Salamanca in Black and White

The beauty Spain offers is its light... Some may call it strong or harsh, but it's also a challenge, and it offers a lot of situations like the one above, in which one wonders where to meter and what to do. Since I wanted to show the contrast and still reveal some detail in the shadow areas, I metered on the sunny spot, then on the dark, and negotiated a comfortable middle ground... only to give it a little more aperture.  The result is this (which still needed a little tweaking with Photoshop): a nice corner in Salamanca, with an unsuspecting pedestrian to offer the human dimension.  

This is a contrast of old and new, very often done and overdone... but I liked it and here it is. I was after the great display of clouds in the sky. 

The odd effect of the sun on old stone appears here on this detail of the cathedral of Salamanca.  Again, a metering challenge (which zone is brighter?).  I ended up taking a reading off the wall in the center of the frame, as I figured it'd be the most prominent in the final image.   

The inside courtyard of the Salamanca cathedral.  There's a number of small chapels and rooms around it, but the light creates a particularly inspiring effect in the corridors. 

Salamanca Plaza Mayor.  We were there a bit too early for the local "marcha", which explains the chairs unused and still piled up.  I like this image simply because it offers a certain geometry in the interplay of straight and curve lines, light and shadow, and an inevitable touristy or post-cardy look to it.  Who cares!  I saw it, liked it, photographed it and now I'm considering printing it and framing it and hanging it. 

I began with the interplay of light and shadow, and so I end.  This is Salamanca, a street on the way to the famous bridge over the Tormes river.  I was walking lost in thought, lifted my head and saw the shape of a house cut on a corner.  "Why not photograph it?" I thought.  So, here it is.

For the next post I may dig some images from previous trips or experiences, whether local or abroad, done with my M4-2 or any other Leica.  There's going to be a theme: metering.  

BTW, even though I don't find it absolutely necessary, these images were all done with my faithful friend, my Leica M4-2 and my Konica Hexanon 35mm f2, on Kodak BW400CN film.  No longer made, alas, but then, I'm switching to other choices and exploring other possibilities.