Riding High

So last week Tuesday, as you well know, it was my birthday. On the Tuesday I spent the day exploring the city filling the space between the mooching/shopping with eating. I started my morning in the Flatiron District with a gorgeous brunch at Nomad. Followed by afternoon tea at the new Laduree Teahouse in Soho, ending with dinner at Tertulia in the West Village. It was a fantastic day.

The Saturday before Hipster Dufus' friend very generously offered to take us on a plane ride to celebrate my old age. However it turned out to be somewhat of a disaster. While I'm starting to settle in very well, every so often the city throws me a curveball and reminds me that I still have a long way to go. So what happened? Well I allowed myself to think that I could invite enough people to my house for drinks. This gathering was supposed to follow a quick whiz in the plane, making for quite an epic day. The morning of, it decides to snow. So the plane was out. And during the day the inevitable cancellations started pouring in. Feeling like a Susie-no-mates and NOT dealing with the whole "it's my birthday" thing very well, I decided to do everyone a favor and cancel. By this point I was waiting on 3 people...

However this weekend Hipster Dufus' friend followed through on his offer and off we went. This time the route would take us all around New York. Starting in Coney Island, circling the Statue of Liberty ending up in a full on approach towards Manhattan. I think the photos really speak for themselves, there 's no better way to see the city. The view from up above is breathtaking. It's like seeing your very own opening credits to a film set in New York except this time, after two hours the screen doesn't fade to black.

Goodbye my friend

Ok so I've been slack again. This photography course has really eaten up all my time as it was an intensive course. Next time I think twice a week is too much, it left me feeling frazzled. However I finished last night and really loved it. The teacher was fantastic and I met some really great people on the course. My only regret was that there wasn't enough time to make connections outside of the course. Everyone had different talents and strengths so all the pictures were interesting. I have to say that it took me a while to get the hang of the technical side. Yesterday was the first day that I felt I may have finally got it. What it did was really help with improving my photo taking skills. Because I knew I had to print these photos I really had to look harder to find my subjects. It made me more picky and taught me to self edit.

I ended up with a really eclectic mix of photos that I really think showed elements of New York life. I was heavily influenced by an exhibition I saw in Perth called "Picturing New York" - it was a collaboration with MoMA. And so I had an evaluation from my teacher, what was my verdict? I have a natural eye for composition and use of all sides of the frame. I also have a natural eye for street photography. Jim's advice was to explore this further by creating a photo series based on a single subject. So food carts or nightlife etc. Here are two more shots for your delight. I really wanted to put more up but I also thought that I quite like them being slightly private. For people to view when they visit or when we return. Although this one of Phil was just too much to resist.

Best Shots

At the Whitney Museum

Best Shots: Street Photography

My second attempt at street photography. Titled 'Enduring Love'. Prefer it in black & white as per documentary style.