Beauty atop the blight

Parking garages have always been a point of contention when it comes to their builds in any neighborhood, including in Downtown Pittsburgh.

They may be a necessary evil within the city limits, but they're largely being underutilized during this pandemic with so many still working from home. Although our city has so many great photogenic spots, these parking garages can give anyone looking for a gorgeous view (especially these late summer/early fall sunsets) a great front row seat.

Friday morning, I decided to check out some of the usual suspects as well as adventure to some garages I've never been in. (Typically, I'm climbing them to get that perfect angle while photographing a protest or a championship parade). I started near Penn Avenue in the Cultural District and made my way towards my former college, The Art Institute of Pittsburgh, along Boulevard of the Allies. There are certainly plenty of photogenic "landscape" scenes, but I tried to stray from shooting too many of those, instead seeking out interesting shapes, lights, or moments.

This is another one of those projects that could be explored year-round, and you'd come up with different images every time you ventured out. It's so peaceful being so many stories above all of the noise and traffic below, just searching for something worth composing. Wandering downtown — with a mask on, of course! — was another much needed time out of the house.

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Pittsburgh City Photos is sponsored by Tim Gyves, agent with RE/MAX Select Realty.