Should I Stay Or Should I Go

Should I Stay Or Should I Go.
New York City.
Early 2009.
Vivitar Ultra Wide & Slim.

Solargraphy Project

As I've mentioned here before, I'm a fan of pinhole photography. About a year ago I learned of an aspect of pinhole photography that I had never heard of before. It's called Solargraphy. It has all the regular aspects of pinhole photography, but the exposure time is way longer. Instead of measuring exposure times in seconds, with solargraphy, it's measured in hours, days, and even months. It took me a while to get going on starting my own solargraphy project, but I'm underway now. In fact, as I type this, I'm making two solargraphs. That's kind of cool. But let me go back to the start. I did a lot of research on this to get an idea of what I needed to get going on this project. One website, Solagraphy.com, gave me lots of info. It's pretty simple. Make a pinhole camera out of some sort of container, fill it with black and white photopaper, secure camera to an object, start exposure. I wanted to start with something a little bigger than a film canister, so I went with an old coffee can.

I painted the inside of the can to cut down on any chance of reflective light.

I then drilled a large hole in the can. I made the actual pinhole with an old pin and a bit of an old soda can and taped that over the drilled hole. Then it was lights out as I loaded the can with a sheet of black and white photopaper. Put the lid on the can. Turned the lights back on and sealed up the top of the can with lots of electrical tape. My cameras were now ready to be mounted.

I found a spot in the rear of my place that faces the rising sun.

They've been up for a week now. I'm planning on keeping one of them up until around the summer solstice. One I'll take down earlier to get an idea of how it's working. I look forward to seeing the results and I'll post them here. If you can't wait until that long to see a solargraph, check out this group on the flickr.

Joe Strummer

Joe Strummer Mural at Niagara Bar.
New York City.
Summer 2009.
Holga 120CFN.

I try not to believe in heroes because, after all, we're all flawed humans. I also try not to have regrets in life. When I fuck up, I try to use that as a learning experience of what not to do in the future. But, when it comes to Joe Strummer, these two little "rules" in my life go out the window. The Clash struck a strong chord in me at an early age and has stuck with me all these years. Joe Strummer stuck out to me. He seemed to speak to me like a friend. He also seemed to speak for me to the rest of the world. As the Clash fizzled away, I loosely followed Joe as he got lost in the "Wilderness Year" and eventually refound his way. Sometime in I think 1999, I saw an ad in the Village Voice for a show Joe was going to play at Irving Plaza. I had to go. Since I had missed out on seeing the Clash, going to this show was a big deal for me. I wasn't alone in this. The place was packed. Punk Rock All Stars from years past mixed with kids of all ages for their chance to Joe play on stage. I got chills when he stepped on stage. It was a great show. After that show, I tried to see Joe every time he and his band passed through NYC. One of these shows was an in store appearance at a record store in Times Square. I had to go. I rushed to the train after work and then rushed uptown to the store. I wormed my way near the front as this was going to be my first and best chance to get photos of Joe in an intimate environment. They played a short set of new songs. Sounded great. After the set, Joe hung out for a signing session. A very long line formed in a flash. I thought about joining the line. But, I was really really hungry by now. I didn't really want his autograph, I just wanted to shake his hand and thank him for the years of great music that had such a positive and profound impact on my life. As my belly grumbled, I made the decision to go get food then go home. Seven years ago, Joe passed away. And that decision became a great big regret. I never got another chance to meet him. His music still lives on in me and still makes my life better and I'm still thankful for that. Just wish I could have told him.

Joe Strummer at Virgin Megastore.
New York City.
Summer 2001.
Canon AE-1.

Canal Street

Canal Street Subway Station.
NYC.
Spring 2009.
Holga 120CFN.

Times Square

Times Square.
NYC.
Made a few years back.
Canon AE-1.

Subway Car

Subway car.
NYC.
Made a few years back.
Canon AE-1.

Thanksgiving

My wife, Ellie, on the subway.
NYC.
Feb. 2007.
Canon AE-1.

Thanks to my wife, family, and friends for being there and putting up with me all these years.
Have fun.

TV Smith vs. Franz Nicolay

TV Smith at Maxwell's.
Hoboken, NJ.
Sometime in 2003.
Canon AE-1.

Back at some point in 2003 I was able to see TV Smith play live when he opened up some shows for my friends in the World/Inferno Friendship Society. TV played a good set of his solo stuff mixed with some great tunes from his days as frontman to the legendary Adverts. I've since seen TV on several occasions, but this photo was from the first time I saw him play. Fast forward to summer of this year and I'm seeing Franz Nicolay play at Union Pool in Brooklyn. Franz was a member of World/Inferno back when they toured with TV and if I remember right, he was pretty excited about it. Anyway, so a few weeks after the Union Pool show, I'm in the darkroom making prints, and this particular shot of Franz seemed a bit familiar.

Franz Nicolay at Union Pool.
Brooklyn, NY.
August 2009.
Canon AE-1.
So now it's up to them to battle it out as to who has the better photo. Or they could just sing along together, like in this photo.

TV Smith at CBGB.
NYC.
I forget when I made this photo.
Canon AE-1.

Trees

Trees.
Wheeler Park.
Linden, NJ.
Fall 2008.
Ansco Rediflex.

Cadillac Motel

Cadillac Motel.
Niagara Falls, ONT.
Oct. 2007.
Polaroid Job Pro.

Hirax

Hirax at Northsix.
Brooklyn, NYC.
I think this show was in 2006.
Canon AE-1.

Heavy fuckin' metal. Sometimes you just need a little more metal music in your day.

Devil's Parking Spot

They redid a parking lot near Trader Joe's and made a spot just for the devil. How thoughtful.
Westfield, NJ.
March 2008.
Holga 120CFN.

This seemed like a good photo to post up on Friday the 13th. It's also my 100th post. Hooray for me.

Down by the River

River.
New Brunswick, NJ.
Fall 2008.
Diana+.

New Jersey is that way....

Just get authorization before trying to cross the state line.
Penn Station.
NYC.
May 2008.
Holga 120CFN.

Happy Halloween

World/Inferno Friendship Society at Good/Bad Art Collective.
Brooklyn, NYC.
Oct. '98 (maybe).
Canon AE-1.

Halloween is the best. Here are some photos from various Hallowmas celebrations over the years from the World/Inferno Friendship Society. They know how to throw a good party. This year is only the second year I've missed since 1998. It's a bit of a bummer to miss it, but these things happen.
Happy Halloween.

World/Inferno Friendship Society at Good/Bad Art Collective.
Brooklyn, NYC.
Oct. '98.
Canon AE-1.

World/Inferno Friendship Society at Warsaw.
Brooklyn, NYC.
Oct. 2003.
Canon AE-1.

World/Inferno Friendship Society on a boat.
East River, NYC.
Oct. 2006.
Canon AE-1.

World/Inferno Friendship Society at Good Bad Art Collective.
Brooklyn, NYC.
Oct. 1999.
Canon AE-1.

Fall Bike Ride

Fall Bike Ride.
Watchung Reservation, NJ.
Fall 2008.
Vivitar Ultra Wide & Slim.

Fall Bike Ride

Fall Bike Ride.
Watchung Reservation, NJ.
Fall 2008.
Vivitar Ultra Wide & Slim.

Train Station Pinhole

Train Station Pinhole.
Linden,NJ.
Feb. '08.
Diana+.

A pinhole shot of a passing train at the Linden train station with a lovely sunset in the background. I have a great fondness for pinhole photography. There's something so simple, yet complex and elegant about it at the same time. I bought the Diana+ camera for the simple task of teaching myself the basics of pinhole photography. Despite never becoming a real fan of the camera itself, I think it taught me some good basics. I took that thin thread of knowledge and tried my hand at making my own pinhole camera. That turned out well. The first roll was a sucess. The second roll was pretty good. I didn't make too many interesting photos with that roll though and it's part of the reason I haven't made any prints from that roll just yet. I've got a third roll in now, hopefully I choose better subjects this time around. The Pentax pinhole project came out really well too. I've made prints from the first roll but haven't gotten around to scanning them. One problem that came up with the Pentax though was a bit of a starburst in the dead center of every image. Some images it's more prominent than others. I'm thinking that I made the pinhole a little too big which let in a ray of direct light to the film. That's an easy thing to remedy and all part of the learning process. I'm planning on working on the Pentax over the weekend so that I can load it up with another roll of film. Should be fun.

Fall Bike Ride

Bike Ride.
Rahway Park, Rahway, NJ.
Fall 2008.
Vivitar Ultra Wide & Slim

Fall is definitely my favorite time of year. I love the colors, the cool crisp air. Perfect weather for heading out on long bike rides.

Refused

Refused at some warehouse.
San Diego, CA.
Sometime in '96 maybe.

A book recently came out about '90s hardcore called Burning Fight. I haven't read it, nor do I have photos in it. So I can't really provide much insight or give a worthwhile review. But it does look like a pretty good book worth a look for those interested in hardcore. An old friend of mine, Andrew Kline, of Strife fame, is hosting a party to celebrate this Burning Fight book at his shop, Tradition out in southern California. The party takes place this saturday, Oct. 10. I'll have some photos hanging up on the wall and there will be a lots of other stuff to look at as well. It seems like a really cool event and I wish I could make it out there for it. Hopefully you can make it there. Have a good time.

The Night Marchers

The Night Marchers at Santos Party House.
NYC.
Dec. 2008.
Canon AE-1.

It's been a while since I've posted a blog. Life is hitting a bit of a rough spot and the creative juices are not flowing much. More of a trickle. Ideas are forming, plans are being made for projects, so hopefully there will be some good stuff coming up in the future. I was able to make it to the darkroom for only the second or third time this year, which means I'll finally have some more updated photos to post up here and on my flickr page. As happy as I was to spend the day in the darkroom and make up lots of pretty prints, I in no way made a dent in the amount of film I've got piling up. At last count I had 20 rolls of color film, four rolls of black and white, and now I've got one black and white and two or three rolls of color waiting to be developed. At least I'm still shooting.
In other news, I'll have some photos up in a little show starting this weekend. More on that later.


The Night Marchers at Santos Party House.
NYC.
Dec. 2008.
Canon AE-1.

Wonder Wheel

Wonder Wheel.
Coney Island, NYC.
June 2008.
Diana+.

Cyclone

Cyclone.
Coney Island, NYC.
Summer 2007.

How sweet it is.

Bike Ride

Bike Ride.
Linden, NJ.
Jan. 2008.
Supersampler.

Chambers Street

Chambers Street.
New York City.
2006 maybe.
Canon AE-1.

Carnival Ride

Carnival Ride.
Point Pleasant, NJ.
Summer 2008.
Brownie Hawkeye Flash.

What is it about these rides that makes them so photogenic? I'm sure if you browsed around flickr, you'd be able to find thousands of photos just like this one.

"From Camden Town Station...."

44th & 8th.
NYC.

On my first ever visit to New York City, I had the song "Lightning Strikes" by the Clash in my head the whole two days I was in town. Those two days left a lasting impact of course. How could it not? One of the things I didn't get to see on that trip though was the intersection of 44th & 8th. So, five years after that first visit, when I was now a resident of the east coast, one of the first things I wanted to do was go to 44th & 8th. My friend asked me why I wanted to go there, there wasn't much to see. My answer, because it's mentioned in a Clash song. Yes, I'm that much of a Clash nerd.

Neurosis

Neurosis at the Toe Jam.
Long Beach, CA.
I forget when I made this shot.

Chain of Strength

Chain of Strength at Spanky's Cafe.
Riverside, CA.
Sometime in '89.

This photo of Chain of Strength is one of my favorite images that I've been lucky enough to capture on film over the years. This was the early days of Spanky's Cafe, before they took out the salad bar and booths and built a stage. Effectively turning it into an actual club. Shows in this prestage era were pretty awesome. I don't remember this exact show, but I'm sure it was a really good one. For those of you who have picked up the book Radio Silence, this photo will be familiar. It's featured on a full page in that fine book. This image is also part of the Radio Silence photo show that has travelled around. For those who couldn't afford a print from the photo show, you get the image on a t-shirt. You had to be at the photo show for such an honor though. But, no longer. The Radio Silence kids have put up these limited edition shirts up for sale on their site. Click the link for all the juicy info: Radio Silence
In other commerce news, I've put up a link on my list of links to the right, to my Etsy shop. Here you can purchase photographic prints and linocut prints that I've made myself. Exciting, isn't it? There's not a lot there now, but that will be changing. Please have a look hopefully there's something you like. And if there's a print you'd like but don't see in the shop, feel free to contact me.

Sunset.
Atlantic City, NJ.
Jan. 1, 2006.
A print of this image is in my Etsy shop now.

Obits

Obits at Santo's Party House.
NYC.
Dec. 17, 2008.
Holga 120CFN.

I've been listening to the Obits album a lot this week. It's very good.

Bike Ride

Bike ride.
Central NJ.
Fall 2008.
Vivitar Ultra Wide & Slim.

Born Against

Born Against at the Toe Jam.
Long Beach, CA.
Early 90's.

Such a good band.

Sunset

Sunset.
Linden, NJ.
Summer 2007.
Polaroid.

Tree Swing

Tree Swing.
Southern NJ.
Summer 2007.
Holga 120CFN.

This photo can be found in the latest issue of Light Leaks Magazine. It's a one of many great photos in the issue. I highly suggest checking it out.