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Ghost Town: Bodie
Originally, I had some pretty ambitious plans for this year’s Halloween. But for a variety of reasons, they didn’t materialize. Ce la vie. I did buy a pumpkin.
Somewhat fitting is therefore this photo from the old abandoned mining settlement, Bodie – likely the most popular ghost town in the United States. I was particularly fascinated by this classroom and the cracked globe. The patina is beautiful. Nature has reclaimed a lot of the town, but it’s still well worth a visit. Especially if you, like me, nerd out on weathered wood, rusty steel and more or less anything not made of plastic.
Bodie’s located in the Bodie Hills east of the Sierra Nevada mountain range in Mono County, California, not far from Lake Tahoe. I was there with fellow photographer David P about 6 years ago on a whirlwind road trip that went from L.A. through Death Valley, Mono Lake, Bodie, Yosemite, San Francisco and then back to L.A. along the scenic Pacific Coast Highway. If I remember correctly, the trip took about 72 hours and at one critical point, we were going to be heavily fined for speeding – if the Highway Patrol officer that stopped us hadn’t received a dispatch call that demanded he promptly scadoodle – and let us off the hook.
View of Göteborg
Here’s the (Leica’s) view from my hotel tonight. It’s an attic room and possibly the most asymmetric I’ve ever stayed in. The room has really tiny windows making it feel just a little claustrophobic. But the great view is a reasonable trade-off.
I’ve always had mixed feelings about Göteborg. I feel at home here but I’m dubious about ever moving back. Folks are spontaneously friendly than anywhere else in the country. And I’d argue that the country’s most positive mindset will be found right here. In all, I lived in Göteborg for about 15 years, so I am somewhat of an insider and probably still know my way around here better than I do in Malmö. Yet the city has always felt stagnate somehow. And it hasn’t gotten any better since we moved.
Sure, there are plenty of new stores, cafés, restaurants and hotels, a few minor infrastructural changes and a couple of neighborhoods that have gone through gentrification (Gårda, for one). But that’s pretty much it.
Göteborg is suffering from an unhealthy level of complacency. And to make matters worse, nobody cares.
I suppose my perspective is slanted, since Malmö has seen so much positive change since we moved there twenty years ago. To a degree, even the notoriously pessimistic mindset of Malmöites has changed for the better and there’s clearly a more positive vibe in Malmö today. Which in part probably has to do with the city’s younger generation being more open-minded and extemporaneously outgoing – as well as an influx of companies and folks from other Swedish cities and countries relocating to Malmö.
There’s a tangible pioneering spirit in Malmö that’s really wonderful.
Not sure if I would ever consider moving back to Göteborg. If given the opportunity to live as close to the ocean as we do in Malmö, then maybe. Got to live by the sea, ya know.
In Gbg – quenching the thirst
I’m in Göteborg for a quickie. Took the fast but surprisingly rickety train up and after arriving – and instead of checking into the hotel – I instead walked briskly in the nippy but sunny Sunday afternoon weather to the city’s only photography museum, Hasselblad Center at the very top end of Gothenburg’s famous promenade, “Avenyn”. If for no other reason than to reaffirm the medium’s importance and perhaps to try to quench my seemingly insatiable thirst for inspiration. The shot above was taken with my iPhone, arguably a more precise photographic reproduction tool and certainly a more versatile camera.
Tomorrow morning, I’m visiting a potential supplier to check out their facilities, how they work and if what they have to offer will add value to my workflow and ultimately how my art is presented to clients.
In the Waves
Do Avocados Feel Pain?
I’ve never been so mindful as right now when it comes to what I eat. It’s actually quite interesting to discern and analyze what you put in your body.
About two years ago, I stopped eating beef, pork, poultry and anything on land that walked, flew, slithered or crawled. The transition wasn’t difficult at all and only occasionally – mostly when travelling abroad – do I miss sinking my teeth into a juicy beef burger, sucking on smoked baby back ribs, chewing on bbq pulled pork or stuffing my mouth with half a dozen salty strips of honey crisp bacon. None of the above can be bought at any restaurant I know of in Sweden. Well, at least not in Malmö. So, I’m not often tempted here.
Colors of October
Shot during the week here in Västra Hamnen mostly on an iPhone 7+ and a few times using a iPhone 6s with DJI’s Osmo Mobile gimbal stabilizer.
Autumn fashion shoot
Yesterday, I had a short fashion shoot for Pello Bello with my favorite model Tora in one of my favorite places here in Västra Hamnen, the small park with alleys of trees adjacent to Ribersborg Beach.
Now, what made the gig so unique and therefore noteworthy (blog worthy) is that I shot it entirely with the Leica Q. Man, the vibrancy coming out of that camera is astonishing. Very little color correction needed. Only a very few of the motion frames demanded a tad of High Pass sharpening. Most images were shot at 1/30s, f/2.8 and ISO 100.
Just as we finished yesterday’s shoot, it started pouring again. Like the summer, the autumn of 2017 will likely be remembered for its immense precipitation and downright dreary weather. In fact, the whole year seems to have been rainy with only a negligible amount of consecutive days with warm temperatures and sunshine. Which clearly feels like we’ve got some really bad karma going on here in southern Scandinavia… Or, at the very least we’re being meteorologically punished by whoever’s in charge. Especially when you consider how many months we have ahead of us with the usual DDR-esque winter weather.
On a lighter, more positive note, my morning Yoga routine and thrice weekly yoga class is certainly keeping me in shape. And recently, I’ve begun a journey into the world of Qi Gong. After so many years of running, working out in the gym and all kinds of group exercise classes, it feels really good to have found a new, less complicated way to create balance between body and mind. Un-complicating life is a mantra definitely worth pursuing.
MJ’S – Malmö’s Boutique Hotel
With at least a half dozen or so towering conference and business hotels having been established over the last few years, nobody can have missed Malmö’s ongoing hotel boom. But the latest addition to the city is something completely different. MJ’S opened last April and is not only the city’s only real boutique hotel. It’s also one of Skåne’s absolutely coolest hotspots. I stayed there last night and ate a most sumpteous meal as part of a recurring gig for my wife Charlotte’s popular Swedish hotel site, Hotell Addict. All shots taken handheld with the increasingly versatile Leica Q at an amazing 1/30s and ISO 1600. Minimal post work – just a few notches of noise reduction in LR/CC. I’m blown away by this camera.
Unveiled: Art at Kockum Fritid
Yesterday at our local sports center, Kockum Fritid, my latest art project was unveiled: five unique pieces printed on acrylic with motifs inspired by physical activities: Hockey/Skating, Squash/Badminton, Gym/Weightlifting, Group Classes and Swimming. The project was commissioned by Kockum Fritid and each piece was created from 30-50 single photographs from several sessions spread over a few years. View the collection here.
Smoothiness
Truth be told, nothing symbolizes my current life quest as much as the morning smoothies I assemble for the family. Much of the ingrediens I use have documented anti-inflammatory properties with ensuing health benefits. Not that each shake magically adds years to our lives, but over time, I am absolutely convinced that they can help decelerate environmentally and/or genetically provoked virulent processes.
On a social level, the recipe isn’t as easy to put together. Preemptively sieving projects and collaborations with high odds of being futile, as opposed to fertile – or, even deleterious, is still something I need to work on. From time to time, my penchant for creativity still camouflages – even effectively hides – the self-evident from me. And the unavoidable echo-chamber that derives from the fercency does the rest…until…KA-BOOM!
Back to the smoothie.
Here’s what went into this morning’s spontaneous amalgamation:
Cinnamon, Ginger, Turmeric, Beetroot, Coconut, Spinach, Coconut flakes, Sunflower seeds, Vanilla, Banana, Almonds, Needless to say, all ingrediens were organic. Much of it purchased at and shipped from Amazon UK.
Nominated: Publishing Prize 2017
My opera book, “We are Malmö Opera”, has been nominated for the 2017 Publishing Prize. On Monday, October 23, the esteemed jury will divulge the winner in the Coffee Table Book category in which the book is competing.
I sincerely think the book deserves to win because it focuses on hard-working, talented and passionate folks that don’t get nearly as much recognition as they ought to. In a perfect world, each curtain call would see the full production crew taking a bow or two.
If nothing else, I hope the book wins the hearts and minds of other photographers, journalists and publishers and inspires them to shed some light on other workplaces filled with unsung heroes.
Eyeconic
Thanks to my buddy and code warrior Yigit Telyakar, I’ve now got a much more mobile and tablet friendly way to showcase my photographic efforts. Check out the new “Eyeconic” category in the menu up top. The Jumbo Jet? Shot last year in an abandoned yard on the outskirts of the sprawling Asian city of angels, Bnngkok.
The Rose according to Q
Shot with the Leica Q’s macro mode which is easy to switch to via a short twist on the lens barrel. The ease of use makes the Q such a great go-to camera for those spur-of-the-moment shots. Whereas the iPhone would suffice, the Leica frame’s dynamic range and file size offer much more versaitility – should I eventually decide to incorporate a photo in a future montage.
Blade Runner Ran Amok
Last night, I saw the new Blade Runner 2049 – a sequel to director Ridley Scott’s dystopian sci-fi classic from 1982. Both the original and sequel have characters based on a story by Philip K. Dick titled, “Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep”.
Visually, I think director Denis Villeneuveis and his cinematographer Roger Deakins have done a fine job. You could literally print each individual frame and hang it on a wall as a piece of art. From that perspective, I was defiinetly impressed.
At 75, Harrison Ford is quite fit and his usual grumpy, sarcastic self. And though Ryan Gosling seems to have been cast for his ornamental value rather than an ability to add anything memorable or dazzling to the part (I know, I know, he’s playing a Replicant/Android), he at least doesn’t distract.
What does distract, however, is the new film’s convoluted storyline and a dozen or so loosely connected subplots. While the first film was set in a futuristic Los Angeles where a bounty hunter chases down rogue humanoids and ends up falling in love with one, the new tale is a mash-up of the Matrix, the Fifth Element, The Force Awakens and likely several other genre films director Denis Villeneuveis’ has on his personal top 10 favorite list.
Like the first film, Blade Runner 2049 will need to be re-seen – at least a couple of times. As it’s a major studio produced project, it will certainly have gone through a painful approval process – which inevitably contributed to the story being so unnecessarily perplexing. I’m guessing there’s a few petabytes of unseen footage from the film being stored on a hard drive somewhere. And though Mr Villeneuveis has already stated there will not be a “Director’s Cut”, you never know. Ten years ago, Ridley Scott’s edit of the original Blade Runner was released as what I and many other fans consider to be the best of several previous iterations.
My image above, shot from a helicopter on my way back from the Grand Canyon a few years ago, is only relevant in this context because it’s from Las Vegas which in addition to an apocalyptic L.A., is portrayed in an extremely dismal guise in Blade Runner 2049.
Turning Torso Timelapse
A timelapse video I shot the other day from Sky High Meetings on the 53rd floor of the skyscraper Turning Torso in Malmö Sweden. The Turning Torso was designed by Spanish architect, Santiago Calatrava and is owned and operated by HSB Malmö.
Leica Q at La Boqueria
Not much of a candy eater these days, but the artificial coloring of this chewy confectionary at Mercat de Sant Josep de la Boqueriain market in the El Raval district of Barcelona was just too tempting not to get a shot of. Yes, I’m impressed with how versatile the Leica Q is. The sensor is super sensitive in lowlight conditions – which is great when you like me hesitate to push ISO beyond 100-200. I’ve shot a few times at ISO 3200 and if I didn’t have any alternative, I think I could make use of that setting too. Even more striking and noteworthy is how well the optical stabilization system performs at speeds that I’d previously never even consider working with.
Over the weekend in Spain, I shot quite a few frames of static objects at 1/30th of a second with perfect focus. There’s obviously some battery drain when using OIS, but I always carry plenty of extra batteries with me, so that’s not an issue. Focusing is fast too. Not as fast as my Canon 5Ds, but not that much slower. And at 10 frames per second, the Leica Q is actually twice as fast when shooting moving subjects.
El Cocinero in Barcelona
Pissorama in Barcelona
Shot this earlier today. I thoroughly enjoy visiting Barcelona. It’s a city we even would consider living in someday. Still, I’m unfortunately often reminded of a less positive reality here; the thick, pungent stench of both fresh and vintage urine that permeates Barcelona’s streets, alleys and boulevards. Sure, you get used to it after a while. But it’s nonetheless a really bad habit males have here – locals and visitors alike. And surely a few dogs.
Return to Catalonia
Back in Barcelona for yet another project (and a celebration). It’s actually the second visit to the capital of Catalonia this year and boy, is the difference in police presence huge. It’s both comforting and alarming simultaneously.
While most casual visitors share their sight-seeing experiences in large schweaty crowds, I’m letting myself get lost in the mostly authentic El Born (La Ribera) district. Purposely avoiding all the main drags and promenades and focusing on documenting street art.
The abundant graffiti scene is dumbfounding. So many street artists with so much to say and convey. Amazingly, most tags and imagery is applied to corrugated metal garage doors and shop window covers – leaving the city’s often beautifully designed and crafted doors, ports and gates alone.
While Sweden has already transitioned to mid autumn weather, it’s still summer here.
The Q? It’s performing excellently.
The Q Arrives
I’ve had my eye on the Leica Q ever since it was released in 2015. Just couldn’t discern if it would meet my needs for capable and reliable compact camera.
When the Leica Q arrived a couple of weeks ago, I decided to produce my very first unboxing video. I’ve never made one before, always considered them a little nerdy – ritualistically perverse, even. But the temptation was just too hard to ignore. I wanted to share the experience of how meticulous thought-through and beautifully packaged the camera was when it arrived. Turned out that it was not very dissimilar from the way Apple presents its products. Question is, who’s been taking cues (pun intended) from who?