Joni

I met Joni at the proceedings for the 100th anniversary of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire. She also had a 35mm film camera (though I forgot what model). I remember she mentioned that she went to Fordham, but regrettably I don't remember much else of our discussion. She's from California. I remember that. And she was nice, I remember that too. That's always a good thing to remember.

A Smoke in the Park

Washington Square, of course:


By the way, you're no longer allowed to smoke in parks in NYC, or even in those newfangled pedestrian malls our mayor has devised. I'm betting he won't allow smoking in his precious bike lanes either.

I don't even know what that means.

Sidewalk Chair

Don't you just love my literal interpretations sometimes?


It feels like the weekend. Oh yeah, it's Memorial Day tomorrow. Buy something on sale to remember those that fell for our country why don't you.

Colleen

The first time I met Colleen I was the one doling out the compliments on her Nikkormat. This time around, I took an old school picture of her with an old school camera, the Kodak Baby Brownie (Ca. 1930something). I even went old school and held it up to my eye like they would in the old days so there's plenty of headroom and she's just a little blurry since she was standing less than six feet away. Also, there are some light leaks with this camera that I'm not entirely thrilled with, but I do love that Art Deco masterpiece that is the Baby Brownie. I think I might have to find another one, or at the very least find an aesthetically pleasing way to cure the light leaks, since I love having a camera that can shoot 127 film that I can hold in just one hand.

Keeping in Frame

On 5th Ave:


You get it, like it's an actual frame, and he's in it, so he's keeping in frame?

I like explaining things.

Regal Shoes

Perhaps not so regal anymore:


They call it "Manhattanenge" and it's tomorrow.

I don't care.

When Sleeping in the Park,

A blanket makes all the difference:


Don't you just want to take the other half of that blanket and wrap it around him, tuck him in, and give him a nice kiss on the head goodnight?

Okay, maybe not the kiss.

And maybe not taking the other half of the blanket, not without wearing rubber gloves that you'd then incinerate on site. And then maybe incinerate your hands just to be on the safe side.

Digging it Up

On the west side:


You know, I don't feel like my pictures lately, the ones I've been posting, have really been anything of much worth. I need to rectify this.

The Girl With the Foot Tattoo

Now not being made into a major motion picture:


Or maybe I should have said the girl with the tattoo on her foot, since it's not a tattoo of a foot. She may have a tattoo of a foot afoot somewhere else on her person, but it wasn't visible that day (if it even exists).

A friend of mine just said to me, "you can't have ice cream for dinner."

Isn't that just about the craziest thing you've ever heard?

The Sidewalks of New York

Not looking so good in this shot:


Long past couple of days. Tired and hungry. Wondering which life force will win out once I post this.

West Side Vista

On the west side (of course):


I like these open vista city shots, especially when it doesn't look like it's Manhattan. If I'd have paid some mind to those buildings all the way on the right this really would have worked out better. Also, check out that swirl in the sky on the center/right hand side of the image. I'm wondering if that's from a lack of agitation mit der Diafine. It says to agitate gently for just five seconds per minute. Maybe I have to shake things up a bit more (yes, I know what I just wrote).

MUSICAL SUGGESTION:
Go to this page here. Download this 7". Listen to the tracks and repeat. And repeat again. And again. And again, as I've been doing for the past 23 years (23 years! Holy crap). It's good stuff, and every track a keeper.

Trust me on this.

Almost a Foot

But a nice calf regardless:


It's harder to aim the Nettar blind than I thought. Maybe I'm just used to blind shooting with the SWC. I like the way it came out, even though I missed the whole point of getting her foot and dangling shoe in the shot. And in case you're wondering, this will not start an inundation of foot/shoe pictures for the next ten days (or will it....). I'll be sure to intersperse other scenes of the type you've come to expect from me (oh brother).

A Trip to the Past

Well, I developed the VP127 roll today that I got from that Kodak Bullet at the flea market (Diafine 5+5, 25.2c — room temp), and as I suspected, it did have images. And what do you know, here they are:


When I first saw this shot of a country road, I didn't think much of it until I looked a bit closer at that object far down the road. Here's a full sized crop:


A moose!

I don't blame the photographer for keeping his distance. I nearly got killed by a moose in 2003.

A Møøse once bit my sister ...

(don't let me down people)

So, with the moose out of the way, our mystery person reached their destination and took another photo:


A canoe! A canoe in water!

Not satisfied with capturing the scene from just one angle, our photographer moved over a few steps:


This canoe cannot be contained by just one photograph.

Well, this is where this trip ended. Later on the roll I found this:


If you can make anything out of this, please let me know.

Looking at it now, that looks like it could be a shadow of a person in that left hand shot. Perhaps standing in front of a curtained window. God, looking at this is like trying to analyze the Moorman Photo (I don't expect you all to get that one off the bat).

After having done this, it lets me know that I didn't foul my Diafine solutions, and now I'm wondering about the other two "exposed" rolls that I have. These are the ones that I bought loose with that V116 roll that was blank. Of the other rolls, one is a 620 Kodacolor (which I've developed successfully in b&w chems before, and the other one...that's the potential prize. It's an Autographic 116 roll. I've been fretting over how to develop this. I'm going with the Diafine. I know a lot of old film developers go with HC-110, but I've never had anything come out. There's too much guesswork with Ilfosol-3, so I think Diafine (developer for dummies) is the way to go. I'd love to take it out and see that I've developed a full Autographic roll, complete with handwritten notes impressed on the film! Though when I think of that empty V116 roll, I do get worried. I don't know when I'll take the plunge with the A116 roll. Mind you, Autographic film was discontinued in 1932. However, that doesn't mean the film I have was shot in 1932 or earlier. Hell, it may not have even been shot at all.

Though whatever happens (and I don't know when that will be), you'll be hearing about it (but of course!).

Flip Flops

In Washington Square Park:


I know the feet came out a little hot, but whatever. I don't feel like going deep into photoshop to get those right.

Last week a friend of mine who doesn't live here asked me to take on a project. She said she wanted to see pictures of shoes. Not like shoes lying around, but city shoes. The footwear of the average New Yorker. Now it's hard enough for me to walk up to a total stranger and ask to take their portrait, let alone walk up to a total stranger and ask to take a picture of their feet (in Greenwich Village, no less). The latter some think would border on a fetish, and cast me in an even weirder light than your average photographer of strangers.

So I headed out to Washington Square Park with the Nettar and a fresh roll of Ilford Delta 100 and took pictures of people's feet on the sly. And yes, I felt more than just a bit of a creep while I did it. But this is what friends do for each other.

Some Tech Talk:
I developed this in Diafine (3+3 25.2c, room temp) to make sure my Diafine still worked. Remember yesterday when I mentioned that I was going to develop an old V116 roll? Well, I got nothing off of it. In fact, it didn't even look like it was even shot. Now this roll (with a few others) I bought loose, with the claim they were already exposed. I'd hate to think I was a victim of a scam. I have bought loose exposed vintage films before and have culled images from them. But I think it would be just as easy to wind an unshot vintage roll forward all the way without shooting it and sell it as shot. And if it doesn't come out, what argument do you have? You're trying to develop 60+ or however many years old film. Hell, you could sell a lot of film (I mean, a "lot" not a lot) with actual exposed rolls and just throw in an unexposed vintage one to sweeten the pot. I'm not giving up on Diafine for vintage rolls. I have some VP127 all ready to go, and I got it out of a Kodak Bullet (1930s, with the screw-out front) at a flea market, so I have more faith that it was actually shot.

Mayor Bloomberg is a CUNT

Shout it loudly. Shout it proudly. Shout it from the rooftops:


Mayor Bloomberg is a dirty stinking cunt of a man, and Adrian Benepe is no better.

Fuck you both.

PS:
Today will be my double post to make up for the lost day from last week (thanks Blogger). I'll be posting a normal, less anger-filled post later in the day.

Starrett Lehigh

With the Nettar:


Tech Talk!
This was my first roll of Ilford Delta 100 that I developed with Diafine: 3+3 at 25.5 Celsius (room temperature). I'm not sure if it's bright from getting a little push from the developer, or maybe I miscalculated my exposure. Either way, I did like not having to deal with cooling my shit down to 20c doing a dance with mason jars, ice cubes, and one digital thermometer that gets washed and wiped down as it samples the wares of each Rubbermaid container it finds its way inside.

I'll keep on noting the Diafine pics as they're posted. But now I'm off to develop some Verichrome 116 in Diafine, using tips I got from Jacki. Her blog is over there on the right and if you think I'm into photography, I ain't nothing compared to her.

Or maybe I'm just lazy (I'd put my money on that).

Aimee

I ran into Aimee in Union Square Park. She's currently studying art history, but is also experienced at photography. We had a good talk about all things photographic. I was worried about getting the focus on this shot, since the light was low, and it's a bit tough to do with the YashMat in low light, but I think I got it just about right. It's a tad soft, which I think actually works with her face, and the high grain of this ISO3200 film pulled to 400. I like the way this came out.

Three Dog Day

Downtown:


I wanted to take this picture a few seconds earlier when the man with the dogs was in the middle of the street, but of course I didn't have the film wound forward and the shutter cocked.

What's the most important part of TIMING comedy?

I'm not sure that joke works on paper. I mean, you know what I mean.

Vacant Lot

Behind a chain link fence:


How terrible it must be to condemn your daughter to a life of mortality, only because she did what you wanted in your heart, and not as you told her. Not only that, but she'll be sleeping on that rock surrounded by fire, so that only the bravest may claim her to be his bride. And if that person just so happens to be the son of your half-brother who was conceived with your half-sister, does it really matter as long as you're in love?

I say let love flourish. But for now we'll have to wait until the major chord arpeggios come to a close, and let another 18 years or so pass by, and the curtain comes down....

Special Delivery Starring Sam (R) and Dave (L)

Yes, you saw their individual portraits, and here they are in living black and white broadcasting live from the Kong Off at Richie Knucklez' Arcade in Flemington, NJ.

What was the Kong Off you ask? It was a gathering of all the top Donkey Kong players in the country to determine who would hold the world's record high score. If you've seen The King of Kong, you know what I'm talking about, and the major players were there including Steve Wiebe, Billy "USA" Mitchell, and even Steve "He Shellacked Me" Sanders!

I had planned a more intricate account of the Kong Off, with an opening directly ripped off from Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, but I wanted to get this post up today as quickly as possible. As I'm sure many of you have noticed, I did not post yesterday, thus breaking my unbroken streak of posting a picture a day since August 26, 2009. All I have to say is, that the internet isn't as reliable as it used to be. From 3pm yesterday (when I first started to attempt to post) to just now, Blogger was in read only mode. No posting was possible. Just think of all the millions of us who were waiting to pour out our feelings and fears and hopes and photos and were just chomping (or champing) at the bit for people to see what we have to say because we're such needy fucks yelling "LOVE ME" not unlike Stanley Moon, but it was not meant to be. But we're back now, as long as Blogger will allow us.

Then again, maybe I should look at it and think that it's not so bad that only one day in nearly two years Blogger was down. So maybe in another nearly two years from now I'll be making this very same post.

I'll also double up one day soon to make up for the lost day. God forbid you should be denied all this!

Dave

This lousy picture I took is of David Dodd McDonald AKA East Side Dave AKA Davey Mac AKA The Midnight Rider AKA The Bearded Joker AKA Black Earl's Dead Grandmother (I can keep going but I'll stop here). He is the former producer of the Ron and Fez Show (weekdays 11-3pm, Sirius 105, XM 206 The Virus), and the current cohost of Special Delivery with Sam and Dave (Saturday nights 9-midnight, also on The Virus), not to mention also the morning newsman on 90.5 The Night, Brookdale Public Radio in New Jersey.

One paragraph is not enough to contain all that is David McDonald. Aside from what I mentioned, there's also the sports podcast, the weekly Real World roundups he writes, but if I were to put only one link up on this post, it would be for The Stanley McDonald Fund.

Stanley is David's son, and by all accounts (and pictures and youtube videos Dave has posted) he seems like a nice happy little boy. But he's also a sick little boy, and despite all of Dave's endeavors, things are pretty tight at the McDonald household and they could use your help. So if it's in your heart, and you're able, please give. Even just a little bit goes a long way to seeing that a little boy gets the help he needs.

Sam

This lousy photograph I took is of Sam Roberts AKA Primetime Sam Roberts. You may know him as a producer on the Opie and Antony Show (Sirius 105, XM 206 The Virus), or as the host of After Opie and Anthony Live (weekdays 10-11), or from one of his floating gigs on Sirius Hits 1, or maybe as co-host of Special Delivery every Saturday night from 9-midnight (also on The Virus). And I didn't even get into his involvement with Jersey All Pro Wrestling. For more information about Sam, you can check out his site.

Sam was gracious enough for me to shoot him at the Kong Off (more about that later). I mean, shoot pictures of him, of course. This was at the end of the night.

Sam, I owe you a better picture than this.

Under the High Line

Not quite the garden above, eh?


I wonder what would be easier, photoshopping the fence out of this picture, or Hillary Clinton and a female aide out of the Situation Room? When those Hasids aren't reading the Talumd they're boning up on Photoshop For Dummies.

I wonder what they would have done if photoshop were around when Golda Meir was prime minister...

Legroom

There ain't a lot of it on a park bench:


This would have been better without the people walking in the background. It would have been less cluttered. I did take another shot that was less cluttered, but it was more off center. So what's better, less clutter, or less center?

I was trying to think of some kind of Clutter family thing, you know, "Less Clutter?" Less Clutters? But that's not humor. That's just in cold blood.

A Woman and Her Tree

On 23rd Street:


It benefits a tree's health to take it out for a walk every so often.

Tom

I could easily write that Tom is an artist who sells his wares in Union Square Park, but he's much more than that. He might be one of the most interesting people you'll ever meet, and that I won't even attempt to describe here, since I'd never be able to do him justice. I will say that he is an artist that works in ceramics, though what he sells in the park are mosaic mirrors. Well, they're mirrors set in plaster into which he incorporates tiles, pieces of old English transferware plates, colored glass, and the like. He also makes collages out of cut up comic books. You'll have to trust me when I say that my description of his wares does not do them justice.

As for his other work, you can see it here.

So if you happen to happen upon Tom in Union Square, say hello. Support his enterprise. Or at the very least take the time to get to know him better. You'll be glad you did.

Drunk in the Afternoon

On 6th Ave, I believe:


I crossed the street with these three, and I don't remember which one noticed the YashMat hanging around my neck. The dude had taken photo classes at some point, and was more than glad to tell me as he staggered in close enough so I could smell his booze-stink breath. I wanted to back away, but for some reason stood pat and took it (proving what point, I have no idea). I didn't ask their names and they didn't take a card, otherwise I wouldn't have written about hops halitosis (or whatever it was he had been swilling).

Children International

I ran into these guys on 23rd Street. They both had unique names that I didn't bother to write down, and not surprisingly, didn't remember (imagine that).

Not Quite Lourdes...

But a miracle nonetheless?


I wonder...

Name Forgotten (IV)

Oh, where do I start with this crummy picture which is both blurry and suffers from the flash getting flashed twice in quick succession by the YashMat. I hadn't done any night flash shooting with the YashMat for quite some time, and forgot how fickle it could be with triggering the flash at certain speeds. I knew I should have done some tests before my outing to Flemington (see, I didn't forget, we'll get to that story. I know I'm full of unkept promises and very few miles to go before I sleep, but maybe this one I'll really get to keeping. It also smells like chopped liver in here for some reason. It's weird).

The other thing that saddens me about this photo is that I have two more portraits shot that are pretty much like this, and they were shots that I really wanted to come out well. Well, I hope that my words can do justice to the otherwise disappointing photos to come.

Laughing Mannequin

I totally forgot where this was:


And yes, I know a little while back I said that a mannequin had to be a full bodied and limbed, and I still agree with that assessment, but frankly, I'm too damned tired to think of what else to call these things right now.