I find that there are certain, often unusual objects that I take photos of. Do you gave any?
For example if I come across a Stolperstein ( plaque marking the house of a Holocaust victim ). I don’t seek them out, but If I see one in a town, I take a picture.
Shutterdogs. Do you know what those are ? They are the metal pieces that hold a shutter open. Many interesting designs.
Pub signs in Britain. I think this is fairly common.
I think the answer depends on own definitions of the two words "consistantly" and "unusual".
For me I would answer often but not consistantly. And as grown up in Berlin "unusual" needs to reach a certain degree.
As example: I took a photo of the most successful warning road sign ever - or did you hear about one accident with a Norwegian troll?
I have a robust photo collection of water/sewer/"manhole" covers. They often have the town crest on them or interesting geometric designs. On my last trip to Turkey I took more pictures of cats than I would care to number (that's not unusual I suppose, there are a lot of cats!)
We are fans of the variety of sizes, shapes and colors of front doors in small European towns.
Photo fan of European manhole covers, French shutterdogs, fossils in stones and road crossing signs depicting unusual people groups. Thanks MarkK for a new sign to watch for if we find ourselves in Norway again.
Well, I don't know how unusual this is, but I like to take pictures of animal crossing signs, because different countries have different animals that are crossing.
For instance, in Namibia, I took pictures of warthog crossing signs and elephant crossing signs. (Of course, I took pictures of warthogs and elephants, too.) On Isla Santa Cruz, in the Galapagos Islands, I took pictures of tortoise crossing signs. In Costa Rica, I took pictures of crocodile crossing signs.
And, I guess I take pictures of other "different" or new-to-me signs, also, such as the trombone with a line through it in Vietnam (no honking). And, this isn't a sign exactly, but the pedestrian crossing lights in the old part of Mainz show little dwarves (I think) instead of the standard people icons.
I also take pictures of doors. In Europe, in particular, there are so many beautiful old doors and unusual door knobs and knockers. However, I know quite a few people who do this.
Definitely, CL. I take pictures of cats everywhere I go.
I like taking photos of cats too. I also take pix of graffiti, particularly the artsier stuff. Portugal was great for that!
Same, Teresa. I love taking photos of street art and "good" or interesting graffiti.
I am a fan of fences.
I take pix of the various warning signs -
telling folks to clean up after their dogs. It's the graphics that I find funny. Once when hiking in the hills in Weggis, surrounded by stinky cow pastures, out in farm country, was a dispenser for dog poop bags.
Hazard warnings- graphics of figures falling over cliffs, under boat propellers, etc. And recently on an Amsterdam canal, a sign warned about quicksand. That was a a first!
@Mona: You will find the warning road sign by driving towards Trollstigen from the North.
I’ve taken photos of door knockers, doors, town centers, and downspout covers. There are also the warning/danger signs.
I love taking photos of street art and "good" or interesting graffiti.
Travel tip for street art fans is Berlin.
I have many photos of doors, the older and more run- down the better.
I try to get photos of at least a few dogs, birds, and other animals on each trip, and I also really like door knockers, gargoyles, and murals. On more tropical trips, I take a lot of flower photos. I try to get a photo of the country's flag at some point as well. My favorite animal crossing sign was the coati crossing in Costa Rica.
We watched for sometime one rainy day in Rye as a couple walked a few yards, bent over, snapped a photo, and ambled along. I eventually asked….Manhole covers. It adds a pleasant diversion to walking. Some of the best I’ve seen were in Japan.
I am a scrapbooker as well, and the thing that doing scrapbooks has taught me is to get the small things that tell the rest of the story. So I love finding small tiny things that most people overlook.
Otherwise, I tend to gravitate toward wrought iron fences and shadows and unique things on roofs.
Brick walls and other similar things that I can use as a background in my photobook.
Art Nouveau/Jugenstihl doors and windows. I came home from Helsinki with about 200 photos of them.
Absolutely!
Work in the museum education field as a blacksmith, so I find myself taking all sorts of photographs of 16th to 18th century artifacts. All sorts of close ups, strange angles, and construction details. I'll be walking down a street past iron railings and suddenly I'm all over them looking for assembly details and evidence of welding marks and taking pictures.
In some old parish church? Yup taking pictures of ironwork. At the V&A I took pictures of an 18th century iron toaster then came home and made a reproduction. Then at the Museum of London took pictures of a 14th century candle holder and made a copy of that.
I have a bad habit and my phone enables my addiction by having 100x zoom.
Floors. I am a quilter, and I get inspiration from the patterns and colors I see in tile and wood floors.
I take pictures of Stumbling Stones -- Rome, Munich, Berlin, Prague -- so we never forget that past can become present.
Interesting, artsy or thought provoking shadows.
Horses -- Lippizans in Lipica and Vienna, ponies in a Paris park, carriage horses for hire. Other cute and not-so-cute critters.
General photos of where I've been and what I saw, no themes just lots of memories.
Very interesting thread, especially as I'm trying to up my travel photography game, which is quite honestly not too good. I'm not sure I take photos of anything unusual consistently, and some of it is country dependent and what people ask for. For example, in Japan I took lots of photos of manhole covers, in Turkey - cats, in India - motorbikes balancing entire families and their kitchen sinks, in the UK - blue plaques. My father-in-law also likes to see photos of everyday street scenes.
I take photos of all kinds of odd things. What people put out for the trash sometimes can be interesting. Shutter holders that often look like women warriors, old doors, odd things in windows, mushrooms, close up pics of moss, bees, mason marks in churches, feet on statues, reflections in puddles, decorative Christmas market stands, close ups of candles, colors on the floors of churches from the stained glass windows.
Join some FB photography groups to get good ideas and to take better photos. It certainly has helped me to improve, especially since I only use my iphone.
I have returned to asking people to use my iPhone to take a photo of me and then ask if they would like to join me in a photo. The result is an opportunity to engage people in dialogue and the resulting images are far more interesting than a selfie. Some folks attempt to explain how I can take a selfie, but I respond by saying, "This way I get to meet a potential new friend." You should see their eyes light up with comprehension! Unfortunately cannot share on this forum some of the wonderful images captured, but my tactic is greatly rewarding.
If we come across a brass plaque in the pavement, we do photograph it. Now I know they are called Stumbling Stones. Thank you. I just read about their history and who does the engraving, so now I will appreciate them even more.
Odd pictures? I find myself taking close ups of very old, worn doors and windows, often missing the more famous or known site that can be nearby! Close ups of crumbling stucco on buildings-texture, texture, texture!
And another new term for me-shutterdogs! Have often taken pictures and didn’t know their name.
The forum as an educational platform-wonderful.
Oh, Amazon deliveries- via canal boats in Venice, and miniature trucks in Amsterdam.
Yes, a lot of the above things, plus:
ancient Roman or medieval brick walls (especially repairs, filled-in windows or doors, badly weathered places, and different patterns)
pictorial signs forbidding things especially prohibitions new to us such no Lone Ranger masks, no high heeled shoes, no motorcycle helmets, no having your car be on fire, or no razor blades (a sign over a toilet)
dogs the same Italian breed as our dog (Lagotto Romagnolo)
an old Ape or Panda (the vehicles)
maybe this goes without saying, but unintentionally funny details in medieval and Renaissance paintings and sculptures
Oh, in a hotel in Lake Como, no irons are allowed in the hotel rooms!
nancys8 I do the NO signs, also. One of my most recent: a pictograph of a man urinating, with a line crossed through it, in the WOMEN'S shower at a hot springs in Taiwan. I should hope not!
My husband and I also do "mirror selfies." We take a photo of our reflections in mirrors in palaces or other historic buildings, or in the windows of buildings, especially if there are interesting backgrounds also reflected.
We do self-less selfies, like our two shadows on cobblestones or just our torsos reflected in the window of a butcher shop or our snow-angel prints in the snow.
Our quirky family tradition is to pose for a photo next to trash cans/rubbish bins. It’s amazing the variety we have recorded.
And my husband photographs every dog he sees!
I am prone to photographing odd snack foods...favorite so far is Wampire Cheetos in Poland. Also over-the door decorative plaques--not sure what they are actually called--often they are done in a series of related images, such as the ones I found in Warsaw of 10 different animals and birds, also in Prague and Tallinn. Really just any unusual architectural detail that catches my eye.
Oddball things I photograph:
Things I wish I photographed more often:
@Den, I also take photos of floors. Sometimes for the patterns or images like the Zodiac in Saint Denis. But what I really like is the light stained glass windows on the floor and walls.
As for an usual object, I like taking pictures of devotional statues that are on buildings. A lot of old buildings will have a niche with a statue in it. Usually they Madonnas, but there are all kinds. Around the corner from my house is the street San Juan. In the middle of the street on the wall about 8 ft up is a statue of San Juan. This weekend is the feast of San Juan and there will festivities all weekend in the street.
I have a growing inventory of city specific manhole covers.
weird....I take a photo of a mountain, tower, castle, etc... in the backgound with my feet up on a rail or something. Just so everyone knows I was there. I know weird...at least my wife says so...anyone else....then I can say I'm not so weird..
I take pictures of colours that grab my attention - a vibrant lime green lichen, the pattern in a chair cushion, a purple iris, a particularly spectacular sunset.
I take photos of menu translation oddities, like "half-baked chicken."
In Andalucia, I saw lots of patterns at the beginning of my 3-week trip at the Mezquita. Then I started seeing them everywhere. I have hundreds of photos of azulejos in entryways and courtyards, patterned sidewalks, iron grilles, flamenco fabric displays, walls, ceilings and so much more. Some are colorful, some are dramatic.
I'm a sucker for cats, French cats, Spanish cats, Turkish cats, Greek cats, Italian cats, house cats, stray cats, fat cats, fluffy cats, and especially kittens. All baby animals, ducklings, goslings, cygnets, storks and macaques come to mind right away. Even the occasional human ones - with parents' permission of course.
