WhatISee

As usual, Jake helped organize a great NYC Photoblogger session at the Apple Store in Soho. Mostly new faces with very different approaches to photography. The question of the night was whether photography had come close to killing each of the presenters. Apparently, on duty civil servents drinking at a bar do not like their photo taken.

Above, Corrie and Lex talk about their great project: Officers Row. By being interested in a specific place, and meeting people connected to that place, they've come to a changed view of the space.

I somehow missed taking a picture of Joe Holmes. He's presented before, but he did a good job of showing how he's gone from Street Photography (which he truly loves) to a quote from Jake through Youngna: "You've got to have projects". So he's been doing work on row houses in Brooklyn, as well as a very interesting series of silhouettes in front of AMNH dioramas. He spent a bit of time on the same theme as Elliot. Namely the difference between what he shot for himself vs what people purchased from him. Good news: Joe is teaching a class on digital photography

Noah Kolina showed his restaurant interiors. I love his photos, but especially liked hearing about how he enters the restaurant, talks with the manager and, most importantly, the magic hour between 4-7. If he goes earlier, they don't have time for him. If he goes later, the restaurant has people in it.

Jimmie from Cornershots showed his work as well. He touched on the same theme as Joe. That although he started out being known for his low angle shots of the corners of buildings, he's branched out to what people respond to while still keeping his sense of style. His recent photos include famous landmarks, but not as the center of attention.

Finally, Reza Mazaheri started off by showing how photoblogging lets him look around the world and see places he's not familiar with. His work was interesting, especially in the juxtaposition of Iranian and NYC photos.

I also somehow missed taking a picture of Tod Seelie from Of Quiet. He's a professional photographer who also has a photoblog. One interesting bit was when he realized his mom was in the audience and he was showing a photo of his topless ex-girlfriend.