100 Years | Grand Central Station, NYC >>
Thursday, February 7th, 2013
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This past weekend was Grand Central Terminal’s Centennial Anniversary. To celebrate, they set up exhibits, artwork, and other displays talking about the history of what has become one of the city’s most iconic locations. I figured I’d kill two birds with one stone and run over there Sunday before the Super Bowl (when there were fewer people), snap some photos, then run to the Apple Store to swap my iPhone 5 charger. The train was delayed, and by the time I go there the Store was already closed, but I think these two shots make the trip more than worthwhile.
My favorite parts: The “100″ they put up in the windows in the first shot, and the two people standing completely still (guy in grey, woman in green) still amidst the chaos in the second shot. These were shot handheld, too, which definitely adds another level of complexity in the dimly lit terminal. I’m gonna make a conscious effort to start shooting and positing more…let’s see what happens.
For now, Enjoy!
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Cloud Gate | Chicago, IL >>
Thursday, September 6th, 2012
Cloud Gate Sculpture, Millennium Park, Chicago, IL – Click to Enlarge
I’ve kept in touch with some of my coworkers from LA, and this past weekend we had a mini-reunion in Chi Town. We stayed at a dope hotel called Hotel Sax, ate some great food, caught up on what’s been going on over the past year-and-a-half, partied, and had an all around great time.
We made our way over to Millennium Park and I was blown away by the “Cloud Gate” that sits prominently in the center of the park. I had seen plenty of pictures of it before, but couldn’t grasp the sheer size of the chrome-plated bean-shaped sculpture. It rained on and off all day, and if you look closely you can see the trails left from the drops streaking down the sides. Of the photos I’ve had a chance to process this one is my favorite because the crowd of people in the foreground help to emphasize the Gate’s enormity.
I’ll do my best to get through a few more shots this weekend, if any of them are share-worthy I’ll be sure to post and share. For now, this will have to do!
Enjoy!
Brooklyn Brewery | NYC >>
Wednesday, April 6th, 2011
Inside the Brooklyn Brewery, NYC
I was up in NYC last weekend and my girlfriend and I spent a day out in Brooklyn. The first stop was at the Brooklyn Brewery. Just inside the door was a token dispensary (and gift shop) where you purchase drink tokens each of which are redeemable for a drink (except the special reserve, which cost 2 tokens). Tokens were 1 for $4 or 6 for $20 so we got six and hopped in line to get our drinks.
The main room has free for all seating, so once we had our beers we squeezed in at a picnic table with five other people who gladly slid down to make room for us. There are board games, decks of cards, and other forms of entertainment on the tables, making it feel more like a house party than a bar.
They don’t serve food there, but there are menus from local restaurants on the tables, all of whom deliver. We got an amazing pulled pork sandwich with some mac and cheese and cole slaw from a place right down the block, the people at the table next to us got pizza, another table had sandwiches…whatever you’re craving you can order and have it delivered right to the table.
If you haven’t been to the Brooklyn Brewery I can’t recommend it highly enough. Good beer, good food, good people…great time.
Hangin’ On | Venice Beach >>
Saturday, March 26th, 2011
Skater doing an Invert at the Venice Beach Skatepark
I went down to Venice Beach with my dad the week before I left LA and it happened they were having a competition at the skatepark. I gave him my D40 and the two of us found a good spot by the pool and started shooting. It was a perfect day weather wise, and as you can tell by the line of other participants in the background there was a steady stream of skaters coming taking their turn in the pool.
The most amazing part to me was that despite all the crazy tricks everyone was trying (some successful, others not so much) no one got even remotely injured. And I can’t even ride a skateboard on flat land! This is definitely my favorite shot from the park that day. It even looks dope upside down…
Check out my other Skatepark photos here.
Enjoy,
At the Crosswalk | Culver City, CA >>
Wednesday, February 9th, 2011
Crosswalk Button in Culver City, CA
I bring my D7000 with me to work on occasion and walk around the streets during my lunch breaks, shooting random shots while I walk to and from whatever place I decide to get lunch. It’s usually in the middle of the day, so the lighting is less than ideal and most of the shots never make it much further than my camera, but the lighting actually helped to make this image work.
I love how the pole hits the top-left corner while the other three are hit with the creases between the slabs of concrete, and the balance that the shadows on the right side of the image provide. It’s pretty different from landscapes and buildings that I typically post, but I think it turned out pretty well and would love to shoot some more in the same vein (Is it just me, or did that sound like a drug reference?!).
I made this from 2 shots, merged and tonemapped in Photomatix Pro, then used the Lens Correction feature in Photoshop to exaggerate the fisheye effect and give the left side of the post a little more “bend”. I didn’t do much to the color, I thought the muted grays with green accent worked out well. I took another one with my fingers pressing the button, but I thought it looked kinda posed and cheesy so I went with this one instead.
As always, enjoy, and feel free to give any feedback you may have.
Straight from the Camera | D7000 >>
Friday, February 4th, 2011
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I went out to Santa Monica Pier a couple weeks back to get some night shots, and was so impressed by how they came out I decided to post a few raw, non-tonemapped shots. Typically I take multiple exposures and blend them together, then do a fairly significant amount of post-processing before posting them to the site but I felt these shots worked just fine straight from the camera (The only thing I did do is crop and/or straighten).
I’ll post some more in the coming weeks as I shoot more. Stay tuned, and feel free to give me whatever feedback you may have…I’m constantly trying to improve and learn more and any constructive criticism is more than welcome.
Enjoy,
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Staring at the Sun | Venice Beach >>
Monday, January 17th, 2011
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Shooting and combining multiple exposures into a single image lets you do things that you never could do before–like stare directly into the sun and take a shot where everything’s not silhouetted. The majority of these shots are three-shot HDRs, but there are a couple in there that I made from a single exposure. That’s not the ideal setup, but for a shot like the one of the guy walking with his guitar in front of the sunset I don’t have much of a choice. I really wish I didn’t have to compress and reduce these shots so much before sharing them on the site…it’s hard to get the full impact of a 5000px wide image when I’m restricted to about a quarter of that.
When you’re a kid, you’re parents always tell you not to stare at the sun…”It’ll make you go blind,” they tell you. I guess I owe my parents an apology… I posted all of the images in chronological order, including the featured one at the top, so you can follow the progression of the setting sun. I’ve still got work to do on some of these shots, but couldn’t wait to get them on the site. I’ll update em on here when they’re final final.
HAPPY MLK DAY! Never forget the sacrifices of the generations that came before us and, as always, enjoy!
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Fight the Power | LA >>
Thursday, December 30th, 2010
Iraq War Protester in downtown LA
I snapped this shot about two years ago at an anti-Iraq/Afghanistan War rally in downtown LA. It was sponsored by a local group, ANSWER LA, and at its peak there were about 100 people gathered outside of the local recruitment office in Hollywood with signs, costumes and megaphones.
It was a great event to shoot because, like the Drum Circle, the participants were all caught up in the moment, not posing for the camera. It was a peaceful demonstration, and it definitely caught the attention of passerbys, many of whom honked their horns or flashed peace signs to the protesters.
Thousands of American soldiers have undoubtedly been killed since I took this photo back in 2008, hopefully we’re closer to ending the Wars today than we were at that time.
Guitar Hero | Venice Beach >>
Tuesday, December 28th, 2010
Guitar Hero
Yet another Venice Beach native, I call this guy Guitar Hero. He kind of reminds me of a post-apocalyptic character straight out of a movie like I am Legend or Book of Eli. He’s got these crazy looking skates that unfortunately were blocked by his bag when I took this shot, and he rides around with his guitar, an amp (which you can see dangling around his neck), and sometimes a mic.
The blue wall in the background really sets this photo off to me. Kinda looks like a Tetris game…
Enjoy!
Hawk | Venice Beach >>
Friday, December 24th, 2010
Man with Mowhawk beanie at Venice Beach
Yet another random shot from Venice Beach. I shot this a few months back on one of my many days of shooting down there. His hat and jacket make it look a lot colder than it really was that day, it was actually a pretty nice day out. It’s sometimes hard to do my typical processing on people pictures because it makes their skin look dirty or uneven, but this one actually came out pretty well.
Hope Santa treats you well tomorrow!