July 2009, Kypseli, AthensJuly 24, 2009
Windows
July 2009, Patissia, AthensNow, to consult the rules of composition before making a picture is a little like consulting the law of gravitation before going for a walk.
~ Edward Weston
Sometimes I forget my position
July 2009, Patissia, Athens
I think we've been forced to our knees
but I can't tell
~ Magazine, "Parade"
July 22, 2009
Alec Empire / Nine Inch Nails
"But all we know is how to learn"
~ Ursula Le Guin
In Concert
So here's one thing the 24-60mm lens was NOT built for: concerts. Unless you're backstage (or ON stage), if you want to shoot some nice "mainstream" photos in a concert, you need zoom. And when you're in the pit? Well, first of all, you need to zoom, focus and centre the picture around the artist(s). You also need to be either right in front of the stage, or tall enough to shoot past people's heads and raised hands. And last but not least, you need a goddamn battery in your goddamn camera. I failed miserably at all of the above, but at least I was able to shoot some photos. Until the battery died on me, that is.
Choosing ISO
Grain or blur? If you carry a lens longer than your arm, you can reliably say "neither". Otherwise, you have to choose and lose. I should have tried both, but this would require thinking! and deciding! - and I was too busy moshing. So I picked grain right at the beginning and stuck with it. Now, grain is a bad choice when you want to focus on a detail, small objects, or Trent Reznor's frontal vein. But since my zoomless lens already prevented me from such noble pursuits, I simply went for the hazy stuff. ISO-800, under the standard (erratic) lighting of the stage, results in grain which is just enough to make the classic smoke/spotlight combination look eerie, without fucking up the image's resolution beyond recognition. This was all well and good on paper (err... screen), until I came home and decided to do the unprecedented: crop the pictures.
Cropping
Cropping is harder than it looks, I realised in astonishment yesterday. It changes everything, and there's no "right" way to crop an image. There are millions of ways and you have to choose. This proved difficult and time-consuming. ("I'll cut here... No, wait, I should include the spotlight. Umm, no, I should keep the microphone at the centre... Oooh, I know, I'll have the amp and keyboard form a line right here... Er, what did I want to do, again?") Mix that with increased grain, and you have a problem. ("Hey,this cropping would be perfect! ...If you could make head or tail of what's left.") Because film grain is awesome: zoom in, and even if the shapes are less well-defined, the image overall is still great. But digital grain (or however they call it) is crap: zoom in, and you get noise.
Lessons learned:
1) Cropping is a pain.
2) Cropping is a wonderful tool.
3) Be very careful with grain if you intend to crop later.
My empire of dirt
July 2009, Nine Inch Nails @ Vyronas"We're gonna play some weird shit tonight"
~ Trent Reznor
July 19, 2009
Before you snap
July 2009, Patissia, AthensBut... how much can you take?
How much can you take?
How much can you take before you snap?
~ Yonderboi, "Before you snap"
How much can you take?
How much can you take before you snap?
~ Yonderboi, "Before you snap"
Childhood's End
July 2009, Patissia, AthensOh if you find the time
please come and stay a while
in my beautiful neighbourhood
~ Space, "Neighbourhood"
Wishful thinking
July 2009, E-94, AtticaOne sunny morning
We'll rise, I know
And I'll meet you further on up the road
~ Johnny Cash, "Further on up the road"
FTL
July 2009, E-94, AtticaIn the tunnel, I meant to change the ISO setting. There were three tunnels. I forgot three times. Oh well.
Vault
July 2009, Patissia, Athens"For the love of God, Montresor!"
"Yes," I said, "for the love of God."
~ Edgar Allan Poe, "The Cask of Amontillado""Yes," I said, "for the love of God."
Free falling
June 2009, Patissia, Athensall manner of joy
all manner of glee
and our one heroic pledge
~ Placebo, "Meds"
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