The Forest of Hands and Teeth

The Forest of Hands and Teeth, originally uploaded by margotwood.

Some of you follow me on Twitter, so you know that I love books, young adult books in particular (okay, so they're actually the only books I read) but nonetheless I love them. But I also love photography, and this winter I decided I was going to come up with a way to combine my two favorite past times and thus this new photo series was born: photos inspired by my favorite young adult novels.

While this is an ongoing project, and my goal is to complete 20 photographs by who knows when, I want to keep you all up to date with my progress, thus I am blogging about the first one I've completed.

This photo was inspired by the book The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan. It is one of the most visually stimulating novels I've ever read, Carrie Ryan truly has a knack for descriptive settings and I wanted to honor her talent by creating a photo that was equally as visually stimulating.

Her book does indeed have zombies and it follows the main character, Mary, as she escapes her weirdly religious cult-like village during a zombie invasion. At certain points in the novel, Mary fantasizes about giving up and giving herself over to the undead and accepting her fate. The expression I tried to capture on my face was during one of those moments, when Mary's will to survive seems to dissipate and her acceptance of death reigns.

Am I happy with the outcome of this photo? In some ways yes and others no. This isn't really the photo I had originally envisioned, but given the fact that I had NO resources and only one other person to help me (my friend Allison whose hands you see here), I have to say I am damn proud of being able to at least accomplish this with such limitations.

Another thing I'm proud of with this photo are those hands. Allison's hands in the original, unedited version are just normal hands with a little bit of dried mud here and there. So I had to learn how to zombie-fy them in photoshop, and I'm proud to say that now I'm an expert in that, although they could use a few open sores and gaping wounds.

I plan on editing those photo even further, perhaps adding a hand on my shoulder or neck from one of the other photos we took, and if I do, no doubt I'll be back here to tell you all about how I accomplished that in photoshop because as of right now, I'm really sure even I know how to do that and make it look real.

So stay tuned for updates on this photo and hopefully another YA inspired shot coming soon...

Deadwood

Deadwood, originally uploaded by margotwood.

Because my job (my real job, not the one I wish I had where I get paid to travel the world and take awesome photos) is getting busier and busier, I find that I don't really have time anymore to just aimlessly wander around and snap photos. Thus, I am forced to either plan out my photographic adventures in advance or recycle through old ones that I never edited.

Tonight, I'm doing the latter and this photo was shot in Yellowstone National Park at the Grand Prismatic Spring - an incredibly colorful hot spring. Even though I could have easily edited this and made it into a crazy, colorful, rich photo, I decided to go for the opposite effect and try a little Ansel Adams inspiration. This is the resulting fauxto.

Superman at 60

Superman at 60, originally uploaded by margotwood.

I have had this photo in my head since senior year of college. My Dad, an avid cyclist, is also a child at heart - and when I think of him training, this is what I think he's imagining - himself as a superhero.

Post Process: Increased sharpness, increased contrast, color balance, slight vignetting.

Moon Festival

Moon Festival, originally uploaded by margotwood.

Shot at the 2011 Moon Festival (I think??) in San Francisco. Wasn't even aware this festival was going on when I had a day to stroll the city and just happened to stumble upon this horde of people in Chinatown in San Fran.

For more info, see this site: www.moonfestival.org/

Good Morning

Good Morning, originally uploaded by margotwood.

Yesterday I braved 29 degree weather to go on a 70 block "hike" through Manhattan's Upper West Side. By accidentally getting on the express B train, my good college buddy Max and I began our journey in Harlem at 125th Street. (To put that in perspective, I used to live on 7th Street...)

We ventured south and cut West so we could walk through Morninside Park, which I had never been to before.

Even though it was brisk, it was very sunny out and this park, if you ever have a chance to visit, is beautiful. The park has been around since the late 1880s, and it is littered with these beautiful stone staircases all throughout.

This shot was at the very top at one of those stairs looking south. As my friend Steven Siegel points out, this photo is somewhat reminiscent of the endless circular stairways of M.C. Escher. (Even with all my AP art history training, I still had to Google it, so don't feel bad if you click the link.)

Mecca

Mecca, originally uploaded by margotwood.

Welcome to the 5 Pointz. The mecca of graffiti and street art located in Long Island City, Queens, NY. This old factory has been home to local artists since 1993 when the building's owner made it legal for artists to come tag the crap out of it. Now it is a little more commercial, if you want to tag it, you have to pay and they offer "graffiti tours" (which I'm totally doing by the way).

If you've been following my photography, you're aware of the soft spot I have for street art. I adore graffiti from the colors to the fonts to the illegalness of it. I love everything about it, so when I strolled over to this place yesterday afternoon you can imagine how far my jaw dropped when I saw the sheer awesomeness of this place.

First of all, it's HUGE. This photo doesn't do it justice, but to get a sense of how big this place is, if you look carefully at the photograph you'll see a dude in a black jacket about half way on the left hand side. He's there to give you a little depth perception.

There's so much to look at this place I didn't even know where to begin photographing. That's why on this trip I focused just on capturing the place as a whole. I have MANY plans to go back there and really get some awesome closeups of some of the art before it gets demolished.

Yes, you heard me. DEMOLISHED. This place, like so many other wonderful spots in NYC is being torn down and converted to high rise luxury condos and a shopping mall. Please excuse me while I go throw up in my mouth a little.

If you're a photographer in the city or at all interested in street art you need to get to this place fast before it goes extinct.

If you want more info on the 5 Pointz or take a tour, visit the website: http://5ptz.com/graff/

I posted a few other shots of this place, all can be found on my flickr page in the Graffiti Lovin' set.

Keller Hotel

Keller Hotel, originally uploaded by margotwood.

After I got back to NYC from my Thanksgiving Day adventures with the big sis in Kansas City, it was an unusually warm Sunday afternoon in the Big Apple. I decided to take a long stroll from 34th Street and 9th Ave all the way down the West Side and then cut over to my East Village apartment.

(For those of you who don't live in the city, that's about a 50 block walk or close to about 4 miles.)

Anyways, I was strolling down the West Street highway which is a cesspool for abandoned buildings (and not-so-awesome Frank Ghery buildings) and I found this gem of a hotel.

Most of you know that I adore abandoned buildings, especially ones with their original signage. So naturally I spent a decent amount of time trying to capture this mysterious building. I took about 100 shots but this one was my favorite angle and the lighting was just right for editing.

When I finally got around to editing (last night!) I decided to do a little digging and find out what this place is. As it turns out it was once known as the Keller Hotel.

I found an amazing in-depth article on it in the New York Times (full link here) but here's the gist of what this place is:

"The hotel, built in 1898 as sailors’ lodgings, was one of many such places that once lined the West Side waterfront, offering a clean, safe alternative to the dens of ill repute that beckoned the unwary seafarer. It operated for decades but eventually became a single-room-occupancy hotel, and then a welfare hotel, before closing about 15 years ago.

Since then it has stood vacant, its ground floor marred by boarded-up windows and an accretion of graffiti, metal grills and faux stone cladding, though its lovely upper stories remain untouched. An early-20th-century sign — an Edward Hopper touch — hangs on the corner, announcing in faded capital letters, “Hotel.” The ghosts of the past breathe deeply here."

For anyone that is a history buff, particularly NY history I really hope you appreciate this photo. Any for anyone that isn't a history buff, well, I hope you enjoy it too.

Post Process: Black and White, played around with contrasts to get it just right, very slight vignette, increased detail sharpening.

Eden

Eden, originally uploaded by margotwood.

As I say goodbye to the East Village (I'm moving to Greentpoint, Brooklyn this weekend) I want to capture some of my favorite spots in the hood before I leave for cheaper rent and bigger spaces.

This is one of the few remaining vacant lots in the East Village, found on 6th street. This neighborhood used to be a crap hole. I can't stress enough how bad it was here, but now it's like Times Square. A tourist trap and land of sky rocketing rents.

This is one of my favorite spots in the EV because it's a reminder of what it used to be. What New York used to be. It's a reminder to me that if you look hard enough, you can find the past, the history, anywhere.

Is This Seat Taken?

Is This Seat Taken?, originally uploaded by margotwood.

This photo was taken at a cool, old speakeasy bar in Kansas City, MO. I was there visiting my older sister for Thanksgiving and we popped in here for a few whiskey sours. The play, while colorful, had that whole "other era" thing going for it and I wanted to snap a photo that would reflect that atmosphere.

Post-Process: Infrared setting on the black & white layer style, increased saturation, sepia tone

Prozac Christmas

Prozac Christmas, originally uploaded by margotwood.

Curious to know the inspiration for this photo? Well, there's a saying in my family "forced march of fun" and it applies to any gamily gathering, ESPECIALLY the holidays. So this year I wanted a fauxto that would reflect that sort of YOU MUST HAVE FUN attitude.

Happy Holidays everyone!

High Brow Husky

High Brow Husky, originally uploaded by margotwood.

While out on a stroll in my East Village neighborhood, I stumbled upon this beauty relaxing outside a hookah bar. I snapped some photos, but then crouched down to get a straight on shot and luckily, this pup was game to have his photo taken. A few hours later, while doing laundry in my apartment building, I discovered that this Husky actually lives in my building!

Post Process: Cropping, vignetting, increasing sharpness (for the details), boosting contrast.

Three Amigos

Three Amigos, originally uploaded by margotwood.

The saga of my vacation continues, even if it did happen over a month ago.

The same morning my Mom and I were running around at 6am running into bison in the road and photographing the sunrise, she made it her mission to find Sandhill Cranes.

Being ADD really helps in situations like these. I've always had an uncanny ability to spot something very tiny in the middle of craziness. Anyways, we were heading back to the hotel and still hadn't seen any cranes until suddenly I told her to pull the car over. Almost immediately, the brakes were slammed and I jumped out of the car before my Mom could even come to a full stop.

I started running out into a field with my Mom yelling in the background asking what I saw. Yelling back I told her, "I don't know but I think I saw something move out there!"

A minute later, she caught up and sure enough way out in the distance we saw three birds. My Mom being the expert bird watcher knew right away they were the Sandhill Cranes and now it was just a matter of making sure we got the shot.

Changing lenses as fast as humanly possible, I switched to the 50-200mm zoom lens and only got off two shots as the birds, noticing our presence, took off. Luckily, one of my shots actually caught them and this was the result.

Thar She Blows!

Thar She Blows!, originally uploaded by margotwood.

Ladies and Gentlemen who have never been to Yellowstone, meet Old Faithful. The most predictable geyser in the park, and easily the most famous of them all, Old Faithful is something not to be missed if you ever happen to venture to Yellowstone.

I have to say, I think I had hyped it up my mind because when it happened it was definitely cool, but in no way did it "blow my mind". To me, the muddy pool (posted below) was way more memorable and fascinating, but that's just me.

Post Process: Slight cross process, vignetting, cropping, color balancing (to bring out the yellows and maroons more).

Muddy Waters

Muddy Waters, originally uploaded by margotwood.

Geysers and mudpots are one of the main attractions in Yellowstone National Park. While driving, we randomly stumbled upon a series of steam vents and other geothermal creations like this mudpot. The place was so incredibly stinky that I almost threw up a few times and really didn't want to take any pictures. I wanted to go back to the car - back to fresh air.

Yet, my parents dragged me along with them and I eventually got used to the stench. Of all the things to look at, this mudpot and other steam vent called the "Dragon's Mouth" were the ones I will most remember. This one mostly because of the amazing cracked surface and the boiling mud. This mudpot was ripe for the photographic picking.

Post Process: Slight cross process, increased unsharpened mask, increased contrast, vignetting.

Buffalos in the Mist

Buffalos in the Mist, originally uploaded by margotwood.

The morning I shot these "foggy" photos was and will be one of those mornings that I will remember for the rest of my life. First of all, my Mom and I were running on zero coffee and so we used our excitement over photo opportunities to keep us awake.

This was taken right after the photo posted below this one. It was so incredibly foggy that we had to drive extremely slow because we couldn't even see 10 feet in front of us. All of a sudden, we see a black blob appearing in our view. Not quite sure what it was, we slowed down even more until we were could see a herd of about 20 buffalo were moseying down the road -- taking their sweet time too I might add.

I took this photo from the front seat of the car, looking through the dashboard.

Post Process: Slighty increased the contrast so the main buffalo was more outlined but still retain all the foggy goodness. A slight vignette was added and I made the yellow in the road line darker so it wouldn't stand out too much.

Before Sunrise

Before Sunrise, originally uploaded by margotwood.

My mom and I woke up REALLY early one morning because we were told that's when you can see the best wildlife action. The second we hit the road and saw the intense, blinding fog we realized that we were probably not going to be able to see any cool wildlife, but it did provide us with some pretty spectacular early morning sunrise photos.

Post Process: Nada. Zip. Zilch. This photo au naturale baby!

Nice Tetons

Nice Tetons, originally uploaded by margotwood.

Last week I had the (extreme!) pleasure of going on an epic family vacation to the Grand Tetons and Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming.

As a lover of nature and regular (when I can) hiker, I couldn't wait to get out there and start getting some shots that I could add to my "nature" portfolio.

There will be more pics to come, but I think this photo pretty much sums up the whole trip. It was beautiful, breathtaking and epic.

This photo is of the Teton mountain chain (apparently, a very young mountain chain). The lake is called Phelps lake and it's a very easy 2 mile hike to get there. My family packed some lunched and made our way to a secluded spot to enjoy this majestic site in peace.

Seeing things like this makes me think that if heaven did exist, it would be pointless because we already have heaven on earth....

Post Process: Played with two different curves settings, decreased the cyan in the sky (it was too overpowering) and very, very slight vignetting.

Brokeland Bridge

Brokeland Bridge, originally uploaded by margotwood.

After experiencing what is another photographer's creative slump....I decided to try my trick of going through my old photos that I had flagged to be edited but never got around to. Thus I stumbled upon this photograph.

Everyone and their mother has a shot almost exactly like this one, so the thought isn't anything new. However, what I attempted to do to differentiate myself and to continue practicing the style of taking pictures but trying to make them look authentic to a time period, I edited this shot so that someone could look at it and think that maybe it was photographed in the early 1900s.

Post Process: Black and white treatment (neutral density filter) + slight vignette.

Wonderland

Wonderland, originally uploaded by margotwood.

I finally had the chance to venture out to Coney Island (the one in New York City for all you Cincinnatians). This place is a serious time warp. Walking by all the Nathan's Hot Dog stands and random street vendors, it's hard not to feel like you're stepping into a 70s B-movie. Either way, this place is definitely worth the hour long train ride (or 20 min car ride!).

Post Process: Cross processing, slight vignetting, color tweaks here and there.

7 and B

7 and B, originally uploaded by margotwood.

This is one of my favorite corners in the East Village. Right across from Tompkins Square Park, this is truly a magical corner.