Do You Give a Hoot about Truck Graffiti?

I've been noticing graffiti on white trucks lately, and I don't know if it's true graffiti, or if the owners are allowing random artists to spray their trucks.  This one looks like a commissioned job.  I thought it was cute. Owls are pretty cool. Big headed birds. Although this owl can actually change his face to look like a bat when it senses danger or competition. Insane!!

Monochromatic Graffiti Style in Gastown

There's an alley just off Cambie St. in Gastown that has graffiti from one end to the other, and on both sides. I often see photographers using it as a backdrop to a fashion shoot, to give it some edge and street-legitimacy.  As I rode through it one day, all I could smell and see was urine and dumpsters, so I know it's not a "fake alley" with graffiti; it's the real thing. Much of the art is simple and cliche, but I noticed one that stood out. It's a single colour piece, but with different shades.  I wonder if the artist had multiple shades of black and gray spray paint, or if there is some technique to create the different shades? It's a pretty complicated piece of graffiti, working with shades instead of colours, so I thought I would share......

Telephone Pole Poster Art:Pt 2

My most viewed blog entry is my Telephone Pole Poster Art that I posted last summer.  I don't know if it's the same person looking at it over and over again, or if I found the right combination of words to get lots of Google search hits.  Either way, I enjoy the look of these things.  It truly does add colour and flavour to something really bland.  I found these while walking along West Broadway, from Arbutus to Oak Street. 


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Super Champion Bike Shop

One of the coolest bike shops I've been to on either side of the ocean is Super Champion on Main St. in Vancouver.  It's located in one of the worst parts of town, the Downtown East Side, the poorest neighbourhood in Canada. Why do cool shops exist in the worst neighbourhoods?  

John Cusack said it best in the movie High Fidelity, explaining why his record shop was purposely located in the bad part of town: "It's located in a neighbourhood that attracts the bare minimum of window shoppers.  I get by because people make a special effort to shop here". 

So true. Notice the guy laying down in front of the shop writing his Please Help Me sign right in front of their sandwich board? This is normal for this area. As discrete as the store is, I think their name and logo is very hipster and pop-culture worthy.  So cool, that Lifetime Collective makes clothing in collaboration with them.  I've bought a couple of jackets and t-shirts, all very awesome indeed!

In fact, I bought a bike magazine in Tokyo and look at what I found in it!  Yes, a Super Champion and Lifetime collaboration ad.... in a magazine in Tokyo!!   However, as connected as they are, their on-line presence is almost zero!!  Check out their Facebook Page.  That's pretty much all they have. It's pretty sad.  But maybe it's self-inflicted? Either way, their bikes are cool, and so is their clothing!!  Check them out.

Japanese 'Closed' Sign

I noticed in Japan, it is very common to have 'Closed' signs when a business is closed for the day.  It's like putting out a sandwich board announcing that you aren't open for business, which seems backwards here in N.America.  But for the Japanese, it makes sense.  In fact, many stores give you the hours they are closed instead of the hours they are open, especially convenience stores that are often only closed for 4-5 hours a day (for instance closed M-F 2am-6am).  But this picture isn't from Japan, but in Vancouver!  The restaurant? Suika on W.Broadway. Suika means watermelon in Japanese. Try it.  I hear it's good.  Make sure you don't see the closed sign though........

My Wife and My Favourite Tree

Not much to say except this is my favourite tree and it exists right next to my home. And of course my favourite and only wife!  This is my 200th blog post.  Thanks for visiting.  Big changes planned for my blog soon.  Stay tuned.....

Ride On Vancouver: Handle Bars

I love accessories in fashion: shoes, belts, gloves, bags.  It's all in the small details that makes the over-all look and feel of an outfit.  The same applies to bike accessories.  People focus so much on wheels and tires and pedals and seats, that they often overlook something as simple as handlebar wraps.  Look at this really cool brown Brooks handlebar wrap.  I think it makes the entire bike!

 I also noticed this odd shaped handlebar on this bike.  It looks pretty cool, and it gives a more upright riding position, better for looking up at traffic.  The grips are pretty nice too, notice the stitching on the ends.  I don't think you'll win too many races with cars or other cyclists with this style of handbar, but you will look good riding it.

 

 

A Guy and his Bike

I first noticed the bike and asked the guy who was standing 4-5 feet away from it if it was his or not.  He said yes and I asked if I could take a picture of it.  He nonchalantly said to go ahead, but I could tell he was pretty proud of his ride and happy I noticed it.  Then I asked if he wouldn't mind if I took a picture of both him and his bike, and again he complied, a little more hesitant this time.  I was in a hurry, as the rest of my party continued to walk ahead of me, so I took the shot quickly, with little time to compose.  I decided to put the focus on the bike by grey scaling the entire image except the bike. The reason? The rest of the image was too loud: his pants were a camo-red and yellow, shoes bright blue, busy-coloured brick wall, and I accidently composed a big, bright red $6 sticker behind his head!

Taken with iPhone, Hipstamatic, John S lens, Blanko Film, edited on my computer using Photoscape.

Backwards Portrait: Walking Down Gastown with Friends

My buddy, his wife, and my wife hanging out in Gastown on a cloudy afternoon.  It's not easy taking a moving picture, especially with the slow focus and shutter lag of the iPhone.  Also with motion, people sometimes can look awkward frozen in an static image.  This moment I froze in time captures that very second perfectly.........

James Bond Spy Camera: Minox IIIS

A good friend of mine gave me this super cool Minox IIIS because he knows how much I enjoy collecting classic photographic paraphernalia.  Even without taking pictures with it, you can sense the high quality German engineering as you open and close the compartments, and as you turn the dials. It is a precision instrument that is really hard to compare with today's quick-build electronic/mechanical photographic tools.

It was featured as a high-tech toy in James Bond Films and by today's standards, it's still a pretty small and precise photographic instrument.  The metal fob/chain with metal ball markers is meant to give accurate distances to objects so as to focus correctly, as you have to manually focus by a focus distance dial.  To advance the film you have to slide the camera open and then close it , like a shotgun...and it slides nice and tight.  Even the 50+ year old leather case is in very good condition. 

A real piece of mechanical art. I sometimes carry it around in my man-bag just to have it with me and play with when I get the chance to.  Some day I'll special order in some film and take a few pictures with it. Look for it.

 

Star Wars and Japan: Part 2

In Japan, you can find Darth Vader or really anything Star Wars on almost any product.  Darth Vader on sides of buildings trying to sell cell phones or R2D2 trying to flog Coca-Cola six-packs. On my most recent trip to Japan I was delighted to find a Darth Vader handkerchief to add to my collection (not my Star Wars collection, but my handkerchief collection, which is probably more nerdy I know.....).  Notice the Japanese style pattern to it, but still with a nice Star Wars dark-side touch. 

Just a quick side point: did you know Mark Hamill actually grew up in Japan, going to school there for a few years as his father was in the US Navy and traveled around a lot?

Sushi and Star Wars?

What does Star Wars have to do with sushi?  Nothing. But that didn't stop this local Japanese restaurant from putting up Star Wars themed cloth print posters up next to more traditional decor throughout the restaurant walls.  There is a connection between Star Wars movies and Japan though, as George Lucas admits being strongly influenced by Akira Kurosawa movies (think Jedi's and Samurai's), especially The Hidden Fortress . There was one more print I wanted to get a picture of, but a group was already sitting right in front of it so i couldn't get a clean shot.  I'll try and get it next time. Want to eat sushi while staring at Star Wars posters? Go to Daimasu in Burnaby.

Ambleside Beach and a Seagull

I quickly grabbed this picture at Ambleside beach in West Vancouver while my wife and sister-in-law and family finished up eating at the Savary Island Pie Company. I just caught a seagull flying across as I was framing the shot. I tried to get seagull in just the right spot, but the shutter lag is ridiculously slow (because the iPhone isn't really a camera!) so the bird is a little too far off to the edge of the frame. Oh well.....

Shot on my iPhone, Hipstamatic, John S lens, Black Keys Film, adjusted on my iPhone using Photoshop Express.

Whistler, Snowboarding, Fashion?

Another backwards portrait of my wife posing with her new Park Pickle snowboard, jacket and colourful pants!! It's funny how people choose the most insane colours and patterns when skiing or snowboarding up in the mountains, even though they may be more conservative fashion-wise in normal work/school/social life.  Snow is the perfect canvas for colourful, over-the-top fashion, but how crazy can crazy get? I saw bunny ears, clown outfits, huge leprechaun hats, and jackets that looked like they ran on batteries! I needed shades because of the bright fashion, not because of the sun or the snow.  What's my mountain couture? Black pants, black jacket, black helmet, black gloves...... I know, I should loosen up just a little bit right? Maybe I'll wear pink socks next time........
Captured on my iPhone, Hipstamatic, John-S lens and Blanko film.

Doesn't the snow and trees look fake?  I didn't heavily modify this image at all, except cropping, sharpening, white balance and contrast.  It really did look this 'dreamy' when we were boarding. The trick to shooting in snow is to exposure compensate by at least 1.5 stops to factor in the reflective nature of snow which throws off the metering.  It's also really difficult to snowboard and take pictures.  I think I may need to invest in a helmet cam? Sorry..... I can't do it!  I'm too old school. I guess.....
Captured on my Panasonic FX-50, snow-mode, iso 200.

25' x 40' Canvas

I love street art.  Too bad Bansky doesn't live in Vancouver.  I'd love to see his stuff around town. You may recognize this large mural from the picture of the urban farm posting, just to the top right of the image.  But from this angle (low and looking up) it looks different doesn't it? I tried taking it with my other camera (Panasonic FX50) but I just couldn't get the right feel, so I took a few with my iPhone and the Hipstamatic program and voila!! I got what I was looking for.

Fire Hydrant slash Drinking Fountain?

I think this is a totally cool idea.  Shouldn't every fire hydrant have one of these on top?  Seriously?

Fluevog Shoe Decal

I love cool window decals.  This one was at the Fluevog store in Gastown, Vancouver.  It's a cool concept store with the design team office situated behind and above the retail store (you can see the stairs leading up to the mezzanine level) .  I love shooting an image on a window, and then having a second "layer" (everything behind the glass) of the image, creating this sandwiched, mosaic picture.

$8.50 Haircut!

I love seeing the old school, hand painted sandwich boards.  I saw this one in Chinatown and it was in pretty good condition. You have to wonder though, did they update the price, or did they leave the 1985 pricing up since it would be too much work to update the price?  I wonder......

Hot, Cold, and......What the?

It took me a second to figure out what the center knob did; but when I first saw it, I was thinking that perhaps the center knob dispensed soap, or was it a turbo boost, or maybe ipod volume control?  Look closely and you can figure it out pretty fast.... I still took a quick double take. Again, the iPhone was handy so that's what I used.

Owning a Ranch in Vancouver?

You know you're rich when owning a yacht is nothing.  How about owning race horses..... on a ranch......in the middle of the city? That's exactly what Southlands area of Vancouver is all about.  As you drive through this community, just 15 minutes from downtown, it feels more like you're way out in the country side.   Horses trotting down the street as Bentley's and Ferrari's dodge them is a normal sight here.  Some of these multi-acre estates even have a separate cottage for the horse handlers to live in while they take care of their prize race horses.