San Remo From Central Park

From the very first time I've seen this building I was fascinated by it and I didn't even know who lives in it yet!

Almost everywhere you walk in Central Park you could see it. You could see it there standing like a giant amongst the trees. Whether it's a cloudless clear day or a stormy sky, the San Remo building looks in character. It screams New York City, the posh life in New York City.

I took this black and white photograph last Summer on my last day visiting the fantastic city. For some reason, the photos I take on the last week or day are the photos that I hold close to my heart. I know this one is not one of my best black and white photographs but still I felt like showing it, as the San Remo building is one of my favorite in all of New York City (have a I said that already?)

This photo was taken using a compact Samsung camera. Edited and converted to black and white using Photoshop CS4.

Eighth Avenue

Today I was once again browsing through my old photos (by old I mean maybe two years old) and I came across this one. At first it looked like a tourist's photograph but then I looked again and saw the potential of a great black and white conversion.

For those who don't know Eighth Avenue is in Manhattan, NYC. This part of Eighth Avenue is very close to Macy's, which is my second favorite area in Manhattan (first is Times Square).

This line is only intended to people who know what I am talking about. Notice the 421? I guess someone was a minute late. :)

Anyway this photograph was shot using a Canon 40D. As far as the lens goes, I can't really remember which one I was using because it's been too long. As for editing and black and white conversion I used Photoshop CS4.

In the Heart

Digging in the archives once again and I came across this photo that I shot back when I got my 60mm f/2.8 macro lens. I think the photo was shot in Nacogdoches, Texas. 

Once again I don't know the name of the flower and really would like to know so if you any of my readers know what kind of flower it is, please let me know. I would really appreciate it.

Someone asked me why I am not posting these close up photos of flowers in color. There is a simple reason...I always thought that black and white photos look more dramatic and have a more abstract feel, which I really love.

Also for those interested in buying my prints, I will be opening a store on Etsy very soon. More information coming soon.

This photo was shot with a Canon 40D and a 60mm macro lens. It was edited and converted to black and white using Photoshop CS4.

Almost Erotic

Sometimes unplanned things turn out to be nicer than planned things and here is a perfect example. After watering my plants I grabbed the camera and was playing around with some settings when I accidentally hit the shutter. I didn't even bother to look at the preview.

Later when I was home I was looking at the other photos I snapped and saw this and my jaw almost dropped. I only cropped the photo to remove the unnecessary things that were in sight.

I came up with the title because when I first looked at the photo I thought it depicted something erotic. I don't know what, it was just how my eyes perceived the photo.

The plant is an Umbrella Tree that I bought a few weeks ago. It's been growing like crazy and is one of my favorite plants to photograph (together with the Peace Lily)

The photo was shot with a Canon 40D and a 60mm f/2.8 macro lens, it was then edited and converted to black and white using Photoshop CS4.

Wrapped up in Love

"A kiss is a rosy dot over the 'i' of loving." Cyrano de Bergerac 

Lately all I seem to posting are flower close up photos...I guess it's just a phase...or maybe not. Since I have been exploring my macro abilities I found no better subject than flowers so far. So yeah, I will be posting flower photos for a while. :)

I would like to learn the names of the flowers that I photograph but my brain can't handle all those names but it's a work in progress.

This photo here turned out to be one of my favorites on this blog. Very soon I have to pick out 36 photos published on my blog to be printed 4x6 and they will all be hanged on a wall in a 'heart' formation. It's going to be a tough job but it's a job that will be interesting.

Photo was shot using a Canon 40D with a 60mm f/2.8 macro lens. It was edited and converted to black and white using Photoshop CS4.

Star Flower

"Beauty is but a flower, which wrinkles will devour." Thomas Nash

Right now I am going through a phase in which I am enjoying macro photography and when it comes to macro photography what is a better subject than flowers?

I have been walking past this one flower for a few days on my way to work and I always notice the star pattern on it. Recently I just grabbed my camera and went out to get a few photos. I thought if I am going to wait any longer either someone will pick it up and it will die. Up to today it was still there and I hope it stays there as every time I see it, it always makes my day better. It's amazing how nature can be so beautiful and perfect.

This photo was difficult to get as it was windy and we all know the closer you get to your subject the more stillness you need so I just sat there waiting with the camera in hand for when the wind shows some mercy.

I shot this photo using a Canon 40D with a 60mm f/2.8 macro lens and edited/converted to black and white using Photoshop CS4.

Pride

"Don't quack like a duck, soar like an eagle." Ken Blanchard

This photo is a couple of years old and when I found it on my hard drive collecting dust I instantly remembered the pain this photo caused to get one that is in focus.

First of all the eagle was not flying in the wild, but it was at a bird park. When it was it's turn to fly and show off everybody suddenly jumped off their seats to the front with their cameras. That was the beginning of a near impossible task. Then came out the eagle and believe me when I say that they fly way too fast and these were still my early days of photography so I was not sure what I was supposed to do.

Finally when it was taking a break I captured this photo which in my opinion turned out great. I was quite happy with it. Once again I faced the dilemma...color or black and white. I picked out the black and white and decided that from today onwards most of the photos I upload are going to be in black and white.

This photo was shot with a Canon 40D using EF 28-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS lens and edited in Photoshop CS4.

Wilderness

Once again I faced myself with the black and white versus color dilemma but today I really couldn't choose so I am posting both.

The top photo is the original photo, converted to black and white, while the bottom photo is cropped piece from the black and white picture.

I don't know the name of this flower but I would guess it's a wild flower. I noticed the tree, which was mostly barely but for a few of these flowers while I was taking a walk today. The weather was terrible...strong winds and it was changing from sunny to cloudy in a matter of seconds.

When it comes to macro photography I am still learning the ropes and while it's beautiful it requires a tremendous amount of patience and dexterity, especially since I don't carry a tripod around with me. I still have a lot to learn but as they say, practice makes perfect.

This photo was shot using my Canon 40D with a 60mm macro lens, then edited in Photoshop CS4

Peace Lily

"A flower cannot blossom without sunshine, and man cannot live without love." Max Muller

Lets just open this paragraph by saying that in my opinion Peace Lillies are the nicest plants. I have seen them several times but only recently I learned what was their name. I was shopping for indoor plants for my new apartment and came across them and bought one. I've been hooked ever since and it will be no surprise if I fill up the place with them.

I have been trying to take photos of it for a long time but none make me really happy or do the plant any justice. Today I tried again and came up with this one. In the photo we see one beautiful flower that bloomed from the plant.

I was torn am the plant. It's shot at close up range and since I had no tripod I had to try several times to get the photo I wanted. I was torn when it came to convert it to black and white or leave it in color and as you can see I decided to convert to black and white. I like the feel that it's a little abstract yet clear enough to see that it's actually a plant.

The Peace Lily photo was shot using a Canon 40D with a 60mm Macro Lens and edited in Photoshop CS4.

Ready to Run

"A horse never runs so fast as when he has other horses to catch up and outpace." Ovid

Horses were the main source of transportation many years back. If you owned a horse it was like owning the latest expensive car. But we all know that's not the case anymore (except for some cultures.)

In Malta horses are still used as a means of transportation for tourists. It's a big business actually. If you go to Valletta or Mdina you can see a lot of horses waiting to pick up tourists and take them for a tour around the city. For tourists it's something exceptional and I would guess a thrill. 

Most of the horses are well kept and well taken care of but still I can't stand the sight of them in hot summers. All those horses lined up next to each other in the summer heat (which can reach up to 40C) while their owners are in the shade thinking that their horse can keep itself cool.

There were several claims to remove those horses off the streets but all were put to the side, I think mainly because this became a part of Malta and who we are and forever branded itself into our folklore.

This photo was shot using my Canon 40D and edited in Photoshop CS4.

Tiny

"A light wind swept over the corn, and all nature laughed in the sunshine." Anne Bronte

This photo was shot on the same day as Float Like a Butterfly, therefore it has been sitting on my hard drive for ages and I totally forgot about it. Finding a photo on your drive after many years has more or less the same feeling as finding money in your coat the winter after.

I remember it was pretty windy that day, so capturing a photo like this was pretty difficult, but persistence paid off. I don't know what kind of insect I have on the flower but it was pretty small judging by the flower to insect ratio.

This photo was shot my a Canon 40D and post processed using Photoshop CS4.

Float Like a Butterfly

"Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee." Muhammad Ali

Here comes another photo that sitting in the archives for way too long. It's always fun to look back through the years and see what photos you have stored. 

Even though this photo was shot a long time ago, I still remember the day vividly. It was a very peaceful walk through nature and I am glad it was peaceful otherwise I would have never gotten the patience to wait for a butterfly and shoot it close-up!

I have tried hard to get the wings in focus being that close to the creature and it looks pretty clear but now I am wishing I also got it's head in focus too. A lesson learnt for next time! By the way this photo was shot using my Canon 40D with a few minor adjustments in Photoshop CS4.