“All thoughts, secret or spoken, belong in a coffee table book written in Braille, so you can really feel the emotions.”
― Jarod Kintz
I decided to start into this forum with my standard quote style. I find looking up suitable quotes to match my photos makes me think about the photo and the emotions it invokes in me and thus, enhances the image. And, I added a photo above of a local reservoir that I did some artistic work on a few weeks back
Which brings me back to the original topic and my reasons for blogging in the first place: Blogging provides me a simple forum to share my photos and my thoughts with an audience who tend to be more creative than the average populace.
I’ve started small and have been pleasantly surprised to be ‘troll free’, thus far. I tend to be quite open in my posts, trying to stick to a narrative style, as if I was sitting down with friends and being quite transparent about the events and processes that enabled me to make the photo in the first place. I’m hoping to engage in a larger group of people with similar passions to mine, and that has been successful. My feeling is that if I like certain elements of photography, surely there must be a handful of others out there like me?
The experience has also helped me to realize that, while it would be nice to make a few bucks from my photos, at least enough to support improving my work, it’s been more about creating works that bring enjoyment and inspiration to others. Were it not for a few inspirational photographers who shared their thoughts and techniques freely, I may not be at the place I’m at now.
The reason I started on this journey has many facets, the first being explained above and the second is for me to develop a daily discipline to create and share a photograph, every single day, whether I feel inspired or not. The ultimate goal is to publish this daily journey so a larger audience can enjoy the experience too. I’m also enjoying reading the works of so many talented poets and writers. They are all inspirations to me to keep improving.
I’m looking forward to future #weekendcoffeeshare chats.
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Ed
“I could wade into this river, let my sins drown to the bottom, let the waters carry me someplace far. Someplace with no ghosts, no memories, and no sins.”
― Khaled Hosseini
In what has become a springtime ritual for me, since discovering the phenomenon, some 20 years after living here, is walking the shores of Duffins Creek, near the town of Whitevale, and enjoying the annual trout run from Lake Ontario, to the Whitevale dam, where I have had some success photographing the trout trying to scale the ten foot tall dam.
To my observations, the run is not triggered by a particular week in the calendar, water temperature, or how clear the water is. The ‘run’ seems to to triggered by some combination of the hours of sunlight and daytime temperatures. Only the trout know what causes this urge to migrate upstream.
Along the shores of this creek grows a plant known as coltsfoot. It’s a small yellow flower, resembling a stunted, thick stemmed dandelion. The first blossom of this spring plant coincides perfectly with the trout run. We’ve had a mixed bag this spring, with temperatures early in the month above normal, yet the coltsfoot was not blooming, until recently. Low and behold, the trout have returned to the river for their annual pilgrimage to the dam. As noted above, the dam is ten feet tall and designed to keep this introduced species from migrating up the river and feeding on the native brown trout.
While they had not made it to the dam yet, I certainly enjoyed seeing the flashes of colour in the water as they fought their way past the current. I’m hoping to get back in the next few days to photograph the jumping.
The trout pictured above was hovering in the current in a relatively shallow part of the creek, providing me the opportunity to make a nice image, showing all his bright colours and patterns.
Nikon D300
Tamron 70-200 mm f/2.8 @ 135 mm
1/50 sec, f/3.5, ISO 250
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For those of you who don’t know this challenge, it consists of everyone in the group, moderated by Stacy Fischer, editing the same photo taken by one person. Below is the link to the original image and others submissions. I find it so interesting to see how different people visualize the same image. http://visualventuring.com/2016/04/01/april-one-photo-focus/
Original photo by Cee Neuner
“Every tree in the forest has a story to tell. Some of them were burnt but they endured the fire and got revived; some of them were cut, their barks injured, some people pick up their leaves to make medicines for their sicknesses, birds used their leaves to make their nests, etc. Upon all these, the tree is still tree!”
― Israelmore Ayivor
This ancient sycamore, in New York City’s Bryant Park, certainly would have stories to tell. I have no idea how old it might be, but someone planted it behind the New York Public library many years ago and it has borne silent witness to a multitude events and changes in its long life. This old wood has weathered time and endured, its bark rough and creased with age, unlike its younger companions with their smooth, mottled bark, so typical of the fast growing sycamores, planted in neat rows in this urban park.
Pieces of bark have fallen off, been broken off, revealing the bright layers below, or clung tight to the tree, growing dark and gray with the patina of time.
As the quote above says, every forest has its story to tell. I look on these gnarled old trees and decaying stumps, thinking back to when they were young saplings. These are the survivors, having outlived other lesser trees, every year marked in their rough and ragged bark.
Nikon D300
Tamron 70-200 mm f/2.8 @ 125 mm
1/320 sec, f/9.0 -1.0, ISO 400
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“One ought, every day at least, to hear a little song, read a good poem, see a fine picture, and, if it were possible, to speak a few reasonable words.”
― Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
One of the many benefits I find when hiking is the abundance of free art nature provides me. As I walked a forest path a few days ago, the ground was just starting to melt, but it was cold enough that small, water-filled, depressions were still partially frozen.
Since the surrounding earth was not frozen, the water from these depressions slowly drained away, leaving these wonderful abstract patterns for me to enjoy.
When I was I child, I loved to break these thin sheets of ice. Admit it, many of you did the same thing, for no real reason other than to watch the delicate structures break. At that time, I suppose I never had a real appreciation of just how beautiful they could be. Many are a brief history of the receding water levels and movements inside the puddle. It would be a curious exercise to do a time-lapse of this activity one day.
For now, I will enjoy these abstract patterns as they dazzle in the muted spring sun. Each one a bit different, influenced by so many conditions as they formed and melted.
Nikon D300
Tamron 70-200 mm f/2.8 @ 200 mm
1/160 sec, f/6.3, ISO 200
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“What is it to die but to stand naked in the wind and to melt into the sun?”
― Kahlil Gibran
This year, I left a few dried hydrangea blooms in my garden. My usual ritual is to trim them all down in the fall. I’m glad I left them, they added some interest in this past, dull, nearly snowless winter, and created a nice franewirk for our recent freezing rain event.
For those who have never experienced freezing rain, I’ll include a brief description here:
Freezing rain occurs when the ground temperature is below freezing while the air layers above are warmer. The precipitation falls as rain and freezes on contact with the ground. The end effect is that everything is coated with an ever increasing layer of clear ice. If conditions are right, this accumulation can be over an inch thick and cause major damage to trees and powerlines. Because it is a gradual accumulation, delicate plants, which would collapse in snow, are held rigid by the ice that encases them.
This was the case with the hydrangeas pictured above. A thin coating of clear ice built up over a period of a few hours, making them look like the are coated in clear glass.
It’s a beautiful effect, unless you are driving and have to chisel the ice from your car, or try to walk, since the ice is usually covered in a thin layer of semi-frozen water, making it extremely slippery. This is not a good feature when you are trying to walk around with your camera. The other thing with freezing rain is that it tends to be a very brief, beautiful event, which generally melts away within a few hours, as the temperatures rise.
I find it to be a challenging time photographically, since everything is beautiful and it’s difficult to isolate a particular composition within all that beauty.
Nikon D300
Tamron 70-200 mm f/2.8 @ 130 mm
1/250 sec, f/8.0 -0.33, ISO 200
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A very thought provoking post by a fellow blogger.
Chimpanzee contemplates nature of life, thinks “Well, shit.”
My mother is always the first to notice when I’m not writing. “February 5 was your last post,” she pointed out during lunch last week. I appreciate this. She notices.
In that vein, I want to dispense with one issue upfront: It has been suggested (not by my mother) that the occasional long gaps between my posts indicate I’m insufficiently “serious” about writing. I always despaired a little at that, because it felt unfair. At the same time, I always feared it was true.
But I’ve found that when we interrogate the assumptions behind our fears, and follow the what-if trail to its conclusion, we can find clarity. And I’ve realized it is true. There are many things I take more seriously than writing. Understanding, feeling, processing, life, and honesty are all more important to me than simply stringing words together. These things…
View original post 763 more words
If you should go skating
On the thin ice of modern life
Dragging behind you the silent reproach
Of a million tear stained eyes
Don’t be surprised, when a crack in the ice
Appears under your feet
You slip out of your depth and out of your mind
With your fear flowing out behind you
As you claw the thin ice – Pink Floyd
This image is the second in a series of photographs I made a few weeks ago, observing the gradual melting of the ice on a local pond. The patterns and various structures interested me and I wanted to spend more time looking them over, from the comfort of my office.
Above is a small section of the pond, close to shore. The snow has melted, leaving just the ice below exposed to the sun. The surface is uneven, caused by the melting and refreezing of snow to different depths. The white ‘cracks’ are the result of the ice cracking open and snow filling the cracks, only to refreeze. As I noted in other recent posts, the snow this year was particularly pure and white, which only enhances this effect.
Over my many years of hiking the same trails, I’m still seeing new things every time and I take that as a gift.
Nikon D300
Tamron 70-200 mm f/2.8 @ 125 mm
1/160 sec, f/6.3, ISO 250
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“Solitude is the soil in which genius is planted, creativity grows, and legends bloom; faith in oneself is the rain that cultivates a hero to endure the storm, and bare the genesis of a new world, a new forest.”
― Mike Norton
Solitude, sweet solitude, the place where I flourish, dream, recharge. I crave the quiet places, the forest trails, the meadows, and riverbanks. Each experience is such a part of me, and I a part of them. As I walk, stand, or sit, the majesty of nature, even the simple things, fill my eyes and mind with wonder. I am in creation, not merely a visitor, but a part of it. It fills me with joy and peace. Time ceases and I merely ‘am’.
For all the time I have spent walking the trails and photographing my surroundings, this one image fully expresses how it “feels” to me. I get emotional looking at it, since it puts me in that place I love so much. Not this particular location, so much, but how I feel when I’m in nature, overall.
The image has all the elements I experience on a regular basis when hiking near my home, the leaf covered path, the flowing forms of branches and leaves, sun shining brightly above and through openings in the canopy, and the dark spaces as well.
This photo was made a few short weeks ago along the Seaton Train, near Whitevale. The ice had just come of the trails and it was a beautiful, mild, late winter day.
iPhone 5s back camera 4.15mm f/2.2
1/40 sec; f/2.2; ISO 32
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“To my mind, a picture should be something pleasant, cheerful, and pretty, yes pretty! There are too many unpleasant things in life as it is without creating still more of them.”
― Pierre-Auguste Renoir
Happy Easter!
I wanted to try something new, something that satisfied the creative in me. I love paintings and have many friends who are extraordinary painters. My gift is photography, which offers me a similar outlet, but rather than spending time in front of the canvass, I spend my time walking in the trails, forests, and cities, always looking for interesting scenes to photograph.
This past week I was working with some of what I would deem my ‘secondary’ files. The images that I had envisioned, but did not satisfy me as I processed them. I ran these images through various filters and plugins, looking for the ‘vision’ of the photo to emerge. In this case, one of my favourite ‘solitaires’ or lone trees.
On the day I made the photo, the sky was filled with soft and interesting clouds, the wheat had just emerged to greet the early spring air, while patches of snow still remained in low areas. The photo alone did not meet my expectations, that is, until I ran it through one of my filters to create the wonderful image above. As I’ve said before, I wish I could paint, but since I can’t, at least I can create the image as I would have painted it, if I could.
Nikon D300
Tamron 70-200 mm f/2.8 @ 70 mm
1/250 sec, f/8.0, ISO 250
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“Human society is like an arch, kept from falling by the mutual pressure of its parts”
– Seneca
The Toronto Distillery District is known for its boutiques, art galleries, and restaurants. One of the art galleries in this area is the Corkin Gallery, featuring artists of many disciplines.
Within this large gallery are some of the original distillery structures, including these interesting arches which lead to two staircases to the second floor of the gallery. I like how the gallery retained the significant architectural elements of the distillery in their floorplan. It blends past and present beautifully. There was something about how the modern (stairs) and old (arches) blended together into a whole that just felt right.
I also enjoyed the various textures, from the age and patina of the brick, blotchy, cracked concrete, smooth steel handrails, and the clean lines of the glass and wood of the staircase. The staircase feels like an anachronism, placed as an escape from the ancient arches, a bridge to some uncertain future.
iPhone 5s back camera 4.15mm f/2.2
1/20 sec; f/2.2; ISO 320
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“As I see it, life is an effort to grip before they slip through one’s fingers and slide into oblivion, the startling, the ghastly or the blindingly exquisite fish of the imagination before they whip away on the endless current and are lost for ever in oblivion’s black ocean.”
― Mervyn Peake
A “Kill Plate” is the geological term of a particular strata in which numerous fossilized animals can be found. In this case, a large number of fish, each about two inches long, all died and were preserved as fossils in a narrow layer of sandstone. We will never know what event caused this mass death to happen, perhaps a big wave deposited the fish to die high up a beach somewhere and subsequent waves buried them? Or, a river dried up, with the same effect. It leaves us with an unanswered story to ponder, but the end is written in stone.
I should have written down more of the details about this particular artifact. The primary reason I made the photo was that I saw this as a piece of art and have neither the space, nor the funds for the original, though I am fascinated by the details and wanted to spend more time looking at it. It’s a bit like a large stenciled drawing, with the same shape repeating randomly over and over on a carefully textured background.
I can picture the person who first saw this slab, peeling back the top layer and revealing the scene above. I also imagine this is a small portion of a much bigger slab that was divided and sold off to galleries and collectors.
Nikon D300
Tamron 70-200 mm f/2.8 @ 80 mm
1/125 sec, f/5.6, ISO 250
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“One of the reasons there are so many terms for conditions of ice is that the mariners observing it were often trapped in it, and had nothing to do except look at it.”
― Alec Wilkinson
As winter transitioned into spring and the light coating of snow melted on the lakes, rivers and ponds in the area, some very interesting effects emerged, that I had not previously noticed. Perhaps it’s due to the small amount of late snow we received, which melted soon after it fell, clear and uncontaminated with dust and grime.
The effect I noticed was smooth ice surfaces, in endless shades of blue and white. The colours seem almost unnatural, but I suppose the purity of the ice and how it formed this year may have something to do with that.
In the image above, you can see deep blues where the snow must not have accumulated much versus the whiter areas, where it would appear snow has melted and refrozen. And, of course, there are the white cracks, crisscrossing the surface. I also like the mottled effect in the distance, which was harder to capture well from the angle I shot from.
The entire image has the look of a blue and white abstract painting, but it’s just nature showing off her own artistry, something I have been seeing a lot of lately and am happy for.
Nikon D300
Tamron 70-200 mm f/2.8 @ 125 mm
1/200 sec, f/7.1, ISO 250
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“Every doorway, every intersection has a story.”- Katherine Dunn
For any who have not had the opportunity to visit Toronto, there is a wonderful area which used to be the Gooderham and Worts distillery. After the distillery ceased operations, the early 19th century buildings were preserved and it has become a popular destination filled with shops, restaurants, and art galleries. It’s a place I visit at least once a year and always offers me new images.
This year I went, like last year, on my birthday, hoping to spot some new artifact, piece of architecture, and just enjoy the sights and atmosphere, as well as a good meal.
These street signs were installed to help navigate through all the side streets and alleyways, each representing the principal building which stands along that route. It helps give a sense of how things flowed back when the distillery was still active. It was the light that drew my eye to this sign as well as an image of New York Street signs I saw a few weeks ago.
Nikon D300
Tamron 70-200 mm f/2.8 @ 155 mm
1/320 sec, f/9.0, ISO 200
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“To dwellers in a wood, almost every species of tree has its voice as well as its feature.”
― Thomas Hardy
As I walk the trails, I can’t help but be amazed at the colours and textures of the stumps and standing dead trees along the way. I’ve started a collection of these aged and aging forest statues, each so unique in its appearance, yet somewhat similar. Some are recognizable as wood, while others, gnarled, twisted and covered in moss and fungus, take on the appearance of something slightly alien. Each tree species has its own unique character and form and tends to become habitat to specific mosses and other growths.
There are those that stand for years, bare and smooth, weathering the elements and bleaching in the sun, while others, fall and turn quickly into a spongy, mossy heap, home to mushrooms, mosses, and ferns.
Nikon D300
Tamron 70-200 mm f/2.8 @ 200 mm
1/200 sec, f/7.1, ISO 200
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“Beneath your burdensome regrets and who you think you are through the lens of past mistakes, there is someone beautiful who wants to emerge.”
― Bryant McGill
Spring has arrived! Though, somebody needs to inform the weather. In stark contrast to last week, this one has been quite chilly. Despite the sun shining brightly and turning open trails to mush, the forest floor remained locked in a shallow frost. At least enough to create a thin skiff of ice on the small forest floor puddles.
These leaf filled puddles, with their yellow, brown, and gray occupants, are like a miniature canvas, reminding me of the spectacular fall last year. In a few more days, the ice will be a memory and green will return once more to the forest floor, followed by bright trout lilies, pink spring beauties, and white trilliums. I even noticed a few wild leeks beginning to emerge from the chilly earth.
Nikon D300
Tamron 70-200 mm f/2.8 @ 200 mm
1/100 sec, f/7.1, ISO 250
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“Nothing clashed because nothing had the strength to clash; everything murmured of safety among the hues; all was refinement.” ― Mervyn Peake
In anticipation of spring greens and colours, I find myself back in the familiar and somewhat commonplace of local walking trails. In the middle of town, I find small sanctuaries of wildlife and the remnants of last years plants which have survived the winter. relatively intact. Though my eyes see mainly greys, yellows, and browns, a deeper look yields subtle pastels, adding a softness to the stark and brittle stems.
I’m trying to see all aspects of life that way, looking beyond the surface and anticipating subtle beauty and wonderment in every situation. Admittedly, this can be a challenge, given the world we live in, with all its stresses and pressures, but I believe it to be a worthwhile goal.
Nikon D300
Tamron 70-200 mm f/2.8 @ 190 mm
1/125 sec, f/5.6, ISO 250
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“Any patch of sunlight in a wood will show you something about the sun which you could never get from reading books on astronomy. These pure and spontaneous pleasures are ‘patches of Godlight’ in the woods of our experience.” ― C.S. Lewis
With spring just around the corner, this is the time of year where I go looking for signs of life re-emerging. The light is soft and indirect and casts wonderful shadows. I find myself looking at things differently. Textures, like those in the flowerheads above abound and make for interesting compositions. So, as I wait for signs of green and the first small flowers to appear, I’m happy to have these beautiful sights to satisfy me, as they were last year’s beauties.
Nikon D300
Tamron 70-200 mm f/2.8 @ 200 mm
1/160 sec, f/6.3, ISO 250
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“Given the right lighting, all the colors in the world can be seen in a white object.”
– Michele Cooper
This time of year tends to be fairly challenging as far as finding interesting things to photograph. The ground tends to be muddy and accessing some areas is tough. There’s also the prevalence of browns and grays with very few bright colours. Yet, if I look around, I can still find some worthwhile subjects. In this case, the mature seed pods, or ‘catkins’ of a hazel tree growing in a local park. And, I was blessed with beautiful spring light, though spring is still a few short days away.
I liked the texture of the catkins and I though this particular composition had some potential, as I narrowed my depth of field to isolate on cluster. While my primary subject was the catkins, all sorts of bright colours emerged from the background as I processed the image. This made the photo even more appealing to me, as the background looks like some colourful drop sheet, and nothing like what appeared to be a mundane background when I made the image. Light always offers surprises.
Nikon D300
Tamron 70-200 mm f/2.8 @ 200 mm
1/100 sec, f/5.0, ISO 250
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“A river seems a magic thing. A magic, moving, living part of the very earth itself.”
― Laura Gilpin
A few mere weeks ago, this entire scene was filled with ice and snow. A handful of mild days, and it’s all a memory, preserved and recalled in thoughts and photos.
Since I don’t live in an area with high mountains and grand vistas, I take great pleasure in long hikes along the local creeks and through forest paths. Moving water, especially in the form of creeks, cascades, and rapids, holds a special fascination to me. I love the way it moves, how the light plays in the currents and eddies. The water courses themselves are alive and always a bit different every time I visit. There’s a new log on the banks, winter ice has rearranged the rocks on the bottom, sediment has accumulated and changed the course, ever so slightly.
The scene above, would be typical of an April day along the creek, as the spring runoff concludes and the sediment levels decrease, the creek becomes clearer and the rainbow trout begin their annual run to spawn. But, this is March and the trout are not quite ready, but the water awaits, cold and clear. The coltsfoot and bloodroot will begin to bloom, signalling the start of the run. I imagine, if the air stays mild, that will be within the next few days and I look forward to seeing life returning to this magical place.
Nikon D300
Tamron 70-200 mm f/2.8 @ 95 mm
1/10 sec, f/22, ISO 250
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“A world which sees art and engineering as divided is not seeing the world as a whole.”
– Sir Edmund Happold
The varied and beautiful architecture in New York City took me completely by surprise. It must have been quite the place back in the late 19th century. I love fine details and could spend hours sitting in front of a building like this and drinking in all the fantastic stonework. It’s also nice to see how well these buildings have been preserved. New York, at least parts of it, seems to have largely escaped the wave of ‘urban renewal’ that swept through many major cities back in the 70’s, where beautiful old edifices were sacrificed for parking lots or concrete monoliths.
I decided to process this in black and white because it brings out the detail and texture better for me and masks the distractions of the colourful billboards advertising the current show.
iPhone 5s
Back Camera @ 4.2mm
1/30 sec, f/2.2, ISO 80
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“For me, the camera is a sketch book, an instrument of intuition and spontaneity.”
― Henri Cartier-Bresson
Spring thaw, though not officially spring, has begun in southern Ontario. The scant snow and ice of this past winter is releasing it’s captives to open air once more.
This scene, which I titled “Left Overs” is so typical of some of the trails I hike on. The local conservation authorities have put great effort into creating walkways over sensitive areas of the forest, especially low, boggy areas, which would otherwise be damaged by all the foot traffic. These wooden plank walkways also serve as wonderful canvases for images like this. The leaves of last autumn lie pressed to the wood like a multi-media artwork, in tones of grays and browns, with the occasional splash of green and orange for the cedars.
I find myself stopping frequently and enjoying this mini art show that most people simply walk past. I supose I’m a bit strange that way and people look at me oddly as I point my camera downward at something that has no significance to them as they enjoy the outdoors their way.
Nikon D300
Tamron 70-200 mm f/2.8 @ 125 mm
1/40 sec, f/3.2, ISO 250
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“Eventually, all things merge into one, and a river runs through it. The river was cut by the world’s great flood and runs over rocks from the basement of time. On some of the rocks are timeless raindrops. Under the rocks are the words, and some of the words are theirs.
I am haunted by waters.” ― Norman Maclean
The above, is one of my favourite quotes. it simply resonates with me on a very profound level and I’m pleased to be able to start articulating those feelings through my images.
How often have you sat by a stream, calmed by the gently flowing water and the dance of light below the surface? I find myself taking these simple moments for granted. As I walk through the woods through the forest, I cross many streams, each unique in their character. Some are deep, dark and cool, others shallow and fast moving over stoney bottoms.
Yesterday, I sat by this small creek and simply watched and listened as the cool water flowed over a sparkling sand bottom. The shimmer of light on the ripples inspired me to make more of this that simply a photograph. I was trying to capture that subtle energy of the water, the play of light, and the many textures created by the flow.
The photo above is an abstraction on that initial image. For me, it ‘adequately’ captures that moment, shows the light, texture, and movement. I tried several other treatments, but none worked for me. I’m pleased with this one.
Nikon D300
Tamron 70-200 mm f/2.8 @ 200 mm
1/80 sec, f/4.5, ISO 2000
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“Life is only a flicker of melted ice.” ― Dejan Stojanovic
Along the trails lie small depressions, filled with water, and lined in ice. The ground beneath still frozen as the sun gently warms the ground, freeing the scene from winter’s hold.
This scene, though it repeats every year, was particularly interesting, since it was such a mild winter and the only significant snowfall happened only a week ago. The result was very clean ice and snow, without significant dust and dirt contamination, making the ice quite white, rather than the usual gray. The trails, despite this late snowfall, were surprisingly icy, making my hike a bit treacherous, as I’m carrying my camera gear with me and really don’t want to fall.
The forecast, here in southern Ontario is for a warmer than usual spring, and I for one, am looking forward to that and continuing to get out there and document my experinces.
Nikon D300
Tamron 70-200 mm f/2.8 @ 190 mm
1/125 sec, f/5.6, ISO 250
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“Have you remembrances, the glimmering arches that span the summits of the mind?”
– Khalil Gibran
Inside the front doors of the new York Public Library, is Astor Hall, the grand foyer, with it’s high ceilings and barrel arches. When you walk in, you cannot help but look up and around this vast space of bright, intricately carved marble. I can put myself back to a time when this was being built and stone masons hoisted the marble slabs high on scaffolds, put them in place with experienced precision and carvers went to work adorning the arches and panels.
The hall itself is not decorated much and I’m partial to that treatment, so as not to distract from the beauty of the architecture itself. Knowing something of the process involved in constructing these vast spaces, I have a certain reverence for them and try to capture some of that feeling in my photographs.
Because of the dim lighting in this place I had to break from my ISO 200 rule and let the camera select the most appropriate value. Indoor photography is not where my heart is, but there is beauty everywhere and I wanted to be able to portray that here.
Nikon D300
Tamron 70-200 mm f/2.8 @ 70 mm
1/60 sec, f/2.8, ISO 2000
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High Art? vs Low Art?
Mary Cassatt. Mother and Child. Oil on canvas, 1890. Wichita Art Museum.
Film still from Crimes and Misdemeanors (1989).
Book cover of Ayn Rand’s The Fountainhead.
Book cover of Charles Dickens’ A Tale of Two Cities.
Beethoven, composer.
Incubus, alternative rock band.
Above I have listed a few images of artworks and artists that I have mentioned in the final paper I wrote for my Philosophy of Art seminar, in which I gave my take on the topic of high versus low art. If I asked a group of people to sort the above artists/works into the categories of high and low art, I think the categories would look pretty similar among everyone. Incubus, the movie Crimes and Misdemeanors, and Ayn Rand’s novel would all probably fall in the low art category, while Cassatt, Beethoven, and Dickens would all be placed in the high art category. It is natural…
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“One belongs to New York instantly, one belongs to it as much in five minutes as in five years.”
― Tom Wolfe
Just as you enter Times Square from the south, along Broadway. There’s a stunning building amid the business and noise of the modern Times Square with it’s neon lights and larger than life billboards that turn night to day. That building, is the Knickerbocker.
This beautiful Beaux-Art building hearkens back to a time of pomp and elegance. At one time, it was the home to famed Italian tenor Enrico Caruso and renowned American playwright George M. Cohan. I can only imagine what it was like in it’s glory days.
Built in 1906, it was one of New York’s premier locations and essentially, anything that happened in New York City in the early 1900’s likely had some link to this building. It was “the” place to be for glitterati and dignitaries, while its legendary ballroom became known as “The 42nd Street Country Club.”
Post prohibition, it became an office building, until being designated a New York City landmark in 1988. It was converted to a luxury hotel shortly thereafter. If you want to try this place out, you can get a room starting at about $350 an night and you can get to Times Square and Broadway in a few short steps.
Unfortunately, I only had my long lense with me this day, but I was able to get a nice image of the wonderful facade above the front entrance, showing the detail of the stonework.A truly beautiful building, so representative early 20th century New York City.
Nikon D300
Tamron 70-200 mm f/2.8 @ 70 mm
1/60 sec, f/4.0, ISO 400
For more images like this, please visit my Facebook page:
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“Everything in New York is a photograph. All the things that are supposed to be dirty or rough or unrefined are the most beautiful things. Garbage cans at the ends of alleyways look like they’ve been up all night talking with each other. Doorways with peeling paint look like the wise lines around an old feller’s eyes.” ― Ann-Marie MacDonald
Yes, it’s my second photo this week of this awesome building, but a slightly different perspective than the typical front-view. The way the light shone off this building was stunning, there are no sufficient words to describe it.
Mid-morning, the warm sunlight just “glowed” from the walls of the Flatiron building. The experience of standing here, in this place, having seen so many beautiful images made by other photographers over the years, nothing prepared me for the light. It’s indescribable and completely unexpected, in this busy, bustling, modern city, filled with treasures from her past. That light, is soft, beautiful, out of place, somehow. But I love it and the effect it has on my soul.
In the photo above, people pass through the frame, unaware of the profound effect this scene is having on me. I’m locked in the moment, and reliving that experience as I view the image, and reflect back on that all too brief moment in time when I stood at this intersection of light, and time, and history, drinking in the essence.
Nikon D300
Tamron 17-50 mm f/2.8 @ 22 mm
1/640 sec, f/13.0, ISO 400
For more images like this, please visit my Facebook page:
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“I get a little romantic about the old Empire State. Just looking at it makes me want to play some Frank Sinatra tunes and sway a little. I have a crush on a building. I’d been in there several times but never to work. I always knew there were offices in there but the face never penetrated, really. You don’t work in the Empire State Building. You propose in the Empire State Building. You sneak a flask up there and raise a toast to the whole city of New York.” – Maureen Johnson
What’s a trip to New York City without a photo of the iconic Empire State Building, as it soars high above midtown Manhattan? What really struck me was just how eye-catching it is. The sun reflects beautifully from the walls from nearly every angle I saw it from, which were numerous. In the image above I tried to incorporate much of the street and surrounding buildings, some quite modern and others hearkening back to earlier times.
This image was made mid-morning, and as I stated in earlier posts, the New York light is something unexpected, as it reflects from the skyscrapers into the streets below. I was really expecting street level to be darker, but there is a constant soft glow everywhere I looked.
Nikon D300
Tamron 17-50 mm f/2.8 @ 17 mm
1/500 sec, f/11.0, ISO 400
For more images like this, please visit my Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/EdLehming
or my website (some images available for purchase)
http://www.edlehming.com
Ed Lehming Photography 
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