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Category: Photos
It’s the weekend, it’s been raining since last night. Depressing ain’t it? I’m going back to bed.
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Zoom Zoom
Sniping the FDR from an overpass from the East River Park.
For every yin, there’s a yang. Somehow I got lost yesterday but I got to see this station at F’s York Street. The stark blue steel foundations against the drab station literally screamed at me to take it’s picture. Though I was a bit tentative setting up the tripod because of the heightened paranoia caused by the bombing at Times Square, I was lucky to get off a few shots. 🙂
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Raoul Wallenberg Monument
detective 1988-1993
new york police department
rookie of the year
awarded by staten island
community board #1, 1987
medal of honor
awarded for extraordinary
bravery by nypd, 1995
killed in the line of duty
in the war against narcotics
on march 10, 1993
Let’s Dance! That’s what I was trying to say, but what with these tap dancers being Japanese, I thought of this title.
In my previous post, I’ve talked about creepy archaic bedrooms. Now here’s the actual bed. 🙂
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Roadkill
If you’ve ever been to The Met, you’ve probably have been into one of those European rooms that have been reconstructed & restored in one of the gallery rooms. The reconstructed room may originally be a part of a house or a hotel and is made to look exactly like the original. This photo is just a part of what the bedroom ceiling looks like. Creepy, no? I couldn’t imagine sleeping in one of those big four poster beds, in a room with a bunch of sculptures or carvings of cherubs / babies (however cute they may be). It’s just plain creepy.
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100UN
We went out for lunch and bypassed the usual route we normally take to “forage” for food. We ended up farther than usual and had a leisurely – albeit freezing – walk back to the office. Overshadowed by Trump World Tower, here’s a unique structure called 100 United Nations Plaza Tower. Info from Emporis
– This black and brown-clad building rises vertically to the upper floors, where its north and south facades taper shaply to form a top wedge.
– To break away even further from the customary, there are balconies protruding as horizontal “ribs”, going around the corners of the building — also on the lower portion of the tapering top — as well as bulging from the mid-facade.
– On the east side of the building, there is a lush plaza with a fountain.
– Entrance to 100 United Nations Plaza is through a garden plaza dramatically landscaped with handsome fountains.
– Very prominent on the East Side skyline in Midtown until overshadowed by Trump World Tower, completed in 2001.
Looks like this hobby of mine is rubbing off on someone. 🙂 Well, not that she has any say in it because I left her for like 30 minutes at the park last Sunday looking for the loo & she killed time mashing the shutter. Good job!
I guess it’s common knowledge for New Yorkers that Manhattan isn’t “bladder-friendly”, that is, you’d be hard pressed finding the loo. So, having been in NY for quite sometime, I should’ve at least have learned this.. Coffee (or other diuretics) + (extremely) Cold weather + NY = bladder nightmare. Still, a caffeine junkie won’t be a caffeine junkie without caffeine now, no? (redundant, no?).
Here’s some kids romping around in the snow.
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Imprint
NY got hit again with another snow storm. A blanket of snow 6″ thick was expected and it was what we got. 🙂 Satiated my curiosity by moseying around in the snow. Here’s a yeti’s pawprint. hehe..
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Turrets
Ate quite a lot this lunch and since it’s such a fine day, decided to walk around the back alleys of Gotham. Here’s St. Patrick’s Cathedral as viewed from the Villard House.
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Aw0o0o0o..
What happens when the moon falls under the earth’s shadow? It’s a lunar eclipse! 🙂 I had no intention of shooting this event unless I acquired a significantly longer lens but then again, do what you can with what you have. We were just peering out of our place from the top floor & admiring the view, another thing lead to another thing, and then I was downstairs in the cold wearing slippers, PJs & a thick jacket shooting the moon.
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Flatiron
I found myself agape, admiring a skyscraper — the prow of the Flatiron Building, to be particular, ploughing up through the traffic of Broadway and Fifth Avenue in the late-afternoon light. – H.G. Wells (1906)
My sentiments exactly.
We went on a road trip today that encompassed three states. hehe.. Here’s Jao trying to figure out how to work the binoculars at Barnegat lighthouse. And also, a trackback to his vids @ YouTube. He recently won the foul shot contest at school! Check it out at his site. 🙂
Today we were at our relatives place in Jersey for a li’l birthday party for my cousin’s daughter Nina. Here’s the celebrant herself having a blast! That’s Nina’s brother, Jao at the lower left frame taking her picture. Happy Birthday Nina!! 🙂
We’ve nothing better to do today so we cleaned up our mess at home.. well, it was mostly mine.. After taking a brief breather, I noticed that it was getting dark and got to catch this golden sky from the window (undefiled & un-PP’ed).. And, it was back to work again.. hehe..
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Blackwell
Today’s expedition brought me to a lighthouse at Roosevelt Island’s northern tip. Here’s a brief history of the lighthouse I got from lighthousefriends.com:
This 50-foot-tall, gray gneiss, Gothic-style lighthouse was built in 1872. It is not an official Coast Guard lighthouse, but it was commissioned by the city. The lighthouse’s purpose was to “effectually light†the nearby New York City Insane Asylum for boats navigating the treacherous Hell Gate waters. It was designed by architect James Renwick, Jr., whose other works include Smallpox Hospital and St. Patrick’s Cathedral. Inmate labor was probably used in the city-run project, but to elaborate much on its construction is to explore legend.
The legendary mysteries are the names of Asylum inmate(s?) John McCarthy and Thomas Maxey and whether these two names refer to one person, two people or even existent people. Supposedly, before the lighthouse was built, McCarthy (or Maxey), fearing a British invasion, was constructing a four-foot-high clay fort on this site. Asylum officials let him finish the fort because, during his adrenaline-rushed work, he reclaimed significant areas of marsh. (They even gave him old Civil War cannons as encouragement.) When the city wanted to build the Lighthouse, officials bribed or persuaded McCarthy either to give up or to demolish the fort.
Whether McCarthy complied or not is the choice of the storyteller, but the fort did come down. Then, supposedly, another Asylum patient was summoned to build the Lighthouse. This inmate styled himself “Thomas Maxey, Esq., architect, mason, carpenter, civil engineer, philosopher, and philanthropist.†The lighthouse was built, though adherence to Renwick’s blueprint is questionable. Despite Thomas Maxey’s supposed labor, John McCarthy’s name was credited on a plaque that remained at the Lighthouse’s base until its mysterious disappearance in the 1960s:
This work
was done by
John McCarty
who built the light
house from the bottom to the
top all ye who do pass by may
pray for his soul when he dies.The Lighthouse was decommissioned in the 1940s, designated a city landmark in 1975, and partially restored the following year. In 1998 an anonymous grant of $120,000 funded complete restoration (including internal lamps).
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Bethesda
Yesterday’s first “major” winter snowfall disturbed a hornet’s nest. I mean “camera-toting” hornets. Despite the snowfall & the failing light, Central Park was bustling with tourists & locals alike lugging either a flimsy P&S or their hefty SLRs. I must’ve seen two guys with Hasselblads around Bethesda Fountian.
The first thing I thought of shooting when I got into this hobby is The Mall on Central Park on a winter time. Of course that wasn’t possible back then because it was still early spring. And today was the first “major” snow fall this winter. So off I went, but before I got to The Mall, it was already dark.. (and I got a li’l bit lost..) ..so as usual, I walked around aimlessly.
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Show’s Over
This was taken a few hours ago at the East River Park. My face’s still kinda numb. I guess this is what botox feels. lol. I’m too lazy, here’s a clip from Wikipedia.
East River Park, part of the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation, is a public park located on the Lower East Side of Manhattan. The park stretches along the East River from Montgomery Street up to 12th Street. The southern entrance boasts good views of the Manhattan Bridge and Brooklyn Bridge. The amphitheater, built in 1941 just south of Grand Street, has been reconstructed and is often used for public performances. The park includes football, baseball and soccer fields, tennis, basketball and handball courts, a running track and bike paths including the East River Greenway. Fishing is another popular activity. The park is bisected by the Williamsburg Bridge.
What’s the newest exercise fad you can think of right now..? Yoga, pilates, cardioboink-boink(okay, I made that up).. the list goes on and on and on (like the Energizer bunny). For me, I guess my latest hobby (shutterbug) would be my “exercise fad” right now. Given the option of running (or jogging) outside or being a couch potato, eating chips while watching dvds all day long, which would you choose? I guess you’ll pick couch potato, am I right? I would, but nooo, I chose to get out in the freezing cold & walk miles & miles & miles, like the Energizer bunny (see the trend here?) just to shoot some birds. They weren’t really my objective, actually, I really didn’t have an objective. I just decided on a place (Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn) and wandered around the neighborhood, shooting like mad (just kidding).
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Brooklyn Brownstone
I guess it’s a rare opportunity to chance upon clear & blue skies this winter. And when it comes, you’ve got to mash that shutter like crazy. It’s been overcast for a few days now & it’s a good thing I’ve a few shots of Brooklyn Heights from last Sunday.
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Ash Wednesday
A woman approached me this morning while getting off the bus and asked me what was the purpose of the black smudge on my forehead. So, the indoctrination from my catholic school education kicked into gear and I explained to her briefly what Ash Wednesday was. Her puzzled expression eventually cleared up and she told me, “Oh, I thought it was some Pakistani ritual or something like that..”
If you ask me, today’s photo is not at all worthy of being posted, but here it is anyways. Last night’s shot of a bottle of beer in front of the tv (with my new nifty fifty.. hehe..). Besides, I was in no particular mood to shoot anything today because of the dreary weather. So, as everyone might well know, the Giants won the Superbowl. Woohoo! We whooped Boston’s ass! Sweet revenge, what with them winning the World Series(baseball) and all. I guess this championship win is very satisfying, it’s been a few years since New York got hold of a championship win (see listing below). And the fans are really salivating for a win like this. I mean, NY fans are really hardcore. The way I see it, if the team is doing good, they’ll cheer their pants off for you, but if the team sucks, then that’s a different story. I’ve seen the Knicks for several times now, and let me tell you. They suck. ([chanting]Fire Isaiah![chanting]) Anyways, let’s go back on track now, shall we? Well, there’ll be a ticker parade tomorrow in honor of the Giants, but it’ll be held 11AM @ Downtown Manhattan. Yeah, I know, sounds fun.. but I guess I’ll just have to watch it in the news. But nonetheless, it’s a good thing I was here to experience it here at the “greatest city in the world” (from David Letterman).
- NY Giants (Football) – Superbowl XXV – Jan 27, 1991
- NY Jets (Football) – Superbowl III – Jan 12, 1969
- NY Yankees (Baseball) – 2000 World Series
- NY Mets (Baseball) – 1986 World Series
- NY Knicks (Basketball) – Championships (1970, 1973) / Conference Titles (1994, 1999)
(Ooops! I tripped!) I’m guessing that this shell will be the first thing you see after falling flat on your face while strolling the beach.
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Eyes to the Sky
Strolling around the financial district amidst the canyons of concrete, one couldn’t help but feel amazed and stand rapt in awe. This is me gazing up from the middle of One Chase Manhattan Plaza.
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Higop
I’ll let you in on a little secret. If ever you run out of places to go to, just pick up one of the many local newspapers and you might find something that piques your interest. I dig amNY, it’s my source for free stuff /events & places to go / do / eat.
Today’s trip brought me to Sutton Place, it’s bounded by the East River to the east, 2nd Ave to the west, the 59th St Bridge to the north, and 53rd St to the south. From some of the parks overlooking the East River, there is a nice view of the Quensborough Bridge. It’s a nice place to eat your lunch (if the weather permits).
Nothing special today, just woke up later than usual & missed the morning mass we usually go to. Went to St. Patrick instead & tried out Sezzy’s prime lens. Fast, sharp & affordable, I might as well get one too. (Bokeh bokeh bokeh bokeh bokeh bokeh bokeh) =)
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Cloverfield
Cold days like this make you want to cower in the warmth of your bed or in our case, surf movies in our local theater. We were planning to watch Cloverfield but got tickets for Mad Money instead to qualify for the “early bird” rate (yeah, we’re cheapskates). It was a good thing that the former didn’t go first, lest we suffered dizziness & headaches throughout the day – my temples are still throbbing while writing this. I mean, really, it was a poor judgement on our part not to read about the movie before hand. Honestly, it was crap. The remedy for our headache may have been the next movie, Meet the Spartans, which was totally hilarious. I highly recommend this.
The nightscape pano above was taken at DUMBO last December. On the movie Cloverfield, they obliterated the Brooklyn Bridge. Watching a monster rampage around Manhattan feels kind of weird because the setting is so familiar. It makes you wonder what to do if you were in their (the characters) place. It still doesn’t change the fact that the “shaky camera” style sucked big time.
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Tudor
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Vintage
Shiny, happy tech news! Canon released the successor to the 400D, the 450D. It’s all out in the web so just Google it for more info. Not so good news for me because the value of the 400D is going to drop. Not so big an issue though, because the 400D spews out good looking photos like that vintage car up there. =P
Breaking News! Heath Ledger is dead! Sounds like your daily dose of TMZ right? Just joining the bandwagon.. hehe.. I’m just setting the mood for today’s photo – fluffy, gloomy clouds. A sad day, indeed. But the weather eventually cleared up. On to more showbiz news.. I actually got to see & meet Lisa Loeb up close! Woohoo!
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Pipes
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Brooklyn’s Eiffel Tower
Today’s travels brought me back to Coney Island. I’ve always wanted to get a shot of the sunset with no crowd so now was the best time. The weather was crisp & clear but the only thing going against me was the freezing temperature. Properly layered clothing nearly eliminated that issue. Since I got there a bit early and the sun was still up, I just walked around aimlessly, looking for a nice scene to shoot. What surprised me was in spite of the bitter temps, there were still a handful of people there doing their thing. Strolling along the boardwalk, jogging, fishing, tourists (like me) taking pictures and there were also 2 photogs stalking the sunset. (both had “L-type” lenses..) I’ll be posting those sunset shots in later posts. Today’s shot is taken from the west end of West 8 subway station. This is the Parachute Jump which was originally an amusement park ride where you get hoisted up 190 feet into the air and dropped down using guy-wired parachutes. It was opened in the 1939 New York World’s Fair & has since been closed on 1968.
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Fork
Before arriving here, I’ve read a bit about the city and it’s said to be very diverse. A great way to experience this feeling is when you get off at an unfamiliar subway station. I feel that each station in every borough feels different, from the surroundings, the culture, the people.. etc. Well, I got that feeling again when I got out of the Wall St. station today. I’ve been planning to go there for a while now but I also have been putting it off. I was supposed to go after the downtown skyscrapers but when I saw the ominous tower of Trinity Church and the graveyard, I stayed put & spent 3-4 hours circling the area. It was a bit early so there weren’t that many people around. That, and the frigid climate worked well to keep most of the tourists away, as noticed on the photo above which was pretty much desolate.
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Snaky Road
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