Under the Santa Monica Pier
The Santa Monica pier is one of the most well known and photographed places in the city.
The first time I saw it with a tourist's eye. I saw the colors, the restaurants, the too many tourist shops and attractions. I remained unimpressed.
My second trip to Santa Monica was for a few weeks, the beginning of a 3 years relocation period to this new and promising place. And between looking for apartments, furniture, and the rest of daily chores - I started going out with the camera. Walking on the beach towards the pier.
Sitting under it, with the sun on the horizon, looking at the waves crushing in - provided a whole new way of looking at the pier.
Feeling secure yet a bit dwarfed by the boards above and the giant pillars surrounding me, I kept looking at the waves through the lens. A struggle (or duet, I could not decide) of man made engineering and nature's force. The power of men ingenuity and the power of nature. The static and the dynamic.
Enclosed yet open.
Dark yet lighted by the setting sun.
Alone in a crowd of people enjoying the beach and people walking just above my head.
Under the pier - a different point of view.
Sunset as seen from under the pier.