Portraits and Places - Shanna and Coney Island

I haven't written a blog post in a while, but I don't think I'll write a whole lot this time around. Just a few words...

My friend Shanna and I both wanted an adventure and boy did we choose one hell of a place to do it. We went to Coney Island the day after the first huge snowfall of the Winter. But it actually never crossed my mind that the beach would be covered snow. Since I'm originally from California this was so surreal to me. I was honestly "shook", to say the least. This beach looked like Antartica, which excited me more since that's on my bucket list of places to go before I die.

We shot for 2 hours and both could not feel our faces, feet, or fingers. It hurt but we were able to get some real cool photos! Enjoy and feedback is always welcome!

All photos were taken with a Canon 5D Mark II and a 50mm f/1.8 lens

Portraits and Places - Tim, Pia and Central Park

So this week Pia's brother, Tim, came out to New York to visit his sister. This was his last day here and we decided to show him the beautiful Central Park. It was also, coincidentally, the first day of summer. It was incredibly warm, breezy, and just a beautiful day!

*Pia and her brother are very close. I loved watching them be normal siblings over the past week, it was great.*

Today we walked through Central Park and I really started paying attention to the performers in the park. There are some very talented performers in NY that deserve to continue to create more music and art. Whenever I take photos of street performers, I always try to give them any money that I may have on me. I commend them all for going outside and performing for the world, hoping that they'll appreciate it. I, as a performer/artist/whatever damn title I should give myself, definitely appreciate their talent and courage.

I've been living in New York for almost four years now and I am still in love with how beautiful this place can be. Especially areas like Central Park because besides all of the tall buildings, coffee shops, and museums there is such stunning greenery and nature in this city.

Tim is a recent high school graduate and is going to be attending DePaul University this fall. I've only known him for about a week but I already know he's a pretty cool kid. I hope he has a safe flight back to Chicago and a fun first semester … — Tim is a recent high school graduate and is going to be attending DePaul University this fall. I've only known him for about a week but I already know he's a pretty cool kid. I hope he has a safe flight back to Chicago and a fun first semester at DePaul.

So today's adventure was fairly short, but nonetheless I was able to see a lot in Central Park that I haven't seen in a while. I am finding that the more I go out and just take photos, the more I'll be able to find what I'm searching for. I'm constantly looking for inspiration, but I know I just need to go out and find it myself.

And with that, I conclude this post with hope that the next one will be just as fun. Catch ya on the flippity flop!

All photos were taken with a Canon 5D Mark II and a 50mm f/1.8 lens.

Portraits and Places - Dennis, Emily, Kurt and Roosevelt Island

I've always had Roosevelt Island on my bucket list of places to visit in New York. Today was the day I finally got to cross it off, but in about 90 degree weather. Nonetheless, we still had fun walking around on a warm summer day!

None of us had been to the island before, so we were all experiencing it for the first time together. Which always makes it more of an adventure if we're all learning about a new place at the same time. It's great.

We took the tram to get to the island from 60th Street and the only thing I didn't enjoy about the tram was that the air conditioning was nonexistent. It was just too hot and too many bodies in one small confined space. BUT we jump over hurdles in our lives and I jumped over some people to get out of the tram as soon as the ride was over. Regardless of the AC problem, the "views" from the tram were amazing. I'd never been able to take photos of streets/bridges from a high angle before. The "views" were good to take photos of but also very enjoyable to be to see from that height. (The reason I quoted the word, "views," was because of Drake's new album. It's a great album guys, go listen to it.)

After getting off the tram, we then got ourselves a little map and made our way to the Four Freedoms Park. This park was stunning because of its impressive symmetrical design, the fact that there were only a few clouds in the sky, and the greenery being (what the kids are all saying nowadays) on fleek.

This is Kurt, one of my old roommates and really good friend. He graduated two years before I did, but luckily we've remained close. We actually have been talking recently about a cool project we're gonna start working on this summer. Stay tune… — This is Kurt, one of my old roommates and really good friend. He graduated two years before I did, but luckily we've remained close. We actually have been talking recently about a cool project we're gonna start working on this summer. Stay tuned for that in the next few posts.

This is Dennis. Also, an old roommate and good friend. We both graduated this year. Catching up with him is always nice, because he's just a funny guy.

We attempted to climb the walls along the side of the park. We were told that we aren't allowed to be on the walls by security, twice. Oops.

After the park, we make our way to the other side of the island. It seems really small on a map, but is a bit of a walk when you are with someone like me who likes to stop every 10 seconds to take a photo.

We made a pitstop by the Riverwalk Bar & Grill, which was very delicious. I would recommend it for anyone who wanted to eat on Roosevelt Island!

This is Emily, the last of my former roommates. She loves to go to new places and adventures just as much as I do. So when she mentioned coming to Roosevelt Island, I was all up for it!

Then there was a hammock. A HAMMOCK. I decided to sit in one and then felt lonely, so I told Emily and Kurt to sit in it with me.

After spending about 20 minutes just laying in that beautiful hammock, we decided to finish our trip by visiting the Roosevelt Island Lighthouse, also known as the Blackwell Island Lighthouse when the island was called Welfare Island. It was built in 1872, but doesn't look day over 23. You know what I'm saying?

I know it's creepy to take photos of people without they're permission, but I love the candidness and naturalistic feelings you get from photos like the ones above. BUT, I understand how this can be wrong. Oh well.

We are making our way back to the tram and just feel so sluggish from all the walking and the food we ate earlier.

And then we take the NON-air conditioned tram back to East 60th street. I ended the trip feeling accomplished about finally exploring Roosevelt Island. I hope to come back to island in the future, because it has an interesting vibe that is unlike Brooklyn, Manhattan, or Queens. Hopefully the next adventure is just as fun! Catch ya on the flippity flop!

All photos were taken with a Canon 5D Mark II and a 24-105mm f/4 Canon L lens.

Portraits and Places - Barb, Raymond and Lower Manhattan

First off, welcome to a blog thing that I made and hope to stick with. Not making any promises on how frequent these will be but, I'll try my hardest haha.

I created a few "blog posts" on my VSCO Grid, but i think I'm going to start posting "Portraits and Places" blog posts here from now.

Today started around noon, where I met up with an old friend named Raymond in SoHo. He's a really cool dude who gave me advice on how to freelance and motivate myself through my first year out of college. This is not why we hung out, but he just ended up giving me lots of advice (which I very much appreciated).

Raymond had to leave for two meetings. Let me tell you, this man is a busy freelancer! But I hope I can be on his level one day.

After Raymond and I parted our ways, I decided to travel to the Brooklyn and Manhattan Bridge to take a stroll down the walking path under the bridges. I was alone for a while, but sure enough I was able to make a new friend.

This is Barb (short for, you guessed it, Barbara). She asked me to take a photo of her next to the bridge and one thing led to another, I started asking her to pose for me. She was really sweet and I hope to see her again one day!

With meeting Barb, so casually as it was, I want to challenge myself to meet as many new people as I can. I think it will not only enhance my ability to network but I think it will also lead to more interesting adventures!

Today was enjoyably warm summer day. I'm glad I got to see an old friend and make a new one. I hope that over the course of this summer, I can go out more, explore NY, and really capture life the way I see it. Catch ya on the flippity flop!

All photos were taken with a Canon 5D Mark II and a 24-105mm f/4 Canon L lens.