COVID Chronicles - Empty Downtown Streets

May 24, 2020 by Ming Hung in Black and White, Chicago

Took a walk through Downtown Chicago the other day to get outside for a little bit and to snap some pictures of relatively empty spaces. The streets are not really as empty as I expected during this whole stay-at-home time. There are people everywhere! Less than before the pandemic but they are out there. I waited until people walked out of my frame to shoot.

If the man was not wearing a mask I would have removed him in post. The plazas in both of the images above are normally well-traversed areas, populated with people on break from work, skateboarding kids, tourists, and the spaces are used for farmers markets and other gatherings.

I hope someone is still guarding the money

I took this photo because I like the lettering of the neon sign. Still, we can tell that the scene is not normal. There is no valet, doormen, bellhops, etc to be seen outside waiting for guests.

I was clearly not staying home even though I can. On my days off I usually do. Like everybody I have to get outside some time. I like to take my walks downtown because it is easier to avoid other people there than it is in my own neighborhood. I live near two parks so there are always people about. There are more interesting things for me to photograph downtown so I might as well do something during my walks.

I shot most of the images in this post with my lens aperture wide open. The images are not entirely sharp and slightly dreamy as a result. I felt that if the images were slightly off that it may give the viewer a sense that something is not right.

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Look #up . #Light and #shadow .
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#ming_monochrom #bw #bnw #bnwphoto #bnwphotography #instabw #monochrome #blackandwhite #Leica #LeicaMonochrom #Monochrom #LeicaMonochrom246 #leicagram #theleicalook #leicalove #leicacamera #leicap

Metal flower. #Blacksky .
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#ming_monochrom #bw #bnw #bnwphoto #bnwphotography #instabw #monochrome #blackandwhite #Leica #LeicaMonochrom #Monochrom #LeicaMonochrom246 #leicagram #theleicalook #leicalove #leicacamera #leicaphotography

Two #lines and an #airplane . A couple #lights around the work area.
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#ming_monochrom #bw #bnw #bnwphoto #bnwphotography #instabw #monochrome #blackandwhite #Leica #LeicaMonochrom #Monochrom #LeicaMonochrom246 #leicagram #theleical

We had a relatively mild winter without much snow or ice, and a lot of rain so the #water level of #LakeMichigan was pretty high. There was much flooding on Lake Shore Drive and some streets and homes along the #lakeshore . I haven't been to the lake

Some #architecture today. This is the #glass filled atrium of one of the convention center#buildings during C2E2. That was back when we had conventions. A whole lot of #lines #light and #shadows here. I really dig this space.
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#ming_monoch

COVID Chronicles - The Non-Essentials

May 05, 2020 by Ming Hung in Black and White, Culture, Documentary

During this pandemic we have come to learn what is deemed essential and what is deemed nonessential. We need grocery stores, pharmacies, gas stations, banks, and some other businesses to stay open. We do not need retail stores like the ones in this post as we fight this disease. I am not saying anything about these stores or brands, but, rather, I am making an observation.

I am also stretching to come up with ideas to shoot. This post is a result of a photo walk I took a few mornings ago. I drove up to the Gold Coast neighborhood of Chicago to take my walk. People think of Michigan Avenue, the “Magnificent Mile,” as Chicago’s premiere destination for shopping and high-end shops. While there are some high-end shops on the Mag Mile, it is a side street at the north end of the Mile that offers the most of that experience. Oak Street is Chicago’s Rodeo Drive. Many of the luxury boutique brands have shops on this block of Oak Street between Rush Street and Michigan Avenue.

Nothing special about any of the images in this post. I was just looking to do something on a day off. But there is a little story to tie in here.

My mother used to work at a small boutique a few storefronts down from this Prada store. It was not a name brand boutique, but sold some not-so-cheap formal wear for women. The shop did not survive too long after 9/11.

When I was still in school sometimes I would have to pick up my mother from work. That was the deal made so that I could use the car. I did not mind because I could do some people watching here. There were plenty of exotic sports cars to look at. And girls. We’ll leave it at that.

Some stores have opted to leave their window displays open to view while others have boarded up. I do not blame them for their fear of theft. Who knows how long we will be staying away from businesses like these.

This storefront spoke to me because of the symmetry and asymmetry present in the scene.

Christian Louboutin, Tom Ford, Dolce & Gabbana are all some pretty big names. This is the old Esquire Theatre building. It was first opened in 1938. I remember seeing a handful of movies there, but by the time I was watching movies there it was one of the “cheaper” movie-going experiences, as people were becoming more drawn to the newer mega theaters offered by AMC and others.

This Louis Vuitton store is actually on Michigan Avenue. My photo walk did spill out on to the Mile for a block or so. I wonder how many of these high-end boutiques might close because of the pandemic.

There were other ads that told people that COVID-19 is not age- or race-discriminant. So why was I not staying home if I can? For the most part I do on my days off. But I must feel the sun so I chose the morning to take this walk. Even though there was no one around I wore a mask, and kept my time outside to less than an hour. In the afternoons here in Chicago, especially on nice sunny days, there are parks full of people not practicing social distancing or wearing face masks. It saddens me that some people are not taking this seriously. So I hope we can get through this sooner rather than later, although our behavior will make it the latter I am sure.

This small triangular shaped park, and its surrounding restaurants and lounges is humorously dubbed the “Viagra Triangle.” I will leave it up to you to interpret that. This iss also where many exotic luxury and sports cars and girls can be seen.

I leave you with this image. Seeing these signs was indeed hopeful. It means that there are people out there who are optimistic, which is a great thing. They balance out people like me who are less optimistic. Thank you for coming along with my on my little photo walk. Stay safe and healthy.

Click images to view on black.

Empire State Building in distant morning haze

New York City, October 2017

May 01, 2020 by Ming Hung in Black and White, Travel, New York City, Architecture, Cityscape

Since we are currently mostly staying home and not traveling I decided to blog about previous trips I had taken. The images in this post are from a visit to New York City in October of 2017. The main attraction for that trip was New York Comic Con, but I will share images I shot of the city and its architecture and some street photography featuring people.

This is a total ad for the airline I flew on. I love the view of the Manhattan skyline approaching LaGuardia Airport. Well not just the view of Manhattan but of the other boroughs that can be seen too. New York City is dingy up close—for better or worse—but from afar it is a beautiful city. I am always fascinated by how much shipping activity occurs on the Hudson and East Rivers.

MTA - Roosevelt Av & Broadway - Jackson Heights

I did not often take many pictures at train stations. On this particular trip to NYC I decided to change things up and use a different MTA station to get from Queens to Manhattan. Previously I always used the Astoria Blvd station at 31st Street. This time I took the bus from LaGuardia to Jackson Heights and the station at the corners of Roosevelt Avenue, Broadway, and 74th Street. The entrance area of the station was quite interesting, and I got a shot of the man above with his case waiting for a train. It was interesting that most of the other people waited in the shadows, as if they did not want to be seen.

The Flatiron Building was once one of the tallest “skyscrapers” in New York City at 20 stories tall. To say that quite a bit has changed would be understating it. There is something new to look at every time I fly to New York City.

Out at 6AM!

The bacon donut at The Donut Pub is to die for.

Taking pictures of churches and other houses of worship around New York City would be a project in itself.

I almost always make a stop at the famous Midtown Comics in Midtown Manhattan. That has waned a bit, as I stopped collecting comic books years ago. Lots of Ms in this shot: McDonald’s, Midtown Comics, Maoz Falafel & Grill.

Times Square is a colorful area, especially with the neon and all these “Blade Runner 2049 billboards. I probably would have presented images here in color if I was there at night, but this was taken early in the morning. Then that would have been another blog post entirely.

“Fake news” and the “failing” New York Times

I am not exactly sure when, but up until a generation ago these institutions were still a trusted source of news and information. The times have certainly changed. I know that news organizations need eyeballs, and they have all done things to get those eyeballs. Not everyone agrees with the how and what, and so I guess that is where the mistrust originated.

The NYPD’s fleet of vehicles is a diverse one. This little car is hilarious. I am not sure if it is a Smart Car, but it is one of those small car brands. I guess they really need to squeeze through that crazy New York City traffic.

The food cart people push and pull their carts from their base depots to various spots on the streets every morning and back again every evening. I always get something from one or more of the carts, as I am a snackaholic. This and the following images are more street photography style images that I want to do more of in general when I travel. People in places are the most interesting.

This shot was a miss in both exposure and focus. I sometimes shoot too fast when I do not want to miss an opportunity. The highlights are blown out and there is motion blur. At least the dog is pretty well seen.

This little guy was cute. Dogs are some of the most loyal creatures on Earth. This one was looking back and forth for its owner. I did not want to get down and agitate it so I shot this from the hip as I walked past.

A lot of dogs that morning. This one was a pretty cool scene, with both the dogs trying to look in the coffee shop window. I wonder if the guy’s hat had anything to do with triangles.

These two were super chill, waiting for their breakfast. What is even cooler is that the woman in between them inside the restaurant had sunglasses on too! I did not notice that at first. Many times there are surprises discovered during post production. That is one of the great things about photography I love.

This last image is the only one from New York Comic Con in this post. I love this cosplayer’s Jessica Jones. It is simple, comfortable (many costumes are not), and easily recognizable if you have seen the show.

I went on this trip with my Fujifilm X-Pro2 set on the Acros film simulation, shooting the entire trip in black and white. Now I have an all monochrome camera, but I still carry a second camera body with me that is capable of shooting color because of the fear of missing out. Looking back on this series of images I did not even think about color at all. It is not something that should concern me. I can always go back and shoot something again another time.

This was my longest blog post yet. Thank you for coming along to New York City with me. I hope we all get to travel for real sooner rather than later. Where do you all want to go first? I really want to go back to New York City again. So many good places to eat! Stay safe, everybody.

Click images to view on black.

April 24, 2020 by Ming Hung in Black and White, Landscape

Checking in with a short post today. Many of us are stuck at home, and we will not be able to travel for a while. When I took the image above I had intended to make it look like somewhere else. I am pretending I am somewhere along the southwest border of the United States and Mexico. This was really just a road along one of the borders of the airport where I work. those are not hills in the distance but just mounds of dirt.

I leave you with two mirror selfies I took this morning.

Click images to view on black.

A Walk in Bridgeport - Reminisce with Me

April 19, 2020 by Ming Hung in Black and White, Chicago

Woke up a little after 05:30 this morning and decided not to go back to sleep. I ate breakfast and headed out for a walk around the neighborhood while no one was out. I was born and raised in Bridgeport. Have I ever thought about living elsewhere in the country? Absolutely. However I am tied to Chicago because of work, but that is really another discussion. Like any other neighborhood Bridgeport has its bad sides, but it has some charms as well.

I wanted to get a little exercise and shoot a little bit. These images are not all that good, but there are some stories from the past associated with a few of them. The corner of 35th and Halsted Street has remained relatively unchanged over the years. The Ramova, a theater I never went to, was never torn down. It and the diner on the corner has been there as long as I can remember.

I do not remember if this building on the opposite corner to the diner has always housed a furniture store, but I love its architecture. The lamp posts on the corner are not the originals, but it adds a bit to the scene. There are still a lot of buildings in this style throughout the city.

The buildings in the two images above are right next to one another. The empty retail space used to house a record store. I have a feeling it may have been Let’s Boogie in a previous life. Perhaps they downsized to the space next door. The last time I stepped foot in the larger space was some time in the early 1990s. I did not own any music as a kid, as we were relatively poor so the only music I heard was through a clock radio. I would occasionally listen to my parents’ old hi-fi system. They had a receiver with AM-FM tuner, an 8-track player, a cassette deck, and a turntable. But aside from a handful of 8-track tapes and whatever cassettes they brought with them when they emigrated to the United States there was not anything for me to listen to besides the radio. It was free and it was on 24 hours a day. Being an only child I gravitated toward music to pass the time at an early age.

It has been a long time since I walked down this way. I completely forgot this place was here. Malelo and Company started back in 1950, and has been family owned and operated since. Google knows all!

I have never eaten at this restaurant. For most of my life up until The Internet killed video rental stores this was Bridgeport Video. My family did not have a membership, but I would occasionally walk in to “browse.” Like many adolescent boys I would try to sneak around to the adult section to look at the boobs on the boxes, lol. They also had a few arcade video game machines. A buddy and I would occasionally skip school and end up there playing games. One time a police officer came in to the store and questioned us as to why we were not in school. “We’re testing today…,” my friend answered. I do not think he was convinced, but he left us alone. We were relieved, and left shortly ourselves, not wanting to push our luck.

This was always a gas station, a quick-mart, and a diner, though they all had different names. In high school some friends and I started an adventure here. It was so cold that school was cancelled that day, but we were stupid and went outside. I do not remember if we were having lunch at the diner, or if we were just getting gas, but the one car we arrived in would not start because of the cold. We proceeded to push it to another friend’s house. He lived closest, less than a mile away. I still think that was the coldest I ever felt, and we were pushing a car! After getting the car squared we decided it was a good idea to play some football in the street. Again we were kids and we were stupid, but stupid makes for fond memories.

Maria’s Packaged Goods and Community Bar, Bridgeport Coffee House, and Pleasant House Pastries formed the “Hipster Triangle.” Pleasant House has since moved to a bigger space near Pilsen, but Maria’s and Bridgeport Coffee is still here. I do not imbibe so I have never been to Maria’s, but Bridgeport Coffee is one of my favorite cafes in Chicago. I frequent it before I go to work. For a long time there were no real coffee shops in Bridgeport. Then the hipsters came. People like to give hipsters a bad name, but they bring good stuff with them! Was that the real reason for the coffee shops arriving? Who knows? I am just glad they are here.

Last but not least is Jackalope, another of my fave coffee shops, also in Bridgeport. This one is uniquely decorated with art featuring its mythical beast namesake. And it was opened by one of my grammar school classmates!

Click images to view on black.

Machinery in Monochrom

April 09, 2020 by Ming Hung in Black and White, Leica, Industrial

It was a slow night at work and I took the Leica M Monochrom in to the garage and explored our aircraft tow tugs. There is so much interesting detail in these machines. I did not have a tripod so I shot nearly every shot with the lens wide open at f/1.4 so there is not a single shot where everything is in focus. I chose, instead, to isolate certain details in some of the images.

The above image is my favorite of the series. In retrospect I could have closed the aperture a bit to get more of this shot in focus since there was not as big a difference in depth in subject matter here. I also did not do much to sharpen any of the images beyond the default sharpening that was applied in Lightroom. I wanted a film-like feel, but I did not add any grain to the images either, if that makes any sense.

It is funny that we refer to vehicles in the feminine. But then we might also refer to a large machine as “Big Boy/Guy.” This is one of our larger machines.

I love the way this lens renders images and depth of field. There is a three-dimensional quality. I should use my other vintage lenses more with my Fujifilm X-Pro2 more often to get qualities like this. I am not in to the razor-sharp, perfect images that modern lenses produce. They look too clinical. I like a bit of imperfection.

Click to view images on black.

A Curious Surprise

February 17, 2020 by Ming Hung in Animal Life, Black and White, Leica

I drive by this scrap metal yard several times a week, and I always thought to myself that I could get some good images with plenty of contrast in the highs and lows. It was a warm (relatively) and sunny Sunday morning yesterday so I finally made a stop. I am a creature of habit who likes symmetry and would normally square up the above image a little better. However, shooting through chain link fencing made for awkward positioning at times.

The M Monochrom (Typ 246) is getting its paces, and this was a test of its dynamic range. I am very pleased with the results. Plenty of shadow detail, as I shot most of my images slightly underexposed to preserve the highlights.

I was making my way to the right to get shots of these I-beams when—surprise—these two curious siblings emerged from their hiding spot to see just what the heck I was doing by their yard. I was looking through the rangefinder at the time, concentrating on the cat that was stepping down to the ground that I did not even notice the second one at the bottom of my frame.

The smaller one of the two was the also the shier one, preferring to keep an eye on me from a distance. I missed focus on this one, as the cat was just slightly out of range of my focus (I was at either f/5.6 or f/8).

The larger one was still unsure of me and moved around from spot to spot to watch me shoot. Here, I chose not to edit out this shot from my series, as the blurred out piece of chain link fence added an element of interest to the image.

I would have been happy with the shots of the metal in this yard alone, but having the cats in the shots made them much more interesting. There was abundant highs and lows in the images, with great textural details in the different metal materials. I will return to this spot to shoot some more soon.

Click images to view on black.

Qualities of the Leica 50mm f/1.4 Summilux

May 14, 2018 by Ming Hung in Photography, Black and White, Leica

I recently purchased a 1970s-era 50mm Summilux to go along with my Leica M9-P. I went down to my aunt's and uncle's yard today to make some images, as there is always something of interest to capture. The shot above is of a structure they built for the vines of melon plants to climb this Summer. The M9-P's CCD sensor rendors some nice color. I applied a Kodak Gold 100 preset to give the saturation a slight jolt. Very pleasing colors. Even more pleasing is the transition from what is in focus to what is out of focus--so smooth!

There are interesting things to see in the sky as well. This was a shot from underneath the structure as a Boeing 737 flew by on its approach to an airport not too far from here. I probably should have taken another shot like this wide open to see what the result of that would look like. Perhaps next time.

I shot the lens wide open in every shot except the one with the airplane, and at ISOs between 160 and 400. Image quality is impressive. The approximately 40-year-old lens is in excellent condition. Sharpness is crisp if I nail focus, and I have to really nail it but I do not always do. Even wide open it is sharp, with no extreme vignetting. I prefer to add my own vignettes.

I am enjoying the characteristics of this lens. Those characteristics are particular to this lens, and have been built over four decades or so. The images have a warmth to them--not in terms color temperature. The images are more inviting than those produced by modern lenses that offer extreme sharpness in all areas of the frame.

The biggest drawback to this version of the 50mm Summilux is that the minimum focusing distance is over three feet. Close focusing would have allowed for some shots of some plants sprouting, or even some closer detail shots of the different materials and textures of the objects in all my images above. It is still a great great lens, and I look forward to many years of use to come.

Click images to view on black.

Alone at Work

July 12, 2017 by Ming Hung in Black and White

I have not been out shooting very much in recent weeks, as I am in the middle of a nine-week classroom and on-the-job-training regimen for a new position at work. However, during an earlier training session a few months ago I took a few shots inside the training facility. We are required to complete annual and quarterly recurrent lessons in a computer lab. I usually zip through them and am often left to my own devices afterward. When there are not classes of new hires for various departments in the building then there are not very many people in the building at all, especially during afternoon and evening shifts. I was able to wander the halls of the building alone for a while.

I really liked the light cast and shadows created on the concrete walls in the shots above and below. The building is relatively old so I wanted some shots before it gets torn down some time next year. I will have to shoot some more when I get the chance.

Click on images to view on black.

Happy Accidents

June 09, 2017 by Ming Hung in Black and White

I have been having trouble keeping this blog updated. I go shooting frequently, but I do not want to use this blog as an image dump--I also want to write more meaningfully about the photographic process. The drought temporarily ended yesterday with a happy accident. Happy accidents happen in photography just as they do in life. The backstory on this is that I have not ridden my bicycle very much at all over the last few years, including not riding it even once last year. So a few days ago a buddy reached out and asked if I wanted to go for a bike ride. I agreed, and we laid out a specific course because there was a sculpture I wanted to take some photos of.

The stainless steel piece titled Looking Up is by American artist Tom Friedman. It stands 33.3 feet tall and currently stands near 53rd Street along Chicago's lakefront. This is one of three such figures looking up to the heavens. One is a proof and another stands in New York City.

The happy accident here was the position of the sun. I did not plan to be there at that exact moment. I have driven past the sculpture on several occasions and never stopped to shoot. Several things had to happen: my friend had to reach out, I had to not come up with an excuse not to meet him, and I had to arrive at that time. My images would have been boring without an element of interest in the sky, and I would have taken fewer frames. I was delighted when I arrived and saw the sun where it was. That is not to say that I would not return when the sky above is really cloudy.

If not for the position of the sun I would not have played around with as many angles as I did. I would not have played with flaring as I did in the above image. What is a happy accident that happened to you in your photographic experiences?

Click images to view on black.

Land/cityscape in Black and White

May 09, 2017 by Ming Hung in Black and White, Landscape, Cityscape

There are not that many obvious or "traditional" landscape shooting opportunities in Chicago. I am not looking hard enough. I live just over two miles from Lake Michigan so the lakefront is a good spot for doing some landscapes. But they are technically cityscapes.

This particular day was a fairly nice day. It started with nice blue sky with puffy white clouds, but it was windy and rain was coming. Thicker clouds started rolling in. I envisioned taking these shots as monochromes from the start. Even though the sky started nicely blue, the images were just too blue because the water was blue as well, and there were no other interesting colors present.

I used Fujifilm's Acros black and white film simulation with a red filter as my base. Then I adjusted whites, blacks, highlights, and shadows in post.

I wished there were some more clouds in the sky for the shot below to balance it out better.

The clouds thickened and made for more drama.

As an aside I do not currently own any zoom lenses on my Fujifilm X system. When I was shooting Canon my main lens was a zoom lens. For all of these shots I may have either zoomed in or out if I had a zoom. However, I am enjoying using just prime lenses. I see things differently, and I do not miss having a zoom at all. I used to shoot just primes prior to my Canon system so it is not something new to me. I also do not feel that one type of lens is "better" than the other. They are all tools, just with different applications. It is up to the individual to utilize them as they see fit.

Click images to view on black.

Architecture Light Lines Monochrome Shadows Shapes Windows

May 01, 2017 by Ming Hung in Architecture, Black and White

I titled this blog post with a bunch of tags that I arranged in alphabetical order. That is pretty much it. I was exploring a convention center space, and the light streaming in through the large windows beautifully painted shadows and shapes on to the walls. These two images were taken on two separate weekends. It was great being able to get some images devoid of convention goers. I shot over a balcony and up into a corner to avoid including any people. I did not have a tripod with me, otherwise I might have taken some shots in the main lobby and just remove people in post.

Click images to view on black.