the interesting, this is a lesson I have learned from Melinda Green Harvey, who is forever finding interesting things out back of buildings in Texas.

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Olympus OM-D E-M1, m.Zuiko Digital 12-40mm f2.8 Pro lens, ISO200, f2.8, 24mm (48mm equivalent), 1/640th

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