I have photographed the exterior of this hotel several times over the past ten years. Back in 2006, the hotel’s exterior was painted in rich primary colors (See http://www.pbase.com/image/60068611) I recently returned with a tutorial student to find it currently painted in a more frivolous pairing of hues: deliberately contrasting yellow and pink with white. Nature also seems to be painting the hotel at this moment. The late morning shadows create a geometric pattern in this alcove leading to one of the hotel’s auxiliary doors. My composition leads the viewer’s eye through the entire image. A handrail on a white wall leads in from the left – the wall seems to be painted pink, however it is actually white. That back half of that white wall shows up as pink, a reflection bouncing off the opposite pink wall. The railing carries us towards the focal point of the image: a huge triangular shadow embracing the rectangular door within a bright yellow wall at the end of the alcove. The triangle neatly divides the image in half by running diagonally from corner to corner. The bright, vivid colors are playful – this hotel wants us to feel that it is a fun place to stay. The image itself becomes playful as well – the geometry is supplied by the position of the sun, and I use composition to link that geometry to the lively colors that express the character of this place.