Archive for the ‘Photowalks’ Category
idle pursuits
Oh dear gourd, what fresh hell has been loosed?
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Not too much to report today, lords and ladies of Newtown, so seasonal greetings are offered. Over the weekend, Our Lady of the Pentacle and myself decided to spend some idle time carving the family Jack O’Lanterns. One less thing, right? I did the one of the left, and Our Lady carved the right side one.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
I decided that my pumpkin must have teeth of some kind, and the general outlines and shapes of a human skull were kept in mind.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Our Lady, who is a bit of a scamp, decided to go for a mischievous sort of thing. One likes her pumpkin, better than one’s own.
Back tomorrow, with something a bit more substantial, at this – your Newtown Pentacle.
“follow” me on Twitter- @newtownpentacle
long coma
Trucks, trucks, trucks.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Moving about as one does, an awful variety of trucks are observed. There are trucks that suck, and trucks that carry. Pictured above is a delivery of automobiles arriving at Northern Boulevard’s “Carridor.” This is a truck which drives cars around.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
At the corner of Meeker and Monitor and at the border of Greenpoint and Bushwick, this rusty number only carries people and a small amount of cargo. A human scale machine if ever there was one.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Over on Ash street in Greenpoint, one encountered a truck full of mini tractors. This was a municipal kind of thing, as these tractors were on their way to a NYCHA vehicle maintenance facility. There is nothing human scale about the New York City Housing Authority, of course.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Over on Van Dam Street in Blissville, I found a tow truck of the “wrecker” type with a smaller tow truck on its bed. This was novel, thought a humble narrator, piggybacking one truck onto another. I wondered if the smaller tow truck might have a jack in its cargo compartment.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Back in the Carridor in Queens, a heavy truck was delivering light trucks to a Mercedes dealership one morning. Whimsy demanded that I consider whether or no there might be some of those “Smart” electric mini cars inside the light trucks, but that made my head begin to hurt.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Finally, on Greenpoint Avenue in Brooklyn, a truck that carries ex cars. Its cargo consisted entirely of squished automobiles, which were undoubtedly headed for the SimsMetal pier on the Queens bank of the Newtown Creek.
“follow” me on Twitter- @newtownpentacle
tripping on
Glamour, intrigue, concerns about Popeye’s health – that’s what I’m about.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Raconteur is not how you’d describe a humble narrator, but I am a man about town. So much so that I find myself positively dizzied from exposure to those malfeasant atmospherics typically found within that nightmare of the claustrophobe which is particularly known as the NYC Subway system. Often, it feels as if one has become detached from reality when below, and has been reduced down to a statistical average. Limbo, indeed.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Perhaps it is the unwillingness of Station Managers to activate the exhaust fans at certain stops along the line? The unwelcome dustings of rodent feces and other foul exhalations which signal the arrival of a train? Mayhaps, it is the dripping concrete and smell of rotting masonry? On long trips which require many connections, one such as myself experiences a disordering of thought. If there is a hell, my specific punishment will be an infinite commute.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Often, one experiences his most intriguing thoughts while attempting to ignore the quite possibly dangerous humans who infest the system. All social interaction is fraught with risk, so the humans are best avoided. Instead, one ponders deep thoughts while lost in the labyrinth.
Recently, while considering the appearance of the cartoon sailor Popeye, it occurred to me that the characters peculiar physiognomy might indicate that he is a stroke victim. Frozen expression, swollen extremities, speech impairment – think about it, he’s also a smoker. The spinach might be on advice of medical professionals. Also, Poop Deck Pappy presents the same disabilities, so it might be some form of hereditary arteriosclerosis which affects the mariners.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Time lost, time gained. Down here, where I am useless and bored, is the platform for deciding the right course of action on a series of meaningless points. Often, I find myself just clicking the camera off randomly, turning it at funny angles to the scene. That’s kind of how the shots in today’s post came together. While developing them, I realized that my brain was working really hard working out the angles and perspectives.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Unconsiously, my head kept on turning, craning over to one side, as the visual information processing section of my head took over. When I caught myself doing this over and over, autonomiclly, a point was made to pass some of my time in subterranea waving the camera around randomly.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
There’s something so odd about this image, and it’s just that it was shot upside down. It’s interesting, neurologically speaking, this “perception thing,” isn’t it? Ever notice that when you see a photo or video of yourself, it doesn’t seem to look right? That’s not the face you see in the mirror every day, is it? Thing is, what we think of as “our face” is actually a flopped mirror image, which indicates… what do I know, I’m on the friggin subway all the time.
“follow” me on Twitter- @newtownpentacle
Open House NY: DUPBO
Open House New York 2014 – Down Under the Pulaski Bridge Onramp
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Join Newtown Creek Alliance Historian Mitch Waxman for an intense exploration of Brooklyn’s Greenpoint and Queens’s Hunters Point neighborhoods, walking along the East River and over the Newtown Creek.
A colonial center and 19th century industrial powerhouse, Greenpoint is a thriving neighborhood cursed by environmental catastrophe. Explore this ancient North Brooklyn neighborhood, and learn its incredible industrial history, while moving inexorably toward the Newtown Creek.
The tour will cross Newtown Creek via the Pulaski Bridge and head into the brave new world and Modern Corridor of Long Island City’s Hunters Point. There will be spectacular waterfront vistas to enjoy, maritime industrial and rail infrastructure to marvel at, and along the way – a few surprises will be encountered.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
By walking tour standards, this one is pretty low core. The only major physical obstacle we will encounter are the flights of stairs on the Pulaski Bridge. Unlike many of the other walks which explore the industrial zone hinterlands of the Newtown Creek, the DUPBO walk moves through well populated neighborhood streets in Greenpoint and LIC.
Bring your camera! Everywhere we go, just about, you’re going to see postcard panoramas of NYC’s spectacular East River coastline.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Be prepared for rough terrain and possible heavy truck traffic. Dress and pack appropriately for hiking and for weather. Closed-toe shoes are highly recommended. Bathroom opportunities will be found only at the start of the walk. We will be ending in LIC, nearby several mass transit hubs.
This is a free walking tour, part of the 2014 Open House NY weekend, but registration is required. Click here for tix.
“follow” me on Twitter- @newtownpentacle
conscious or subconscious
I am the night. You have feasted well…
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Recently, while traversing through the so called Court Square area found around Davis and Jackson in LIC, a humble narrator found himself deploying the camera and shooting into the fuligin night. This was a bit of whimsy on my part, as I had just watched the premiere episode of the new television series “Gotham.” It seems that Batman’s home town is actually LIC, as so many of the spots where the shows’ urban dramaturge played out were ultimately familiar to one such as myself.
I figured I’d see if Bats was lurking anywhere nearby, or if I might unintentionally capture a shot of Two-Face or Joker while they skulked in the shadows.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
While I was popping off a few exposures, one suddenly experienced a tap on the shoulder. A fellow was standing next to me, just a little too close for comfort, and watching as I played around with camera settings and assumed the series of odd postures which have proven themselves efficacious when attempting to gather low light shots without deploying a tripod. He said “Can I ask you a question?” as he slipped his hand into his knapsack. A child of New York in the 1980’s, and a Batman fan, I immediately began working out defensive solutions in my mind. There were five. Two would just put space between me and him, one would have busted his pelvis, and the other two would have put me in front of a judge for attempted homicide. The sixth solution was to wait, and find out what the question was.
He slowly pulled his hand out of the carry all, and there was something large – and heavy – held in his grasp. “Here we go again” I thought.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
As his hand, grasping a large object which was black in coloration and clearly metallic, exited the bag – one was prepared to grab his wrist with my right hand and pull his arm and a probable weapon down toward the sidewalk and away from me. My left arm was primed to deliver a sharp elbow to his throat while I was simultaneously preparing to deliver a hip check that any NHL player would have approved of (this is one of the two solutions in which I end up in front of a judge). That’s when the fellow asked his question – “can you help me learn how to take better shots at night” as his hand finally emerged from the knap sack and produced a consumer level Nikon with an f3.5 zoom lens on it. Thereupon, a short lesson in aperture, ISO, and shutter speed ensued.
Gotham, indeed.
“follow” me on Twitter- @newtownpentacle
The Newtown Pentacle 