A couple of things have come up from recent PADs - comments I've made, questions I've been asked - which have inspired me toward some new PADs. In the case of this one, it was a combination of things; the fact that I've done enough still lifes over the last few PADs and it was time to haul the camera gear outside again, and a comment that I made in yesterday's commentary that "urban is normally more my thing" and yet I really haven't had time to do a real urban shoot lately.

Had today been devoted to photography I could have had my pick of weather conditions (except rain in the pre-dawn, which is what I actually need for one shot that I've want to do for ages.) The day dawned bright and sunny (enough to take the car to the car wash) and remained so when we headed off to see Sherlock Holmes: A Game Of Shadows. After the movie we had lunch at a café overlooking Burwood Park where, I noticed, the light was bright, intense, overhead and of course flat. Later in the afternoon the skies darkened and the roar of thunder heralded a thunderstorm. And tonight, again, it's dry albeit a touch steamy. (Which is again annoying since I need a combination of rain and night for the shot that I hanker after.)

Canterbury Road is one that I have mentioned before. Unlikely to win any beauty awards it has the occasional residence but is predominantly bordered by car yards, the occasional school, hardware stores, car washes, more car yards, McDonalds and 7-11's, abandoned shopping strips whose business has been obliterated by the regional mega-malls, still more car yards, some churches, light poles wrapped with posters for performances both upcoming and past, depending on how recently the billposters updated them, and did I mention car yards? Oh, and lots of neon lights, some of which almost form a pattern of a lopsided Southern Cross.

It may be thought that this kind of environment is unworthy of documentation, that the lack of charm and refinement render it something to be skipped over. We disciples of (Edward) Hopper must disagree. This area's form is defined by its function, and the function is designed by the people who interact with it. It may seem a stark and soulless place with traffic simply passing through as quickly as it can... but it's the sum of the souls (for want of a better term) that put the place together in the first place.

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