
“There is no logic that can be superimposed on the city; people make it, and it is to them, not buildings, that we must fit our plans.”βJane Jacobs
This week my assignment for the 52 photo challenge is behind the scenes, which means we need to include something about how we took the shot. This could be a tripod setup or a photo of us in action. A dear poet friend suggested he’d like to see more black-and-white photography with people, so I went downtown with my daughter. She agreed to be my model again and we took photos in one of my favorite parts of Old Sacramento.
The photos of me with my camera were taken with my daughter’s iPhone. I hope you enjoy these images and let me know if you have a favorite! Have a wonderful first day of May.













- Photos were taken with an Olympus OM-D and edited with ON1 Photo RAW
- If you want to join the 52 Photo Challenge, you can find all the information at nicolesy.com
52 Photo Challenge
Week 1: Bokeh
Week 2: Silhouette
Week 3: Black and White
Week 4: Motion Blur
Week 5: Texture
Week 6: Framing
Week 7: Leading Lines
Week 8: Negative Space
Week 9: Patterns
Week 10: Symmetry
Week 11: Green
Week 12: Sidelight
Week 13: Sense of Scale
Week 14: One Lens
Week 15: Series
Week 16: Flat Lay
Loved these! β€
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I’m so glad! Thank you.
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Number 8 and 10 are my favorites. β€
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Thanks! Those are my favorite too. I love old windows and peeling brick walls.
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The first picture reminds me of downtown Lancaster, PA. The horse-mounted police especially.
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Nice! It is interesting how many downtown areas resemble each other. It’s the energy I think. The tall buildings and the frantic movement of cars, people, and mounted police.
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Wonderful photos, Bridgette, including your daughter. I think the last photo is you! Have a great new week. βΊοΈ
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The last two photos are me π I’m so glad you enjoyed the photos. I know they all ended up more grey than true black-and-white, but I like them anyway.
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Grayscale is good too! Happy Monday!
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Wonderfully done π
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Thank you so much!
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π I love all of these. Youβre both very pretty and I just like the atmosphere. They remind me of paintings I would see by Degas and the rest could be by other artists. I love these.βΊοΈ
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You are so sweet! Thank you for such a thoughtful and kind comment.
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No problem.βΊοΈβΊοΈ I just really liked them!π
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That makes me so happy!
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These are awesome!
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I’m so glad you think so! Thank you.
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Welcome, Bridgette
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The silhouette on 2 and the multiple layers on 10 make for great contrasts on black/white. Your daughter’s a fab model π
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Thank you so much, Tom. Yes, I love how the windows in Old Sacramento look. There’s something so appealing to me about brickwork in general, but add in a bit of decay and it feels remarkably more interesting.
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Definitely – some great contrasts in the backgrounds here! π
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Wonderful.
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Thanks!
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The police horses photo, #8 and #9 are my favourites. Your daughter is very good at modeling for you. I guess you saved up enough to book her again π
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Thank you! She’s starting to like doing these modeling gigs for me. I consider myself quite lucky!
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It’s lucky her agent and mother and photographer are all the same person π
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Also president of her fan club π€£
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ππ
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9 and 3 were my object favorites, but seeing you at work was so wonderful and your daughter at play was joyous!
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Thank you! Photography has been a surprise gift in my life and it really is helping us to get even closer. I’m so glad I can take photos of her she doesn’t hate. That’s a huge win for mothers.
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Yes, it is! My girls always complained about my picture taking and now they comb the albums when theyβre home!!
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πππ
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Thanks!
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Horses in Sacramento. Whoβd a guessed. But then only been there maybe twice in my life. That was the big bad hot valley to us SF Bay Area folks. We were scared. But I like that shot. Horses, what a lovely way to soften the view of city-life. So you had me all in just with your first. (Wouldnβt have guessed seals either)
Your daughterβs pictures, also very very nice (especially in BW). And do I rightly take this as good measure of your relationship with her too? Makes me glad.
And my favorites. What can I say? I like seeing the βwhoβ who I am reading (so many hide). Not by your trigger finger on the camera, I know, but more than glad – the person behind the pictures, behind the words, easy to appreciate. I do have a bias you know.
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Thanks, Neil. You are the poet friend I took these photos for. Yes, Sacramento is a really diverse place. I actually rode and showed horses growing up outside Sacramento near the airport in the middle of the rice fields. The seal surprised me! It was hanging out near the paddleboats on the river. I’ve not seen him before.
My daughter and I are very close. She homeschools due to her mental health struggles, so we have lots of time for talks and often take midday walks or drives to reset our minds after working all morning. She’s a willing and beautiful model. I’m very lucky.
Yes, I like to hide behind my words and camera sometimes, but this assignment required me to be seen. Thanks for the kind words π
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Downtown in black and white or in nature’s full color, you have an eye for interesting scenes and know how to capture them! I love the collaboration between you and your daughter. Very special. π
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Thank you so much, Michele. I wish these were less greyscale, but I still love them. The experience of spending time with my daughter is what makes them really special.
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You are welcome. Beautifully said. π Did Sandra’s book make it to you yet?
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YES! Thank you so much.
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Her/our pleasure! Enjoy! I would love to follow-up after you’ve had a chance to read some or all of the book. If you are interested. π
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Absolutely.
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8 and 11 and behind the scenes 2. Your daughter is a good model.
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She’s a great sport and very natural behind and in front of the camera. There were a bunch of schools walking around on field trips and we did pause when they came marching by. She’s brave, but nobody likes to be modeling in front of a bunch of kids!
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Same thing happened with a group of kids walking by Danielle at Disney when I was snapping a pic.
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B&W photos say so much! My fave is the first one. It reminds me of my hometown of NYC where mounted police are not quite as common as they once were.
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Thank you! Yes, mounted police aren’t that common in Sacramento either and I was so excited to turn the corner and see them. I’m glad you like the photos.
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Dear Bridgette,
Your photos are gorgeous. I love black and white photography; I always have done. Your daughter is such a beautiful model, and I love #8 of her posing for the camera. She is very pretty and looks remarkably but understandably just like you. I love Behind the Scene # 1. It’s a stunning shot of you, my friend. Lastly, I also like #10 just because I love images of windows and doors; the older, the better.
P.S. I’m sorry I missed some of your recent posts. What with being in London last weekend and feeling exhausted for the days after that, I got behind with reading blogs in general. Yesterday, my laptop crashed big time and can’t be repaired for several days. As a result, I lost all my open tabs, which had a blog waiting to be read on each one. I’m now borrowing my neighbour’s son’s spare laptop until mine can be fixed. Anyway, enough of that, but I do hope you can forgive me. I was so looking forward to catching up with your work, too. Sending you love Xx πΉπ
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Thank you, Ellie! My daughter is incredible and beautiful. I’m so lucky to have her by my side and as my model. Ah, thanks for saying my photo is stunning too. I appreciate that. I’m sorry to hear about your laptop. What a terribly challenging week you are having! Never worry about reading my blogs, it’s never an expectation. Love you bunches π
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Thank you so much for your sweet understanding, my friend. The problems with my laptop are really setting me back and it’s very frustrating. I’m so glad your daughter is happy to accompany you on your photo shoots and as your model. Things like this encourage close relationships and bonding in a relationship and I’m so pleased that your relationship with your daughter, despite all the challenged, is flourishing. How are feeling now? I think of you often. Love you heaps Xx π₯°
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Thanks, Ellie! I’m doing much better. I’ve been dealing directly with my fear and anxiety and I’m happy to report it’s feeling a bit less these days. The rash is clearing up too (not quite all the way healed), but I’m feeling hopeful and making plans again.
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I’m so glad to hear that, Bridgette. That’s such good news. I’m pleased that your rash is starting to get better, too. Take care of yourself. Xx π₯°π
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The great Black & white photography. 7th pic is so pretty looking.
Wonderful it’s place. I like.
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Thanks! I like #7 too. Her years of ballet training paid off for this photo shoot.
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Nice. Good job work.
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I love the old story teller, the laughing seals and your daughter’s modelling poses π
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Thanks! I wish I could have stayed to hear the storyteller, but he quickly took his tour into the underground part of Old Sacramento. The seal was a surprise, and my daughter always astonishes me with her grace and beauty. It was a great day.
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I always look forward to your photos,Bridgette; you engage with the world so well photographically —
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The first picture of Sacramento looks like it could be in Boston. Love how you were able to capture the seals in their natural habitat. Your daughter made an excellent model, and what a great photographer she is! You are both so talented! π
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Thank you so much, Jennifer. Yes, I think many large cities have similar feelings and black-and-white makes it feel less recognizable. I’m so lucky to have a beautiful daughter willing to be my model! Thanks for your kind words.
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Incredible! You’re such a great talent π
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You are so kind! Thank you.
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Well….first I was going to say #3, then I saw the ones of your daughter and couldn’t decide which one of those I liked the best…they kind of look better as a series…..but then I got to the one of you in Behind the Scenes #1….and that’s the surefire winner. Please tell your daughter she did an amazing job capturing your intensity and joy of photography in that image! πππ
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You are so kind, Dawn! Thank you. I really do love photography. It’s become a passion over the last year and I feel like it’s healing me in so many ways. Thank you for seeing me!
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Beautiful π
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Love the ballet dancer and the (?) preacher.
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The ballet dancer is my daughter and I happen to think she’s the bees knees π The guy in the hat is a historical actor hired to do school tours. He was getting ready to lead a group of school kids into the underground part of Old Sacramento. I did the tour a few years ago and it’s fascinating.
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