Saturday, July 28, 2007
Chinese place to be Japanese place
This was that grubby looking (at least through the window) Chinese place on Bedford just below N7th. Soon to be Japanese. At least it's not Thai I guess but there does seem to be a bit of an Asian hub forming.
Living Storefront
You may have seen the item in Eater about the new bar coming with the plants on the front. There was a question about how the plants are going to be watered. Turns out there are thin hoses that run between the flats. They're attached to a big hose. So either they're on a timer or they have some kind of constant drip happening.
What amazes me is that they're using succulent plants. I would have thought some kind of hardy grasses or something, maybe ivy. And I would have thought some kind of rough stone or field stone with crags full of dirt. But these are like nursery flats.
This is N5th or so, off Bedford, next to that Mexican place.
Friday, July 20, 2007
... and the kitchen sink
I struggled to frame these things in a balanced way but couldn't find anything satisfying. When I got home I liked the one with this guy walking through it the best.
The return of Faro
This is that one that was left unfinished a while back.
http://testofwill.blogspot.com/2007/06/faro-bloke.html
Tuesday, July 17, 2007
Black black black
This didn't come out quite as cool as it looked in person with the little shiny moped squished between two similarly black cars. I'm pleased with how well I was able to keep myself out of the reflection in the door.
Friday, July 13, 2007
Giant stuff
I got an invite once to contribute some photos to the Giant food group on Flickr so now I snap them when I see them.
Monday, July 09, 2007
Bedford and N7th new spots coming
You might not recognize it immediately but it's on N7th off Bedford, literally at the mouth of the subway entrance on the south side of the street. See the reflection in the glass in the permit photo for a better sense of it.
Obviously this has been a curiosity for a long time, having such a prominent location on Bedford just north of N7th. The storefront is more finished now and there's a sign in the window asking for kitchen help. I popped my head in this weekend and asked what was coming (the permit says "existing take-out restaurant"). "Chapay," said the worker inside.
What?
Chapay... chaaapayyyy.
What is that, Peruvian, I thought to myself. Seeing my confusion the guy came over and traced letters on the door, naming them, "Chai... Ah..."
C A F E
Oh! It's going to be a cafe? What, like baked goods and coffee? (It looks like there's an espresso machine on the counter.)
Yes, yes, bakery, yes.
I didn't ask when they expect to open. I'll try again another day when I can be more confident in my ability to communicate.
Unless someone already knows the answer and wants to share...
Aged
Y'know that lot on N6th across from Galapagos? I've never seen the gate open but it was the other day. I didn't explore much beyond the open area.
Northside sky
I was looking for an angle that would put the reflection of the puffy clouds in the windows of the Northside Piers building. I didn't quite find it but that low plane flew by.
Strata
Through a window on the LIRR platform so it's got weird reflections and blur. Still, I like the patterns and the figure on the platform addressing the street level guy leaning on the sign.
Wedding party
I don't know these ladies but it's funny to run across women with drinks and formal gowns on the sidewalk in the middle of the day. Obviously there was a wedding reception at a nearby restaurant (that tapas place on like N9th).
PnA Deli
Some things you record for posterity - especially when there are no cars parked in front ruining the view.
See?
Rockin' Schmooks
I haven't tried this place since it became Schmook's. Funny name and very funny to have a high school rock band play out front on the sidewalk. The keyboard guy warmed up with Fur Elise - straight from piano lessons.
Night game
I'm really pleased with how well this night-ness came out in this one. I may take one more stab at it and take out that light on the left edge, but for overall lighting and color I'm pretty pleased.
Thursday, July 05, 2007
Roof with a view
More interesting a sight than the fireworks were all the neighbors on their rooftops. I was on a roof deck for last year's fireworks, but the view didn't show anything like this. Especially surreal was when they all had umbrellas.
Moon over Williamsburg
I have the hardest time taking a good picture of the moon. I think it takes a zoomier lens than the 28mm I use as my standard. Anyway, luckily we have this awesome church.
Red Bowl
The restaurant going into the former Sam and Seb place (http://testofwill.blogspot.com/2007/02/sam-seb-out-restaurant-in.html) now has a name. For some reason I have a few shots of this but at least this one shows how they re-did the whole building facade. I don't know when it opens.
(In case you don't remember Sam and Seb, this is Bedford between N5th and N6th.)
Rescue Me
I finally saw an actual shooting of Rescue Me after seeing the little No Parking signs up everywhere. No Dennis Leary unless you count that little poster of him screaming on the side of the bin. One guy looked just like him. I reckon he was a stunt double. You can see the fake smoke in the background. Somehow they made that building fake on fire.
Prep work
It was the colors and big shapes that caught my eye, but if you look close you see the guy is cooking a pile of noodles. This was during my morning commute, so he's probably doing some bulk pre-cooking.
Broome St.
/eks/
This looks like a picture of nothing, but there are stairs behind the lower rail that go down to an almost open /eks/ which will be a frozen yogurt place. "Small opening, July 4. Grand Opening, July 7." Inside is pretty big and all pink and white. Should make for a good Noah Kalina shot at some point. I tried to take an inside shot but it looked like they were doing some kind of friends and family thing. This is Driggs around N9th under the Ylli store.
Alejandro's
They're probably not connected at all, but it looks a little like you go into the front store in order to access the upstairs lounge.
27
There has to be some rule that says a guy gets credit when his pieces are still showing up months after he's left. I guess "showing up" isn't really the right term since it's just a matter of me stumbling upon them. Still, it's very surprising to me that this egg hunt is still going on.
Framed
I was really tempted to pick this up and look for things in Greenpoint to frame, but that would be cheating. This is a little dull, but pretty good color match to the seat.
Williamsburg graffiti
I focus so much on "street art" I don't often post traditional graffiti. Lately there's been a spate of impressive new pieces in Williamsburg however.
Just when I thought they were finished (and I was ready to say it looked like there was a hole in the composition) another name shows up. now I'm pretty sure they're done. I have details elsewhere in this Flickr stream. I confess to tweaking it a little in post production to bring out colors and contrast.
I saw a guy on a ladder painting this last week but couldn't stop for a photo so I came back to take this of the finishesd product.
Wythe near N8th
I don't doubt there are neighbors who resent this going up but I don't think it looks all that bad. You can see stairs in the first floor window - those first two floors are one big apartment with no floor separating the first two floors on the balcony side.
Bike row
I'm not crazy about putting the tree in the middle but the couple is too much of a draw to the eye to put them much farther to the left. Plus, I've been avoiding framing the shot with obvious verticals like trees and light posts, so in the middle is what's left.
Alley to the back
This is in/at the Source furniture store over on West St. If you've never been, it's worth a quick walk-through. I think it's only open on weekends though.
...existing eating and drinking establishment...
I haven't been here long enough to remember when this was a functioning restaurant but when it comes back it'll be part of a steadily improving cluster of eating and drinking establishments. This is on Broadway near the East River bar, next door to that fortress-looking building (http://flickr.com/photos/atestofwill/521011338/). So it'll be part of a strip that runs from Dressler, past East River and a couple new lounges and around the corner is Marlow & Sons.
--I wasn't in a position to take a shot from across the street to show the whole building so I took this quickie just to point out that it's nice looking.
Obey
As you may know, Shepard Fairey is in town so new pieces from him are popping up. I'm just snapping the ones I happen upon, particularly if they haven't been splashed yet.
Paired
Maybe a bit over exposed. Part of what's become a series of shots of the bikes outside McCarren Pool.
Sax in the dark
This guy was playing some cool jazz riffs in the near total darkness of McCarren Park. My camera didn't know how to read the color of the floodlights so I had to wrestle with that some, and if the picture was as dark as when I took it you might not see anything. In the end, though, this almost looks like early morning. Definitely gotta work on this kind of post production. --or carry a tripod around with me for just-in-case long exposure shots.
Moving day
I don't know these people but it was such a classic scene. And with no cars in the way I couldn't resist.
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