You can get interesting photos using car headlights. High beams which are intense and directed, can be especially effective. You can use them to create mysterious, fairy tale-like effects, because they can brightly light one patch while darkness seems to press in from all around it.
It’s a fun activity to fool around with when you’ve got some extra time. (The long evenings of autumn and winter are a great time to try this; and frost and fog, combined with the strong light, can give you even more interesting possibilities to explore.) Check out the differences between how your high beams and low beams look.
Using car headlights works well at twilight, with sunsets, and can be effective in illuminating reflective signs. You can see the results in these photos.
Just don’t, whatever you do, lose track of time and let your battery run down. (Been there.)
It’s winter in the northern hemisphere, a time of decreased daylight. Some people get the winter blues and use a SAD lamp to alleviate Seasonal Affective Disorder. I am one of them. Others pick up their cameras to capture the beautiful blue light of winter. I am also one of them. You see, there is an upside to the winter blues.
In the winter months, the sun’s angle is lower and this affects the spectrum of light. The light has to travel through more of the atmosphere, directing more blue light to our eyes.
So, if the impulse strikes you, pick up your camera and turn those blues around.
Windows allow us a view into an inner world or an outer world, depending on where we are situated. And we can see through windows, yet they are also reflective. In this sense windows are mirrors.
When I take photos I often look for visual tricks that may give the viewer a double take. I like creating a sense of ambiguity for it ties in with how I see the world. There are many constants, yet so many flaws and inconsistencies. The best we can do is try and enjoy the ride (and in my case, document it.)
No Money Down – Toronto (1980-1986) documents the city of Toronto, Canada, in the 1980s. It is a follow-up to my first book: Toronto Flashback (1980-1986).
From the introduction: These photos were taken in the early days of my twenty years
in Toronto. I’d just moved there to study photography at Ryerson, and I found
myself inundated with new images and experiences. Whenever you’re plunked down
in a wholly changed environment, there’s lots of space to create new memories.
Leafing back through my archived slides while pulling together this book, I
found I could remember taking so many of these shots. And, of course, there
were many others I had no recollection of taking, pictures from places I
couldn’t remember being and sometimes couldn’t even identify. Moments fly past
us, noticed or unnoticed, all with their particular shadings of beauty and
uniqueness.
When I look back on that time, everyday routines and
unforgettable events are all mixed up together. I lived in a gritty
neighbourhood near the school and spent hours walking around downtown Toronto
with my camera. I was simultaneously watching and participating in the life of
this new city. I had french fries at least once a day, usually at a diner,
usually late at night. Squirrels got into my apartment through an open window
and chewed my prized Bose speakers to shreds.
Our Ryerson professors gave us assignments like
photographing shadows, or reflections, or exploring the use of the frame; this
guidance helped me walk the pavements with intention and with something to
learn each day. I carried a Konica SLR at first, and later a tiny Rollei 35S;
they were my constant companions. Being frugal with film was important to me,
since I was on a student budget–usually I shot just one or two frames of a
scene. Most of the photos in this book were one-offs.
In those years, walking with my camera gave me a way of
getting to know this new city at the same time I was getting to know myself and
honing my skills as a photographer. My shyness faded. Toronto became a place I
felt at home. I lived there for years–I got married, had children, and felt
completely a part of things.
Looking back now at the photos I spent my precious film on back then, so much comes back to me about dropped into a new environment. We use our creative tools as extensions of ourselves; they help us understand and define our place in the world. For me, having a camera in my hand at all times helped me remember, You only get to do this once. We have to take time and see it, as clearly as we can.
I like to observe the shapes of things–it’s a big part of my photographic vision. I also like the 1966 hit song by the Yardbirds. You may recall the the opening line…”Shapes of things before my eyes.” Some photos I take remind me of this song with its dark and moody lyrics that are said to be in opposition to the Vietnam War. I love the guitar sounds, the marching beat, and the unforgettable “rave-up” with Jeff Beck’s eastern sounding guitar solo. It is said to be the first popular psychedelic rock song.
