Downtown Sweetgreen – Austin, Texas

We are now on 2nd Street as I walk west from Congress Avenue. It took many years, but there’s a real urban neighborhood feel with a healthy mix of residential, commercial, and retail. The narrower street gives a more intimate feeling than the broad Congress Avenue.

Believe it or not, I really like pictures like this—odd, probably, to most people. Of course, there is the glow of the Sweetgreen sign, which I don’t know if it’s neon or LED. There’s a preciseness to the architecture, and my framing of it is satisfying.

In the past, I would’ve brightened more of the shadows, but I’m realizing with experience that shadows mean mystery. That’s one of the benefits of shooting at night. In addition to the glowing sign, the slightly muted, lit rectangular windows add geometry. A black-and-white version is bolder, but I opted for the toned-down color version.

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