NEW YORK NEW YORK – Spring. Really. It kind of infects the images. Not that I mind it but the tulips are pretty much everywhere, and . . .well . . you’ve seen a tulip before. Taken with my Sony Nex-7 and a Leica 24mm Summilux.
On this day last year: Prometheus at Rock Center. Taken with my M9 and the Bokeh King.
NEW YORK NEW YORK – After an afternoon of committee meetings the James Beard Foundation board had dinner at the Four Seasons Restaurant. In the past I’ve posted a number of images from this iconic Mies van der Rohe institution. Mies designed the interior, including the furniture and the beaded curtains. Taken with my Sony Nex-7 and a Leica 24mm Summilux lens.
On this day one year ago: Lincoln Center fountain.
NEW YORK NEW YORK – I spent the morning in Central Park and midtown Manhattan with my Alpa TC, Phase One Back and Rodenstock 32mm lens. Spring is here. Really. The city is in bloom for a few precious weeks. I hate doing anything other than photograph this time of year, but of course pictures of spring flowers is probably not my strongest body of work.
On this day one year ago: Maria and Bunny.
NEW YORK NEW YORK – My iPhone’s capabilities as a camera continue to impress me. This little guy is always available and produces surprisingly capable results. Somewhere along the line it developed a little camera icon on the lock screen which permits you to take a picture without entering your password – a major plus for the spur of the moment shots. I spent part of the morning pressing the iPhone felt against store windows. I caught nice light in a conference room in the afternoon.
On this day last year: Birches.
NEW YORK NEW YORK – Well here I am, on Third Avenue, with my iPhone stuffed into a bush with one solitary leaf. I’ve got a wide angle supplemental lens on it. Apart from it’s advantage of always being with you this thing can get really close.
On this day one year ago: an event at ICE.
NEW YORK NEW YORK – I’m using the big camera (the Alpa with the Phase One back) for snapshots. It actually works pretty well – I zone focus, the light is pretty consistent outdoors so one or two exposure setting suffice and I keep it cocked and ready to shoot.
The big files permit extensive computer manipulation, in this case an aggressive perspective correction:
On this day one year ago: Sunrise out an airplane window. A very unpromising idea that came out very well.
NEW YORK NEW YORK – I had a bit of time to day to get to know my new lens a bit better. Here’s an image taken in our living room. I’ve used a technique called focus stacking: taking 6 (in this case) images with differing focus points and combining them (using specialized software) into a single image. This was taken with my Alpa Max; I’ve leveled the camera and shifted the lens downward about 12mm to get a pleasing composition with a prominent foreground (a common strategy for shooting wide angle lenses) at the same time keeping vertical lines true.
Here’s what my Alpa TC looks like with the new Rodenstock 32mm lens and my Phase One digital back. As you see it’s a handful, but actually quite manageable.
On this day one year ago: Beantown.
