A Subway Scene

Looking through my photo archives for a photo to discuss this week, I came across this one. I never thought very much of this photo when I took it, it was an on the run capture and I don’t think it was ever really what I was picturing to capture. After not seeing it for a while, I find it pretty interesting and rather funny. And even more surprising, I now love the composition of the shot. It is almost like it is not even a photograph, but a child’s view of the scene, hidden behind other passerby's. This scene has so many details that create a multitude of stories and ideas for the audience. Probably the most unusual detail is the native american fellow towards the right side of the photo. He immediately pops out as almost out of place, almost creating a staged feel to the photo. He is in the one open spot of the scene, where behind him a woman is in mid walk, and even further behind, two people are having a conversation. Its not surprising to believe that this is of course in New York, a city where you find all kids of people by just walking down the street of any neighborhood. Street and urban photography, like portraits, always provide great stories and profile of real, unscripted lives. Similarly to portraits, theres always that aspect of street photography that you can’t control, even greater than portraits usually, too. This is why journalists and reporters are some of the largest groups of photographers who create captivating street photographs, the ones which are featured on the front page of the Times and trend all over the web. What do you like about street photography?

Hannah

Portraiture is one of my favorite types of photography. You can capture so much expression and so much of a story just from someone’s facial expression. This photo is of my sister Hannah, it was taken in New York over winter. So what makes a great portrait? There are basic rules of photography, pertaining to lighting and focusing and the sort, this structure of the photo, commonly referred to as the rule of thirds, and then there is this untouchable element, the human, that is the wild card. The rules and structure are simple to follow, even for the most novice photographer, but this third element is usually where the photo either makes or breaks it. Well, this isn’t an easy question to answer. There is only so much you can do to manipulate someones expression. A good portrait must also reflect on its surroundings and the mood of the light, as well as the person’s intellectual state. I think this portrait of my sister almost captures all three aspects perfectly. Not only is she in a great spot, but the lighting is almost spot on. You can get a great sense of depth from how the lake looks like it continues on and fades into the distance. Her face is outlined by the focus of the lens and her expression says it all. Although her face is relatively small when compared with the rest of the photo, you can tell she is taking in the atmosphere and environment and enjoying her life. 

Chinatown

This is an older photograph of mine that I took with a film camera. One day during the spring I was in New York city and was snapping all kinds of urban type shots, this one specifically is from a fish market in Chinatown. I had found an old 35mm film camera in my house that needed some work, so I got it repaired at put it to work. Film cameras often yield much different types of photos than digital pictures, they just have a more vintage feel to them, even if they’re just as sharp. They seem so much more untouched, no pun intended considering that film comes out pretty much raw disregarding the modifications that can be applied in the darkroom. The high contrast and graininess of the photo make it unique, and the fellow standing front and center adds a certain mood to the scene. Although his face expression is small, compared to the other parts of the photo, you can tell he isn’t happy, he looks tired. He probably works long and dull days and doesn’t make the best money. From the appearance of the store, it doesn’t look like its in the best condition and may not be the image people get when they think of Chinatown and New York City. I find taking pictures of strangers, and urban settings, interesting. You get so much personality and character since its on the fly and usually in their natural setting (not a lab or set), and a real story can be developed. Lighting, objects, and the scenery is all natural and not set up. Two summers ago, I walked all over New York with one of my friends and took pictures of all types of New Yorkers, young and old. Look forward to some of those photos in the coming weeks.

Bike Restoration

I took these photos a while back, over winter break, when I was restoring an old road bike that I found lying around my house. The bike was in great condition considering it was 30+ years old, but the paint had lots of chips in it that we filing with rust. The first picture captures one of my favorite parts of the restoration, when I used the paint stripper to remove all of the paint so I could sand the frame down. I had never used a paint stripper before, but learned that it was very toxic and very dangerous. You could see how the stripper ate away at the pain and made it easy to wipe right off. Despite the hazard, it worked wonders on the bike frame and made it very easy to remove the current paint which was old and was applied very thick. I think this photo of the bottom section of the frame is a really interesting photo, I was able to get a very neat angle with great focus on the frame. The lighting is a little on the dark side, but the light is visible where is counts and lets you see the stripper bubbling up the paint. After I stripped all of the paint off of the bike, I proceeded to sand it down until the metal was smooth and then I applied a primer coat, and then the green paint. With the new paint job, which can be seen in the second photo, the bike frame was now smooth and looked much sleeker. I really like the contrasts in the second photo of the bike frame; the bike frame stands out from the newspaper but also blends in, but you can tell the newspaper is not the focus of the picture, even though it is in focus and almost in the same depth of field as the bike. All together, the bike restoration took about a week, which included taking the bike apart completely, stripping, painting, applying all new parts and cables, and reassembling. I’m thinking about making it a side business of mine.

Springing Forward

Spring is right around the corner, and we’ve been experiencing some great previews of the glorious spring weather soon to come to the valley. After reading over some of my past posts, its time to reassess my topics of these posts, they have become to much like journal entries, so here it goes. I saw the perfect opportunity to capture some really cool shadows the other day walking back from class on Pollock Road. The sun was in an interesting position where I had to focus my phones camera behind a tree to not get the sunlight into the lens, and I loved the results. There is a really interesting contrast between the highlights and the shadows here, especially towards the bottom of the photo. I also want to point out the shadows and highlights from the trees at the right side of the photo, the lines are really crisp and the highlights are not to bright, it is the perfect mix for an interesting shadow. The photograph seems to be a bit dark at first but when you look further into it, it brightens up and you can see the light, almost like the winter months are almost ending and spring is near. To build on that concept, it is worth noting that people on the right sidewalk are walking into the picture, into the light, into spring, inferring even more of a forward movement. The color effects I added to the photo help to make it seem somewhat old and over/under exposed and bring more personality to the photo; a pink sky and yellow sidewalk are pretty uncommon but focus on the sunlight. After spring break, I plan on upgrading from my cell phone camera and bringing my professional camera up to get more creative with my shots, so be ready!

Just Dance!

The biggest highlight of this past week had to be THON. As old as THON posts are getting, I will try to keep this one as unique and non-cliche as possible. It was hard for me to stop taking pictures with all the different colors that were surrounding me and all of the ridiculous dance moves that people were showing off. Being on the floor provided me an awesome opportunity to take some great photos of dancers working hard throughout the weekend, but I felt a bit awkward taking photos of random people with my little camera. Dancing were crying, laughing, struggling, and pushing through and I wish I could have captured these moments that help people see what THON weekend entails. One of the most captivating moments on the floor of the Bryce Jordan Center came when it was time for line dances. Everyone on the floor who is tired and resting gets up, and almost everyone in the stands participates. The first few times were a bit messy, but towards the end of the weekend, everyone in the BJC was dancing to the same dance and it almost looked jaw dropping. In this photo, I tried to get a perspective from near the stage of the line dance. One could see that everyone seems to have similar movements going on, it made for a great capture. All of the colors help to show the audience of the photo how much personality the event has and how excited people get about THON. Overall, this picture really helps to capture the spirt of the past weekend.

Snow, Snow, Snow

State College has quite interesting weather patterns. We’ve experienced some beautiful snow storms and many ugly rainy days. The photo above was the image outside of my dorm a few days ago. This is why I love west halls and why I love the campus here at Penn State. The image I woke up to was absolutely beautiful. Everything was covered in snow, yet the sun was shining brightly. As much as I love the snow, I’ve grown to dislike it a bit seeing that I have to trek to classes in blizzards sometimes. When your a child and you live a carefree life and you can come home and ride your sled, you have a much different feeling towards snow. The abnormally warm weather that we have been experiencing has been great, but as an avid snowboarder I’m a bit disappointed. I am beginning to really believe in global warming. Over the past few years we haven't seen nearly as much snow as we have in the past. It is hard not to believe in global warming, or at least think that something is up, when one day its snowing, the next its 50 degrees, and then later in the week its snowing again. I was very excited to bring up my snowboard when I heard the valley usually receives a lot of snow, but that was not the case this winter. Yes, mountains make artificial snow but please, its not real snow. It all becomes ice overnight anyway. All things considered, I cannot wait for the spring weather to really kick in.

The College Lifestyle

Pulling all nighters is almost a commonplace for every college student. We’ve all had those moments where we are cramming before an exam and just need the time to study more. And why not? Staying up for 36 hours straight, running on six hours of sleep, and then taking a mid-term exam is so healthy for us. Not. Hundreds and thousands of studies have shown that it is good to get a good nights rest and study long before the exam, but for college students this is not always practical. We have busy lives. I say with confidence that a large majority of college students start our days much later than we did in high school, maybe later than we ever will. Since coming to school, I have been transformed into a night person, and I always find myself staying up until two in the morning most nights. This cannot be very healthy either, but its the “college life.” I’ve got clubs, schoolwork, friends, and try to fit relaxation in there too, but its difficult. 

However, I want to discuss the photo above more. This illustrates a classic scene at the library. Four o’clock. Wednesday morning. My roommate and I were cramming for exams. This was the first all-nighter I’ve pulled going from studying right into the exam. I studying from 10PM on Tuesday night to 11AM Wednesday night straight, and I loved it. I was hyped up on about 4 monster energy drinks and cold pizza, and later a lot of coffee. I think that after a certain amount of time being up, my body realized I was not going to sleep and I felt really awake. The fact that I didn’t need my phone to be while working seemed to help me get a lot, and I mean A LOT, of work done. I learned that now when I’m studying for exams I should really shut my phone off, they’re honestly enormous distractions.

All nighters may seem like a good idea when you start, but you will regret them when you feel dead. I think it definitely payed off though.

The crash came about right after the exam. It was not fun. 

Ol' Main

First, I would like to apologize for the awfully cliche photograph above. I had taken some  remarkable pictures illustrating the myriad of weather conditions that State College has experienced this week, but because of problems with my phone memory they were incidentally erased. Yes, that is Old Main, possibly one of the most heavily photographed landmarks, aside from Beaver Stadium and the Lion Shrine. I was leaving class and thought, “why not?, I can finally voice my hatred of Old Main.” But before you leave me a comment including a death threat because I just said I have hatred towards Old Main, please continue reading and maybe you will understand my quandary. Do not get me wrong, to my knowledge Old Main was one, if not the, first building at Penn State and embraces the strong history of the University. The bell tower and long pillars contribute to its impressive architecture.

For those who have not been to Penn State, the clock tower of Old Main sounds off every 15 minutes with a unique sequence of rings. It is something like what a church bell sounds like when a couple is married, but much more frequent. To the virgin ear, this is pretty cool, but after a few days it gets a bit infuriating. I can see why some may find this useful. Back in the day when people did not carry watches, cell phones, any other electronic device that tells the time, this could be very useful for keeping track of time. Additionally, I could see how the ringing promotes the tradition and history behind the building.

All things considered, the 24 hour, 7 day a week ring of the bell is downright obnoxious. It is important to note that the bell can be heard from quite a distance; I’ve picked up its ring from the area around Pollock Commons, Curtain Road near the library, and the Life Sciences building, which is closer to the east side of campus. At times, and by times I mean on the hour, it is understandable. I have no problem with an hourly ring; it is a good reminder for those who are deep in work to keep track of their time. As a student living on campus in West Halls, one can imagine how much of an annoyance the quarterly ring is at times when I am trying to study, or even sleep. I will admit that I am an unusually light sleeper and will sense the slightest changes and wake up immediately. I can be sure of one thing though, I am certainly not the only one who finds the ringing aggravating when they are about to get to sleep and suddenly the 30-second long chime goes off to keep me awake for another 15 minutes until the next 30-second chime goes off. You can quickly pick up that this turns into an ongoing process.

Hopefully you now understand my dilemma and no longer have a motive to send me to my death. To solve this issue I propose this resolution. Between the hours of 9AM - 9PM the bell would operate on a 15-minute ring schedule, as it is rather useful during the day. Between 9PM-9AM, the bell would switch to operation on an hourly ring. This would be more efficient since the campus is more or less empty at night and a majority of students do not start classed until about 9AM. Are you up for this modification, Penn State?


Once again, I apologize for the cliche photo. Check back next week for something a bit more creative and unique.

Joseph Vincent Paterno

In the wake of Joe Paterno’s death, I decided to take a trip to view the meaningful and powerful Paterno statue outside of Beaver Stadium. Upon approaching the statue, one quickly comes to realize that the scene is one you would see at a cemetery, very somber and very mournful. Joe Paterno was more than just a football coach to Penn State, he was a father, a teacher, and a mentor. From standing off to the side of the statue, one can quickly realize how much he meant to the world. The flowers and tokens of gratitude seem almost never ending. The messages written by children, adults, students, alumni, professors, players, are heartfelt and powerful. For a man to influence so many people, most who had never met him even once, is incredible and is all the proof needed to explain how important he was to this community and this university. From the photo, one can see that the weather is nasty and cold, and it is raining. But this does not stop his supporters from paying homage to him and his legacy. I went to approach the wall that displays players names and a meaningful quote by Paterno himself to find there was a line wrapping down the sidewalk. I will honestly say I had no clue who Joseph Vincent Paterno was until I applied to Penn State, and was set back a bit by the amount of support for him after his death. I have known of him for about half a year, and I can wholeheartedly say that he has affected me in only positive ways. Through all the scandal, I always believed in Joe and felt part of the family, the Penn State family. The scarf, cold weather gear, the American flag, the myriad of shirt, candles, and flower bouquets are truly expressive of how much the community cared for Joe. This has been one hell of a year for the University and the community, but we still are Penn State. Rest is peace Joe.