Transmission towers, power stations, and complex electric poles will forever interest me. I’m particularly fond of orange and white transmission towers against a blue sky. But, in general I appreciate these structures, especially those of the truss style construction. In the below image, the patterns of glass insulator stacks shining in the sunlight caught my attention.
1/320 sec at f/5.0, ISO 100, 28mm, Leica Q2
A few images from a recent trip to Chicago where I walked around downtown and Navy Peer with a very close friend.
1/500 sec at f/5.0, ISO 100, 28mm, Leica Q2
1/500 sec at f/5.0, ISO 100, 28mm, Leica Q2
1/800 sec at f/5.6, ISO 100, 28mm, Leica Q2
A recent business trip took me to Cuautitlan, Mexico, where I spent a free Saturday walking around with my Leica Q2, capturing whatever I found interesting. I’m finding that a my eye is starting to gravitate towards minimalist scenes and negative space.
1/800 Sec at f/5.6, ISO 100, 28mm, Leica Q2
1/500 sec at f/5.6, ISO 100, 28mm, Leica Q2
1/500 sec at f/5.0, ISO 100, 28mm, Leica Q2
1/320 sec at f/4.5, ISO 100, 28mm, Leica Q2
1/500 sec at f/5.0, ISO 100, 28mm, Leica Q2
1/500 sec at f/5.6, ISO 100, 28mm, Leica Q2
1/640 sec at f/5.6, ISO 100, 28mm, Leica Q2
Stopped to make this image over the weekend. A colorful island of simplicity. The combination of red, green & yellow in a stand-alone scene caught my attention and I had to reach for my Leica.
1/400 sec at F/5.0, ISO 100, 28mm, Lecia Q2
Driving home from upstate NY, I stopped by this old NY DEC Fish Hatchery to catch some frogs with my son. Onsite, there is an old building that I’ve driven past since my teenage years, and have always wanted to photograph. Built in 1932, it’s old weathered paint and classic framing is attractive to me. The hatchery itself originally raised bass but was home to trout and walleye over the years as well.
1/4000 sec at f/4.0, ISO 500, 24mm, Sony A7C II
1/1250 sec at f/6.3, ISO 500, 35mm, Sony A7C II
Passing through Port Crane, NY, on my way home from the Adirondacks, this set of attractive buildings had me pulling over to make this photo. What first caught my attention was the set of windows on the front face of the blue building. The weathered tones on it’s side further drew me in and the complimentary colors of its red accents and neighboring building sealed the deal on this scene as a must make photo.
1/1000 sec at f/4.8, ISO 200, 40mm, Leica MP
1/1500 sec at f/4.0, ISO 200, 40mm, Leica MP
1/3000 sec at f/4.0, ISO 200, 40mm, Leica MP
Reflecting in the Adirondacks.
1/400 sec at f/4.5, ISO 100, 28mm, Leica Q2
Spotted this 1993 Piper Super Cub while on vacation in the Adirondacks. Gorgeous.
1/640 sec at f/5.6, ISO 100, 28mm, Leica Q2
Driving back from Lindenwold, NJ today, I passed the Falls Bridge and had to stop to enjoy it. A sucker for bridges, I spent some time admiring it’s construction and played Frogger while making these images. Again; orange and blue coupled with decay is always a recipe for interest to me. Reading up on this bridge I learned that it was built utilizing the Pratt Truss design.
1/2000 sec, at f/4.0, ISO 200, 40mm, Leica MP
1/2000 sec at f/4.0, ISO 200, 40mm, Leica MP
I enjoyed making these images for a few reasons. Firstly I’m an airplane nut. I’ve always loved planes. Secondly, the plane’s deteriorated condition also appeals to me. I enjoy the esthetic of decay/patina on objects. Wear, use, and neglect make items and scenes more interesting to me. Lastly, orange and blue is one of my favorite color combinations. All of these facets combine to make this T-39 Sabreliner so cool looking.
1/1000 sec at f/2.4, ISO 200, 40mm, Leica MP
1/180 sec at f/4.8, ISO 200, 40mm, Leica MP
1/160 at F/4.0, ISO 100, 28mm, Leica Q2
1/80 sec at f/3.2, ISO 100, 28mm, Leica Q2
Driving past the Champlain Valley Educational Services Aeronautical Institute, in Plattsburgh, NY, I noticed an old DC-3 basking in the evening sun. It has always been dream of mine to photograph a true airplane graveyard out west. This is the closest I’ve come to doing so. As a licensed aircraft mechanic I’ve always had a fond interest in aviation and just had to pull in and make a few images.
1/125 sec at f/8.0, ISO 200, 35mm, Leica MP
1/250 sec at f/3.4, ISO 200, 35mm, Leica MP
1/750 sec at f/2.4, ISO 200, 35mm, Leica MP
1/1000 sec at f/2.8, ISO 200, 35mm, Leica MP
Work takes me to Plattsburgh, NY this week. Leaving dinner around 8:30 this evening, I saw this water tower and thought I’d try to make an interesting photo with the last couple of minutes of blue hour (I have a thing for water towers and power lines). While there was hardly any light where I stood at the base of the tower, the top was caught in the transition from the last few rays of setting sun to ambient street light. Pushing the ISO to 4,000, I’m still pleased with the clarity of the image. The Leica Q2 never disappoints.
1/50 sec at f/1.7, ISO 4000, 28mm, Leica Q2
While visiting with my sister Mary, she took me on an art walk around Summit, NJ where she owns and operates an incredible frame shop; Frames For You. It’s always fun visiting her shop because she frames a lot of very cool pieces from modern/pop artists to iconic classic pieces. It’s not uncommon to see originals from BÄST, Shepard Fairey, Josh Keys, Jeremy Geddes, and others for sale on her walls. She doesn’t always have them, but she certainly handles a lot of very cool pieces.
The cool parking garage below was painted by Hellbent. Love it.
This year, I gifted a really interesting book to my sister for her birthday and wish I got a copy for myself. The book showcased images with symmetry and balance akin to the scenes in Wes Anderson visually stimulating films. Very inspiring. While driving my son to the babysitter’s this morning, I noticed these shacks and had to stop to make this image.
1/6400 sec at f/1.7, ISO 100, 28mm, Leica Q2
Again, I find myself enjoying the reward of taking my camera everywhere I go. Today, while traveling for work near Binghamton, NY, I came up behind this rider on the road. I thought it was so cool that he had an entire wheel strapped to his back… with a tow strap no less! So impressed was I, that I followed him in to a gas station to make his portrait. This is my kind of guy; doing the sort of thing that I would do. He had changed the tire on his buddy’s bike and needed to use the air station to fill it.
Making portraits is something I’ve never felt comfortable doing. It takes courage to ask someone if you can make their portrait and there is a high chance of rejection in doing so. I’m so grateful that I had the courage to ask this guy, because this is now perhaps one of my personal favorite images of all that I have made over the years.
1/1250 sec at f/2.0, ISO 100, 28mm, Leica Q2
I’ve made images of this bridge before. I really like this 1.2 miles of steel truss construction. Completed in 1906, it is still in use by Amtrak today.
1/2000 sec at f/4.0, ISO 200, 40mm, Leica MP 240
1/4000 sec at f/2.8, ISO 200, 40mm, Leica MP240
Spent this past weekend camping up in the Dax and all I got were these lousy photos :)
1/200 sec at f/4.0, ISO 100, 28mm, Leica Q2
1/125 sec at f/4.0, ISO 100, 28mm, Leica Q2
1/800 sec at f/5.6, ISO 200, 28mm, Leica Q2