NEW YORK NEW YORK – We came back to New York today – a long travel day which starts at 6:00 AM in Santa Monica and ends at 6:00 AM in New York – in both cases in the dark this time of year. As you know I sometimes struggle finding a good image on air travel days and this was no exception. In the end I shot a water bottle in our kitchen in NY our of desperation. I also made a few pictures of Francesca but they were terrible. So here’s the water bottle taken with my new Leica S.
Bottle
Well ok. there’s always this one taken on the plane messing around with photo booth on my iPhone.
Selfie
On this day one year ago: Vacant lot. Maybe January 10 is just a bad day for me.
PALM DESERT CALIFORNIA – I made the soul-crushing drive up to Palm Desert from Santa Monica this morning to take my medium format Alpa and Phase One gear (a so-called technical camera – probably because you need an engineering degree to set it up and get the most out of it) to Camera West to trade for a Leica S medium format camera. The Alpa just hasn’t been working for me – it requires working from a tripod and my vision suffers when I use a tripod – my work is best when I use a more intuitive and less calculating approach. The Leica S can be hand held elegantly. I traded my technical camera and four lenses for a Leica S and four lenses and got some change back. Nice.
After completing my deal I made the short drive to Sunnylands where I had arranged for a tour through a friend. Sunnylands is the Annenberg estate – it includes a private golf course and a house, grounds and decor that are tributes to mid-century Modern. It’s currently owned by a foundation and used for high-end conferences.
Too much chit-chat here. Let’s move on to some images. The first two with my new camera. The balance are with my Leica Monochrom.
SANTA MONICA CALIFORNIA – Another day of bicycling. For most of the day it was partially cloudy with a high unattractive sky but later in the day it cleared so I got some ok images in the park in front of our hotel. Taken with my Leica Monochrom.
Sunset
On this day last year: Good light. Field and tree line from Warren.
SANTA MONICA CALIFORNIA – I spent the afternoon bicycling on the beach in Santa Monica and Venice. Here’s an image toward sunset taken with my Leica Monochrom and 50mm Summilux lens.
Santa Monica Beach
VENICE CALIFORNIA – We had a shopping and eating day today on Abbot Kinney Boulevard, which is said to be one of the best shopping streets in the world. By whom I don’t know. Perhaps someone who has never been to Paris or Milan. But it really is kind of funky and fun. Images taken with my Leica Monochrom and 50mm Summilux lens.
HaberdasherAbbot Kinney Boulevard
This with my iPhone and then “percolated”
Brewed in Percolator
On this day last year: Risotto alla Milanese. Home cooking. Have I mentioned that I’m a foodie?
SANTA MONICA CALIFORNIA – We started the day in Manhattan and ended it in Santa Monica. Maria is here on business and I’m tagging along to explore Santa Monica and Naples and to drive up to Camera West in Rancho Mirage to trade my extensive Phase One and Alpa technical camera gear for a Leica S medium format camera. The technical camera actually brings out the worst in me – my shooting gets cramped and stilted (to my eye) once I put the camera on a tripod. More on this in future posts. For today I shot this fellow artist on the Santa Monica pier (a refuge for harmless sleaze) with my Leica Monochrome and a 35mm Leica Summilux wide angle lens.
Artist
Here’s a no-no. A pet. Basil, our splendid Norwich Terrier. I’ve sworn never to post pictures of pets or cute kids, so this is bad behavior on my part. Taken with my iPhone and processed a bit.
