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This Handcrafted Life

~ decorative painting, low-tech photography and paper craft

This Handcrafted Life

Tag Archives: plastic camera

On a Sunny Spring Day

12 Sunday May 2013

Posted by ThisHandcraftedLife in black and white, Diana plastic cameras, landscape, Photography

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central park, diana camera, new york city, photography, plastic camera, toy camera

Today I walked through Central Park twice. It was a beautiful day, sunny and warm, a relief after the long, chilly spring. The park was full in every sense — throngs of people, the road filled with runners and cyclists, branches in full blossom, the trees past the pale green of early spring, their leaves dense and bright.

I thought it would be fun to post a few Diana photos that take us from the spare days of winter through the melting waters of spring and into the lush fullness of summer. Few things are prettier in New York than Central Park in May and June.

Rocks

Corner

Twisted

Stream

EdgeOfLake

Rushes

Learning How to See

18 Sunday Nov 2012

Posted by ThisHandcraftedLife in black and white, cityscape, Diana plastic cameras, Photography

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black and white, cityscape, diana camera, florence, italy, photography, plastic camera, toy camera, travel

What inspires us to make art? How do we decide which tools to use? How do we learn?

One of the ways we learn how to be artists is by imitation. Maybe we’re inspired by the way someone works with paint, bronze, fiber, words, paper or light. Maybe we’re taught a certain style in school, or perhaps we want to be as successful as our favorite artist and mimic their style, thinking it will help us become successful as well.

One of the reasons that I began to work with a Diana camera was because of a book that I stumbled across called “Angels at the Arno” by Eric Lindbloom, a portfolio of Diana images shot over an eight year period in Florence, Italy. I had never seen photos with this kind of a timeless, eerie, ghostly mood, so velvety, tactile and lush. I had to try it myself.

After I’d been shooting with Dianas for a couple of years, I took a trip to Florence, but didn’t consult the book before we left, worried that I would find and imitate his shots. The photos in this post are from that trip.

After we returned, I picked up the book again. I was surprised to see that I’d shot some of the same places from the same angles, but he came in much closer to the subjects. I was a bit removed, he was completely comfortable and familiar, shooting details, off on side streets, climbing through gardens. He really knew Florence; the city flowed through him in a special way. I was only visiting.

Instead of feeling discouraged, I learned a couple of things. One, that he had taught me how to see in a new way by using a Diana camera. And two, that it wasn’t enough.

Imitation is easy, and it’s a great way to learn, but it isn’t fulfilling. That spark of excitement, of discovering a place in my own way, was missing.

How to solve this? Shoot, shoot and shoot some more. Shoot pictures wherever I go. And one day, if I’m open and curious, patient and persistent, the places I love will flow through me.

Lions at Large

15 Wednesday Aug 2012

Posted by ThisHandcraftedLife in black and white, cityscape, Diana plastic cameras, Photography

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black and white, cityscape, diana camera, lions, new york city, photography, plastic camera, sculpture, symbolism lions, toy camera

New York City is crammed with people. If you take an early morning or late evening stroll, it will become obvious that it’s also chock full of dogs. But what you may not realize is that the city is teeming with lions.

They stand guard above…

and glower below.

They meow in the morning…

contemplate lunch…

and snarl in the evening.

Some want to play…

while others won’t give you the time of day.

All of these lions made me wonder why, of all animals, are lions so popular?

It’s because everyone loves lions! Lions first showed up in the Paleolithic cave paintings of Lascaux, France, and they never left. They’ve appeared in sculpture and statuary since the origin of civilization, are found in cultures across Europe, Africa and Asia and are thought of everywhere as the King of Beasts. They symbolize bravery, valor, strength and loyalty. They’re the epitome of power, both primal and royal.

Have you noticed that the Sphinx in Egypt has a lioness’s body? There are lions at the entrances to cities and sacred sites, in palaces, temples and tombs, in the Bible, on flags and coats of arms. They appear as gods, on currency, as symbols of ancient dynasties, in movies, literature and myth.

Lions also symbolize guardianship and protection, which explains why they’re found on many doorsteps. With so much work to do, it’s no surprise that they’re with us still. Next time you’re wandering the streets, look around… lions abound!

All photos shot on Diana cameras, printed on warm tone Ilford paper.

Once Upon a Time in the Deep, Dark Forest…

25 Wednesday Jul 2012

Posted by ThisHandcraftedLife in black and white, Diana plastic cameras, landscape, Photography

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black and white photography, diana camera, fairy tales, landscape photography, photography, plastic camera, toy camera

Once upon a time, there was a little girl who loved to read. Her parents, devoted readers themselves, were pleased to provide her with untold numbers of books filled with fairy tales, and she read them until she had memorized every one.

But these weren’t Disney stories with pastel-colored rabbits, these were tales from the Brothers Grimm and Hans Christian Andersen. Fairy tales that ended with good vindicated and evil dancing to its death in red-hot iron shoes, with good marrying the handsome prince and evil’s eyes plucked out by righteous doves.

In all of these tales, deep dark forests abounded. They surrounded castles and sheltered mysteries, they protected with thorns and sprung up to the whisper of a magic spell. They hid monstrous creatures and led wanderers astray, echoed with mysterious cries and were filled by the light of a rising moon.

When that little girl grew up, she picked up her camera… and went back into the forest.

All images shot with Diana cameras. Photos 1 and 2, Scotland; photo 3, Central Park, NYC; photo 4, Virginia; photo 5, Australia; photos 6, 7, 8, Central Park, NYC.

June’s Portrait: The Ugly Duckling

10 Sunday Jun 2012

Posted by ThisHandcraftedLife in black and white, Diana plastic cameras, Photography, portrait

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bird, black and white, central park, diana camera, nature, nyc, photography, plastic camera, swan, toy camera

… became a beautiful swan who lived on the Lake in Central Park. Who knew?

Diana camera, gelatin silver print, warm tone paper.

I took this photo when I first began shooting with plastic Diana cameras and was trying to understand the difference between what I was seeing through the viewfinder and what the camera was seeing through the lens. That’s why the swan’s head is almost out of the frame, I underestimated the discrepancy.

One of the Diana’s happy tendencies is to either accentuate or blur textures in an unpredictable way. I like the look of the water’s surface here, especially next to the smooth feathers of the swan.

The Towered Buildings of Central Park West

16 Wednesday May 2012

Posted by ThisHandcraftedLife in black and white, cityscape, Diana plastic cameras, iPhone apps, landscape, Photography, pinhole camera

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architecture, architecture photography, art deco, central park, Central Park West, cityscape, diana camera, emery roth, empire, irwin s. chanin, new york, new york city architecture, photography, plastic camera, the beresford, the century, the el dorado, the majestic, the san remo, toy camera

When I first started my decorative painting business 13 years ago, I compiled a list of the buildings that I loved the most and wanted to work in. In a nutshell, it was the five towered apartment buildings of Central Park West, which I’ve been photographing since I first moved to New York. I love them for their architecture, their elegance, their perch on the edge of Central Park, and for the incredible apartments I knew lay beyond the impenetrable lobbies with their vigilant doormen.

So far I’ve made it into four of these buildings, some repeatedly, but the Century, below, still eludes me, and not just because it’s hard to get a clear shot of it.

The Century is the furthest south on Central Park West, between 62nd and 63rd Streets, and was designed by Irwin S. Chanin, who also designed the gorgeous Chanin Bulding on 42nd and Lexington, not to mention the next building on our list, the Majestic. The Century and the Majestic were actually the first New York residential buildings designed in the style of office buildings. The five towered buildings I love were all built between 1928 and 1932, just in time for the Great Depression.

Heading north up the avenue, the next one is The Majestic at 72nd Street, across the street from the infamous Dakota. Here are a couple of pinhole photos:

The buildings were all given exotic, European-sounding names to attract attention. Little known Majestic factoid: some former heads of the Luciano/Genovese crime family lived here, and Vincent “The Chin” Gigante shot Frank Costello in the lobby but didn’t manage to kill him.

On a happier note, here’s a winter pinhole of the Majestic (that hulking black mass on the left) next to the third towered building, the San Remo.

Below, the gorgeous San Remo on her own as an Instagram photo on a beautiful spring morning. The San Remo sits between 74th and 75th Streets and was designed by the famous Emery Roth. This is one of the most expensive prewar buildings on the West Side.

San Remo, you beauty! Shot from the east side of the lake in Central Park, using the Old Camera app in cyanotype mode.

Moving on to the Beresford at 81st Street, which was also designed by Emery Roth with three copper-topped octagonal towers. The Beresford is one of my all-time favorite buildings in New York. As an exercise in comparison, I shot it first with a Diana camera, then using Instagram, and finally Old Camera. My favorite is the Diana shot, no surprise.

The final apartment building is the El Dorado between 90th and 91st Streets, designed by Margon & Holder with our old friend, the extremely busy Emery Roth. Here’s an Old Camera shot, taken from the bridle path in Central Park, followed by a pinhole photo.

And we’ll end with a sunrise Instagram photo, taken on a recent walk around the Reservoir. All of these buildings line up along the edge of Central Park to create a beautiful skyline of prewar New York.

If you’d like to read more on the topic, here’s an article from the NY Times, and each building has its own Wikipedia entry.

Entranced by Trees

09 Wednesday May 2012

Posted by ThisHandcraftedLife in black and white, Diana plastic cameras, landscape, Photography

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

black and white landscape, central park, diana camera, landscapes, new york city, photography, plastic camera, toy camera, trees

Do you know how it is when you see a whole bunch of your photos together and suddenly you notice a theme? One of my tendencies seems to be shooting trees… these are all shot in Central Park, NYC with Diana cameras.

Another theme is pathways that lead into the woods, preferably through thick trees toward a murky distance. What about you?

Diana camera portfolio: from Madonna to Medusa

25 Wednesday Apr 2012

Posted by ThisHandcraftedLife in black and white, cityscape, Diana plastic cameras, Photography

≈ 5 Comments

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black and white, diana camera, new york, new york city, plastic camera, sculpture, statuary, stonework, toy camera

One of the things I’ve discovered while wandering around NYC is stonework and statuary. It’s everywhere: hanging out on street corners…

hidden in gardens…

 

… it’s even parked next to garbage cans.

Sometimes it’s up on a pedestal…

… or dancing away in a courtyard.

And sometimes it leaves me scratching my head. What’s that snarling dog doing in the middle of all that foliage?

And I’m not up on my Greek mythology, so I’m not sure why having a snake-haired creature greeting your guests at the front door is a good thing.

Even a lion would be friendlier.

This is the only photo from an actual sculpture garden, at MoMA.

Working with Diana cameras is an outgrowth of pinhole work. I wanted a camera that could create the dreamy moodiness of a pinhole photo but used a roll of film, so I could carry one camera around instead of six. Somehow I stumbled across plastic cameras, and after rejecting Holgas because the photos were too sharp, I went for the hair-tearing frustration of trying to predict how a Diana will shoot, which is much more interesting to me.

Here’s the book that launched me into the arms of Diana. And here’s a fun book on plastic cameras in general. If you know of any books or photographers with great Diana imagery, I’ll love to hear about it.

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