• Art/Design

    Tea Cups

    Tea Cups

    Last week, while in Montreal, I tried to visit the  Parc du Mont_Royal but a few snags prevented that. I have another 17 hour layover on this trip but the weather has not cooperated with rain/snow showers and temperatures at 0 degrees Celsius (32 F).  So, this evening, I again roamed around the airport, with camera in hand. We stay at the Montreal Airpot Marriott Hotel, which nice for crew members as we just walk to the hotel rather than a van ride. The hotel lobby, lounge and restaurant are surrounded by windows so the soft diffused light from the overcast skies creates some very nice light. I found these small tea cups along one side of the lounge. My intention is to spend a bit of money this evening as I want to enjoy a nice meal at the restaurant.

  • architecture

    Starting Out Nice

    A Morning Sunrise

    The morning sunrise through my hotel window. Most of the my flying lately has required early morning show times, some as early as 4:35 AM. Yesterday morning I was in Manchester, NH and could sleep in late because our flight time was noon. As I saw the orange glow of the morning sunrise through my window I jumped out of bed and grabbed the camera. Standing in a cold room with only my shorts on is a sure way to wake up. So after a couple shots and enjoying the sunrise colors I showered and began another day. The day had already started out nice.

  • architecture

    Fourth Floor

    Fourth Floor

    When I’m flying and the weather is cold and snowing I do not always want to venture outside. I find walking around my hotels to be a form of stress relief and easier to do in short periods. So here is another image taken in stairwell at one of the hotels. The ordinary seen in black and white.

  • Art/Design,  Photography

    The Valve

    The Valve 

    It’s plain and simple, I need exercise! One way for me get some exercise when traveling is walk the stairs at the hotels. I take the elevator with my bags but after that I usually walk up and down the stairs. I’ve noticed that in just about every hotel stairwell you will find valves. So I’m coming out the the closet and letting you know I take a lot of images of them. They are one of those manmade subjects readily available for me as well as a subject most people will overlook. Yep, need more exercise.

  • Art/Design

    I Love Her Smile

    Love her smile

    I spend a lot of time walking in and out of hotel lobbies. I always find interesting things to photograph in these lobbies. This time of year we will find many Christmas decorations. I find this cute little gal at our hotel in Albany, NY. I love her smile!

  • architecture

    While on my walk….

    Lamp

    Sometimes when I arrive at our hotel I find a walk to be good medicine for relieving any stress. While on such a walk I found this lamp on the outside of the hotel as a simple yet interesting subject. How often do we walk by these simple objects and never see them?

  • architecture,  Art/Design,  Travel

    Room 265

    This is a familiar scene for those who travel and stay in hotel rooms. The number will change from night to night but the scene is almost the same. My work as a flight attendant, has required me to sleep in hotel rooms somewhere between 10-13 nights a month. There have been times when I’ve awoken at night completely disoriented as to where I am. I have also stepped out of my room looking right then left, not sure which direction is the lobby. And, there have been many times I needed to look at my key to remember which room I was in. Those moments happen less and less as I accept this nomadic life.

    While shooting film I was not one of those photographers who wrote down important information so when the slides came back I would find myself disoriented. I may like an image but I did not know what shutter speed I used or what aperture I used. I was bracketing almost everything looking for one good image and hopefully a few compliments to boost my ego. With the advent of the digital age and all the information we have immediately, I’m not so disoriented anymore. I no longer wonder what aperture or shutter speed I used. I can adjust right there and take another image. I’ve also learned to use those tools to create the images I want.

    However, I must admit that every once in a while I still get disoriented in the field and have been known take a longer route back to my car and not by choice. 🙂 I took this image after I had stepped out of my hotel room to take my camera for a walk and looked both ways to orient myself. I giggled to my self and thought why not take a photo. So, this is really nothing more than a snapshot. I do hope you have a wonderful day and don’t get lost!

  • architecture,  Travel

    Oval Window

    The Oval Window

    I have the opportunity to look out a lot of hotel windows. It comes along with the line of work I do. I must say there are some very interesting windows out there and some pretty boring windows. All kinds of shapes and designs. Some windows will have wonderful views while some will have crappy views. This window has both, a wonderful design and view. I discovered this window while on my search for breakfast. Some may not believe this, but do I like to use the stairs while in hotels so I can get in some much needed exercise as it helps keep my pants from shrinking as quickly. On this particular morning I opened the door to the stairwell and wall-ah, there was this oval window looking out over the wooded valley with the American flag proudly blowing in the light breeze. I excitedly ran back to my room, as if the window was going anywhere, and grabbed my camera then happily took a bunch of photos. I eventually walked down the four flights of stairs and ate breakfast, which was pretty good, and then took some more images on the way back. Now back to work.

  • People/Portraits

    Self

    Self-portrait

    Since I purchased the AF-S Nikon 35mm f1.8 G lens, it has become my travel lens while I work as a flight attendant.It’s small size and light weight make it easy to pack in my roller board . I no longer carry a camera bag but wrap my camera, with lens attached, in some clothing and fly the blue skies. And, in my opinion it takes some pretty sharp images. I do not carry a tripod so any images taken will be handheld, as in this self-portrait. The light for this image is from my hotel window just as the sun is going down.