Berlin (1)

Hello all, I've been busy/away/offline for the past month or so - will try to catch up on viewing and commenting your images in the coming weeks...

Back from Berlin and Dollendorf where we spent some time with friends, so photos will be trickling down from the recent trip. I didn't get much solitary roaming photography time (yet enjoyed the company immensely!), which has probably affected my output in that I had to make decisions much faster than usual, make do with the subjects present, all while being a good husband, father and friend - I'm sure some of you can relate. Oh, and I had to become friends with my newly acquired K-70 (my K-01 has developped a sticky shutter syndrome - or rather, stuck shutter. It will only open for video, which I will keep it for. Old friends don't die, they just go moving pictures on you).

This was our second visit to the city, and we find it to be very enjoyable for many reasons - the most important being the sense of space in such an important capital (historical reasons lie behind the many open spaces, trees, forest and lakes that abound within the city limits). It must be the least densely populated of the European capitals, and one can certainly feel it in the pace of the city.

And it is a city of reflections, architecurally speaking, so, without further ado:

1



2



3



4



The city even reflects upon older times:

5



6



7



Of course, I couldn't help but reflect upon the state of things myself...

8



...and, as a reality check, go for some head-on mugshots of "Typisch Berlin":

9



10



11



12



13



14



More to come, and I welcome your thoughts and comments - some of these are way out of my comfort zone!

Wow, what a set. A very refreshing group of images. I love the theme of reflections, especially 2;4;5; and 8.

The last one grabs me too.

Yep, a cracking 'set' that - having been a couple of times myself, the images are evocative.

Great work

Saw the topic title and thought "Here we go - Brandenburg Gate etc again", but how wrong! Super set of images with a different twist and even the more "traditional" ones have something eye-catching, esp 11,12 and 13.
Better than anything I came up with from my short time there a few years ago! Lovely!

Thanks, Peter, Dan and John.

Peter, the reflections simply cannot be ignored, they are everywhere (plus, I am always looking for them anyway). They offer such a great way of looking at reality from another perspective...

Dan, 'evocative' sounds good to me!

John, I'm happy you've found interest in the more 'traditional' images - those are the ones that I mentioned as being out of my comfort zone

Great set this Serge... Berlin, yes, but very individual and specific to you... love 1-5 in particular, with 1 and 4 partic faves... the reflections provide a fascinating context for the city... new vs old, man vs nature... a very strong link to the surrounding world in which the city exists...

Also love the framing of 11, and the juxtaposition of the grandeur and austerity of the building vs the people relaxing and enjoying it in 10...

Tippy top stuff...look forward to seeing some more as and when you have ‘em...

Best

Thank you Bill, Berlin is such a strong city, visually - in its own way. It certainly makes one look at it differently than, say, Venezia, or Paris...

That opening image

Glad you like it, Gareth. Thanks.

A lovely, thoughtful set of images that really stand out from the norm. I take my hat off to you for producing such quality when having to play the family man etc. I find this very difficult and only tend to produce anything worth looking at when I have time to myself (rare, nowadays).

Regards
David

Thank you, David. I have to admit the two phrases: 'where is Serge?' and 'don't worry, he'll be catching up' must have come up a few times out of earshot for me...