Fuji in the Distillery

A little digression that I discuss in more depth: matthewpiers.com/B/131218

#534, Grey

On the road again.

#538, Construction

I took this as I hurried to work last Monday, and I used my Nikon F100 film SLR.

On the way home I saw that the basic arrangement was the same, and took out my digital P&S camera for a reshoot. Its battery was flat, and I don't carry a spare with me.

So despite the constant predictions of its demise, I can safely say that film isn't dead – but batteries often are.

New Colour (Portra 400)

I got a roll of a brand-new 35mm colour film when I was in New York back in October `10, and couldn't wait to get my hands on it for my medium format camera. Naturally, the week that it was first available found Toronto in a greyed-out snowy mood.

Fortunately for me, there's always construction sites.

I have now standardized on Ektar 100 in 135, Portra 400 in 120, and XP2 in both formats. Once the new Portra is out for 135 format I'll always keep a roll or two on-hand, but it won't be replacing Ektar as my general small-format colour film. The rare exception might be if I use both formats for a major project, but that's something that would take a lot of thinking.

There are solid reasons for using different film in different formats. My rangefinder is typically used at f/1.5-f/8, so iso100 film helps me keep the shutter speeds in check. My 135 cameras both have very accurate meters, giving me a lot of control over Ektar which changes its character when it's over-exposed. In contrast my medium format camera typically lives between f/11 and f/32, so even with a tripod the faster iso400 films are an advantage. Portra is also very forgiving with over-exposure, which makes a huge difference when I can only work in whole stops on a meterless camera. It still doesn't quite have the magic that the fickle Ektar does for me, but having negatives five times the size of 35mm supplies quite a bit of its own magic, and the colour of this latest Portra is beautiful. I can depend on it for great results from a single exposure in a way that I can't with Ektar or chromes.

And in case anyone wonders why I'm going into such detail here, this is a companion post to my Portra 400 article on Thews' Reviews.

#892, Grand Central

Another obligatory photo, there was a crowd with cameras at the edge of the stairs that gets this view. Not a place to linger.

#818, Long Island

Industry on the East river and an empty barge.

#885, Park Avenue

If there was going to be a single photo that I'd title 'New York', this could be it. Taken somewhere along Park, I was going for a walk to see an intersection that's mentioned in a song I like. Nothing special - just New York.

#845, 30E75

The Whitney, which was closed on the day that I went to see it. It was a tuesday.

I'll get to it next time.

#805, Rockefeller (Monochrome)

Back to black and white for a bit.

#855, Blackbird

A detail from the tail section of an SR-71 'Blackbird' reconnaissance plane, designed to fly very quickly very high over sovereign nations. This aircraft is currently on display at the Intrepid Air and Space Museum, which is an aircraft carrier docked on the Hudson River.

The idea of "American Exceptionalism" has been appearing in the American political discourse a lot recently - perversely, that there isn't enough of it - which I just don't understand. But it's refreshing to hear so many syllables in just two words, especially since the word 'jingoism' seems like such a synonym these days.

#859, Black on Grey

This untitled painting by Mark Rothko is currently on display at MoMA.

It's an unusual work for Rothko, being minimalist and monochrome in a way that he rarely is. I had never seen it before, but had no doubt who the artist was - even though it has a white border.

I love the radiance of this photo. It makes it look the way I feel.

Some of the modern artists don't do it for me - from opposite extremes, I've never been moved by a Pollock or Warhol. Cy Twombly and Jasper Johns impress me, On Kawara and Piet Mondrian fascinate me; the audacity and scale of Barnett Newman is an inspiration. There's plenty of art that makes me smile, or think, or stop and look. But nothing else makes me stand rapt the way Rothko's colour field paintings do.

#837, Tear

I'm not one to wind on a couple of frames before I start taking photos 'for real' – not that it makes much difference.

#856, Subterranean Twenty-Third Street

I took the subway four times in New York, all on the last full day of our visit. Penny bought me a Mighty Wallet with the subway map on it, and it was tremendously helpful. If/when I do go back to NYC, being able to get around expands my options tremendously.

I don't usually mention my site tracker, but this evening I noticed it was at an even 37,000. Not bad for six years' work.

(`thewsreviews, on the other hand, is past 84,500 visitors in less than three years.)

#869, Metropolis

One of the truths of photography is that it's impossible to get the whole thing. So when I had the opportunity to capture the entire Metropolis, I couldn't just walk by.

I'm starting to think about where to go next spring, and given the way New York City dominates the East Coast bus routes, it's going to be difficult to not go back. But if and when I do return, one of the biggest challenges will be narrowing my scope down to some sort of workable project(s).

And next time, I'll do it in colour.

Reconstruction - Park Place

Park Place, between Church and West Broadway, location of the Park51 project.

Reconstruction - West Broadway

Approaching the northern edge of the World Trade Center site, 3 November 2010.

Reconstruction - Church St

The World Trade Center site, east side, 3 November 2010.

solomon r guggenheim

Visiting the Guggenheim Museum wasn't that high on my list, but the logistics worked out well with some of my other plans. It's an impressive enough building, but the collection inside didn't really do it for me.

#882, Island By Boat

Manhattan really isn't very big - certainly not when it's seen edge-on.

#870, Exclusive

Not 'exclusive' as in 'nobody else sells it,' but exclusive in the sense of 'you're better than everyone who doesn't have one.'

I don't want one… but if I can think of a reason to get the upcoming tablet from RIM, I could be persuaded. I'm just not sure why the US will be getting it before Canada – that just seems wrong.