Red: A photo essay
Every so often when I get a chance to take a break from work to focus on making images for me I like to shoot what I see. That ideology is similar to the pervious post “Night Photography: Snow,” that I posted a few nights back. When I first started my career as a photographer I had a lot of these moments. These were the good ol days of just shooting purely for fun and for testing. Testing ideas, locations, types of work, and cameras. I could calculate out all the images I’ve made, all the time I’ve spent making them, but there is not real value in doing that because every time I make an image now, it is a reflection of those moments.
One seemingly colder than usually day in November I took a walk around Northampton, Ma with my Fuji X-Pro 2. This was before I discovered that I could just pop the lens back into place and make all right again with the planes of focus. When I parked the car I grabbed my camera and a spare battery and proceeded to take a walk. I had no plan in place. No set goal or idea of what I would like to photograph. I looked over my should just as the car door shut and I saw this image.
I didn’t see the bullet holes until I was processing the shoot. What I saw was the color red, brilliant and intense. The shadow stood out the most as a dark red image overlaid on the exterior of a defunct dinner. I decided in that moment I was going to shoot the color red. If I saw an object, person, or scene with red, it would be composed in my lens.
This was not an exercise in red. This was not a red car syndrome project. It was, however, an afternoon of walking around and identifying elements around me that I could tie into photographs I had just made. Had I stepped out of the car and saw the color blue or a old bicycle, they could have inspired me just as much as the red shadow crawling up the side of the Diner. When a photographer takes time to un-think and clear their minds to create work just for the purposes of creating, they are free to see, free to produce, free to re-think and see. I can’t say that every image I make inspires the next, but when I take time to make photographs like this, when I have a few hours or a day, or when I travel and shoot, I produce work that will in some way affect my future work. That is the nature of creativity.
Desaturated red brick with strong shadow of a lamp.
Man in red pants
Red awning
Tis the seasons, Mrs. Claus suit
Red books in a store front
Red bags
Red car
Red rugs in a store front
Red shadow on a car
A red prayer
Gumballs
Circles
Man in red walks dog
Man in red walks dog even more
A woman in red coat
Boy with red balloon
Starbucks Reserve: New York City
I made these photographs back in December. They have been sitting on the sd thats has been comfortably tucked away in my Fuji X-Pro 2. I just uploaded them and processed them this evening. The Starbucks Reserve Store that opened in December is an overwhelming playground for the ultimate consumer. I looks like a lab built for an alchemist. If you can’t appreciate good food or good coffee and your like your coffee served in white foam cups by a place that just dropped the word “donuts” from their longstanding name, then don’t bother going to a Starbucks Reserve, you generally won’t appreciate it. More so, the people who will be taking your orders will not appreciate you trying to order a large hot coffee with double extra extra and a side of insulin to go with your diabetic coma infused foam cup of burnt disappointment. Do yourself the favor and save the $18.52 you’d spend on the warm fresh pastry or slice of fresh semi authentic Italian pizza and the one of many amazing coffee beverages they have, as that $18.52 will be your entire months budget for burnt coffee you so longingly desire.
Discount the fact that the Starbucks Reserve feels like an animatronic display, it is a restaurant that has more options for coffee than you could imagine. It reminded of one of those Irish bars that has 100+ beers on tap that are constantly rotating. There were 3 sections of the new build that one could order drinks from, including a full bar. We walked around and looked at both the areas you could hand pick an item of carbo goodness. I was and am still on a moderately lower carb diet, which meant I wasn’t going to eat any of the pizza and forget about the pastry. I enjoy looking at both, but wasn’t about to eat them. Ive been pizza free for 1 year and 6 months. A personal choice and proud of that. While all the food did look more flavorful and moderately more healthy and fresh than ordering a Big Mac, I still chose not to eat it.
I walked around for nearly 15 minutes looking at the decor, the well timed orchestra of hipster baristas, and the very interesting display of coffee beans arriving in a bag to be sorted or whatever they were doing. Quite the interesting process. I asked my wife, “do you think this shit is real or for show?” She said show, but who knows. I was entertained by it. Hell, it made for good photos.
If you’re a fan of bean juice, as I am, I highly recommend a visit in.
Oh, and I am pleased, rather happy to provide some good news. The photos below are made with my Fuji X-Pro 2. If you follow along and remember me saying a while back that I busted my 35mm lens when I was ejected from my bike, well I fixed it. Yes, I, by myself fixed it. I was walking through lower Manhattan and fumbling around with it. I looked closely at how it was tilted and made a bold move. I gave it a wiggle and then a push popping it right back into its sweet spot. I was so excited I pulled it up to my eye and looked through the viewfinder. Clarity. No miss focus. Nothing. All images were sharp. I saved myself almost $400 on a replacement lens. Score.
Night Photography: Snow
It is a quiet night. There is a mix of snow and rain falling upon us. The sound creates a soft texture as it bounces off our jackets and collects on the surfaces around us. Every step we take is a soft crunch as we pack the snow below our shoes. On occasion a car passes, music up just high enough to hear the beats inside. Seldom do we see a lone figure navigating the cold ground, carefully stepping to avoid the hidden ice. Our conversation ranges from our businesses, life, family, how busy we are, and the reasons for why we make images. I can not count how many times I have wandered around the city late at night making photos. It is refreshing to have my friend and colleague Aleksandr present as we explore. Aleksandr is an incredible photographer. One of the best wedding photographers I know. His style is something you don’t see often, unless you’re looking to have the best of the best photograph your wedding. He is not prone to street photography and was very curious as to what motivates me to make an image, rather, what I see that inspires me to press the shutter.
Every couple of images I would point out some element in the scene that I saw, something that interested me or I found visually appealing. I would make the image and share with him. I explained to him that the process, for me, is about seeing. Its not about blindly running around hoping I will get an image, it is about seeing and capturing. I spend so much of my day seeing compositions. Some days I feel like I am a director navigation a film set.
While our vision differs, both of us have a very profound ability to see, read, and utilize light to produce images. This evening though, Aleksandr was making images on a Nikon D850 in black and white. He was shooting wide on a 35mm. I had a Fuji xPro2 tucked into my jacket, where it stayed there the entire time we walked around. I had my Canon 5Ds with a Sigma 50mm in my gloved hands. I have only used my 50mm a handful of times in studio on one or twice on a commercial shoot. It is such a great lens that I wanted to try this evening on a different type of shoot. The subject matter wasn’t as important as it was to take the time to be in the moment, have a few moments to be creative outside of our daily business, and just get out and shoot. When you take the time to create for yourself it is almost always therapeutic.
Palm Springs: Travel Photography
At the start of May I attended the Palm Springs Photo Festival. I only attend the first day to listen to Art Striber speak about editorial photography. It was an eye opening, learning experience, with a lot of take aways. I also learned how important the PSPF is. I am going to be spending the next 9-10 months shooting and building a book, updating my portfolio, to take with me next year for portfolio reviews.
Being this was only my second time to Southern California I wanted to see the area as fast as I could. I only had a short time following the end of the conference before sunset, so I had to maximize my time efficiently. When I was planning my trip I had hopes of testing with models in and around Palm Springs. The ideas I had didn't seem to be feasible. All of the affordable hotels were booked up and there was a lack of affordable Airbnb's to chose from. I wasn't about to fly into Palm Springs, flights were double that of LAX. I ended up settling on an Airbnb in Hollywood. I seem to favor that area. I was flying in to LAX and with only spending a single day in Palm Springs, I figured a drive in and out same day would be easy enough, which in the end meant no testing in Palm Springs. No worries.. I still ended up setting up some shoots, to be shared in the very very very near future.
I have never been to a desert before. I spent a lot of time researching the area when I was looking for Airbnbs as well as developing ideas for testing. The Palm Springs area is quite unique and honestly, very much worth exploring. In my research I ended up seeing quite a few high end editorials shot in Palm Springs. I also found a few blogs that listed the best places to see and make photos in Palm Springs. If I had more time and I wasn't traveling solo Palm Springs would have been fun to explore and spend more time in. What I did want to see was the landscape and what made the desert, well, the desert.
I knew the area had a lot of windmills. They are kind of famous and widely used as a backdrop. I didn't realize why they were erected in the areas they were until I drove into the area. HOLY wind! But, as you turn the corner, the mountains cut the wind. It is a really unique region. I can not contextualize the experience as I do not fully understand the region and its diverse weather.
I had a lot of fun cruising around and capturing some shots of the landscape. All images were made using my Fuji X-Pro ii with the slightly bent lens I have discussed in other posts.
I have some other content that I will be sharing soon, including some news about a new assistant!
Portraits
As long as I have been a photographer I have had a desire and a passion to photograph people. Being able to get into my studio, create a set, light, pose, compose, and make portraits of people is a feeling similar to being in a darkroom and watching the developer magically (scientifically) bring to life an image rendered, near permanently, on paper. I love meeting new people, photographing people, hearing their stories, and sharing with the world the moment they were in front of my camera.
Portraits of Rachael. Natural light. Paul C. Buff Einstein with Octabox. Canon 5Ds with Sigma 85mm f 1.4 Art
New York City: Hell's Kitchen Froze Over
For the first time since July I had more than 1 day off to do nothing. Sure, the holidays just came and went, but when the holidays arrive, you're constantly running around, doing something, spreading cheer and money faster than you can make it. There really isn't to much downtime during the holidays. The weekend away was a welcomed trip. It was a break from the daily grind and the planning I have been doing for the up-coming year.
Without a doubt, this past weekend was the coldest weekend I have ever experienced. I survived. My wife survived. We are stronger, still a little cold, but stronger. Saturday morning we made a quick "breakfast" stop at Levian Bakery. We went to the hole in the basement one off of Amsterdam. It was my second time there. We parked about 200' from the door. In the 30 seconds it took to walk from the car to the door, I was consumed with a bone chilling cold that nearly paralyzed me. Even with a sweater, a jacket, a scarf, I still fell victim to the frigid negative number temperatures. Having half a cookie is hardly a breakfast item, but it is still worth it. Their chocolate and peanut butter cookie is amazing. Sue order some bread, butter, jelly something or other. It looked great, but being that I am still heavily into a very strict diet, half a cookie was enough for me.
We stayed at the Riu in Times Square. The Riu is a chic, fashionable, and very affordable hotel on Restaurant Row. This is not review of the hotel, so I am not going to embellish beyond the fact that it was a warm, welcoming stay in the heart of one of the greatest cities in the US. To be honest, I am not even sure if Times Square is the heart of NYC, it just seems to feel that way because of the tourism and congestion that fills the area. Being that it was the coldest day in the history of man, there wasn't nearly as many people out as you'd expect there to be. The cold obviously played a factor in that. After we checked into our room we redressed to get outside in the cold. I had with me a few different types of hand warmers. I thought they would be great to have with me to keep my hands and camera warm. I was wrong.
Frozen hand warmers
So what do you do when it feels like it is -35 degrees outside? Well, you walk around, grab an iced coffee from Starbucks, its the New Englander thing to do. I had with me, in my front two pockets of my jacket, some re-usable hand warmers. Within about 15 minutes they were frozen blocks of some kind of solid material.
Rockefeller Center
Times Square is a fun area to visit. There is a lot happening, a lot of people trying to get you to take bus rides, sell you hot dogs, or get you to a comedy show. We met two people in two different areas of Times Square who have connections to where we are from. This world really is quite small. Times Square is an impressive mecca of shopping, the land of massive billboards, (some day I will see my photos up on them buildings, I promise you that), and an area with a lot of talent and energy. One of the things I got my wife for Christmas, to help with this weekend away, were tickets to a Broadway show. When we were in town last December we almost saw Kinky Boots. This weekend we made a point to see it. We made our way over to the theater, scored some tickets, and got back out into the cold. We walked a few blocks, up over past the Christmas tree that was at Rockefeller Center. When we saw it two weeks ago, you could hardly walk. This weekend, there was hardly anyone there. There were however a bunch of people skating.
iPhone 7+, Portrait Mode, processed using RNI Films app (highly recommend)
As cold as it was, there were still people out enjoying themselves. Some people were dressed inappropriately, given the temperature. Others were dressed as if it was a snowpocolypse. I wasn't as cold as I thought I would be, walking around with an iced coffee in my hands. My logic was this, yes I am from New England and I am used to the cold, but if I drink something cold, it would help me adjust to the temperature a bit more than if I was to suck down something hot. Sure, I was the only one thinking this while everyone at Starbucks was ordering a venti hot frapahlapa chia tea blonde blend. But it seemed to work for me. Call me an idiot or a brave pioneer, regardless I am a fan of cold coffee so I was just keeping within my routine. Plus, there are far more fun things to drink to stay warm, such as the pitcher of mimosas we had at a late lunch at the Bourbon Street Bar & Grille. I had some chicken wings and 3 mimosas. We started to warm up.
Following a short trip down about 5 blocks to look for something that was closed, not open, "due to the weather," we hiked back up towards are area. We didn't want to venture to far away as we did have an 8pm show to get to and needed to be back to the hotel to get ready prior to the doors opening. After some yelping, an unsuccessful attempt at once place, we ended up at The Rum House. The dim lit, off the hotel entrance bar was the perfect spot to unwind, warm with some small bites, and cheers to a good day and the upcoming show. When I finally did decide on what to drink I had to include a pretzel. Breaking the rules of my lifestyle, the whole no carb thing, I just had to. It looked to good to pass up. We needed something to absorb the drinks we were about to have. After another warm, delicious pretzel and a drink or two more it was time to make our way back to the room to get ready for Kinky Boots.
Hot Toddy
Sushi Roll
Squid
For someone who has photographed dancers for the last several years, its kind of sad to admit that I have never been to a Broadway play, musical, or anything. I like dramas. I love movies and films that tell a great story. I am not so much a fan of musicals. However, Kinky Boots was fun and did tell a great story. I am not going to try and be a critic and review the play, but it was good, worth seeing! Following the show it was time for dinner. The 2 hours and 20 minutes, with intermission, went by quickly. We had spent a few minutes on Yelp prior to the show so we had a place in mind. It was 2 blocks up from the Kinky Boots theater so it was going to be a fast and easy walk in the brutal cold. An'Nam is a Japanese fusion restaurant. I am a lover of Asian food. On the menu I had spotted some fried squid. It is so so so damn hard to find any kind of Octopus, calamari, or "squid" that isn't breaded. To many "chefs" are so quick to ruin the dish by breading the shit out of it. But, this squid dish was spicy, bathed in a sauce that sobered one up from an intoxicating and paralyzing frost. After some sushi, I know I know, more carbs, shhhh, sushi is healthy so no judgement...and a few other little bites of small dishes, we closed the restaurant out. Sufficiently full and ready to call it a night we jumped back into the arctic and made our way back to the Riu.
Sunday's plan was to wake up, get the car from valet, and head up to The Met. As an artist, someone who went to school for art, this is very pathetic to admit, I have never been to The Met. I know shame on me. What a disgraceful artist and art student (when I was in school). We didn't spend as much time in the museum as I'd have liked. There were a few works that I didn't get to see that over the weekend, but we will see them in the spring..
We really like the West Village. After grabbing a quick bite at Chirping Chicken we made our way to the West Village. If you want a quick bite of chicken with a semi southern flare, grab lunch at one of their locations. There three places in the US that I want to reside in. It goes in this order, West Village, would settle on Brooklyn, on the island of Manhattan, L.A. region of Cali, and Charleston. Obviously New York City and LA are incomparable, but both offer something unique. I am going to be writing about LA next week and make a compare and contrast to NYC as I thread my images into the article. But Cali, well thats obvious why I would want to live there for work. Charleston, well, the work I want to do, the work I like to do, doesn't really exist in their market. Charleston would be the ideal place to own a portrait studio for families, weddings, and seniors. I am not opposed to owning a studio of that nature, as I have in the past, but at this juncture in my career, shooting that type of work is not on the horizon. That goes without saying that I might not form a business in that area to do so, as that has been on a my "wishlist" for some time. Charleston is a beautiful area with a lot of cultural diversity. Of the three aforementioned places, the West Village comes in first place above LA.
One of the best ways to get used to an area, walk around. Just get lost, just go and explore the area and see what there is. It was cold as hell, but it was still a beautiful walk around the West Village. We did not end up having dinner in the West Village like I had hoped. With the fading sunlight and the fact that the restaurant I had chosen closed at 3:30 and didn't open again till 5:30, we decided it was time to head home.
Below are some scenes from our walks in the cold, the hotel, and The Met. I have my Fuji X-Pro II set to black and white. While Lightroom and Photoshop do not read the color profiles, it is still fun to shoot in black and white. One of these days, soon, I am going to start using Capture 1. Almost all of my shoots are tethered, so it would make sense to use the best software for doing so. Capture 1 allows for Fuji profiles to be imported. So, all of those amazing profiles that mimic Fuji Film can be shot and imported using their software. SOON! Comment, share, follow, and check me out on Instagram @jeffreybphotography
