Berlin Adventures

Silver Couple

2007-08-10T18:01:00.000-07:00

This couple from Poland was really sweet and was happy to talk with me. I've seen them many times while passing through Unter den Linden. There you can find many street performers dressed in funny costumes like these guys. I came at a perfect time because they were touching up their silver makeup after a quick lunch break. It would have been a lot harder to talk to them if they would have been standing up in and in character. Luckily for me they spoke better English than German so I was able to ask them different questions. They have been here since the beginning of July and will leave the end of August. They needed a little extra money to help finance their vacation here in Berlin. They were pretty genius because they capture everyone one's attention on the street and it is not only because they are dressed in silver. They have personality and have picked great costumes. "well we knew we wanted to do this but we knew we had to be different from all of the other performers" he said "it does help that there are two of us." They stand side by side almost every day until about 15.00 and then become tourist again. "we go out and have a few drinks with the money that we just earned" What a great way to earn some extra traveling money. I should have been doing this all along.

Happy Men

2007-08-10T17:57:00.000-07:00

These two young men were crazy but really amicable. They were practically begging us to photograph them and who could refuse. They both were full of personality and the man to the left was especially animated. They were two Turkish men hanging out in front of a local Doner stand in Neukoeln. These two guys are clearly interacting and enjoying themselves.
I like how the umbrella runs across the top of the picture and there is an open door to the right which almost gives more space to the picture because it is leading into another place. The shirts that the two are wearing are a great contrast, one white and one black. If I was taking this picture over again I would have moved to the left a little to remove the light post from behind the man to the left and captured more of the door to the right. I find it hard to think quickly when I want to capture a moment like this, were the man had his arm up from laughing. I have to work on that.

High in the Air

2007-08-09T17:48:00.000-07:00

I was completely lucky when I ran into these
three young break dancers. I was heading home
and I saw the crowd standing around. The three of them were very entertaining and I knew I had to take some action pictures. I put my setting on continuous so I could get shots like these. They were all really talented and you could tell they all really liked break dancing and preforming in front of a crowd.

In the picture to the left I tried to emulate Dennis Stock's photograph of Earl Hines and his band. In his photograph he uses what we have called in class the fan technique which spans the entire picture. I really like how this dancer's body curves around the edges of the photo. There is a lot of space in the picture but it is not empty space and allows the picture to breath.

The picture to the right is my favorite out of the three because it has so many different elements. The entertainer captures the attention of the people passing by on the street. Not only the people standing close to the camera but also the men in the background near the taxis. There are a lot of vertical elements: the buildings, the people, the lamp posts and the scaffold. There is also a good vanishing point highlighted by the darker strip cutting through the middle of the picture, the lines of the sidewalk, the buildings and lastly and my favorite the dancer's arm. He is pointing to the upper right corning and makes you read the picture from the left to the right.

Oooh to be a Kid again

2007-08-09T17:37:00.000-07:00

There were a few kids running and playing in the water as I was passing and this kid caught my eye. It took me awhile to get this picture but I was willing to wait because I knew this kid would give me a crazy pose like this because he was all over the place. There was a pattern with the kid and the rhythm of the water and I anticipated when he would turn around and head for the water and fortunately this is what i got!

Just one of those days

2007-08-08T17:44:00.000-07:00

I was walking down the street with my camera in my hand when I passed this ally and out of the corner of my eye saw this guy walking up towards the street. I felt compelled to take a picture of him because on this sunny summer afternoon he was wearing a large jacket, jeans and a turban. He captured my attention so I stopped and aimed the camera right at him. I was kind of scared of him so I took the picture and ran but I think I took it at just the right moment because he began to give this little smirk. I think he is positioned pretty well between the toilette and the boxes to the right. He is centered on the sidewalk but is a little to the right in the photograph. I wanted to have room for more of the greenery to get a better feeling for the area he was walking through.

Working Hard for That Money

2007-08-08T17:05:00.000-07:00

As soon as we entered this Indian restaurant I knew I wanted to take a picture of these guys but I waited until they were comfortable with us and we were there for a while. After dinner I approached the guy on the left and started talking to him and then soon they all agreed to let me photograph them. They were all happy to cooperate and were really nice guys. It took a few tries until I got this picture. I like the way both men are against the frame of the picture and all men are at different distances from the camera. I didn't notice it before but the light is highlighting the man's face on the left and brightens the back of the picture as well. The wine glasses and the Indian symbol line up nicely on the top of the picture. There are a lot of straight lines created by the counters and the shelves and the roundness of the turbans contrast this element pretty well. I may take Bruce's advice and print out some prints and bring them back to these guys. Im sure they will let me take even more pictures and I'll probably get the chance to learn a lot about them.

Eating on the Go!

2007-08-08T16:34:00.000-07:00

Talk about keeping your eyes on the road, or maybe stuffed in a bowl! On my way to one of our excursions I spotted this hungry man.This semi-truck driver was eating his lunch so fast, shoving food in his mouth and then finally licking the bowl clean. Im one to also eat on the go but I guess you never know when and where someone can capture a picture quite like this of you!! I also like this picture because it is close enough to capture the action of the man in the truck while still having some distance so you know what exactly is taking place. The windows frame the driver but are all different sizes and shapes which gives more character to the otherwise boring truck. I believe there is enough space around the truck so you are not swallowed up by it.

Muti-Culti Friedrichstrasse

2007-08-07T07:42:00.000-07:00

I couldnt have asked for a better multi-cultural picture than this one. This was taken on Friedrichstrasse in the middle of the city. Not only is this picture layered culturally but it captures your attention in three different places. Up close we see two accordion players engaged in conversation. To the left we see an asian woman walking and in the back right, a muslim woman. Even though the muslim woman is in the back, she is still noticed because she is wearing light colored clothing and is surrounded by a lot of blues and black. There is a diagnal line connecting the accordion players with the asian woman to the left and there are few distractions. I like this picture because no one noticed that I was taking the picture and I was able to capture the scene in its natural setting.

glowing shirt

2007-08-06T17:05:00.000-07:00

I'm not crazy, but this is my friend Gunther, people didn't believe he existed but here he is........ I love this picture because it looks like the glowing shirt is floating. who would have thought that I could have taking a random picture like this in Berlin in a garden tucked away behind an old building.

Classic Berlin

2007-08-06T16:52:00.000-07:00

This picture was taken on Karl Marx Allee and I think this is a perfect representation of the people of Berlin. They really don't give a shit about what people think. This is a great picture of him sporting a German jersey pushing a stroller. I find that a lot of fathers in Berlin take time to spend with their children and I find that very touching. I love the way the picture is set up and the stroller is off to the side. Who would wear this outfit? Who is this guy? It was really cute to see his little blonde haired daughter run in the shot a second after this was taken but I could never be embarrassed of my own dad after this...poor girl.

Candle lighting

2007-08-05T15:41:00.000-07:00

My friends and I were at Br101 downstairs were there were candles on the table because it was a pretty dark area. I was messing around with my camera and focusing in on the candle however, I saw Birgit starting to lean over so I waited until the right moment and took the picture. I think it is an amazing picture because she had no idea I was taking it and looks so naturally beautiful. There is depth in this picture with Birgit in the background and the candle up close. Even though her face is in the background it is highlighted because everything around her is outlined in black. You can see where the light is bouncing off of her cheek bone and nose. Her hair also circles around the photo creating an oval like shape.