Zoom In, Feel the Beat

It might be kind of obvious, but I love wall art.  Murals, graffiti, frescos, you name it.  But really, I like urban art.  It makes me feel the beat of the city, in a weird way, like a DJ is spinning an mmphz mmphz into my heart.  You can feel it pounding in your chest sometimes- the subway running beneath you, the cars whizzing by, the street musician down the block, the planes overhead.  The sirens a few streets away.  It all mixes together in a beautiful music that completes itself into an experience with the life and soul of the people.  That might sound totally ridiculous, but that's how it feels to me.  I see people I know nothing about, and take in how they look, how they portray themselves, and put it in context of the place I see them.  Urban art helps with that so much, especially when it's brightly colored and specific.  There's so much life there, so much defiance.

So, for this set of photographs, I zoomed in on some grafitti.  These are details- you probably won't be able to see the words.  I wanted to capture the feeling of the expression, how the spray paint looks on the pavement, not the overall picture.  I'm rather happy with how they turned out.  I know that glorifying street art and urban-ness, and showing colors and lines and such can come off a bit pretentious, but that really isn't what I am going for here. The colours and patterns move me, they really do.  

I hope they move you too...  or that you at least find them kind of nifty. 

...mmphz mmphz...

 

All photographs taken on the Manhattan Bridge

New York City, New York, USA

A Little Slice of China

Manhattan's Chinatown is one of my favourite places in New York City.  It has enough Chinatown in it, but a lot of people still speak English, so for those of us who know only what we learned from one fun episode of "Ni hao Kai Lan," it makes the culture fairly accessible.  And I really love what I know of Chinese culture!  I've said this before... but I'm craving the opportunity to learn more about it, by traveling there, or learning to speak the language or something.  This morning, as my boyfriend is off to take a belt test at his martial arts studio in Chinatown, it is really on my mind.  He's a little further along, since he is working on learning some martial arts from China, as well as from other countries, but I think I might be eventually able to catch up. 

In the meantime, I will eat my dumplings, drink my tea, and dream.

 

  

Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA

Inspiration Fridays: Elizabeth Taylor

ELIZABETH TAYLOR. 

 I'll let her own words speak for her.

"I feel very adventurous. 

There are so many doors to be opened, and I'm not afraid to look behind them".

"I adore wearing gems, but not because they are mine. 

You can't possess radiance, you can only admire it".

"I've always admitted that I'm ruled by my passions".

"The problem with people who have no vices 

is that generally you can be pretty sure 

they're going to have some pretty annoying virtues".

"It is strange that the years teach us patience; 

that the shorter our time, 

the greater our capacity for waiting".

"If someone's dumb enough to offer me a million dollars to make a picture, 

I'm certainly not dumb enough to turn it down".

"When people say, 'She's got everything', 

I've got one answer - I haven't had tomorrow"

~ Elizabeth Taylor

Photographer Feature: Bianca DiMaio

Bianca DiMaio currently lives in Philadelphia, and she is in her last semester as a Film and Media arts student at Temple University. After graduation she plans on pursuing a career in post production. Editing video is Bianca's true passion, and she has always loved story-telling. Photography has been a hobby of hers since high school when a close friend's work inspired her to start taking pictures. Right now, she is enrolled in an animation class that has really emphasized the importance of each individual frame in creating a truly beautiful film.

When something beautiful catches Bianca's eye, she can't help but run for her camera to snap a picture of it. Her work can be found on her portfolio website at www.biancadimaio.com/ as well as her blog at www.biancatake1.blogspot.com/.

Philadelphia was hit by yet another snow storm this year, but that didn't stop Temple from holding classes and operating as usual. 

Bianca captured this photo in the summer of 2009 in Franklin Square Park, right in the heart of China Town. This carousel is accompanied by a miniature golf course, a fountain, and food stands with everything you might need for a fun day in the park.

 Last year there were a couple unseasonably hot days in March. What better way to spend this beautiful afternoon than laying by the fountain in Love Park? Philadelphia is a beautiful city and part of that beauty is the historical architecture. Bianca often overhears tourists pondering over this massive building in the middle of the city and wondering what it is. City Hall stands tall in the background of Love Park in Center City Philadelphia.

 This is a picture of one of Bianca's favorite locations in Philadelphia. Whenever she feels the need to get away from Temple, Bianca escapes to Penn's Landing. The Moshulu is the beautiful boat to the right and the Benjamin Franklin Bridge is in the background. 

Bianca and I went to high school together, and have remained friends ever since.  She's been up to New York to visit me a few times, and I hope we'll see each other more in the future!

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA

Party on the Bridge

It was a beautiful, sunny day in Brooklyn.  Gorgeous, even.  Almost seventy degrees. I decided to walk over the Brooklyn Bridge.

Everyone else in the city seemed to have the same idea.

It was great.

Brooklyn, New York City, New York, USA