Photography: Back To Film

WaitingYellow LilyWalking down the hillWaiting to be fedTwo Pink LiliesStark Morning
Split beach & waterSmiling FlowersSan Francisco houseSailing BoatRock and BayRed gladioli
Purple HeadPink RosePink LilyPensiveOpen your armsMum
Look outLanternsLagunaJapantown SFGolden Gate under fogFoxgloves
Back To Film, a set on Flickr.

It had been a while since I picked up the old Canon AE-1 and took it out for a stroll, mainly due to the fact that I can't always afford to develop film nowadays, and I probably won't again for a while after this... This is a collection of photos taken last year and over the last few days, taken from three rolls of film.

Grainy, overexposed, direct sunlight, colourful, portraits, candid shots, water, flowers, people, San Francisco, Lake Tahoe... For some reason I ended up with a few images that are split, containing half of the first frame and half of the second. Although not purposely, I know exactly what I did to make this happen, and they actually ended up looking pretty cool, so I may try it again sometime.  The best surprise was the picture of Charlie and Deej, taken last year when Thought Forms were on tour with Portishead - I had totally forgotten I had taken it!


Photography: Store Fronts

The New JasonTaj GrocerySteeplechaseSoul II SoulRubysQueens of Sheba
PrimorPopeyesPawn ShopNathan'sNathansMexican Restaurant
Live PoultryLions DenLiberty Department StoresLegacy VideoJewelryJesus saves Brooklyn
Jackson HewittHigh TimesHappy DaysGaudy GrillFreedom DeliFish-Meat
Store Fronts, a set on Flickr.
I started this project earlier this year when I realised that I kept taking photos of random storefronts in Brooklyn and Manhattan. I started putting all the photos together and realised it could be quite a cool collection... I've been on a bit of a photography lag lately, not really feeling inspired, or too tired to go and find something to spike my interest. I woke up way too early this morning and just decided to go out for a walk, and found some interesting places.
This is just a small collection - I'm sure I'll be adding a lot more to it over the next few months.

Photography: Bushwick 2009-2012

Roof ViewJefferson_StBiker_BushwickTroutman_Bushwick_EtchingsStatementDesolate
BallparkCommunity gardenPost BlizzardBeauty for SadnessHappinessFrom Above
My Herb GardenDefaced WallBushwick RoadYou Must UniteMichelle and the TagsEvergreen & Troutman
Evergreen & FlushingDown BelowDeserted EvergreenClothes on a wireBlue & GreyPure Blue Sky

Bushwick, a set on Flickr.

After posting the Harlem collection the other day, and after a comment from a friend about how I should build up the collection over time, I started thinking about all of the photos I have taken of my current neighbourhood, Bushwick, over the past four years I have lived here. I started really getting into photography back in 2009, mainly because the sheer amount of street art in my neighbourhood kept catching my eye, and I felt the need to start capturing it on camera.
Bushwick is a strange neighbourhood, part family, part warehouses. There are some very old townhouses and a lot of abandoned buildings, a lot of churches and a lot of noise, unless you live down one of the quieter streets. Over the past 4 years I have seen the area change rapidly, new bars, new restaurants, more organic supermarkets, new coffee shops, new people moving in, but it has still retained the same atmosphere and rents (hopefully, but I hear that a new music venue is going to be opening in Bushwick soon, so I'm sure that will effect rents soon enough).
I know it's not the safest, or the cleanest, or the prettiest neighbourhood in NYC, but it works for me. I don't see myself moving away from here, not anytime soon in any case.

These photos were taken over the past 3 years with different cameras, both digital and film (Canon AE-1 (one from 1980 and one from 1978; Canon Rebel DSLR; Holga). I know that I have posted some of these in other collections before, but feel like they belong in this one too.

Bushwick on Wikipedia

Photography: Through My Eyes - Jan & Feb 2012

BallerinaAbandonedAbandoned Lutheran schoolAnti-glamourBearBlue skies
Bushwick abandoned churchBushwick sunsetBushwick theatre buildingBushwick warehousesCaringchild dragon
china townchurch wallsConfettiDragonExotic fruitFace
Face on a postFace on a wallFlowersGarden muralGloomyHanging shoes

Through My Eyes - 1, a set on Flickr.

Taking a little break from novel writing today and compiling some random shots I have taken over the past few weeks. I found myself with a lot of photos that don't really fit into any category (area, place, show etc), but are all images of something that caught my eye when I was walking around.
I feel so lucky to live in a place where there is always something to take a photo of, however fleeting or permanent it may be...

Bushwick Ave to Broadway

FreedomBushwick Ave HousesThe Creepy PlaceAutumn TreesBare BranchesBushwick School Abandoned HouseStreet ViewOld ChurchSteeple in ProgressPillarsDo Not Enter One side of the streetOther side of the streetColourWe Buy HousesMini AvenueBuy Me Broadway Garden MuralAbandoned BoatBroadway Near GatesBroadway BuildingBroadway SidewalkBooks

Bushwick Ave to Broadway, a set on Flickr.

From nothing for weeks to three sets in three days... I suppose I've been more inspired these past few days, taking my camera out every time I go for a walk or run some errands. I love walking down Bushwick Avenue to the Post Office at Gates Ave and Broadway. The street is lined with beautiful old buildings, some well kept, others in various stages of dilapidation. There are many different churches along the way, often facing each other on opposite sides of the street. And then there is the bustle of the walk back along Broadway, under the elevated subway tracks: fried chicken, 99 cent shops, launderettes, delis, African supermarkets, dust, noise, colours and different languages.
Lastly, a photo of the house that I have always wanted to own, from the moment I moved to Bushwick. It's so intriguing...

Bushwick To Ridgewood Via Myrtle Ave

Bushwick ViewBatman Superman PeaceStopSuper PeaceIglesiaBushwick Towards Ridgewood WindowsAffordable Housing MuralKnow Your RightsFreedom DeliPopeyesJust Another Pillar Cellphone ShopSweet tasty foodFurniture and MuralJesus saves BrooklynLive PoultryChairs WantedDominican BakeryMexican RestaurantStreet EdgeCrossroadsEntering Ridgewood

Bushwick To Ridgewood, a set on Flickr.

It was a beautiful, warm day today, and there was no way I could sleep through it, even if I didn't get to sleep until 5am last night. I had a few errands to run so I took my camera out and took photos all along Myrtle Avenue, going through Bushwick to Ridgewood, where the nearest branch of my bank is. Today was a colour day, I needed to capture the colours of the murals, the shop awnings, the gaudiness of the Christmas decorations and the skyline.
This is my neighbourhood... I love it. I feel at home here, and always have done, ever since I moved here from Manhattan over 4 years ago...

From the trash on the street to the Wanted posters on the signposts to the street art to the colourful cheap shops to the crazy traffic to the mix of Dominican/Puerto Rican/Mexican/Indian/Polish/Ukranian food, to the elevated subways and the gorgeous skylines, I love this place.

Manhattan views, Autumn 2011

I took these on Saturday - it was a beautiful Autumn day and I found myself on the Williamsburg waterfront, with my camera. I have always loved that old 1930's black and white colour, a little overexposed, a little stark, and always try to reproduce it somehow. I don't know if it actually worked, but I like these.




Bushwick Street art - one set of many...

IMG_4185IMG_4054IMG_4056IMG_4059IMG_4060IMG_4061 IMG_4062IMG_4063IMG_4064IMG_4065IMG_4066IMG_4067 IMG_4068IMG_4069IMG_4070IMG_4072IMG_4073IMG_4074 IMG_4075IMG_4076IMG_4077IMG_4078IMG_4079IMG_4080

Just because I haven't had a chance to write this week, and because I won't until later this week...

Some pictures I took during one of my many early Saturday morning wanders around Bushwick.