Tag Archives: monochrome

Photographs: New York City, Photographs: Urban/Street

A Selfie

February 5, 2016 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

A group of tourists captures a selfie on the run

A free hour or a bit more, so we took a quick walk out on the Brooklyn Bridge on a cold and windy day that was trying to rain — to join the surprising number of other people with just the same illogical idea. This bridge is a great place from which to watch many things: boats on the east river, the buildings of Lower Manhattan, the Brooklyn waterfront, the bridge itself and, of course, the people walking past by the hundreds or thousands.

The people provide a lot of photographic possibilities, but those possibilities come and go quickly. Our of an amorphous crowd so thick that I can’t see ten feet ahead of me, an interesting subject might suddenly appear. Of someone might do something surprising and interesting, but only for a brief moment. And then there are the selfies… It is no news that they have become a “thing.” The camera/phone is held at a high angle pointing down, and the subjects’ faces are almost invariably tilted up. Participants in the ritual usually lean their heads together and tilt them to one side. And then there is that smile — I wonder sometimes what it is supposed to be: a bit edgy/wry and highly posed. A moment before this group was simply walking towards me like all the other groups, but suddenly a phone came out, the arm went up, the heads turned, and there it was.

All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others as indicated. Any use requires advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Photographs: New York City, Photographs: Urban/Street

Little Monsters on the Bridge

February 2, 2016 G Dan Mitchell 2 Comments

Little monsters on the bridge

If you wander about in New York City with your eyes open, who knows what you might see? We had an extra hour or so, and since we had been staying nearby for about a week and were only a short walk away, we decided to make a quick amble out onto the Brooklyn Bridge, even though it was cold and raw and trying to rain. The bridge, of course, was crowded with walkers, even in this uncomfortable winter weather. That meant that there were lots of opportunities of people watching and people photographing.

Most people go by so fast that only a quick photograph works, especially when crowds obstruct the view past the closest figures. Oddly, at this spot in the bridge the foot traffic seems to momentarily thin and break, and I could see this small group — perhaps a father and sons? — posing for a rather unusual Brooklyn Bridge photograph. Each of the kids was in a costume and mask of some sort, and the juxtaposition of these “little monsters” with the bridge was a surprise.

All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others as indicated. Any use requires advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Photographs: New York City, Photographs: People, Photographs: Urban/Street

The Train Guys

January 31, 2016 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

Subway rail fans waiting at the station for the historic “nostalgia” train, Manhattan

A few days earlier we visited the Subway Museum in Brooklyn, where we had a chance to wander through a bunch of old to very old historic subway cars. I was fascinated by how old some of the rolling stock is, and by the history of the system that I had not known about. I was also a but surprised to realize that some of the trains currently still on the tracks have been there for a long time. A big draw at the museum is the fact that the old subway cars are parked in this old station and one can wander in and out of them.

With this visit fresh in our minds we decided to catch the historic “nostalgia trains” event that brings many of these trains out of the museum and runs them on the subway system for one day in December. Not surprisingly this draws out lots of fans of New York history and a lot of “train people.” (It also surprises a few folks who don’t know what is going on when these really old trains arrive at their stations!) I’m not sure what it is about train people, but the seem to stand out. These guys had apparently ridden the train partway up Manhattan, crossed to the adjacent platform, and were now waiting to the train to come back for their return trip.

Photographs: New York City, Photographs: Night, Photographs: Urban/Street

Halal Food Cart, Night

January 24, 2016 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

A sidewalk halal food cart at night, Manhattan

These food carts and lots of other similar versions are all over Manhattan. I know that isn’t news to New Yorkers, but it is a bit impressive to those of us who visit the place. I have yet to eat at one, but my sons tell me that the food isn’t bad.

I photographed this one (obviously!) at night as we wandered around a crowded portion of Fifth Avenue on Christmas Eve, not far from Rockefeller Center and lots of other stuff that drew huge crowds there on this evening. Against that dark background, the wildly lit cart, festooned with colorful signs describing the food and stacked with bottles of soda was surrounded in a cloud of smoke from food preparation.

G Dan Mitchell Photography

Tag Archives: monochrome

A Selfie

Little Monsters on the Bridge

The Train Guys

Halal Food Cart, Night

Photographer and visual opportunist. Daily photos since 2005, plus articles, reviews, news, and ideas.