San Sebastian

Heading back to my hotel after wandering the streets of San Sebastian, Spain, on foot all day. What a nice day that was. My first full day wandering about in a place of my choosing on the European Continent. The job that took me to Madrid, and Europe for the first time (Sep. 2003), was done. So I then spent two weeks wandering on my own. San Sebastian was a place that sounded interesting to me, so I hopped on a bus and headed there. This shot was I think the beginning of me playing with long hand held exposures at night to try and achieve a painterly, or sketch-like feel. I enjoy it. It feels kind of like sketching to me, because you don't quite know exactly what you're going to get, but you have an impression. And that's more what I want to capture in these night shots, is an impression. A stranger in a strange land, navigating not just by sight and sound, but impression. Non-verbal communication. A sense for others and place. The details aren't quite clear in a situation like that, where you don't speak the language, a world apart, and no idea where you really are.