Tuesday, November 29, 2005
Lomo Suburbia
November 6, 2005 - This is the very northern end of Johnson Avenue on the north side of town. It's as big and busy as a residential road gets in this town. It doesn't go anywhere, it just loops around to other roads, comprising what my high school track/cross-country teams called the "Johnson loop". I ride this loop sometimes to extend my rides, and I must say it is easily the most boring portion of any ride I've ever done. The words "soul-sucking suburban wasteland" comes to mind.
November 10, 2005 - This is Cambridge Place, the street I grew up on. I stopped to shoot because the light was so pleasant. The entire street is not a half mile long. This is looking south towards the southern end.
Then I turned around and shot north:
This is the block I grew up on, although you can't see my old house in this shot. If you enlarge it, on the right hand side of the road you can see the sun reflecting off a house. That was our neighbor, our house was the next one down. The fisheye makes it look farther away than it is.
On this stretch of road:
- In Autumn, we raked leaves and piled them on the roadside. Before they got sucked up in trucks, we would play in the leaves, wade through the leaves, take running jumps into the pile of leaves.
- In Winter, snow plows would push snow into huge piles along the side of the road (well, huge for a kid), and after shoveling snow from the driveway, we would play and dig tunnels through the piles until we could feel our socks getting wet. Then we would go into the warmth of the house, leaving our boots and gloves on a mat to let the snow melt off and dry.
They got the mothers worked into a panic
Sledding down hills into oncoming traffic
And parents layered clothes until the children couldn't move
And left them outside until their noses were blue
And I got left there, too
- I Was a Kaleidoscope (Death Cab for Cutie)
- In Summer, we had this game where some kids would ride back and forth along the street, while others standing along the sides would try to skip a frisbee between the wheels of the moving bikes. If the person got hit with a frisbee, too bad. I don't think there was any point to the game.
- In Spring, Daylight Savings brought expansive evenings with glorious twilight sunsets, streetlamps turning on, and catching fireflies with our bare hands.
current sounds (last 10 songs shuffled on iTunes):
1. Dead End Street (live) (The Kinks)
2. Young Americans (David Bowie)
3. Moonchild (Cibo Matto)
4. Stutter Steps (764-HERO)
5. Romance (Ryuichi Sakamoto)
6. The Rhythm Method (drum solo) (Rush)
7. #1 Must Have (Sleater-Kinney)
8. Nothing As It Seems (Pearl Jam)
9. Goodbye Cruel World (live) (Pink Floyd)
10. Low Light (Peter Gabriel)
Sunday, November 27, 2005
Hudson River Recreation Area - November 8, 2005
Actually, I don't know if this area has a name, it's after my time.
During a ride, I paused to squeeze this shot off (click to enlarge):
Then looking through my photo archives, I found this similar shot, taken on August 25, 1998:
This was taken when they were still developing it, taken from higher up on the cliffs, probably with a telephoto zoom lens. I have no memory what was there before, but in 1998, I had long no longer considered myself a resident of these parts.
Interesting, huh? I know you want to see that area now closer up.
Voila! This was shot close to where that white van is in the black and white. The previous shots were taken from up those cliffs. I was trying to shoot the Palisades with Autumn colors.
Now this shot was taken near where the previous shot was taken (close to that speck of dust on the black and white). Basically, I turned around, climbed over a wall and down some rocks (with cycling shoes, mind you), and held Bebe right close to the water and shot.
This last shot was taken from the far corner of that piece of land, again trying to shoot Autumn colors on the Palisades:
current sounds:
1. Pastichio Medley (Smashing Pumpkins)
2. Exaltation (Matisyahu) - Hasidic dub reggae, really good.
3. Toco Band (Rising Stars Steel Band)
4. How Could I Ever Know ("Secret Garden")
5. The Little Things You Do Together ("Company" - Sondheim)
6. Gone Hollywood (Supertramp)
7. State of Love and Trust (Pearl Jam)
8. Mediocrity Rules (Le Tigre)
9. Another Satellite (XTC)
10. Time Capsule Medley (Casiopea)
During a ride, I paused to squeeze this shot off (click to enlarge):
Then looking through my photo archives, I found this similar shot, taken on August 25, 1998:
This was taken when they were still developing it, taken from higher up on the cliffs, probably with a telephoto zoom lens. I have no memory what was there before, but in 1998, I had long no longer considered myself a resident of these parts.
Interesting, huh? I know you want to see that area now closer up.
Voila! This was shot close to where that white van is in the black and white. The previous shots were taken from up those cliffs. I was trying to shoot the Palisades with Autumn colors.
Now this shot was taken near where the previous shot was taken (close to that speck of dust on the black and white). Basically, I turned around, climbed over a wall and down some rocks (with cycling shoes, mind you), and held Bebe right close to the water and shot.
This last shot was taken from the far corner of that piece of land, again trying to shoot Autumn colors on the Palisades:
current sounds:
1. Pastichio Medley (Smashing Pumpkins)
2. Exaltation (Matisyahu) - Hasidic dub reggae, really good.
3. Toco Band (Rising Stars Steel Band)
4. How Could I Ever Know ("Secret Garden")
5. The Little Things You Do Together ("Company" - Sondheim)
6. Gone Hollywood (Supertramp)
7. State of Love and Trust (Pearl Jam)
8. Mediocrity Rules (Le Tigre)
9. Another Satellite (XTC)
10. Time Capsule Medley (Casiopea)
Saturday, November 26, 2005
not a ride lomo, but then...
October 24, 2005 - Self-portrait with Takamine #1. Yes, I have two Takamine's. Oy. This one I bought for $500 a long time ago, and it sounds better now than when I got it, so I don't want to let it go. My other Takamine I got for $800 used, and it has a very mellow sound. No one is impressed by how it sounds upon hearing it, but I've grown to love it.
Obligatory ride shots, consecutive frames from November 6:
Frame 3
Frame 4 - there were a lot of riders out that day because it was Sunday and relatively warm. I was trying to get a lomo of other riders, but even when they are close, Bebe makes them tiny.
current sounds:
1. Sunburned (Versus)
2. Two Step (Dave Matthews Band) - I don't care what people say, their first two albums were excellent.
3. Woman On the Bass (Neal and Massy Trinidad All-Stars) - steel orchestra
4. Maybe You've Been Brainwashed Too (New Radicals)
5. Hammer To Fall (Queen)
6. Y (Spitz)
7. Mars, the Bringer of War (Holst)
8. Blu-Bop (Bela Fleck & the Flecktones)
9. American Without Tears (Twilight Version) (Elvis Costello & the Attractions)
10. Helpless (live) (Neil Young)
Labels:
cycle shooting,
my instruments,
New Jersey,
parents house,
self-portrait
Friday, November 25, 2005
Autumn Colours Lomo Dump
So I've learned my lesson to try to distinguish between subject matter, and know when what I keep shooting is not really different or no improvement on what I've already shot. No more taking Bebe on my default ride to shoot Autumn colors. Once the leaves all fall, maybe I can take Bebe for a different look of the ride, and then only once.
Trees, trees, trees, all from the same ride on November 1st (as always, click to enlarge):
Over the shoulder shot from the same November 1st ride. Just three weeks ago and it looks so warm then! This was a risky shot because it's a fast downhill leading to the Hudson River Boat Basin. What's tricky is that even after taking the shot, it's still dangerous because I still have to hold the camera because it would be more dangerous to put it away, ergo only one hand on a brake. But! When I start down the hill, I don't...no, there's no mitigating it, it's flat out dangerous. Don't try it unless you're trying to prove you're as stupid as me. And wear a helmet unless you're trying to prove you're as stupid as me.
current sounds:
1. Bread and Wine (Peter Gabriel)
2. Symphony No. 40, Mvmt. I (Molto allegro) (Mozart)
3. Houses In Motion (live) (Talking Heads)
4. The Rhythm Method (drum solo) (Rush)
5. The Devil's Workday (Modest Mouse)
6. Pandora's Box (Throwing Muses)
7. Funkin' For Fun (Parliament)
8. Oh, To Be In Love (Kate Bush)
9. Feed the Tree (remix) (Belly)
10. Dirty Day (U2)
Trees, trees, trees, all from the same ride on November 1st (as always, click to enlarge):
Over the shoulder shot from the same November 1st ride. Just three weeks ago and it looks so warm then! This was a risky shot because it's a fast downhill leading to the Hudson River Boat Basin. What's tricky is that even after taking the shot, it's still dangerous because I still have to hold the camera because it would be more dangerous to put it away, ergo only one hand on a brake. But! When I start down the hill, I don't...no, there's no mitigating it, it's flat out dangerous. Don't try it unless you're trying to prove you're as stupid as me. And wear a helmet unless you're trying to prove you're as stupid as me.
current sounds:
1. Bread and Wine (Peter Gabriel)
2. Symphony No. 40, Mvmt. I (Molto allegro) (Mozart)
3. Houses In Motion (live) (Talking Heads)
4. The Rhythm Method (drum solo) (Rush)
5. The Devil's Workday (Modest Mouse)
6. Pandora's Box (Throwing Muses)
7. Funkin' For Fun (Parliament)
8. Oh, To Be In Love (Kate Bush)
9. Feed the Tree (remix) (Belly)
10. Dirty Day (U2)
Thursday, November 24, 2005
Shots from November 10
I had to get photos for a new Taiwanese passport several weeks ago. I rode my bike since that's been my main form of transportation for so long, but this is the first Winter I'm riding into. Don't know how long it will last. That day was the first getting cold day, so it was sort of a test. It was still OK that day, but I had too many layers and was sweating uncomfortably by the time I got back.
Suburbia:
Castle Drive, just down the road from my parents' house.
New Jersey being so bike-unfriendly, I use the backroads to get to Fort Lee. This really isn't a Dead End, the road goes through. Remember, this is New Jersey. When I drive through here with other people in the car, I say, "aw, nuts! it's a dead end" and then just drive through. Even if we've been through there a hundred times. Don't ask about the shopping cart. Remember, this is New Jersey.
Crossing the highway approach to the George Washington Bridge.
The passport photos took 10 minutes to process, so I stepped out for some light shooting:
That was supposed to be a cold day. Today was the first day that I deemed too cold to go on my 20 mile default ride. Artic blast coming in over the next few days. I might not be able to do that ride again until Saturday, when temps get back into the 40s.
current sounds:
1. Rastaman Chant (The Wailers)
2. Now (Edie Brickell & New Bohemians)
3. Tali Lama (Victor Wooten)
4. Raining (Skip Holiday)
5. Line Up (Elastica)
6. Worms and Angels (Echobelly)
7. Pompeii (Sleater-Kinney)
8. Sabbath Prayer ("Fiddler On the Roof")
9. Vera (Pink Floyd)
10. Tripping Billies (Dave Matthews Band)
Suburbia:
Castle Drive, just down the road from my parents' house.
New Jersey being so bike-unfriendly, I use the backroads to get to Fort Lee. This really isn't a Dead End, the road goes through. Remember, this is New Jersey. When I drive through here with other people in the car, I say, "aw, nuts! it's a dead end" and then just drive through. Even if we've been through there a hundred times. Don't ask about the shopping cart. Remember, this is New Jersey.
Crossing the highway approach to the George Washington Bridge.
The passport photos took 10 minutes to process, so I stepped out for some light shooting:
That was supposed to be a cold day. Today was the first day that I deemed too cold to go on my 20 mile default ride. Artic blast coming in over the next few days. I might not be able to do that ride again until Saturday, when temps get back into the 40s.
current sounds:
1. Rastaman Chant (The Wailers)
2. Now (Edie Brickell & New Bohemians)
3. Tali Lama (Victor Wooten)
4. Raining (Skip Holiday)
5. Line Up (Elastica)
6. Worms and Angels (Echobelly)
7. Pompeii (Sleater-Kinney)
8. Sabbath Prayer ("Fiddler On the Roof")
9. Vera (Pink Floyd)
10. Tripping Billies (Dave Matthews Band)
Wednesday, November 23, 2005
the beauty of dying
Sorry, but I just have a huge backlog of ride photos:
That same old S-curve I've already posted 4 or 5 times. Needless to say, my ride doesn't look like this anymore. Leaves have been falling, folks have been raking and landscapers blowing, and piles of leaves have been growing on the curbsides of these suburban towns. Like this-ish:
Lydecker St., Englewood, NJ
I really do think I overdid it on the ride photos. There's only so much one should shoot of the same thing, unless it's a project. The problem with Autumn colors is you want to keep shooting because every moment is a gorgeous moment, and you keep wanting to capture it. But I'm finding it's about the experience, not necessarily something that can be captured over and over.
Like, is this lomo:
any real improvement over this lomo:
or vice versa? Aside from one having the George Washington Bridge in it? Different parts of the same ride, shot on consecutive frames. I think not (but I hope you're giving me credit for coming up with cheap excuses to post this backlog of ride photos).
current sounds:
1. Soul Survivor (Rolling Stones)
2. Symphony No. 2, Mvmt. 2 (Allegro molto-meno mosso) (Rachmaninov)
3. Road Movie to Berlin (They Might Be Giants)
4. Take (Throwing Muses)
5. If This Bass Could Only Talk (Stanley Clark)
6. Randy Described Eternity (Built to Spill)
7. Tumbling Dice (Rolling Stones)
8. The Swimmer (Sleater-Kinney)
9. Helicopter (XTC)
10. Portions for Foxes (Rilo Kiley)
That same old S-curve I've already posted 4 or 5 times. Needless to say, my ride doesn't look like this anymore. Leaves have been falling, folks have been raking and landscapers blowing, and piles of leaves have been growing on the curbsides of these suburban towns. Like this-ish:
Lydecker St., Englewood, NJ
I really do think I overdid it on the ride photos. There's only so much one should shoot of the same thing, unless it's a project. The problem with Autumn colors is you want to keep shooting because every moment is a gorgeous moment, and you keep wanting to capture it. But I'm finding it's about the experience, not necessarily something that can be captured over and over.
Like, is this lomo:
any real improvement over this lomo:
or vice versa? Aside from one having the George Washington Bridge in it? Different parts of the same ride, shot on consecutive frames. I think not (but I hope you're giving me credit for coming up with cheap excuses to post this backlog of ride photos).
current sounds:
1. Soul Survivor (Rolling Stones)
2. Symphony No. 2, Mvmt. 2 (Allegro molto-meno mosso) (Rachmaninov)
3. Road Movie to Berlin (They Might Be Giants)
4. Take (Throwing Muses)
5. If This Bass Could Only Talk (Stanley Clark)
6. Randy Described Eternity (Built to Spill)
7. Tumbling Dice (Rolling Stones)
8. The Swimmer (Sleater-Kinney)
9. Helicopter (XTC)
10. Portions for Foxes (Rilo Kiley)
Tuesday, November 22, 2005
Bass for your face, homes.
Spector NS-2000:
Thru-neck body, meaning the neck isn't bolted on, but is made from the same piece of wood as the body for better sustain. "Ergonomically" curved back, incredibly comfortable, but strictly speaking has nothing to do with ergonomics. Passive EMG-HZ pickups, but active electronics. Decent, but I prefer full active pickups and electronics.
Riverhead "Unicorn" headless bass:
I'm sure I can get a better picture of this freaky looking bass. It's called a "Unicorn" for a reason, but someone once refered to it as a "Squid" bass, and I liked that better, so that's what I call it. Semi-thru neck body, meaning it's still not a bolt-on neck, but the wood of the neck is extended and embedded into the body. Active pick-ups and electronics. Japanese made. The bass came with more than a full set of Allen wrenches to perform all the little adjustments required, and as such, must be one of the most poorly designed basses of all time!
I can swear I had a third bass around here someplace. Must've misplaced it.
current sounds (last 10 songs shuffled on iTunes):
1. Sugar Water (Cibo Matto)
2. Unauthorized Autobiography (Unwound)
3. VI. Denn wir haben hie (Ein Deutsches Requiem, Brahms)
4. Learo, You're a Hole (Archers of Loaf)
5. The Funky Avocado (Michael Hedges)
6. Angel (Echobelly)
7. Nothing Without You (Tery Bina) (Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan)
8. Mexican Seafood (Nirvana)
9. Sukiyaki (Sandii)
10. Usnisa Vijana Dharani (Mantras of the Sanskrit)(Imee Ooi)
Thru-neck body, meaning the neck isn't bolted on, but is made from the same piece of wood as the body for better sustain. "Ergonomically" curved back, incredibly comfortable, but strictly speaking has nothing to do with ergonomics. Passive EMG-HZ pickups, but active electronics. Decent, but I prefer full active pickups and electronics.
Riverhead "Unicorn" headless bass:
I'm sure I can get a better picture of this freaky looking bass. It's called a "Unicorn" for a reason, but someone once refered to it as a "Squid" bass, and I liked that better, so that's what I call it. Semi-thru neck body, meaning it's still not a bolt-on neck, but the wood of the neck is extended and embedded into the body. Active pick-ups and electronics. Japanese made. The bass came with more than a full set of Allen wrenches to perform all the little adjustments required, and as such, must be one of the most poorly designed basses of all time!
I can swear I had a third bass around here someplace. Must've misplaced it.
current sounds (last 10 songs shuffled on iTunes):
1. Sugar Water (Cibo Matto)
2. Unauthorized Autobiography (Unwound)
3. VI. Denn wir haben hie (Ein Deutsches Requiem, Brahms)
4. Learo, You're a Hole (Archers of Loaf)
5. The Funky Avocado (Michael Hedges)
6. Angel (Echobelly)
7. Nothing Without You (Tery Bina) (Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan)
8. Mexican Seafood (Nirvana)
9. Sukiyaki (Sandii)
10. Usnisa Vijana Dharani (Mantras of the Sanskrit)(Imee Ooi)
Sunday, November 20, 2005
The Bronx, pt. 2, November 3rd
I discovered the adventures of riding to the Bronx several weeks ago. Yea, that won't be happening again anytime soon.
I can't say there's anything wrong with the Bronx, it's just a long way to go from New Jersey. In fact, I started understanding it when New Yorkers would say to get to the "real" New York, you have to go outside of Manhattan - Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens (not Staten Island, give me a break, it's only New York in name. Geographically and culturally, it's New Jersey).
Unfortunately, I didn't get any lomos of this mythic "real" New York. I don't know what the hell is wrong with me, I need to be shooting a lot more than I do, and varying my shooting as well. I'm still learning, though, and I'm finding the limitations of my subject matter, what I'm seeing, and I should try to remedy that.
I rode to the Bronx to go to Woodlawn Cemetery, and that's mostly what I shot. Although soon after I crossed into the Bronx, riding under some neat, old-time, elevated tracks, I paused for some exciting flooding in the street:
Woodlawn Cemetery is really nice, especially in the Autumn. Unfortunately, I got a flat tire just after I got into the cemetery. I entered in at the far end, so I got the flat literally at the farthest point away in my ride. I wasn't too concerned, though, I thought I was prepared for a flat, so I continued walking through the cemetery and took a few shots:
Flash is necessary with the lomo fisheye in low-light situations. Other people have commented on that in the flickr fisheye group. Also, the flash isn't very powerful, so if you're too far away from a subject, you won't get it, but if you're too close to a subject, all you'll get is the flash. Optimal use of the lomo fisheye is in sunlight.
It's a cemetery, what can I say? Nothing really to comment on.
Anyway, it was after this that I realized I was about as prepared as FEMA for a flat tire. My fatal flaw was to not have my own pump. I had a spare tube. I had a patch kit. But as it turned out, without my own pump, I was screwed. I had no idea where bike shops were in the Bronx, and indeed I saw none as I wandered the streets hoping to find one, or a gas station with air.
I did find a gas station with air, but that's when I really found out I needed my own pump, because it turns out the spare tube I had uses a presta valve. It was the first presta tube that I had gotten for my mountain bike, and I don't even know why I had it since I'd been using Shrader valves since I got the bike. I was wholly unprepared for a flat tire, the only thing I could depend on was a bike shop, and I had no idea where one was.
Fortunately, it didn't turn out to be a complete worst-case scenario. I had all the time in the world, I didn't have a meeting to get to, it wasn't raining, it wasn't freezing. I just had to resign myself that I would have to find my way back to the George Washington Bridge via subway, and then walk my bike across the bridge to my parents' office, where, again fortunately, my mother had taken my car for the day, and it has a bike rack.
It was bad, but it definitely could've been worse. The subway wasn't too bad, although it was approaching rush hour. Well, except for the part when I got on a crowded "A" train, and realized just in time that it was a downtown train instead of uptown. That would have seriously sucked, so thanks to the disgruntled passengers who had to get out of my way. I could have said, "Sorry, so sorry, I'm from New Jersey". Hey, I like that excuse, I think I'll use it at some point. See what kind of sensayuma New Yorkers have. That's "sense of humor" for you non-New Yorkers.
All that, and not a single lomo. Bah!
current sounds:
1. Bizarre Love Triangle (Frente!)
2. Night of the Swallow (Kate Bush)
3. Love is Blindness (U2)
4. Everybody's Got the Right ("Assassins" - Sondheim)
5. Opened (The Breeders)
6. Silverfuck (Smashing Pumpkins)
7. Harlem Congo (Chick Webb)
8. The Greeting Song (Red Hot Chili Peppers)
9. Off With Your Head (Sleater-Kinney)
10. Let Me Love You, Baby (Stevie Ray Vaughan & Double Trouble)
I can't say there's anything wrong with the Bronx, it's just a long way to go from New Jersey. In fact, I started understanding it when New Yorkers would say to get to the "real" New York, you have to go outside of Manhattan - Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens (not Staten Island, give me a break, it's only New York in name. Geographically and culturally, it's New Jersey).
Unfortunately, I didn't get any lomos of this mythic "real" New York. I don't know what the hell is wrong with me, I need to be shooting a lot more than I do, and varying my shooting as well. I'm still learning, though, and I'm finding the limitations of my subject matter, what I'm seeing, and I should try to remedy that.
I rode to the Bronx to go to Woodlawn Cemetery, and that's mostly what I shot. Although soon after I crossed into the Bronx, riding under some neat, old-time, elevated tracks, I paused for some exciting flooding in the street:
Woodlawn Cemetery is really nice, especially in the Autumn. Unfortunately, I got a flat tire just after I got into the cemetery. I entered in at the far end, so I got the flat literally at the farthest point away in my ride. I wasn't too concerned, though, I thought I was prepared for a flat, so I continued walking through the cemetery and took a few shots:
Flash is necessary with the lomo fisheye in low-light situations. Other people have commented on that in the flickr fisheye group. Also, the flash isn't very powerful, so if you're too far away from a subject, you won't get it, but if you're too close to a subject, all you'll get is the flash. Optimal use of the lomo fisheye is in sunlight.
It's a cemetery, what can I say? Nothing really to comment on.
Anyway, it was after this that I realized I was about as prepared as FEMA for a flat tire. My fatal flaw was to not have my own pump. I had a spare tube. I had a patch kit. But as it turned out, without my own pump, I was screwed. I had no idea where bike shops were in the Bronx, and indeed I saw none as I wandered the streets hoping to find one, or a gas station with air.
I did find a gas station with air, but that's when I really found out I needed my own pump, because it turns out the spare tube I had uses a presta valve. It was the first presta tube that I had gotten for my mountain bike, and I don't even know why I had it since I'd been using Shrader valves since I got the bike. I was wholly unprepared for a flat tire, the only thing I could depend on was a bike shop, and I had no idea where one was.
Fortunately, it didn't turn out to be a complete worst-case scenario. I had all the time in the world, I didn't have a meeting to get to, it wasn't raining, it wasn't freezing. I just had to resign myself that I would have to find my way back to the George Washington Bridge via subway, and then walk my bike across the bridge to my parents' office, where, again fortunately, my mother had taken my car for the day, and it has a bike rack.
It was bad, but it definitely could've been worse. The subway wasn't too bad, although it was approaching rush hour. Well, except for the part when I got on a crowded "A" train, and realized just in time that it was a downtown train instead of uptown. That would have seriously sucked, so thanks to the disgruntled passengers who had to get out of my way. I could have said, "Sorry, so sorry, I'm from New Jersey". Hey, I like that excuse, I think I'll use it at some point. See what kind of sensayuma New Yorkers have. That's "sense of humor" for you non-New Yorkers.
All that, and not a single lomo. Bah!
current sounds:
1. Bizarre Love Triangle (Frente!)
2. Night of the Swallow (Kate Bush)
3. Love is Blindness (U2)
4. Everybody's Got the Right ("Assassins" - Sondheim)
5. Opened (The Breeders)
6. Silverfuck (Smashing Pumpkins)
7. Harlem Congo (Chick Webb)
8. The Greeting Song (Red Hot Chili Peppers)
9. Off With Your Head (Sleater-Kinney)
10. Let Me Love You, Baby (Stevie Ray Vaughan & Double Trouble)
Saturday, November 19, 2005
ride *yawn* lomos
Another lomo of me and my shadow from October 28:
That front tire has had it, just look how bald it is. I've been riding on it since San Francisco, where I rode often. My back tire is still pretty fresh, having gotten it last Fall, but then not riding from November of last year to August or September of this year. I'll replace the front tire after this season, if I'm around for next year's season, which I'm hoping not to be.
Another lomo from the same ride:
A 20 mile ride isn't enough to warrant bringing water along. I'm not big on hydrating while exercising. You probably can't see the Sailor Moon stickers on the seat tube. Don't ask.
All I'm adjusting on these negatives are brightness, contrast, and saturation, but some of these lomos seem sharper than either my digital or SLR. Go fig. I'm not a big fan of image manipulation, but I think those parameters are fair game for the lomo fisheye, which isn't supposed to be serious photography with artificial standards of integrity. Lomo is a "look" anyway. Furthermore, those same parameters are adjusted in any print, whether you're printing them yourself or getting it done commercially. Take a negative to five different photoprocessors, and you're going to get some degree of variation.
current sounds:
1. Even in the Quietest Moments (Supertramp)
2. Anata ni Salada (Dreams Come True)
3. Brandenberg Concerto No. 4, Mvmt. 2 (J.S. Bach)
4. Can't Stand Losing You (live) (The Police)
5. Black Girls (Violent Femmes)
6. King of the Kerb (Echobelly)
7. Strange Meadow Lark (Dave Brubeck Quartet)
8. Spaceboy (Smashing Pumpkins)
9. Here Come the Bastards (Primus)
10. Mandolinita (Sukay)
That front tire has had it, just look how bald it is. I've been riding on it since San Francisco, where I rode often. My back tire is still pretty fresh, having gotten it last Fall, but then not riding from November of last year to August or September of this year. I'll replace the front tire after this season, if I'm around for next year's season, which I'm hoping not to be.
Another lomo from the same ride:
A 20 mile ride isn't enough to warrant bringing water along. I'm not big on hydrating while exercising. You probably can't see the Sailor Moon stickers on the seat tube. Don't ask.
All I'm adjusting on these negatives are brightness, contrast, and saturation, but some of these lomos seem sharper than either my digital or SLR. Go fig. I'm not a big fan of image manipulation, but I think those parameters are fair game for the lomo fisheye, which isn't supposed to be serious photography with artificial standards of integrity. Lomo is a "look" anyway. Furthermore, those same parameters are adjusted in any print, whether you're printing them yourself or getting it done commercially. Take a negative to five different photoprocessors, and you're going to get some degree of variation.
current sounds:
1. Even in the Quietest Moments (Supertramp)
2. Anata ni Salada (Dreams Come True)
3. Brandenberg Concerto No. 4, Mvmt. 2 (J.S. Bach)
4. Can't Stand Losing You (live) (The Police)
5. Black Girls (Violent Femmes)
6. King of the Kerb (Echobelly)
7. Strange Meadow Lark (Dave Brubeck Quartet)
8. Spaceboy (Smashing Pumpkins)
9. Here Come the Bastards (Primus)
10. Mandolinita (Sukay)
Friday, November 18, 2005
me and my shadow
November 1, 2005 - Dear Diary, no more taking Bebe with me on rides. I have a backlog of ride shots, it's ridiculous. What makes me think any of these are interesting. Pretty colors, tho'.
Here's some sunset shots from my window:
Through a screen.
Bebe poked out the window.
current sounds (last 10 songs shuffled on iTunes):
1. Cashout (Fugazi)
2. Buri Buri Borderline (Southern All-Stars)
3. KB (Elastica)
4. Aquaboogie (Psychoalphadiscobetabioaquadoloop) (P-Funk)
5. Go For It! (Dreams Come True)
6. Fences of Pales (Shannon Wright)
7. Young Conservatives (The Kinks)
8. I Would Love To (Steve Vai)
9. A Pile of Time (Ryuichi Sakamoto)
10. The Ocean (U2)
Wednesday, November 16, 2005
Bronx, Part I, part 2
Here's another lomo from where that bridge is. I don't know if I was supposed to be there, but there was an access road and nothing to keep people out. I'm not sure it's a place you'd want your children playing.
After that is where I almost got a little lost. Well, I don't think I was ever really lost, I just didn't know where I was or where I was going, but I could always find my way back to Manhattan. But riding along the Harlem River, I ran out of real estate in the Bronx and had no idea where I was. So I got on a bridge catwalk for the Triborough Bridge, thinking it would take me to Manhattan. It looked like the right direction, but I ended up on what I later found out was Randalls Island, and I got on another bridge catwalk, which I suppose was the same bridge, but the catwalk didn't go through.
Triborough Bridge. Three boroughs. Bronx, Manhattan...Queens. I was riding along the bridgeway catwalk thinking it would take me to Manhattan, but after a mile I recognized the main part of the bridge up ahead. You have to cross it to get to JFK. I was headed towards Queens. I panicked ever so mildly realizing how far I had to backtrack, and turned around to head back to Randalls Island and the Bronx:
Toll approach off the Triborough Bridge.
The sun was getting on in the west, and I was getting a little tired and hungry, so I didn't think of shooting much. I backtracked all the way to the Bronx and found a proper crossing to Manhattan, and fortunately, it put me into Manhattan at 125th Street. I still had to cross town and go up 50 blocks, but I was expecting to be at, like, 59th St., so I was happy. My last lomo of the day was crossing the George Washington Bridge as the sun dipped below the horizon:
Camera use is prohibited on the bridge, but whatever. I didn't stop for this, just pulled Bebe out of my pocket, took off the rubber lens cap, pointed and shot.
current sounds:
1. Antenna (Nokko)
2. Sex Sleep Eat Drink Dream (King Crimson)
3. The Brown-Skin Gal (In the Calico Gown) (Duke Ellington)
4. Eternal (Joy Division)
5. Jellicle Songs for Jellicle Cats ("Cats")
6. T.B.C. (Terminal Baggage Claim) (Chick Corea Akoustic Band)
7. Gravel (live) (Ani DiFranco)
8. We Work the Black Seam (live) (Sting)
9. One Song For You (Sleater-Kinney)
10. What a Day that Was (David Byrne)
After that is where I almost got a little lost. Well, I don't think I was ever really lost, I just didn't know where I was or where I was going, but I could always find my way back to Manhattan. But riding along the Harlem River, I ran out of real estate in the Bronx and had no idea where I was. So I got on a bridge catwalk for the Triborough Bridge, thinking it would take me to Manhattan. It looked like the right direction, but I ended up on what I later found out was Randalls Island, and I got on another bridge catwalk, which I suppose was the same bridge, but the catwalk didn't go through.
Triborough Bridge. Three boroughs. Bronx, Manhattan...Queens. I was riding along the bridgeway catwalk thinking it would take me to Manhattan, but after a mile I recognized the main part of the bridge up ahead. You have to cross it to get to JFK. I was headed towards Queens. I panicked ever so mildly realizing how far I had to backtrack, and turned around to head back to Randalls Island and the Bronx:
Toll approach off the Triborough Bridge.
The sun was getting on in the west, and I was getting a little tired and hungry, so I didn't think of shooting much. I backtracked all the way to the Bronx and found a proper crossing to Manhattan, and fortunately, it put me into Manhattan at 125th Street. I still had to cross town and go up 50 blocks, but I was expecting to be at, like, 59th St., so I was happy. My last lomo of the day was crossing the George Washington Bridge as the sun dipped below the horizon:
Camera use is prohibited on the bridge, but whatever. I didn't stop for this, just pulled Bebe out of my pocket, took off the rubber lens cap, pointed and shot.
current sounds:
1. Antenna (Nokko)
2. Sex Sleep Eat Drink Dream (King Crimson)
3. The Brown-Skin Gal (In the Calico Gown) (Duke Ellington)
4. Eternal (Joy Division)
5. Jellicle Songs for Jellicle Cats ("Cats")
6. T.B.C. (Terminal Baggage Claim) (Chick Corea Akoustic Band)
7. Gravel (live) (Ani DiFranco)
8. We Work the Black Seam (live) (Sting)
9. One Song For You (Sleater-Kinney)
10. What a Day that Was (David Byrne)
Tuesday, November 15, 2005
Bronx, Part I, part 1
So a couple weeks ago, after an unseasonable nasty cold spell, tempertures rose and I felt compelled to head out on my bike. Not on "a ride", but just to ride. Imagine that. I ended up crossing the bridge into New York, and then finding myself going where I had never gone before. Instead of turning south after the bridge like I usually do, I ended up crossing town and heading south on the east side of Manhattan. I only got as far as 155th Street (from 178th) when a bridgeway looked too inviting to pass up:
Safe rider that I am, I was on the sidewalk for the first time on that road. You can see a bike rider in the shot cruising down the middle of the road. This bridgeway ended up not only leading me to a bridge that crossed the Harlem River into the Bronx, but the quickest way to Yankee Stadium:
You know, I've never been to either Yankee Stadium or Shea Stadium. I've only passed them both in a car since driving to JFK airport from New Jersey will take you past both. This is the closest I've ever been to Yankee Stadium. I'm a Mets fan, but I live in a Yankee stronghold in New Jersey. I had friends in grade school who would have Yankees over for dinner back in the 70s. Still, living in the New York area, I really should avail myself of the opportunity to say that I've been to Yankee Stadium. ...And being a Mets fan, I have no excuse for never having been to Shea Stadium, except that they don't play so good these days.
I hadn't planned on ending up in the Bronx, so to keep from getting lost, I rode along and as close to the Harlem River as possible. This way I could keep track of all the bridges leading back to Manhattan.
Over the shoulder shot in the Bronx.
I don't think this is a named bridge, it's for subway lines. You can't miss it driving down the east side of Manhattan on the Harlem River Drive (or the FDR Drive, I don't know which it is at this point), and I've seen it countless times. Never from the Bronx side, though.
current sounds:
1. School Night (Ani DiFranco)
2. Mother of Violence (Peter Gabriel)
3. I'll See You in My Dreams (Django Reinhardt)
4. Run (Supergrass)
5. So Sad About Us (The Breeders)
6. Hang Down Your Head (Tom Waits)
7. Blue Sphere (Thelonius Monk)
8. Spring (Kristin Hersh)
9. Thinka 'Bout It (Paris)
10. Two of Us (The Beatles)
Safe rider that I am, I was on the sidewalk for the first time on that road. You can see a bike rider in the shot cruising down the middle of the road. This bridgeway ended up not only leading me to a bridge that crossed the Harlem River into the Bronx, but the quickest way to Yankee Stadium:
You know, I've never been to either Yankee Stadium or Shea Stadium. I've only passed them both in a car since driving to JFK airport from New Jersey will take you past both. This is the closest I've ever been to Yankee Stadium. I'm a Mets fan, but I live in a Yankee stronghold in New Jersey. I had friends in grade school who would have Yankees over for dinner back in the 70s. Still, living in the New York area, I really should avail myself of the opportunity to say that I've been to Yankee Stadium. ...And being a Mets fan, I have no excuse for never having been to Shea Stadium, except that they don't play so good these days.
I hadn't planned on ending up in the Bronx, so to keep from getting lost, I rode along and as close to the Harlem River as possible. This way I could keep track of all the bridges leading back to Manhattan.
Over the shoulder shot in the Bronx.
I don't think this is a named bridge, it's for subway lines. You can't miss it driving down the east side of Manhattan on the Harlem River Drive (or the FDR Drive, I don't know which it is at this point), and I've seen it countless times. Never from the Bronx side, though.
current sounds:
1. School Night (Ani DiFranco)
2. Mother of Violence (Peter Gabriel)
3. I'll See You in My Dreams (Django Reinhardt)
4. Run (Supergrass)
5. So Sad About Us (The Breeders)
6. Hang Down Your Head (Tom Waits)
7. Blue Sphere (Thelonius Monk)
8. Spring (Kristin Hersh)
9. Thinka 'Bout It (Paris)
10. Two of Us (The Beatles)
Monday, November 14, 2005
me, the wrench
My mountain bike was out of service for about a week, but I'm happy to say that it is back in action without a trip to the bike shop, except to buy stuff. I'm pretty proud of myself, I must say, to have a bunch of stuff go wrong with the bike and taking care of them myself one by one. It is not the Way of the Parents, which is when something goes wrong, throw money at someone to make the problem go away. Not only is that how they raised us, but that was how they raised us. Oy.
The problems started a week and a half ago when I got a flat in the Bronx, which is an entry in itself. After I got my bike back home, I pulled an inch and a half nail out of the back tire. I should've figured it wasn't a simple patch, and found out the hard way that the nail went through the inner tube in two places. And after two patches, I found that one of them wasn't holding. Not wanting to go out of my way to confirm that I don't know how to patch a tube properly, I chucked that tube and put in a fresh one. It was time for a new one anyway (I told myself).
Next was adjusting the rear derailleur which got knocked out of whack. Now's a good time to mention the hazards of riding on a gusty Autumn day. You need to be watching the way the wind is blowing leaves, because you don't want dried leaves getting caught in your gears and getting all mucked up. So, for example, when you see leaves being blown at you from the right, you want to stop pedalling so that if a leaf hits your chain, you won't pedal it into your gears. Leaves, they seem so harmless, but no...
I don't think there's a science to adjusting rear derailleurs. In fact, I'm willing to guess that a bike mechanic doesn't do much more than I did, which was randomly fiddle with adjustment knobs until things "seemed" right. The difference being that bike mechanics have done it a lot more times than I have. I'm thinking there isn't a definitive sign which tells a mechanic (or "wrench", as they're called in the biz) that a derailleur is perfectly aligned. No green lights or bells dinging. Just a sense of "alright, that'll do, let's see if that works out".
Using my car's bike rack as a stand to adjust the derailleur.
Then the most frustrating problem which almost got me to bring the bike in was that the rear brake was catching on something and not returning to its neutral position. I fiddled with the cables, springs, and levers and couldn't figure it out. Finally, using my finger to discover exactly where the friction was, it turned out the brake pad was so worn that it had formed a lip. Every time I applied the brake, the lip would go past the edge of the rim and get caught on the rim on the way back. New pad, problem solved. This, by the way, is the work of no genius. Any cyclist who isn't aware that a brake pad needs replacing is probably not someone you want to ride with. Which kinda explains why I always ride alone.
Having my mountain bike out of service for a week was no big deal, since all I rode last week was my 20-mile default on my road bike. My Tour de France face:
Not a very good TdF face, this is totally posing, I was going like 12 miles an hour on flat road. But there are times when I actually catch myself doing a Tour de France face and think I must look real cool, but really I just look real silly.
current sounds:
1. Speakin' o' Bob (National Joy Band)
2. Tommy the Cat (Primus)
3. Namida ga Kirari (Spitz)
4. Distant Early Warning (Rush)
5. Matte Kudasai (King Crimson)
6. Funny ("City of Angels")
7. Over the Falls (Primus)
8. She Caught the Cady and Left Me a Mule to Ride (Taj Mahal)
9. Don't Push Your Foot on the Heartbrake (Kate Bush)
10. Out Like a Light (764-HERO)
The problems started a week and a half ago when I got a flat in the Bronx, which is an entry in itself. After I got my bike back home, I pulled an inch and a half nail out of the back tire. I should've figured it wasn't a simple patch, and found out the hard way that the nail went through the inner tube in two places. And after two patches, I found that one of them wasn't holding. Not wanting to go out of my way to confirm that I don't know how to patch a tube properly, I chucked that tube and put in a fresh one. It was time for a new one anyway (I told myself).
Next was adjusting the rear derailleur which got knocked out of whack. Now's a good time to mention the hazards of riding on a gusty Autumn day. You need to be watching the way the wind is blowing leaves, because you don't want dried leaves getting caught in your gears and getting all mucked up. So, for example, when you see leaves being blown at you from the right, you want to stop pedalling so that if a leaf hits your chain, you won't pedal it into your gears. Leaves, they seem so harmless, but no...
I don't think there's a science to adjusting rear derailleurs. In fact, I'm willing to guess that a bike mechanic doesn't do much more than I did, which was randomly fiddle with adjustment knobs until things "seemed" right. The difference being that bike mechanics have done it a lot more times than I have. I'm thinking there isn't a definitive sign which tells a mechanic (or "wrench", as they're called in the biz) that a derailleur is perfectly aligned. No green lights or bells dinging. Just a sense of "alright, that'll do, let's see if that works out".
Using my car's bike rack as a stand to adjust the derailleur.
Then the most frustrating problem which almost got me to bring the bike in was that the rear brake was catching on something and not returning to its neutral position. I fiddled with the cables, springs, and levers and couldn't figure it out. Finally, using my finger to discover exactly where the friction was, it turned out the brake pad was so worn that it had formed a lip. Every time I applied the brake, the lip would go past the edge of the rim and get caught on the rim on the way back. New pad, problem solved. This, by the way, is the work of no genius. Any cyclist who isn't aware that a brake pad needs replacing is probably not someone you want to ride with. Which kinda explains why I always ride alone.
Having my mountain bike out of service for a week was no big deal, since all I rode last week was my 20-mile default on my road bike. My Tour de France face:
Not a very good TdF face, this is totally posing, I was going like 12 miles an hour on flat road. But there are times when I actually catch myself doing a Tour de France face and think I must look real cool, but really I just look real silly.
current sounds:
1. Speakin' o' Bob (National Joy Band)
2. Tommy the Cat (Primus)
3. Namida ga Kirari (Spitz)
4. Distant Early Warning (Rush)
5. Matte Kudasai (King Crimson)
6. Funny ("City of Angels")
7. Over the Falls (Primus)
8. She Caught the Cady and Left Me a Mule to Ride (Taj Mahal)
9. Don't Push Your Foot on the Heartbrake (Kate Bush)
10. Out Like a Light (764-HERO)
Sunday, November 13, 2005
Lower Manhattan
Several weeks ago, I helped move a futon for a friend of my brother's. He had just moved into an apartment in Lower Manhattan with his partner. He's German and works in online finance, so he's flexible where he could live. He's not quite as flexible as to where he could afford, though, and as he tells it, the only place in Manhattan he could find that he could afford was in a building right next to the World Trade Center site. I don't know if that's the reason why it was cheaper, or because there's going to be construction next door for a long while. In any case, he doesn't have a view of the site, but the building really is directly south of the site.
October 20, 2005 - the WTC site is on the other side of that walkway. Those two similar looking buildings are the World Financial Center buildings.
The building had been damaged, but has been repaired and recently opened for tenants.
current sounds (last 10 songs shuffled on iTunes):
1. Papillon (Rilo Kiley)
2. I Don't Want U (Blonde Redhead)
3. Whipping (Pearl Jam)
4. Shiver (Coldplay)
5. The Meeting Place (XTC)
6. Mama (live) (Genesis)
7. The Hem Around Us (Shannon Wright)
8. Big Business (David Byrne)
9. Carry That Weight (The Beatles)
10. Friends (The Police)
October 20, 2005 - the WTC site is on the other side of that walkway. Those two similar looking buildings are the World Financial Center buildings.
The building had been damaged, but has been repaired and recently opened for tenants.
current sounds (last 10 songs shuffled on iTunes):
1. Papillon (Rilo Kiley)
2. I Don't Want U (Blonde Redhead)
3. Whipping (Pearl Jam)
4. Shiver (Coldplay)
5. The Meeting Place (XTC)
6. Mama (live) (Genesis)
7. The Hem Around Us (Shannon Wright)
8. Big Business (David Byrne)
9. Carry That Weight (The Beatles)
10. Friends (The Police)
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