I love spending time outside, appreciating the breathtaking beauty of nature.  The brilliant blues of the waves crashing on the shore, bees buzzing near vibrant blossoms, colorful sunsets and more…  Yet, sometimes I find myself in places where nature’s beauty takes a backseat and I find myself noticing interesting manmade creations.

Last week I had the opportunity to visit the Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles.  It wasn’t nighttime, so I didn’t get to star gaze and experience the telescope…but the building is spectacular!

The beautiful sunny day created a perfect backdrop for the architecture of this building.  And from another angle, you can see the dome that houses the telescope.

Indoors, there are many informative exhibits–open to the public, free of charge, everyday!  From the Foucault’s pendulum to the design of the windows, this is an extraordinary place.

While I didn’t get to go in where the current telescope operates, this “retired” version was on display. I am struck by its intricacies and beauty!

And looking out from the park, you can see the LA skyline from one side and then spy the iconic Hollywood sign in the other direction.

And sometimes interesting isn’t necessarily beautiful.  A trip to LA is almost always accompanied by traffic–and this trip was no different.  But since I wasn’t the driver this time around, I could take some photos out the window.  I was interested in watching the train that traversed the freeway…although the moving car didn’t allow me the best angle!

So take a look around for photos that feature the manmade.  Where do you find manmade beauty or objects of interest?  Is it in the architecture?  In the technology or transportation available?  Something right in front of your eyes that you hadn’t paid attention to?

You can post your photo alone or along with some words: commentary, a story, a poem…maybe even a song! I love to study the photographs that others’ take and think about how I can use a technique, an angle, or their inspiration to try something new in my own photography. (I love a great mentor text…or mentor photo, in this case!) I share my photography and writing on social media. You can find me on Instagram and Twitter using @kd0602. If you share your photos and writing on social media too, please let me know so I can follow and see what you are doing. To help our Weekly Photo community find each other, use the hashtag #manmade for this week and include @nwpianthology in your post.

Take a look at the manmade this week…what do you notice?  I can’t wait to experience manmade (or womanmade) through your lens!