Putting Darkness in a Whole New Light

This time of year, winter afternoons can seem long and cold…often only punctuated by the holidays lights and the warm glow of windows.  I stumbled across the NY Times photography blog yesterday, Black and White and Black all Over,  and loved many of their archival images.  There is even a photo (#9) of my street in 1959!  Though many photographers can’t wait to gain back late spring and early summer light, this gives us all inspiration to see the magic of the dark (and to bust out our dusty tripods.)  When I lived in Paris, I spent many evenings photographing the city after dark.  I returned to Paris for New Year’s Eve three years ago, and captured these night shots- a streetscape complete with lit chandeliers for the holidays, and an ever present muse-the Louvre aglow at night (center and right images).

It’s tough to choose a favorite in the NY Times blog, as I’m torn between the Paris and New York images.  I finally settled on a stateside image- the last one (#17, 1972), the classic window view of the Brooklyn Bridge…with an evening twist.  What is your favorite image in the slideshow and why?

[…] as the shutter released to avoid blurring the image. You may have seen these in an earlier post on night photography, but I couldn’t resist recycling them for the […]

Holiday Cards and Displays

My apologies for the radio silence- the craze of making holiday lab deadlines for albums, cards, and prints, along with teaching, an office move and a December cold have kept me up in the wee hours and away from my blog!  As I write, the twinkle of lights from our first Christmas tree (see photo) since 2007 are reflecting into my computer screen. The holiday cards are pouring into our mailbox and I love to see all of the lovely photos and designs. Hearing from friends in MI, CA, IL, ME, and all over New England makes me wish everyone would send cards more than once a year.  Check out my old blog post on holiday card trends and suggestions for cards- it’s not too late to create and send a New Year’s Card.  It’s hip to be behind schedule- New Year’s cards are in!  If you’re looking for a beautiful way to display all of that love from near and far, I like to punch a hole in the top corner of a card, and string a nice grosgrain ribbon through them, then hang the string along a blank wall.  You can also put an ornament hook through the hole and hang that from the ribbon.  Check out a great Better Homes & Gardens article for even more display ideas.  Happy Christmas week everyone!

Charlotte-Washington, D.C.

I had the pleasure of photographing Charlotte (Charlie) and her parents a few weekends ago.  Her mom is an old friend from college and it’s fun that we both have daughters so close in age.  Our girls enjoyed seeing each other again- Charlotte would excitedly shout “Hiiiii BABY!” and Callie would clap her hands. Their family just moved into a new house after a massive renovation and it was great to see them settled in their beautiful (and holiday festive) home! Charlotte turned one in August and is walking all over the place and talking up a storm.  We found some great natural light by their big picture window and though we didn’t coerce too many smiles during our mission for a Christmas photo, I love some of the images I captured.  Those eyelashes, wow! We also snapped a few of the whole family on their front porch- since Charlotte wanted to be on the move, we just let her walk toward the camera, resulting in some fun candids.  Meg, Patrick,Charlotte (and Winston), it was so wonderful to see you and congrats on the new home! And thanks for the inspiration we needed to buy our first tree in 5 years for Callahan’s first Christmas-they really do light up a room.

The Gift Dilemma

Every year, there is that one person who throws a wrench into “making a list and checking it twice,” or as I like to say, “making a list and ordering online asap.”  Today I received an email from Simon Pearce debuting their Twelve Days of Christmas list, and I LOVE their new Woodbury Photo Blocks.  I am always a fan of clean lines, and these glass frames are the perfect complement to a beautiful photograph. Simon Pearce is a wonderful company based in Vermont, and their handcrafted glass and pottery seamlessly merge traditional and contemporary and is always a great gift.  I registered for nearly 10 vases from there for our wedding and everyone made fun of me, but  1) fresh flowers make me happy and 2) I love their glass…so what’s wrong with that?  My family used to spend a lot of time in Quechee, which is the home of their Mill, glassblowing workshop, and delicious restaurant.  The restaurant dramatically cantilevers over the Ottauquechee River, overlooks a picturesque covered bridge, and serves the most amazing food.  I have lots of memories of visiting the store and workshop when I was little.  And so began my love affair with Vermont!  Though the Mill suffered a devastating flood after Hurricane Irene, they have just re-opened.  If you ever find yourself in Vermont, it’s a must visit.  In the meantime, order some Woodbury Photo Blocks and check off that list!

A Farewell to Fall

It certainly seems like the last day of November.  Though we’ve been dodging the start of winter with record temps here in NYC- 70 degrees on Monday-most of the leaves are down, Christmas lights are up, and I actually needed to wear more than a vest today! I snapped this photo last weekend during an attempted Christmas card shoot in Riverside Park with my daughter.  She was more interested in eating leaves than smiling among them, but I spotted this beautiful tree with red berries.  I thought this photo was a perfect merging of seasons- signs of autumn life still hanging on before the official blast of winter.  I can’t wait (sort of) to see what December brings!