* Wednesday C&C "No Theme" Thread #949 / Revived #169 on 2026 06 24 *

Photo 1.
The shape and glowing red of the glass dominates the shot. The blurred, silhouetted bird adds movement, drama and a story. The branches give framing and context. I'd have cropped in harder but still kept enough branches to provide framing on the left.
Photo 2. Despite the blurred wings, it feels like a very different shot to me and I wouldn't place them together.
Dessert creamy pinks and texture and the kind of discovered details that make macro shots satisfying to explore.

The shot is nicely framed to concentrate the viewer's attention on the central building. Similarly, the warm light and reddish bricks ensure that the central building and its whimsical spire are the subject.
It's a pleasant streetscape study that observes differing architectural styles.

What an utterly incredible building for a school. Was it always a school or was it something impossibly romantic that was repurposed as a school?
The photo emphasizes the considerable slope and this makes the "school" usage even more unlikely. Schools are usually sited to make construction easy.
The sweep of the gutter, the stone blocks of the road and the angles of the steps are all combining to add drama to a subject where we don't expect drama.

You did a good job at masking the bird.
With shallower DOF, it might have been possible to create an illusion of you capturing a smaller bird at close range with the landscape further behind it.
A bit of forced perspective in reverse (to make the main subject look smaller than it actually is, while forced perspective is most often used for the opposite illusion).

It's an interesting installation to be placed in what appears to be a remote area, and in good shape too (not yet weathered).
Is this a recent art work? Do you have additional info?

Looks like the "Just in Time" is also just in time for some renovations that are sorely necessary.
Rust and decay often make for interesting subjects. This is no exception.

Is that a hummingbird in that first image?
I did not know you have these in your parts.
The bright red of the feeder (that's what I think it is?) is an attention magnet to such a degree that the bird is almost hard to spot.

And that creates a unifying theme here, because also the second image has such a brightly coloured spot, enhanced by the backlighting through the delicate petal.
I really like how the wasp (?) is going about its business in the delicately shrouded cocoon.

I'm having a déjà-vu with this image.
Your building is probably not in Freiburg (near the German/French/Swiss border).
That would be an incredible coincidence.

But a few years ago we stayed in small Airbnb apartment in Freiburg and the building looked exactly like this, with our main room flooded with sun from all directions in that little round tower-shape. We were on the second or third floor. Sweet memories.

The golden light in your image enhances the nostalgia.

Mike, I don't know if the problem is at my end, but the first of your images does not show on my computer. I can see the thumbnail low in your post, but not the full scale image.

These are, in any case, interesting historic images of a timeless event.
I must say though that (in scanning or processing) the last image has a clear pinkish hue to it.
I can't see the first.
The second has a nice range of untinted greys and blacks.
The third has that hue and it would be better without it.

This is like the Turkish Hogwarts.

That's odd. Is anyone else seeing the same things as Roel? They all look fine on my Apple Airbook. The last shot, on my computer, is a tiny bit, and I mean really tiny bit, warmer but I wouldn't have noticed it without looking extremely closely.

It’s not just on my desktop computer monitor.
Same (very obvious) hue and colour (temperature) difference om my phone.

Just looked at these on a different laptop. The second image also looks a touch warmer on this screen but neither 2 or 3 seem unusual for B&W. It's possible that I converted 1 to a B&W image (it was already a B&W negative) before I adjusted the tones in the conversion process.
All images are displaying at correct size on both computers.

I like the shots without the sky more than 1 but I can't explain why. On the other hand, the boat's name is perfect for the subject and having it in the series is great.
The "starburst" and horizon in 2 add possible interpretive links that give interest.

He looks like a monk wearing a gleaming golden hat.
At the same time, he looks menacing.
The lighting highlights what you likely intended to achieve with this photo.

The third photo really appeals to me.
However, I would significantly increase the contrast and saturation.

That looks good—a good idea.

I really like this photo because the evening lighting is so beautiful.
It doesn't bother me that the bird isn't immediately noticeable.
I tend to look at photos like this more closely anyway.

I really enjoy looking at your photos from back in the day.
Keep it up, Mike.
Please!
They bring back a wonderful time for me.