NZ Visual Diary - entry 385

hallway - looking onto O'Connell Street

I have stood in this hallway before. The light, one of several that adorn the hallway, was the initial attraction. A trained architectural historian may prove me wrong, but I believe the light was fashioned in the Art Deco style. It and the ornamental metal work in the window beyond the light have the geometric signatures of the Art Deco motif.

I pre-visualised this photograph by imagining how I might capture a pedestrian within the frame of the doorway. The elements of the scene seemed perfect: both the interior and street lighting felt right; and the background building facade was deliciously segmented, both in form and tone. Furthermore, the echo of Art Deco ornamentation within the distant door — the distinctive pattern of rectangles within rectangles and centred diamonds — was an additional treasure.

I stood in the hallway for some time before the proper subject walked by. I felt fortunate to have captured some Rembrandt lighting on his face and dynamic tension from his raised right foot, achingly close to the street but quite not touching.

Another photographer might have cropped this image to exclude the hall light, thereby fully framing the subject within the frame of the doorway. My fondness for the hall light and window ornamentation dictated otherwise. I also believe that the added space above the doorway allows the photograph to breathe. In my opinion, the image would have felt too constricted if it had been compressed within the tighter boundaries.