Chicagohenge

September 24, 2020 by Ming Hung in Chicago, Cityscape, Photography, Sunset

Hello! It has been a few months since I posted anything on this main blog page. The reason? The Two Ls: Laziness and Lack (of content). Here is some content I actually shot this week. The Autumn equinox was just a few days ago. During the Spring and Autumn equinoxes (give or take a few days) the setting sun will line up along the East-West streets, and the resulting scene between the buildings in downtown Chicago is pretty cool. I do not own a long enough lens to get close so I chose a cinematic presentation for my images. This was my first time shooting Chihenge so it was a learning experience. I will know what to expect next time. I only took a handful of shots and am leading this post with the best one, so there is no real reason for you to keep going, lol.

This was the first shot as the sun started peaking out from behind some buildings. I did not know beforehand where the sun would appear relative to the horizon. Then I noticed the gal in the middle of my shot move up so I knew it began. My friend and I walked up and down Michigan Avenue and looked down each East-West street to see which view we preferred. We settled on Jackson Boulevard because the Sears Tower could be seen in the shot. That is if we were on Michigan Avenue. But because of where the sun appeared we had to move off Michigan Avenue, and the skyscraper was obscured by closer buildings.

The other reason we ended up on Jackson Boulevard was because there were a lot of people camped on the steps of the Art Institute of Chicago to watch the “henging” along Adams Street. There were fewer people on Jackson so we could properly social distance while shooting. I color graded each of my images differently for some variety. In the above image I got some of the other shooters out there. They would dart to the middle of the street when there was no traffic. I did the same thing where I was, and preferred to stay back to use the elevated train tracks as a framing element.

I had my Monochrom246 with me so I took just a few shots with it. Next time I will have a camera set up to capture some motion blur when the trains go by. It was not this dark, but I like some drama and moodiness. Thank you for visiting.

Click images to view on black.

Color and Love

May 31, 2020 by Ming Hung in Chicago, Colors

We are at the start of the sixth month of 2020 and it has been a doozy of a year. I cannot say that I am looking forward to the rest of it. I felt like we can use a little color and some love right now. These images were shot several weeks ago, but they were not fitting my current monochromatic aesthetic on my other platforms so I have just been sitting on them.

As a country we are currently fighting two diseases: COVID-19 and systemic racism coupled with police brutality. Protests around the country have started following the killing of George Floyd by Minneapolis police officers. The protests have turned violent. I do not agree with rioting and looting, and there are plenty of bad actors to blame. They are making matters worse for peaceful protesters who are out trying to spread their messages of change and demands for justice.

I have been to a number of protests and rallies the last few years—anti-Trump ones, women’s marches, rallies for science, etc. Fortunately they were all non-violent. I thought about heading out Saturday morning to join in solidarity with African Americans. The photographer in me also wanted to document some of the proceedings. I did not go.

The ongoing pandemic is the reason I chose to stay home. I have been a proponent of social distancing, mask wearing in public, and staying home so I am not going to violate that. Taking care of my elderly mother I do not need to bring the virus home to her. I hope that these huge crowds of citizens and police officers alike do not contribute to a spike in cases of the virus. Protesting during a pandemic is a confluence of two terrible situations. I cannot help my mother if I get physically hurt, which is a distinct possibility given the volatile nature of why people are protesting.

At the very least please sign some petitions or donate to organizations fighting for justice if you can. As individuals we can work on our implicit biases. We must learn to love one another. And, most importantly, we should listen to the oppressed and not ignore societal problems any longer. Stay safe and healthy, everyone.

Click images to view on black.

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.

Click images to view on black. Please follow my Instagram feed. Thank you for visiting.

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

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.

Exploring Colors

May 31, 2018 by Ming Hung in Photography, Chicago, Colors

I am still very pleased with the colors produced by the Leica M9-P's mid-2000s CCD sensor. In the images above and below I used different presets to add warmth and saturation to really make the colors pop. Buildings under construction are not places normally associated with being overly colorful, but these two were really showing off. It is a little hard to see, but there is an American flag hanging from the yellow crane in the image above. It was Memorial Day weekend and the crews were off.

There is a soft and "quiet" quality to the images that also add warmth of a different kind to the images. They are more inviting.

This image was not processed with any preset, throwing off the theme of this post a bit. There is still a lot of warmth in the image and the complementary colors work. This is/was the home of photographer Victor Skrebneski, who was born in Chicago in 1929. Many credit him for launching Cindy Crawford's career. Skrebneski has produced many well-known images during a remarkable career. There used to be a car--I think it was a Benz or a Jaguar--with plates that simply said "V" on them. I wonder if he still lives here.

Click images to view on black.