intimiste

see a fine picture: "good night moon"

2012-01-27T23:04:00.003-05:00

a slim cut of the moon, anyway...

happy friday night from nyc...

walking, facing downtown...lafayette street, nyc

jan 27, 2012

inspiration: (yes yes yes)

2012-01-26T05:38:00.005-05:00

prince/mulberry streets, nyc

jan 25, 2012

inspiration: the ballet dancer misty copeland and photographer inez van lamsweerde

2012-01-24T23:15:00.009-05:00

abt soloist misty copeland, as photographed by inez van lamsweerde for w magazine (december 2009)

***

as misty copeland and matthew prescott finished their performance of "falling" --choreographed by mr. prescott himself--at tonight's DRA benefit, my sister leaned toward me and whispered, "she is a gorgeous dancer."

impossible to disagree. (honestly, we could have been talking about her legs alone. amazing.)

when you have an opportunity to see her dance up close, as we could at the cedar lake theater, you'll notice she's even lighter, her muscles more precise than in any photos you'll see online. the gentle hyperextension in her knees deepens the drama of her leg action. but the extension through her whole upper body is just as exquisite. she doesn't do "bravado" or big ballet gestures (to be fair, the choreography didn't call for it, but still)...she just entrances you.

there are no high-quality, extended videos of "falling" (though there was a video crew at tonight's performance, so perhaps in the coming weeks, the dra will post one) but if you'd like to see a very short clip, start at the :22...

saturday scene: all (at the guggenheim)

2012-01-22T22:13:00.017-05:00

the queue for the finale...

on saturday evening, i decided to attend the event that would mark the close of maurizio cattelan's show at the guggenheim -- and celebrate his retirement. i didn't know much about him or his art, but the 7-hour finale, with over 30 speakers from various disciplines-- visual art, literature, film, music, economics, politics, religion, dance, theater, sports, and fashion--seemed like a good opportunity to get enlightened. (i really only cared that george vecsey, a trusted--and missed--voice from the ny times sports pages, was going to be there. if there was any reason that mr. cattelan should resonate with me, mr. vecsey would make me aware.)

i braved the damp cold and a line that wound from the fifth avenue entrance, around the corner and down the length of 89th street to madison avenue--at least that's where my wait started. the waiting and the weather made the first steps into the rotunda exhilarating -- and the first sight of the suspended art (horses, pinocchio)--even moreso. everyone was snap-happy.

i took my time, walking the ramps around the exhibit.

what can i say about the art? meh. i wasn't particularly moved. as a whole, or taken as separate pieces, the work is...sensational. but i didn't feel excited or inspired to know whatever story or joke or intent drove their creation. there were mini-figurines and massive taxidermy specimens, funny photos, "z"s and bones and boobs, and a pope felled by a meteor. i liked the olive tree and the big block of soil that it "grew" on. there were many football references, too (it became easy to figure what mr. vecsey would comment on, so in the end, i didn't feel the need to stay for his talk.) let's just say, i saw "all" and that was enough.

i did enjoy being there though. one of the things i love about the guggenheim is the simple expansiveness of it--the distance and airiness from one side of the rotunda to the other. but having artwork hanging from the middle meant that instead of everyone facing away from the center, we all gathered around it. it gave a much different perspective on the experience, as well as the art. the vibe was buzzier too, i don't know if it was the saturday night/pay what you wish admission or if it was the weirdness of the art that inspired it, but it was almost like your parents went away for the weekend--woo hoo--and you could have the whole house to yourself (and 500 hundred or so friends), feet up on the good couch, watching tv upside down. that we were all allowed to take pictures (which is generally verboten, unlike at the MET) made a difference for everyone, i think. anyway, i liked seeing people wanting to capture their experience for themselves, or to share.

here are more of mine from the night:

***

all photos © anita aguilar

class picture: b&w street shots

2012-01-18T22:44:00.008-05:00

on a day when i was assigned to find "light and shadow" the sky was perfectly...grey.

i didn't get too many good photos, but the day inspired a couple of memorable encounters:

mister hazmat.

i asked permission to take his photo ("sign" language, as he was on the phone).

i wish i'd thought to get his whole outfit, but i was so fixated on his face, his hood.

and then he flashed me that sign, with his funky-tipped gloves.

***

there was a single moment that afternoon when the sun burst through the clouds and created exactly the kind of dramatic shadow i needed to work with. i noticed a woman, directly across the street from me, sitting almost regally with her fur-trimmed coat, her legs crossed at the ankles, on the thick concrete slabs that create some roaming space for pedestrians around madison square park. she looked relaxed--and i hesitated to disturb her--but wanted to make a photo of her. so i made a gentle ask...

it turned out she didn't speak english. so we exchanged signs, i pointed at the camera, and she consented, with a nod. but by then the sun was gone.

still, i wanted a photo of her, but asked her to turn her head so i could get her strong profile. i pointed in the direction i wanted her to look. she stood up and walked that way. we were both confused, but had a nice laugh afterwards. (how funny that she would even think to take that kind of direction from me so willingly, yes?) she liked the photos, but the expression on her face in this one, as she's walking away from me, is my favorite.

***

all photos taken jan 10, 2012

class picture: b&w "light and shadow exercise"

2012-01-17T22:24:00.007-05:00

east 38th street

***

midtown east...

the ace hotel

***

the ace hotel

***

photos © anita aguilar

class picture: b&w "silver efex" exercise

2012-01-14T00:41:00.003-05:00

friday (unfinished)

january 13, 2012

class picture: b&w "light and shadow" exercise

2012-01-13T23:18:00.005-05:00

shelf.

@ the ace hotel, nyc

january 10, 2012

city lights

2012-01-13T00:22:00.003-05:00

"the city lights are on

for us, to us, tonight"

- randall mann,"bernal hill" (via the poetry foundation).

photo © anita aguilar

jan 12, 2012

the brindle room/"wonder city" donuts

2012-01-10T09:08:00.004-05:00

photo © anita aguilar

if you are so inclined: more photos, a few thoughts here...

hear a little song: sit down beside me

2011-12-27T19:25:00.001-05:00

cause that's what i want
that's what we need

Patrick Watson - Sit Down Beside Me (Live at OPB) from opbmusic.org on Vimeo.

merry christmas/god only knows

2011-12-26T23:06:00.013-05:00

cheers to my funny, full-hearted family...

from the family calendar, 2012 edition. by jessica reyes ("shakira"/"the mama")

***

and: this year

hear a little song: before you go

2011-12-21T22:22:00.008-05:00

the back story here is that i was looking for some good wednesday night programming and turned to TCM. winona ryder (looking lovely but sounding awfully nervous) was the evening's co-host. she chose for our viewing pleasure a "screwball twist on snow white and the seven dwarfs"-- a film called "balls of fire." gary cooper plays a professor working on an encyclopedia, barbara stanwyck is the stripper who teaches him all about slang. and: there's an appearance by gene krupa. sounds like a winner, yes?

i wound up having to record the film, so can't provide a critique at the moment.

but this video tribute preceded the 10pm showing, and i thought it was quite a nice remembrance:

another version of the pretty song:

inspiration: the holiday edition

2011-12-20T22:05:00.005-05:00

And indeed there will be time
To wonder, “Do I dare?” and, “Do I dare?”

(with apologies to ts eliot)

Scout Regalia Reel 02: Gingerbread Geodesic Dome from Scout Regalia on Vimeo.

(and will there indeed be time to make this for christmas?!)

hat tip to sister for the link, and scout regalia for the cheer and inspiration

read a good poem: approach of winter

2011-12-20T08:38:00.003-05:00

nyc, dec 2011. © anita aguilar

The half-stripped trees
struck by a wind together,
bending all,
the leaves flutter drily
and refuse to let go
or driven like hail
stream bitterly out to one side
and fall
where the salvias, hard carmine,—
like no leaf that ever was—
edge the bare garden.

--william carlos williams, via the academy of american poets

celebrate: 45

2011-12-17T10:07:00.002-05:00

snapshots from one of my favorite photo albums.

taken at san jose church and fernando air base, philippines.

(congratulations...)

read a good poem: lilac sunday

2011-12-14T23:28:00.008-05:00

at la closerie des lilas, may 29, 2011.

oh, it's like fate. or internet voodoo.

the very day after i post about la closerie des lilas, the writer's almanac delivers a poem about...lilacs. does that seem like an amazing coincidence to you, too?

in any case, it's my excuse to post one more photo of a sweet older couple (and share more sweet words).

***

lilac sunday

Let us agree to meet
here some winter
when the park

gates are locked,
and the arches thinned
of their vaulting green

to climb the wall,
thaw the icicles
and watch the rain

like flowering
cherry and lilacs
that kissed your hair;

some winter
when the fog is heavy,—
to return to this light.

--Diana Der-Hovanessian, via the writer's almanac

***

ok, one more:

"He looked very fine, Marshal Ney in his top-boots, gesturing with his sword among the green horse-chestnut leaves."

--E. Hemingway, "The Sun Also Rises"

photo: may 23, 2011

inspiration: la closerie des lilas

2011-12-13T22:58:00.010-05:00

la closerie des lilas. may 23, 2011

i've fallen into an unfortunate pattern on tuesdays at work. it goes something like meeting-meeting, meeting-meeting-meeting. by the time night falls, i am burning for inspiration.

on a walk home some months back, i tried to think of ways to re-align "the tuesday" so that ended on a finer note. i remembered: tuesday nights in paris were open poetry night for hemingway and his coterie at la closerie des lilas. fantastic-- i'd make it my poetry night, too.

in that spirit, i wanted to structure it toward writers that had some connection to the place. naturally, i started with hemingway. his verse, at least from what i could find online, is pretty awful, or at least not what i cared for, sort of cold and aggressive. i tried others from an earlier time (appollinaire, andre salmon) but didn't get much of a feeling for their work either (too weepy, too structured, too not-translated-into-english). it was a disappointing start. but it felt like a good exercise and i've kept it up (while giving up on the closerie-specific writers). in that way it's become my own "open" poetry night.

here's a favorite, writing-related one from last night. hope you like it.

on punctuation

not for me the dogma of the period
preaching order and a sure conclusion
and no not for me the prissy
formality or tight-lipped fence
of the colon and as for the semi-
colon call it what it is
a period slumming
with the commas
a poser at the bar
feigning liberation with one hand
tightening the leash with the other
oh give me the headlong run-on
fragment dangling its feet
over the edge give me the sly
comma with its come-hither
wave teasing all the characters
on either side give me ellipses
not just a gang of periods
a trail of possibilities
or give me the sweet interrupting dash
the running leaping joining dash all the voices
gleeing out over one another
oh if I must
punctuate
give me the YIPPEE
of the exclamation point
give me give me the curling
cupping curve mounting the period
with voluptuous uncertainty

-by elizabeth austen via the writer's almanac

peachy keen: dinner at má pêche

2011-12-11T20:27:00.002-05:00

last night's party: pretty ladies, a celeb chef and a big spender

2011-12-08T19:29:00.013-05:00

last night i had the opportunity to take some photos at the volunteers of america "winter's eve gala" at the plaza hotel. i didn't have a shot list--the single directive was to catch the party vibe without being too artsy ("no backs of heads" --ha) though at the last minute i was asked to take a few VIP photos.

bill cunningham was there and while i wanted to snap his photo, he was deep, deep in conversation with another VIP there and it would have been poor form for me to set my flash against them. he might have some photos in this sunday's times, so look out for those.

anyway, here are my favorites from a fun night, celebrating a really good cause. chef todd english donated his services part of the live auction (and if memory serves, from that alone helped to raise over $10K).

I saved the best for last: bidder "#454" was my favorite of the night. they made a $20K pledge to the VOA.

the lovely ms. rana

***

chef todd english

***

"big spender"

***

all photos © anita aguilar

inspiration: artessen

2011-12-07T00:01:00.000-05:00

(a last bit of inspiration, from artessen.com)

read a good poem: here

2011-12-06T21:47:00.006-05:00

at the opposite end of the day....

nov 24, 2011

©anita aguilar

There is nothing concrete to grasp in
looking into the morning sky

The evidence of red-eye
flights east a plane drawn line presents

is not a wheelbarrow solid enough
dependency as day and night

carry in coming and going
You don't see the poem

saying anything you can't see in it
White dashes of contrails'

seemingly unmoving streak towards sunrise
disquiet the pale otherwise

unpunctuated blue of dawn
breaks it off Here is that silence

--by Ed Roberson via poets.org

doubles results (mixed)

2011-12-03T23:35:00.000-05:00

ah so it wasn't a great saturday for this doubles team, after falling in 3 sets to those feisty argentinians.

pobrecitos....

photo via daviscup.com

but this erstwhile doubles team had a grand reunion:

noelle and i played together all through high school--and haven't seen each other since.

it's a startling number of years, believe me. but some people, some experiences just stay.

our impromptu get-together as warm and easy and fun as ever.

december 3, 2011

dc 2011: VAMOS

2011-12-01T22:43:00.007-05:00

these ladies posed for me at roland garros--cute, no?

i don't know their names or exactly where they're from.

but i think i know what they'll be tuned in to tomorrow, round about 8am est...

@roland garros, may 28, 2011

***

compulsory, fun preview here

inspiration: magnum, sport

2011-11-30T08:08:00.006-05:00

i'm not a huge fan of soccer/football, but i fall for the idea of it every time i watch this--it can't be embedded, so click here for the video.

the marriage of visuals to the soundtrack (those the terrific rhythms, the play by play) elevates it beyond a mere "promo" piece, and it showcases how stills, properly edited, can have as much impact as live-action (i can't seem to convince a few producers i work with of this).

anyway, i come back to this again and again.
hope you like it, too.

***

here are few stills from the magnum photographers whose work is featured in the spot:

AFGHANISTAN. June 2006. Playing football in an empty swimming pool on a hill surrounding Kabul.

Paolo Pellegrin/Magnum Photos

GB. ENGLAND. Liverpool. A street off Scotland Road. September 1986.

Peter Marlow/Magnum Photos

CONGO. Brazzaville. March 5th. From left to right the French sound engineer Charles CARATINI, the Italian drummer Aldo ROMANO, and the French bassist Henri TEXIER and saxophonist Louis SCLAVIS.

Guy Le Querrec/Magnum Photos

thanksgiving 2011: "ham"

2011-11-25T14:40:00.010-05:00

lens experiments: cloud pattern

2011-11-20T19:12:00.003-05:00

lens experiments: sky space

2011-11-20T19:01:00.001-05:00

lens experiments: friday, union square

2011-11-18T21:36:00.006-05:00

"everything shifts as you move, and different things come into focus at different points of your life, and you try to articulate that."

-- chris steele-perkins via magnumphotos.com

***

random, but i like the people entering the frame...

nov 18, 2011

all photos © anita aguilar

lens experiments: OWS at union square

2011-11-17T20:17:00.008-05:00

OWS made good on a promised appearance at union square this afternoon.

i was stuck inside trying to finish a project, like a bobbed rapunzel trapped in her tower... by the time i made it down there, they had all moved on.

here was the view from the 5th floor:

union square, nov 17 2011

lens experiments: mad square view II

2011-11-14T20:20:00.001-05:00

love shack?

nov 14, 2011

read a good poem: the white

2011-11-12T08:17:00.006-05:00

These are the moments

before snow, whole weeks before.

The rehearsals of milky November,

cloud constructions

when a warm day

lowers a drift of light

through the leafless angles

of the trees lining the streets.

Green is gone,

gold is gone.

The blue sky is

the clairvoyance of snow.

There is night

and a moon

but these facts

force the hand of the season:

from that black sky

the real and cold white

will begin to emerge.

--Patricia Hampl via the writer's almanac

photos © anita aguilar

lens experiments: mad square view I

2011-11-11T08:41:00.003-05:00

i have a feeling you're going to be seeing a lot of leaves and trees...

with the lensbaby (5.6)

nov 10, 2011

lens experiments: suburbia

2011-11-10T09:56:00.003-05:00

jersey.

nov 9, 2011

nyc marathon 2011: the view from mile 22

2011-11-08T22:18:00.012-05:00

marcus garvey park, ny

all photos © anita aguilar

***

full set, if you're so inclined...here...

pretty city 2011: good looking

2011-11-08T21:22:00.003-05:00

my favorite twosome, taking in the view at mile 22 of the nyc marathon...

@ marcus garvey park, east harlem.

nov 6, 2011

pretty city 2011: the dash to the finish line

2011-11-06T11:59:00.005-05:00

snapshots from a very spirited pre-marathon 5k, "the dash to the finish" in central park

my friend, steph!

ryan hall - love the 5 boro gloves and the official ing marathon cap

all photos taken on nov 5, 2011

marathon weekend 2011: we're all winners!

2011-11-04T12:24:00.004-04:00

...or, um, "finishers."

marathon sponsor, ING, has a fun promotion around town: they stage a "finish line" scene for subway riders, complete with an orange balloon archway, finish line tape, cheerleaders and cowbells. it's alarming at first --you're trudging up the steps and you're all of a sudden assaulted with color and hoopla-- the "crowd" cheers with gusto. crazy gusto. it's hard to resist, but i was pleasantly surprised by how many really embraced the whole set-up, running through with a victory pose... it's really fun and funny.

(i hope it happens to you...)

here's what the columbus circle scene looked like yesterday afternoon:

pretty city 2011: blue, belle

2011-11-03T23:46:00.004-04:00

checking the beiber bin...

@columbus circle, nyc

nov 3, 2011

pretty city 2011: run gia run

2011-11-03T08:44:00.005-04:00

how cute is this gal?
i love everything she's got going on here.

fit, fast, and fly...gia @ the nissan/foot locker/nyrr event.

union square, nyc

nov 2, 2011

URB 2011: the race experience

2011-10-31T08:47:00.002-04:00

you know that scene from raiders of the lost ark--indy disappears from the ship and free-styles it over to the german submarine, the crew gives a big rally cry when they spot him, and he, soaked and stumbling a bit, does that little salute before running off to kick some more ass?

well, that's sort of what it felt like as i was finishing the last leg of the urbanathlon. i'd run about 3 miles, “stutter-stepped” a muddy tire field, climbed the steps to the promenade of arthur ashe stadium and then navigated a much longer maze of steps through citi field, crawled under a few jeeps, jumped over a couple of taxis, scaled a bus...i was cold and wet from the rain and the puddles, and a little off balance because of the crazy scene happening all around me, but still pushing toward the final obstacle, the impossible one, the rope-climb over the wall. then i heard a cheer from my other team mates (anitaaaa!) and i had just enough of my mind left to look over and wave a little and laugh--but that's it because, well, there was that wall in front of me that i need to get over. (and: no ass-kicking, as i need a boost to get up there). but i did make it over, in one piece and our team finished the urb.

post-race recovery: beer and a sausage biscuit

what a relief.

i'd been nervous the whole week--hands-sweaty, can't-sleep nervous--worried i wouldn't be strong enough on race day to finish, and that the wintry weather would be unbearable.

it was actually almost unbearable to wait in the cold without a coat. but it was also, in a funny way, a situation ripe for bonding with strangers. i didn't know anyone else who was there to start leg 3, and i didn't have friends (like some smarties, with umbrellas) hanging out there with me to make the hour pass more pleasantly, but there was a loony camaraderie as we readied ourselves to hit the course in weather that was at once "fucked up-- and awesome."

i got to start my part of the race--and finally warm-up--just before the cold became too much.

there were the other unexpected pleasures of the race: my quiet, solo jog to the starting point, from the mets-willets point subway station, down the long boardwalk toward the tennis center and around it to the south gate. the leaves had turned, but the row of trees still formed a pretty canopy in the rain. i could see the "new" court 17--a couple of months ago i was there, maxing out my tan, while making photos of one of my favorite subjects: alexandr dolgopolov. i discovered that in the off-season they rip out the seats at that court (not sure why. it seems like a lot of effort).

the unisphere glistened only from the rain drops.

i ran through an empty ashe stadium -- it was almost as empty as the last morning i was there, as francesca schiavone started her 4th round match against anastasia pavlyuchenkova.

i ran down and out again and past the deserted media center around the back toward citi field. i'm not sure if that path stays open (i don't know why it would).

i wish i'd had a camera for the view of queens and the city from the upper decks in citi field. after finally descending the stairs, we jogged right onto the field--to a maria carey tune, if you can believe it. i won't soon forget that.

we stayed off the pristine grass, and took the path from right field to first to home. i'm pretty sure i'll never do that again.

the "blue moon" girls, get their medals...

i had anticipated that it would be fun to run these venues, but didn't imagine how it would feel to experience them that way-- empty, but still alive with my own memories and imagination. the race was worth it just for that.

but it was even more worth it to be there with my friends, the ones who ran it as my teammates, and the hard core ones who took it on themselves, and others who work behind the scenes to put that whole urbanathlon together. i loved being in the VIP tent, with the free beer and the bagels and the biscuits-- but i would have been anywhere my friends were. maybe its a silly thing to infuse a crazy event like that with so much sentiment -- most people run the race with a goal to test their strength and endurance. i thought it would be a good (HARD) test for me in that way, too. but the race turned out to be secondary. the experience of it was supreme.

i think i'm ready for more in 2012.

***
photos from before sun-up and after the snowfall, if you are so inclined.

weather girls

2011-10-27T23:52:00.000-04:00

no one expected "rain and snow" in the forecast for the urbanathlon.
t & i had to gear up:

@ city sports, 48th street, nyc

(the sad truth: i'm going to look way sillier than this on saturday.)

see a fine picture: "comfort"

2011-10-26T21:44:00.002-04:00

that life could be capable of small beauties...

--colum mccann, "let the great world spin"

(is that line --on p20--gonna be the only one i remember from the whole book?)

richard serra: junction / cycle

2011-10-19T13:31:00.009-04:00

junction (2011)

13’ 11/2”x 75’ 1/2" x 49’ 15/16” (4 x 22.9 x 15.2 m), weatherproof steel

cycle (2010)

14’ 1” x 57’ 6' 1/2” x 55’ 8” (4.3 x 17.5 x 17 m), weatherproof steel

***

taken october 18, 2011 @ the gagosian gallery

twa: up, up, and away

2011-10-18T08:09:00.010-04:00

on sunday afternoon, i made the long trek to jfk airport to see the eero saarinen designed TWA terminal. it was open to the public for a few hours as part of the open house ny program, and it was essentially the last time we could see it, in its "flight center capacity."

i'd seen it before --as a life-long tri-state area resident, JFK was one of the airports of my childhood, though i couldn't remember exactly when or why i'd been there (i had to confer with my mom and her uncanny memory). i only remembered white and windows and neat seats. (i got that part right.)

it was a wonder to sit in and circle the space again, especially in the clean daylight. you really have a sense of soaring, of being uplifted.

i'd dreamed about what it would be like to have special access to the terminal, to try to achieve what other photographers have. but i actually liked being with the crowds on sunday. you could see how the design could function as a social space, how and where people could gather and wander and observe each other. there was a giddiness to the afternoon-- everyone so much in awe of the space, so happy for the opportunity to be there.

with the people there, you could better envision how it might work as a commercial space for this century. (maybe not so effectively, except as a hub for a private airline?) the space is wide, but shallow. i kept thinking, where could they put all the people?

and yet....

and yet...

i still wish it could stay...

***

a former airline employee...

loved the lady in red (note the headline)...

***

more photos, if you're so inclined.

all photos taken october 16, 2011

pretty city: guided tour

2011-10-16T09:42:00.004-04:00

@ the whitney museum
oct. 15, 2011
©anita aguilar

songbirds

2011-10-15T09:17:00.010-04:00

practicing with the 24mm-70mm, super high ISO

all photos taken october 13, 2011 @ the vu

reunion: la bonbonniere

2011-10-14T08:49:00.005-04:00

back in the '90s, when i was living in the west village (and "casually employed" or in grad school), la bonbonniere was where i spent my mornings.
on weekdays, i'd sit for bowl of oatmeal (skim milk and brown sugar). 2 cups of coffee.
on weekends: the special challah french toast or blueberry pancakes. side of bacon. (maybe an extra cup of coffee, too.)

i'd have with me a notebook and 3 or 4 newspapers, including the ny tabs, and i'd catch up on all the sporting news. sometimes i'd just take in the view--inside, my fellow "regulars," outside, the traffic along the avenue. whether i was stuck, deep in a lonely streak, or feeling carefree, i always left there with a lift.

i since i moved away years ago, i've only been back a couple of times. it's changed a lot, to look at it.

but the feeling is the same.

hooray...like i never left...

oct 13, 2010

photos © anita aguilar

5 pointz

2011-10-10T09:19:00.001-04:00

bumming around: brownie making in LIC

2011-10-06T17:37:00.014-04:00

last night i took a trip out to LIC, to take some photos of my friend/sweetsaltything allison, and her friends, who have started a new venture: bummer brownies...

they rented a great entrepreneur's kitchen space off northern boulevard, near 37th avenue. i loved the raw, industrial look of the kitchen, and its oversized mixers and dishwashers, the walk-in ovens and freezers. and i loved the energy of working late-night (to some good/bad radio, courtesy of wplj). add the sweet smell of baking chocolate (and bonus taste testing, and take home goodies), and it seemed not like "work" at all.

(though the team churned out hundreds of treats in only a few hours.)

shh! sneaking in a taste...

they are strict about enforcing all the proper commercial kitchen rules -- they made me wear a super -sexy hairnet and i didn't even participate in the baking (though i couldn't resist, and pitched in toward the end).

bummer brownie baskets will be available, november 16...

inspiration: catching it...

2011-10-05T15:50:00.006-04:00

oh, i would like this job.

chasing the shot, catching the moment, the way corey simpkin does here.

all photos by corey simpkin via the ny daily news.

originally published october 5, 2011, on nydailynews.com

see the fun, full gallery by the ny daily news staff...

pretty city: posers

2011-09-30T21:27:00.008-04:00

guess whose pose i like best?

23rd/broadway near mad square park

sept 30, 2011

love: T-time

2011-09-22T08:39:00.009-04:00

@the back porch

sept 21, 2011

mexican day parade: que colores

2011-09-19T15:34:00.004-04:00

(i seem to stumble into a lot of parades...at some point i should consider getting a calendar, so that every sunday during parade season i know what i'm in for?)

anyway, yesterday's hosts: mexicans.

i shot some photos last year, and wasn't sure if there was a need to take more this time. (if you've shot the crazy, color-mob scene once, do you need to document it again?)

but even though the energy level was the same (high, loud) the participants that i mingled with this time wore costumes that evoked different aspects of mexican culture that i'd been unaware of (i had to do a little research afterwards to make sense of some of what i saw). there were a few charros (cowboys, rodeo showmen) including riders from the federation of black cowboys , lucha libre costumes, chinelo dancers (their faces hidden by the traditional masks--and there were so many different kinds, reflecting the evolution of the dance from pre-hispanic times through the 19th century--with even the youngest dancers bearing the weight of headdresses and black suiting and beaded capes) and a posse of payasos (clowns--i had no idea that it's long been a common form of street entertainment in mexico. not sure how i'd feel about clowns coming up to me in the street or in my car offering "a laugh for a peso," but they were pretty fun to hang around with for a little while in the afternoon).

fotos:

parkway south

2011-09-18T16:30:00.010-04:00

gsp (south)

us open 2011: it must be...

2011-09-13T09:12:00.012-04:00

it’s been a year of thrilling tennis so far (with inspired writing, always as the accompaniment). but there has been been one sort of disappointing thread for me, and other nadal fans, throughout the season. an irksome (now 0-6) record against djokovic in finals.

before yesterday’s early evening match, a few friends extended me notes of support (loved that) and a few asked me if i was nervous. was i ever! i know some deeply devoted fans who wouldn’t have watched it live, to avoid witnessing and experiencing a potential disappointment. my line on monday had been, i have to believe. if he believes, I have to. which maybe sounds a little corny to say out loud. but if I didn’t believe he could win, well then what would be the point of watching?

and watching nadal fight—and then get pushed back—and fight again—and then get pushed back, that wasn’t easy. i was cursing, jumping, pacing around my apartment. by the middle of the third set, i’d given myself a headache. by the end of the third, my voice was hoarse. i’d hoped i’d be gargling champagne (or at least, white wine) in celebration. after the loss, i drank, but without the same gusto. i wondered for a moment if it was all worth it, to be so crazy about a sport.

but I wouldn’t have given up those hours—witnessing that inconceivable toughness, physical and mental, from both players. i would have hated to miss all those exhilarating moments, even if in the end they added up to a “loss” for my favorite player.

one of the reasons I love sports, especially tennis, is at the best or most dramatic of times, it's like "life" (i'll leave it to the real writers to plumb that more eloquently) and with the best athletes, you're reminded how you want to conduct yourself in it. (one of my favorite quick rafa-isms after last night's match: accept the challenge, and work.)

and in some funny way, this particular rivalry is to me, is a bit like love and relationships--the way i (like to, try to) do them, anyway... believing always (though occasionally hearing the doubts of others, and sometimes getting set back on my heels). knowing, as nice as the other guy is, he has the power to crush. understanding that maybe i don’t have the right "strategy," or don’t know what one should be. but i’m there, always “with great illusion,” and enjoying the moments that are brilliant and beautiful and fun. never really sure of the outcome--i can't know or control the other guy, only me and what i do--but knowing that I’ve helped make those good moments happen before... well...again, believing always in just being there and trying my best at that moment…

we will see what's gonna happen, no?

(VAMOS)

us open 2011: ladies' game (the glam, doubled)

2011-09-13T00:02:00.001-04:00

gisela dulko and flavia pennetta

photographed on sept 5, 2011

us open 2011: ladies' game (shotmaking, etc)

2011-09-12T20:26:00.018-04:00

the ferocity, the vulnerability, the delight--all doubled.
love it.

flavia pennetta

roberta vinci

sara errani

gisela dulko

all photos taken sept 5, 2011

us open 2011: the ladies' game

2011-09-12T00:02:00.001-04:00

It is beauty itself

that lives

day by day in them

idly—

This is

the power of their faces

It is summer, it is the solstice

the crowd is

cheering, the crowd is laughing...

---william carlos williams, via the poetry foundation

roberta vinci (ita)

flavia pennetta (ita)

sara errani (ita)

gisela dulko (arg)

***

all photos from sept 5, 2011

9.11.11: 2753 chairs

2011-09-11T16:36:00.007-04:00

at bryant park, nyc

sept 11, 2011

us open 2011: soul, at dusk

2011-09-08T22:20:00.007-04:00

guga, on court 5

***

and guga's practice partner...

us open 2011: from the pit

2011-09-08T08:26:00.008-04:00

well not really, the "pit" because on court 17 there is no photographer's pit. just media seating in the first row.

i'd been snuggled into a seat in row 2 and loved it when, toward the end of the first set of dolgo/dr. ivo, the pros showed up with the big guns.

there is one photographer who i see every year, and i couldn't resist asking his name.
meet "arata" (in photographer in the middle).

i think i threw him off a little when i introduced myself--he seemed a little embarrassed.

but then he was back to covering the scene:

us open 2011: statue-esque

2011-09-07T09:00:00.014-04:00

i caught dr. ivo, practicing before noon on saturday, the day he was set to play alexandr dolgopolov. i was amazed at how slow and easy his entire service motion was. i wondered, is he posing just for me?

his arm position, even his hands, reminded me of a greek statue.

but then i caught him during the match and everything was exactly the same. his motion wasn't any faster, his form was rarely imperfect. that's just how he does it.

he was easy to photograph, but after a time i yearned for something different.

***

i do love how he barely grips the racquet here...

***

and well, for something different, one can rely on karlovic's oppenent that day.

the crowd tittered a bit when the players first marched on court--hard not to be shocked to see the two of them (and not assume one of these guys is going to get crushed).

but the "little guy" prevailed...

tale of the tape:

alexandr dolgopolov 5' 11", 157 lbs

ivo karlovic: 6'10", 230 lbs

dolgopolov def karlovic: (6-7(4), 6-2, 6-4, 6-4).

us open 2011: magic man 3

2011-09-07T00:03:00.007-04:00

alexandr dolgopolov

court 17

sept 4, 2011

us open 2011: magic man 2

2011-09-06T23:50:00.007-04:00

alexandr dolgopolov

sept 3, 2011

us open 2011: magic man

2011-09-05T08:20:00.003-04:00

in one afternoon at the open, i took roughly 750 shots. that's me "holding back."

for the first two hundred or so, i was fiddling with different settings -- trying to find the right shutter speed and ISO combination that would stop action, and give a more crisp line. i figured it out, generally, though there's a lot more practice required. i want to have a better understanding of what to do when the light and conditions change, and learn how to make images with more impact.

but there are certain players who give you chance after chance after chance to get something good. it always feels like "magic hour" with them-- you just make sure your battery's charged and you've got plenty of room on the card.

an editor will spot easily the best of the bunch that i took of alexandr dolgopolov. but i pretty much love them all, for the amazing torque, height and lift he gets. and i'll remember the excitement of sitting second row, in the new court 17.

i'll start with these... from his victory over ivo karlovic (6-7,6-2,6-4,6-4)

alexandr dolgopolov on court 17

sept 3, 2011

us open 2011: "volver"

2011-09-04T18:17:00.008-04:00

juan carlos ferrero (def marcel granollers 6-1, 4/3 ret.)

sept 13, 2011

us open 2011: a fishy win

2011-09-04T11:55:00.008-04:00

mardy fish (d. kevin anderson 6-4 7-6 7-6 )

sept 3, 2011

us open 2011: seppi, on 4

2011-09-04T10:58:00.005-04:00

andreas seppi

sept 3, 2011

us open 2011: more monaco

2011-09-04T10:19:00.005-04:00

juan monaco at practice.

he would defeat tommy haas, later in the afternoon, 6-7(3), 6-3, 6-2, 6-3.

september 3, 2011

us open 2011: practice, man

2011-09-03T22:57:00.002-04:00

juan monaco

sept 3, 2011

us open 2011: ladies first

2011-09-03T22:35:00.006-04:00

my first day at the 2011 open offered big matchups, fed/cilic, serena/vika--but the seats i had at the stadium wouldn't have allowed me to get the kind of shots i wanted. so i decided to stalk the outer courts. my priority was to see dolgopolov on court 17-- i built my day around it. but i managed to sneak in a few of sharapova-slayer (flavia pennetta), and gisela-the-slender (dulko) ...

i mostly love how in sync they are on the sidelines:

all photos, sept 3, 2011

inspiration: the ladies, leigh and heatherton

2011-09-02T09:04:00.006-04:00

this morning i had the sudden urge to hear an old cy coleman/carolyn leigh tune: i've got your number.

i heard it for the first time years ago-- at the gym, if you can believe it. a cbs broadcast of "broadway under the starts" was cued up on the treadmill and before i could change the channel, i heard cheyenne jackson sing a few bars. the lyrics were what got me--sassy, fun, properly dated--i'm not sure if i was surprised they were written by a woman, but i was surprised that i'd never heard of carolyn leigh-- a native new yorker, member of the songwriter's hall of fame, and famous for "bringing class, sex, and wit to the Great American Songbook." "I've got your number" is not as well known as coleman/leigh's other hits ("witchcraft," "the best is yet to come") but it's surely my favorite.

i don't own a recording of it--i rely on youtube when i'm in the mood to listen to this one. it used to be that even the cheyenne jackson performance was hard to find--i'm happy it's not anymore. but i think i have a new favorite version, not so much for the singing, but for the groovy jazz dance she does about two minutes in.

presenting ms. joey heatheron:

happy friday...

us open 2011: gearing up?

2011-08-31T14:07:00.000-04:00

hmm. i never dreamed they'd let a look like this --1981? --come back. not even for juniors.

(and: yes, i'm shopping for us open gear.)

the sound, before the storm

2011-08-29T22:41:00.004-04:00

The trees of the mind are black. The light is blue.

--sylvia plath, from "the moon and the yew tree" via the poetry foundation

post-irene: as if she never came

2011-08-28T23:12:00.001-04:00

streets, dry...

@anita aguilar

post-irene: lucky and pretty

2011-08-28T11:39:00.003-04:00

hope folks can now have a relaxing sunday...

@ anita aguilar