Tag archive: black and white

Central Park

I was taking this photograph in a somewhat out-of-the-way spot in Central Park yesterday when a tourist with a point-and-shoot digicam walked by. He saw me setting up my shot, stood right next to me, pointed his camera right where mine was pointed, snapped a pic, checked his LCD, and walked away without ever saying a word. While it’s entirely possible that he might have spotted this exact scene had I not been there, I suspect that he saw me with my fancy pants camera and assumed that I knew what I was doing. I would love to see how that shot came out for him.

Prospect Park Zoo

I don’t know if it’s the promise I made to myself to take more pictures or just the weather, but I made it to Prospect Park to take pictures twice last week, and even went to Central Park on Saturday. In general I think Central Park is too crowded and the landscape views are a bit claustrophobic. Of the three rolls of 120 I shot last week, the photos from Prospect Park are looking much better.

While on one of my walks through through the park, I decided to take a path I’d never seen before and discovered the secluded Vale of Cashmere. It’s hard for me to believe that I’ve been going to the park for seven years now and never discovered this beautiful area (see the photograph from the post below). It’s nestled high up on a hill above Grand Army Plaza, full of birds and squirrels and rabbits, and men hiding in the bushes (oh hey there!). I later learned of the Vale’s somewhat checkered past, known as a cruising and drug spot as well as the site of some anti-gay attacks and at least one murder.

Taking a picture, part five: processing in Photoshop

Thanks for your interest in my “Taking a Picture” series. Just as a note, I have continued improving my digital workflow and some of these notes are now out-of-date. Feel free to drop a line in the comments or contact me directly if you would like more information on my photographic workflow.

Taking a picture, part four: analog to digital

I think my situation is a pretty common one: I love film, especially black and white, but I don’t have the space or the time and energy to devote to a complete darkroom. Developing film is relatively easy and requires very little space, but printing means setting up an enlarger and trays of chemicals. And so, I use a hybrid process: I shoot and develop my own black and white film, but scan and print in digital.

It’s a pretty great situation, as far as I’m concerned. With my mid-range flatbed scanner (an Epson 4990) and my mid-range printer (Epson R2400), I can print excellent quality 12×12 black and white prints with no trouble at all. Larger sizes are beyond my capacity at the moment, but I’m thinking that a better scanner and printer are looming somewhere in the not-too-distant future.

I had been planning a long, drawn out technical discussion about scanning, but I got about half-way through writing it and gave up. For the few people who are using similar equipment and materials, a lot of the research has already been done. I think it’s probably wasteful for me to scan a negative ten different ways just to show that my approach is valid. I have done a lot of research, spent a significant amount of time experimenting, and I have come to the point where I feel like I am getting the most out of my somewhat limited equipment. I am happy to share my approach step-by-step; anyone who is curious can do their own experiments or further research to see if my methods prove out.
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Gerritsen Inlet Bridge

I have no idea if that is the correct name for this particular structure, but I’m going with it for now. Here’s a Google Map link, in case anyone has any better ideas about the name of the bridge. It’s a deserted and interesting little stretch of beach; I parked my bike at the rest area and walked around Plumb Island, crossing under the Shore Parkway. To be honest I was a little bit worried about who I might meet while crossing under the bridge, but I made it there and back in one piece.