Shooting at The Third Ward in Brooklyn
Category: Photography
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Snow falling on David Glasgow Farragut
Snow falling on the statue of David Farragut in Madison Square Park. The NYC "Snowpocalypse" wasn’t all that it could have been, but still provided a good backdrop. Along with the glowing sky and some help from a hidden flash, made a decent shot. Shot with a manual exposure, Sneakie Pete was holding my 580EXII Flash attached to the tripod above his head behind the statue, with a diffusion filter on the flashhead, and a manual full power flash. Using radio triggers to sync to the shutter.
IMG_3281
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Red Carpet
Shooting a red carpet can sometimes be a bit of a battle – photogs all smashed together in a line, trying to get the best angle. I managed to get a standing position, but other photographers had stools, or were kneeling down. The posed “red carpet” pics are one thing, but I thought this photo of an interview captured the energy of the room a bit more.
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Using the Canon SD780 IS Camera
Recently, I wrote about the decision making process for selecting a new pocket camera. I finally decided on the Canon SD780 IS digital camera, and after a couple months of average use of the camera, I’ve gotten to know a bit of its strengths and weaknesses.
I’ve owned Canon compact digital cameras ever since the Canon S100 came out. This is by far the smallest one I’ve owned, but maybe not the highest quality photos.
Size
For size, this is the one to get. It’s super small and slick, and all of the buttons are recessed and stripped down. When going out with it in my pocket, it takes up almost no space, and easily fits in my front pocket. This is the easiest camera to carry. Also, since the body is mostly metal and has an integrated lens cover, when it’s rustling around in your pocket with change or keys, it simply scratches, without denting or harming the camera. I’ve actually grown to love the various scratches and “character” my perfectly working camera has picked up. I also have a small neoprene Walk On Water case I use when tossing it in my bag.
Photos
The lens on this camera is very small, and so is the sensor – however, Canon managed to squeeze in 12.1 Megapixels. I think this is definitely overkill for this camera. The photos it makes are large, but there’s often a little more noise than I’d like. I think this camera could have been really great with the same sized sensor, but only 6 megapixels of resolution – but a much higher quality overall image. For pocket snaps, I really don’t feel the need for huge image sizes, and would much rather have really great looking pictures, and/or really high sensitivity potential. However, for casual snaps and playing around, the camera is good enough quality.Videos
The 720P HD video mode is where this camera really shines. With a quick flick of the mode switch, the camera starts taking widescreen 16:9 HD video, complete with sound. Recording length is only limited by the size of the card, and since it takes removable SDHC cards, recording time is virtually unlimited. Since this camera goes for only $249 MSRP, it’s one of the better, more flexible pocket HD video cams. I’ve often seen friends using a Flip Mino HD video camera, which pales in comparison. The closest matching Flip camera is the Mino HD 120 minute, which seems to be about the size of the 780Is, and costs $229 MSRP. The Mino HD only shoots two hours of footage at a time, at which point you have to plug it in to your computer and offload the video before you can shoot again – it only has 8gb of memory. The 780IS, with its replaceable SDHC cards, can keep on shooting. I have a 32gb card in mine, which is more than enough. Also, with the 780IS, you also have an awesome still camera, with the full host of features. The Flip Mino HD is slightly easier to use than the Canon, but, I’d rather have the features and flexibility of the Canon over the stipped down simplicity of the Flip. The actual video that it shoots, at 720P/30fps, looks great. It’s nice and sharp in good light, and retains its brightness in low light, by way of higher iso. The higher iso does get a bit grainy, but the video in low light is still usable. Sound is decent, standard mono sound, and I’ve noticed that the sound recording on this camera doesn’t seem to clip as much as the sound on some previous cameras I’ve had.Here’s a short Canon SD-780IS video, taken at The Putting Lot in Brooklyn.
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CMJ 2009 – Japanther at The Suffolk
Brooklyn based rock duo Japanther playing last Thursday night at The Suffolk, as part of the 2009 CMJ Music Marathon…
Strangely, Michael Meyer posted a few pics of the same show on is “The Daily Up” blog, and got a shot of me taking the above picture with my Canon SD780IS digital camera – it’s small, but does the job in a pinch. (I’m on the right side)
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Exploring The Oldest Subway Tunnel in North America
A few weeks ago I went with a few friends to take a tour of the Atlantic Avenue Subway Tunnel (otherwise known as the Cobble Hill Tunnel), which is considered the world’s oldest subway tunnel. I brought my camera and flash, and a pair of Pocket Wizard radio triggers. The triggers allow me to fire my flash when it’s physically separated from my camera. In the tunnel, I had an assistant (Eileen – thanks!) position the flash off-axis from the camera, which gave some interesting shadows and perspectives on the light. Besides the flash and a few flashlights, it was pitch black in the tunnel, so the exposure, focus, and flash exposure were all manual.
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The High Line Opening Book
The NYC Highline opened recently, and to commemorate the event, Friend of the Highline, who I take photos for, published a booklet with quotes, photos and designs. They used a few of the pre-opening construction shots I took for the booklet.
UPDATE 2010-01-13 – The Highline Opening Booklet just went on sale at the Highline Shop, $10.
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Photo in the 2009 OHNY Weekend Flyer
A photo I took at the Highline Building during the Open House New York weekend last year is being used in the flyer promoting this year’s OHNY Weekend. I’ll be shooting the weekend again this year, so stay tuned for more photos…
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NYC Half Marathon Photos Posted
Photos I took for Brightroom Photography at the NYRR NYC Half Marathon last weekend are online, and available for purchase. The shoot was my first gig with Brightroom, and a great time. Got up at 5am to make it there and have all the gear set up and in position to start shooting runners by 8am at the finish line in the financial district. I was stationed about 20 feet past the finish line, on the ground, taking action shots of runners coming through the finish line. In 3 hours I shot about 2500 pictures on my Canon EOS-5DmkII that’s a lot of photos, and a lot of looking through the viewfinder. -
The New York City Highline Opens
At long last, the first section of the New York City Highline opened this week. I’ve been working as the photographer for the Friends of the Highline for over a year now, and have been up on the Highline taking during the entire construction.
Seeing the line finally open and fill with people was a pretty amazing sight today – the afternoon was perfect and sunny, and people seemed to really be enjoying walking up and down, sitting in the sundeck areas, and checking out all of the amazing foliage.
Over the last year, I’ve taken photos of the construction, the people, and the plants on the Highline. It’s amazing how much it has changed throughout the year, and how much this finally opened section contrasts to the bare concrete of a year ago.
Working with Friends of the Highline has been a great experience. Whenever there were tours going up to check out the construction, parties and benefit events, and town hall meetings, they always made sure I got access to take photos. They’ve also, obviously, done an great job in taking on this extraordinary project, and making the Highline a reality.
Check some recent Highline Blog Posts
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Shooting Lord & Taylor’s Spring Prom Fashions
I recently shot the Spring Prom Fashion set for Lord & Taylor, and a few of the shots ended up online.
Among others, photos Chelsea Rae Simmons of Pink Rock Candy appeared on Teen Vogue.
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Shooting Quintessentially’s Evening At Philips De Pury
This week I shot photos for Guest of a Guest at the Philips De Pury Gallery for Quintessentially’s NYC Evening. The party was right at sundown, which gave a great opportunity to get some intensly naturally lit indoor shots of the sunset. Additionally, the gallery is in a building overlooking the Highline, so I was able to get some interesting aerial shots. Finally, got a look at some of Bruce Nauman’s work, including his 1975 “Ah Ha“.
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Photoshoot: Henri Bendel Chocolate Bar
I did a photoshoot at Henri Bendel Chocolate Bar for a cocktail party hosted by Bernadette Haley and Nina Willdorf. For this shoot, I was shooting handheld, alternating between using a Sto-Fen flash diffuser, and the built in bounce card.
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Shooting the Red Carpet for Hennessy Black
Shooting red carpets is usually interesting – people giving it their best shot to look good and photo-worthy, and not breaking their composure the whole time. No matter how much people are shouting at them, when they’re in front of the backdrop, they’re always trying to look good. Recently I shot the Hennessy Black product launch party for Guest of a Guest. The press was quite thick that night, and we were sandwiched into the velvet ropes to get a good position.
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Shooting the Belvedere Macerated Launch Party
At the beginning of May, I shot photos for Guest of a Guest at the Belvedere Macerated product launch party, down in SOHO. For this shoot, I was experimenting using the Rayflash ring flash adapter on my Canon 580 EXII Flash. Basically, the adapter slips over the flash head, and makes it into a basic ring flash, redirecting the light from the flash through a series of plastic optical channels into prisms arranged in a ring around the lens. Shooting at a party with the ringflash makes for some interesting lighting – when shooting close up, it tends to make a pool of light in the center of the frame, and a pronounced vignette like effect around the images. Additionally, for people wearing hats, it avoids any weird shadows. At longer range, though, I’ve found that it can tend to flatten out the frame, stripping away interesting shadows. The other consideration for using this at a dark party is that the flash adapter blocks the Canon 580EXII’s AF illumination light and sensor. In low to no light, this effectively prevents the camera from autofocusing. Luckily this Belvedere event wasn’t too dark – but next time I shoot in a dark room with it, I’m going to try affixing a red flashlight to give the AF enough light.
Dancers at the Belvedere Macerated Launch Party (Not shot with the Rayflash) -
New Pocket Camera – Canon SD-780IS?
Earlier today I got an email asking for recommendations on a new pocket “point-and-shoot” camera, and fired back with a wrapup of the three that I too am considering for my next pocket camera.
My trusty Canon SD-500 has finally died after 4 years of hard use and abuse, and over 12,000 pictures taken. It’s been a great camera, and went all around the world with me, even scuba diving with me to 100 feet, in the Canon waterproof case. Recently the focus stopped working, and the two rechargeable batteries I have for it barely hold a charge – they’ve probably each been recharged close to 1000 times. Also, a little puff of smoke comes out of the top speaker grill every time the flash fires a full burst.
Buying a new piece of gear is always a major research effort, and weighing the options is important. I’m currently stuck on three cameras, each with their own good and bad features.
My brother Jason and I using the SD-500 to film our discovery of the crashed weather balloon in the backcountry of central Alaska, Summer 2008. Canon SD780IS –
This is the smallest and thinnest pocket camera Canon has ever produced, and it really is super small – just checked it out at the store, and its rounded corners make it easy to slip in your pocket. It’s 12MP, but a very small sensor. From what I’ve read, it’s very solidly built for its size, and takes great pictures, however it’s picture quality is not as good as some other, larger pocket cameras. Also, it takes 720p HD video, with sound, and has a built in HD HDMI output for plugging directly into an HDTV. The lens is in the “normal” range for zoom, with the widest angle being 33mm (in film equivalent) The big questions for me on this is – I really love that it’s ultra super small, and takes 720p HD video, however, I’m not sure how much it’s worth it for ever so slightly reduced image quality. I suppose, though, given that this is a pocket cam, and ideally suited for going out with friends and taking fun snapshots, and not more intense photography, it would be acceptable. Also, it comes in flat black, which is sleek and low-key looking. This is currently my top pick.- Canon SD-780is Product Page
- B&H Canon SD-780is buy it now page
- DP Review Canon SD-780is User comments
- Imaging Resource Canon SD-780is review
Canon 880is –
This is the camera that I bought for my brother Jason recently, and researched quite a bit before I bought it for him. It’s a bit bigger and heavier than the 789is, and doesn’t have an optical viewfinder. Also, it’s lower resolution (10mp)(not an indicator of image quality), and only shoots “standard def” video. However, that being said, it is noted as having among the best image quality out of the current canon pocket cameras. Additionally, it has a wide angle lens, 28mm (in film equiv) being the widest. (Compared to 33mm for the 780is) This camera is def still pocketable, but nowhere near as sleek. My brother can pocket it easy because he wears baggy jeans, and it fits easily in a coat pocket, however it might be a little bulky to slip into the wallet pocket of a suit jacket, or dress pants, or tighter jeans. So, it’s a trade off of getting slightly better pictures and wider angle, but having a slightly bulkier camera with no HD video recording.- Canon 880is Product Page
- B&H Canon 880is buy it now page
- DP Review Canon 880is User Comments
- Imaging Resource Canon 880is review
Canon D10 –
The one ultra standout feature for this camera, and the feature that majorly puts it on the radar is that it’s waterproof, shockproof, and freezeproof. You can submerge it to 33feet underwater. Although I have a dedicated scuba case for actual scuba diving, having a waterproof and shockproof pocket camera seems like an awesome feature for a traveler, especially for sailing trips, hiking in the jungle, and other potentially hazardous or dirty areas – no worrying about getting sand in the lens mechanism, or taking it out in the rain or snow. The main detractors for this camera are the lens focal length and the size. The lens’ widest is 35mm (in film equiv), which is not the widest at all. Also, it’s one of the bulkier “pocket cameras”, and I think it looks kind of bubbled out and stupid – def not as sleek as the 780is.It does have the waterproof and shockproof going for it, though, which is a major factor…
Let me know your thoughts and suggestions!
*****Update – I went with the 780, and just wrote a review of the Canon SD780IS. Cheers
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Photos from the MoMA Armory Art Show After Party Posted
Photos I took at the MoMA Armory Art Show After Party were recently posted up on GuestOfAGuest.com, alongisde Patrick McMullan’s photos. Photos of the same party also went up on Dave Surgan’s ObsceneNYC Blog. Cheers!From Guest of a Guest:
Wednesday evening kicked off MoMa’s annual The Armory Show from March 5th-8th with an opening night benefit after party at the Museum of Modern Art. Guests included Andrew Andrew, Kim Cattrall, Justin Rockefeller, Jack Heller, Susan Kirschbaum, Price Latimer Agah, Jared Clark, Kim Bates, Robert Fowler, and Suzanne Fuller among others who were given a sneak peak at one of the world’s leading international art fairs before they got down to a live performance by Gang Gang Dance, and drank a ton of cocktails.
Update 2011-03-05 – Here’s a link back to the Moma Armory Show 2011, for those interested.
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Snow Day Picture Published in the New York Times
During last week’s ultra NYC Winter Apocalypse snow day, I took a quick snapsho of the snowy fire escapes in the alleyway behind my office, and sent it in to the New York Times. They ended up publishing it in two separate galleries of snow pictures, along with other reader-submitted pics. Check it out! -
Shooting the Belvedere Mr. 1X Launch Party
This past weekend I took photos at the Belvedere Mr. 1X product launch party. Paul Sevigny DJ’d, and Le Baron co-owner Andre Saraiva collaborated with Belvedere on the Mr. IX logo. I ended up sending the photos to a few friends, and the photos spread around the web fairly nicely.
Here’s where photos of the Belvedere Mr. IX Launch Party showed up –
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Traveling Through Turkey and Israel – Photos
Traveling through Turkey and Israel in December 2008, I managed to take roughly 1500 photos with my brand new Canon G10. The new camera was great, and the wide angle 28mm lens, ND filter, and full manual control were great to have in the field. I started the trip with 8gb and 2gb memory cards, and, shooting on JPEG fine, managed to start filling up the 8gb card way too early in the trip. Although I hate to do it, I actually did edit photos while I was traveling. In the end, I ended up with about 1200 photos. Out of those, I’ve edited them down to the top 100 or so. These photos I feel best represent the trip, and should give a good feel of the varying environments and sites of both Turkey and Israel.
I also took about 45 minutes of video, which I’m in the process of editing down to a presentable reel.
Kirk looking at the surviving arched cieling of the castle ruins at Kasaba
Street food in Adana
St. Peters hidden Catholic church in Antakya – built into a natural cave
Local schoolkids clamoring to say hello to us in Kilis
Sunset in Samandagi
The archway and observation tower in Harran
Surveying the dramatic scenery as we drive to Bierecheck, in the canyons carved by the Euphrates
The Mosque in Kilis
An orange vendor in Harran
The cave restaurant in Sanliurfa
Small town on the side of the Euphrates. Their mosque was flooded when the damn was build.
Driving at night back to Antakya
Doerta cooking up a delicious German dinner.
Sunset in Samandagi
Arriving in Sanliurfa
An antique Zenith watch for sale at the market in Istanbul
Having tea on the banks of the Euphrates with locals
Dried Eggplant shells in Antakya
Looking into the cut from the Roman Tunnels in Samandagi
Me, Steph and Kirk standing on ruined pilars at St. Simeon
Walking at night in Antakya. THe street had a movie set like feeling from the yellow, flat streetlights.
Fishermen in Istanbul
Driving west, then north out of Antakya
Steph and I riding a motorcycle with a sidecar in Sanliurfa
Steph and Kirk with our dinner the first night in Istanbul.
Finding our hotel room
Roof of the Aya Sophia
Candle lanterns at the market in Istanbul
Hiking the ridge above St. Peters in Antakya
The Cisterns in Istanbul
Early morning walk to go to the Istanbul airport.
Me driving through flood waters in Samandag
Hassan, a local resident
Sundown in Yesemek, Turkey
A chef distributing pestashio on to baklava at Chadas in Gaziantep
Climbing the ridge above St. Peters
Turkish Delight
Looking off into the mountains from Antakya
Dilapidated houses in Adana
Kirk negotiation for homegrown tobacco in Sanliurfa
Riding the dolmush through Belen, Tureky
Researching for our next day’s adventures in our hotel room in Antakya
Kirk and Steph checking the guidebooks in Adana
Street feeling in Kilis
Inside the Roman Tunnels in Samandagi
Sketching and sailing up the Euphrates river
Freighter ships on the Bosphorus
Taking the dolmush from Adana to Antakya
Steph and the Euphrates river
Talking to the hotel staff in Adana
Steph standing on the beach
The ruins of St. Simeon
Looking off into Syria, on the border between Turkey and Syria
Dinner boat on the Bosphorus
Steph looking at photos with a local kid in Harran
A backhoe coming down Kirk’s street in Istanbul
Our sketchy hotel in Sanliurfa
Sunday night dinner at Kirk’s House
Medusa Head in the Cistern
Street food in Istanbul
Taxsim Square, Istanbul
Broken Turkish Pottery
Sitting on the ledge watching the sun set on the Euphrates in Kasaba.
Getting Sahlep in Antakya
Getting a concensus on directions
Ataturk in Adana
Ruins of a castle in Kozan
Roman Tunnels in Samandagi
Me, Steph and Kirk about to split up in Istanbul
Local kids in Vaikifle
The Hittite rock musieum in Yesemek
Beehive houses in Harran
Local kid holding a lamb in Antakya. On this mountainside we met a shepard tending to hish flock. This kid hiked with us for a bit up onto the side of the mountain.
Arriving to rain in Antakya
Buying clementines in Antakya
The inside of the church in the cave
Green spices at the market in Antakya
Olive vendors on the corner in Gaziantep
Catholic church courtyard in Antakya
Kirk with the windfarm in the background
More dolmush rides
Steph in the doorway of the Armenian Church
Looking out onto the Euphrates.
Grasses at sunset in Samandagi
Fruitstand in Istanbul
Us with our Turkish friends in Yesemek
Juggling oranges on a street side fruit stand.
Evening in Sanliurfa
Faces carved into the rock above St. Peters church in Antakya
Our dusk tour of the Hittite rock garden in Yesemek
Goats in Harran
Driving through the mountains near the Med
Blizzard conditions landing back in Istanbul
Small produce market near Kirk’s house in Istanbul
Stephanie and I inside the cave in Antakya
A local shepard and his flock on the side of the road in Yolbasi
Pegasus Airlines
Looking out to the horizon from the mountains in Vaikifle—
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Stunning new HD video from the Canon EOS 5D Mark II
The yet to be released Canon EOS 5DmkII, in addition to 21 Megapixel stills, also takes full 1080P 30FPS video, Akihabara News just posted another stunning, unofficial Canon EOS 5DmkII HD video, taken with presumably a pre-production sample of the camera. It goes on sale at the end of the month, at which point expect some self-shot HD goodness. Until then, enjoy these shots from Japan. Watch full screen for full effect…in full HD!
One of the most exciting aspects for me, in terms of being able to shoot HD video with a DSLR, is playing with aperture for interesting DOF effects and control. That, and having the ability to capture the scene, whether in high res stills, or high def video – definitely a game changer. Finally, that last track in the video is “Poupées Russes” by Kraked Unit, a French group. Great beat – found it also used in this car commercial, as well as appearing in a French movie soundtrack. The track starts around 2:46. Reminds me of the days of Pelican City (Danger Mouse’s early college work) which was definitely frequent Acid Lounge material.
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Shooting the Highline Design Book Release Party
Last week I took photos and volunteered at the Friends of the Highline Design Book Release Party. The party was actually underneath the Highline, and featured a great band, food and drinks. The new book, “Designing the Highline” showcases the Highlines’s design from Gansevoort to 30th street. I haven’t been up on that section of it yet, but I did get the opportunity to explore the upper section, near the rail yard. Pics from that soon.
Photos are posted up on my new photography site – AcidLoungeMedia.com/Vision. Additionally, the Friends of the Highline blog wrote about the party, and linked to the photos.
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Portable Photo Safe – Backup Those Giant Memory Cards
This Photo Safe II from Digital Foci sounds like nifty gadget..especially for traveling. I’d use it to backup pictures on my memory card, and not necessarily to offload the pictures…. ie not deleting memory cards after copying to the it. That way,the camera is lost or stolen while traveling, there’s still a backup of the pictures, and vise versa. I feel like very very quickly, the value of the photos your shooting far outpaces the value of the gear you’re using.. in many many situations.Also, this could prevent you from having to do the “many smaller cards” scheme of data protection, and instead shoot with that whopper 32b card, and just back it up from time to time in the field.
Thoughts?
Digital Foci didn’t go out of its way to drastically redesign the original Photo Safe, but we ‘spose that’s alright in the grand scheme of things. Essentially, the Photo Safe II picks up where its predecessor left off by including a multicard reader (now with 100% more MS Duo and miniSD support) which automatically transfers photos from your flash card onto the built-in 80GB / 160GB hard drive. The integrated display tells you at a glance how much space is remaining and how much battery life is left, though it won’t show your stored photos in slideshow (or any other) fashion. A touch steep at $139 (80GB) / $189 (160GB), but that’s convenience for you.
