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A city larger than life, encompassing an energy that’s palpable at all hours of the day and night, New York City is where I call home. It’s the city from which I draw my inspiration, and the city in which I live my artistic expression. To be on a crowded subway during morning rush hour is not an annoyance – it’s an affirmation that we’re all a part of a larger whole, whether we place the boundaries at the edge of the city or the far side of the earth. To view the skyline from the pothole infested Brooklyn/Queens Expressway is a beautiful experience which makes me feel as if I’m traveling down a yellow brick road towards a mythical Emerald City off in the distance. Of course the reality is much different.
To live in New York City is a test of one’s mettle. It’s easy to be humbled by the scale of things and to doubt one’s capability to feel connected to its infrastructure. One always imagines that it’s the power brokers, the wealthy and the celebrities who own the city, but they’re merely interlopers among the multitudes who make up the pulse of the city and thus breathe life into it. And while we may not be the perfect melting pot that was once used to describe us, the city sure is a beautiful mix of all races, ethnicities, religions, languages and beliefs. There are no gated communities here, for even those who live in secure high-rise apartments with doormen and security cameras need to step out into the foaming, churning ocean of ordinary citizenry. The keys to the city have been given to everyone, and we all collectively make up its sole.
Canon 5D, 50mm lens, f/2.8, 1/100 sec, ISO 250, processed in Lightroom and Photoshop
Returning to the concept of repeating patterns, I was drawn to this scene by the repetition of shapes made by the windows and awnings and their diagonal shadows. Additionally, the horizontal lines of the clapboards help create the grid inherent in this photograph, while its asymmetry skews the weight to one side.
I took this photo in Ocean Grove, New Jersey – a quaint little seaside town on the Jersey shore.
Canon 5D Mark II, 24- 105mm lens @ 67mm, f/22, 1/50 sec, ISO 100
A windjammer moored in a New England harbor on a foggy morning offered a beautiful and peaceful setting to take photographs. I’ve always thought that there’s no such thing as bad weather in New England – rain, fog, grey skies and snow seem to live in harmony with the terrain, and are as welcome as a beautiful sunny day. This was not a day for sailing, and so this full-rigged four masted boat rested quietly in its moorings, shrouded in fog, while I took its portrait. A lone seagull flew into view, completing the composition as well as the mood.
Canon 5D, 50mm lens, f/5.0, 1/320 sec, ISO 100, processed in Lightroom and Photoshop
On an ancient street along the River Arno in Florence, there was this lush pool of light streaming through an archway. The golden shape it created against the balcony became the focal point of this photograph. I waited as the shadows moved across the wall, shooting several combinations of light and composition. This one best expresses my feelings as I made my way to the Ponte Vecchio.
Canon 5D, 24-105mm lens @ 45mm, f/4, 1/80 sec, ISO 100
The mesmerizing spiral virtually glows in the sepia tone light that rakes across its ridges. There seems to be movement in this still image – a centripetal force that spins this shell outward, as the galaxies of the universe force their stars ever further from the center.
The knowledge that a mollusk created this habitat over the course of a lifetime gives me pause. I hope I’ve done him justice.
Mamiya 645 AFII, Leaf Aptus 75 digital, 120mm lens, f/20 @ 1/50 sec, ISO 50, processed in Lightroom and Photoshop
Red is the highest arc of the rainbow, and the first color you lose sight of at twilight.
4×5 Ektachrome, 240mm lens, f/16 @ 1/125 sec, ISO 64
A burst of evening sunlight is focused on the wall behind a simple wrought iron chair, silhouetting its curved patterns before dropping off to the somber hughes of shade. The chair itself casts its own curly shadows, adding to the complex interaction of curves and lines.
An empty chair always seems to make me want to ask, “Who isn’t here?”
Canon 5D Mark II, 24-105mm lens @ 105mm, f/4 @ 1/800 sec, ISO 100, processed in Lightroom and Photoshop
This highly saturated neon scene was of course worked heavily in post production. I wanted to bring a retro feel to the movie theater using a garish color palette and a low angle viewpoint. To me it’s reminiscent of some horror movies from the 1950s.
My Canon s100 worked very well in this low light situation, and continues to offer many opportunities to capture images in difficult situations. But more importantly, it affords me the comfort to bring a camera wherever I go and to shoot in many more situations.
Canon PowerShot S100, f/2 @ 1/2 sec. ISO 1600, 5.2 mm, processed in Lightroom and Photoshop
I set out to make a languid image of a bouquet of flowers, and so I chose to hand hold my camera at a long exposure time in order to blur the photo with movement. Not a lot of movement – just enough to take the edge off. I then converted the image to black and white with a dual tint added in the processing, and made sure the grain was prominent.
I think my original intent was honored here, in that the photo conveys the same romantic feeling to the many people I’ve shown it to.
Canon 5D Mark II, 24-105mm lens @ 65mm, f/20, 10 sec, ISO 100, available light, processed in Lightroom and Photoshop
To enhance the threatening mood in this photograph, I used a hard light to bring out the texture of the steel while adding ominous shadows to the blades. The dissonant color palette adds to the unsettling feeling that I was going for. The use of a shallow depth of field focuses the attention on one saw blade while giving a sense of expanded dimension to the composition.
Mamiya 645 AFII, Leaf Aptus 75 digital back, 120mm lens, f/4, 1/50 sec, ISO 50, tungsten lighting, processed in Lightroom and Photoshop
“… Me? I’m not off for anywhere at all.
Sometimes I wander out of beaten ways
Half looking for the orchid Calypso.”
-Robert Frost
Canon PowerShot S100, f/5.9 @ 1/160 sec. ISO 800, 26 mm lens, processed in Lightroom and Photoshop
This is all about color and texture. I can almost feel the aged leather and yellow pages of these books. Their haphazard arrangement makes me believe this is an old forgotten book store in the corner of nowhere, striving to keep alive the memory of long abandoned manuscripts.
Is there a gem among them? A rare out of print masterpiece, or a book signed by a famous author?
Canon PowerShot S100, f/2 @ 1/30 sec. ISO 160, 5.2mm lens, processed in Lightroom and Photoshop
The juxtaposition of graffiti against the backdrop of doric columns creates a playful contrast between the common and the noble, while presenting a visually interesting mixture of patterns and designs. The lofty view and vertical elements of one does little to inhibit the impact and importance of the other. My eye is trained on the graffiti as if it were conveying a special meaning afforded the structure above.
I took this photograph with my new Canon S100 point-and-shoot camera, which I decided to buy since I can’t always walk around with my 5D Mark II with its bulky zoom lens. The location is at the Canal Street pedestrian entrance to the Manhattan Bridge.
Canon PowerShot S100, f/4 @ 1/160 sec. ISO 80, 5.2mm lens, processed in Lightroom and Photoshop
I shot these Burak Uyan heels for Vogue magazine’s website. The high key lighting brings out the textures of the shoe, which complements the dynamic composition.
Mamiya RZ67, Leaf Aptus 75 digital back, 65mm lens, f16, 1/125 sec, ISO 50
It’s all about the colors, textures and composition. I especially like the bit of light on the roofing shingles and the blue tones it creates.
Canon 5D Mark II, 24-105mm lens @ 105mm, f/4, 1/40 sec, ISO 100, developed in Adobe Lightroom 3 with Cuba Green Tint Preset
Sunlight streaming through a window above the man illuminated his outline and provided backlight for the orchid, making it seem to glow within a darkened room. In fact, the room was not very dark – it’s just that the extreme contrast level between the subjects lit by the sunlight and the ambient room light meant that when I exposed for the highlights the rest of the image naturally fell into darkness. Although one might accuse me of underexposing or of not providing enough fill light, or even of ignoring the rules of the Zone System, this image reflects my intention as I took the picture.
Canon 5D Mark II, 24-105mm lens @ 105mm, f/4, 1/320 sec, ISO 100
The texture and colors of this wisteria caught my eye while visiting Washington Irving’s home in Sleepy Hollow. The vines were growing on a shaded wall, and the softness of the light complemented the muted tones. I purposely underexposed the photograph to maintain the mysterious mood, which in my mind paralleled the themes of Irving’s writings.
Canon 5D Mark II, 24-105mm lens @ 47mm, f/5, 1/40 sec, ISO 100
This is the first photograph of my new series on sea shells. I plan to photograph several specimens in unusual settings, and sometimes as simple portraits. Stay tuned for more.
Mamiya 645 AFII, Leaf Aptus 75 digital back, 120mm lens, f/4, 2 sec, ISO 50, available light
A sudden squall tore this boat from its moorings in Santa Barbara, California, driving it onto the shore where even high tide couldn’t free it from its ultimate demise.
I worked this photograph extensively in Photoshop, at first desaturating most of the image and then selectively adding back its original colors. I altered the brightness to reflect the somberness of the situation, and cropped out details that placed the boat near the shore, preferring to see it totally surrounded by water.
Canon 5D Mark II, 100mm lens, f/5, 1/1600 sec, ISO 100