May 14 2012
Balconies and outside staircases are a feature of various districts across Montreal, but the high concentration of multi-plex residencies in Le Plateau makes them ubiquitous and can be found on pretty much any street you visit in this highly populated sector of Montreal.
Today I took a quick stroll up Saint Hubert and some adjoining streets specifically looking to shoot these iconic features.
I start my mini tour with a picture of a typical balcony. These days you will also see red squares in; windows, doors and, as in this image, tied to balconies, indicating support for the current student fight against tuition fee hikes.
A resident showing support for the students
A staircase on Le Plateau
Staircases and balconies on rue Saint Hubert
An outside staircase on rue Saint Hubert
A typical street view on Le Plateau
A colorful outside plateau staircase
A typical Plateau street
Protected outside staircase
Rear view of homes on Le Plateau
Rear view of homes on Le Plateau
If you are interested in knowing a little about the history of the staircases, check out the post from Feb 5. There are still many unique staircases I want to capture, so no doubt I will be posting more on the staircase phenomenon in the future.
While walking down one street, I came across an old Dodge Dart and couldn’t resist grabbing a shot. Even though I only took one exposure I put it through Photomatix to give it some HDR treatment and was quite happy with the result.
HDR of an old Dodge Dart
To view images in gallery format, simply click on one of the images below.
Thanks for stopping by. Until next time.
– Martin
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11 Comments
I saw some of the staircases last time I visited, but I didn’t nearly see enough of them. I think I went to the wrong place and I didn’t want to wander out alone too late into the eve. These are beautiful..thanks for sharing.
Thanks Lisa. Montreal is generally a pretty safe City at night, but hope you are able to visit again and tour the Plateau during the day…it has a vibe that is quite special.
Great set of shots of the balconies & stairs Martin, nice result of the old Dart, I do love this effect on the classic cars!
Thanks Steve…old cars are one of my favorite subjects for HDR even with only 1 raw exposure to play with I liked how this one came out 🙂
Your making me homesick! I’ve been living in the UK for nineteen years. Outdoor staircases like you find in Montreal are very rare here.
Sorry for the homesickness Lucie. I come from the UK and have been in Montreal since 99, so have times of homesickness myself…but I know I would miss the sights of Montreal just as much 😉
I feel like you should take some pictures in January for comparison… I’m always surprised that “stairways of snow covered ice” isn’t one of the major causes of death in Montreal. 😉
Good point Sarah….I will be sure to shoot some snowy shots of stairs at the first big dump…hopefully not too soon though 😉
Bien sûr… don’t say the ‘s’ word or it might blizzard this weekend. 😉
OMG… this just did my day! I have been browsing through your site and saw all the nice pictures from home! Great work, but I must say that this post really made me a little nostalgic, cannot wait to go home in August! Happy Sunday and thanks for sharing! 😉
Thanks Mrs Sasu. I too love the staircases and can imagine anyone who lived and moved away from Montreal would miss this feature ofMontreal. Hope you have a great trip home in August!