Open Window

I Found the Tinman

The Tinman © 2012 Claudia Ward All Rights Reserved

Shooting in New York earlier this week, we came upon a number of unusual sights on the streets and in the stores. This was one of my favorites and if you're in the East Village this weekend you too may find the tinman.

 

1 World Trade Center

Progress is finally being made on the World Trade Center and it looks like 1 World Trade will be elegant and stunning.

Photo © 2012 Peter Tooker iPhone

Sent from my iPhone
Claudia Danforth Ward

Open Window's Second Year

It's official, Open-Window is now two years old. I can hardly believe I began this blog on a cold January day, sitting at the island in my kitchen, 730 days ago. In the past two years, Open-Window has focused my days on creating stories, snippits, and photographs that I hoped you would find entertaining, sometimes informative, and maybe even amusing. We've covered a lot of ground and many diverse topics over this time ranging from Hawaii to Paris, Hamburger Relish to Caviar, Horse Racing to Airshow Acrobatics. As time has passed, we increasingly focused on the images and slide shows that would accompany a post, and have worked diligently to improve the quality of all that we delivered. Peter has continued to emphasize wide-angle HDR (high dynamic range) photography whether on his DSLR (digital single lens reflex-camera) or his, ever-handy, iPhone, and I have continued with my love of all-things-macro, although we each dabbled in the other's specialty just to keep it interesting.

Mexican Train Tiles and Turtles
Photo © 2011 Claudia Ward 

Over the past twenty four months, we've made 388 postings to Open-Window which is an average of almost 4 per week, nearly every one containing at least one photograph and 60 of which included a slide show with music. When we embarked on this endeavor, we expected to focus on travel, food and photography. As it's turned out, the focus has been just that ... but in reverse - photography, food and travel. See, we'll photograph nearly anything - food that we eat, games that we play, children at the beach, machines of any sort, flowers and their residents, landmarks and landscapes, moon-rises and sunsets, and even light itself. 

The Outer Banks of North Caroline
Photo © 2011 Claudia Ward taken with the iPhone using the Pro HDR App

This year has been quite a journey photographically as well as geographically. Peter and I traveled over 14, 500 miles. We drove the entire east coast from the east end of Long Island to Orlando, Florida, traversing Florida, and turning north to reach Memphis Tennessee. We crossed the states of Tennessee and North Carolina end-to-end (west to east), photographing some of this country's most beautiful scenery in the Great Smoky Mountains. When we reached the Atlantic Ocean, it felt like we'd returned home, for tidal waters are in our veins, and the days on the Outer Banks are now cherished memories. Early morning sunrises over the ocean, wild horses on the beaches, hang gliding from the dunes, and fish tacos are just a few of the things we captured in-frame. With tornadoes nipping at our heels from western Florida, to Memphis and eventually to eastern North Carolina, we headed home just hours before their destruction hit the locales we'd come to know and love. Atlantic City was our refuge from the storms, before returning to the calm, untouched East End.

Spanish Mustang on the Outer Banks
Photo © 2011 Claudia Ward

Thirty days and thirty nights, and 4,000 miles on the road gave us a tremendous, renewed appreciation for the beauty and diversity of this country we live in. A couple of hundred more miles were covered seeking out horses at Saratoga Springs in August. For one who isn't known as an animal lover, I do love photographing them. Whether in their stance or stride, they speak volumes to me and hopefully that is being captured by the lens. Finally, the balance of those miles (nearly 10,000) were accomplished by a trip to The Big Island of Hawaii, where we were able to photograph the incredible diversity of this island's landscape and all of its beauty from a helicopter. 

Antique Hood Ornament
Photo © 2011 Claudia Ward 

More locally, we visited Belmont Park just a week before the Stakes were run and attended the Hampton Classic Horse Show every single day it was held over Labor Day weekend. There were at least three Antique Auto Shows, one Road Rallye and a Mini Cooper Scavenger Hunt that we shot as well. Our beaches on the east end of Long Island are some of the most breathtaking in the country (right up there with North Carolina's) and we spent many happy hours either hip deep in snow in January or ankle deep in sand in August, capturing the undulating shapes of their dunes draped in snow or the power of their seas after a storm.

Light Painting for New Year's
Photo © 2011 Peter Tooker 

The holidays that dot our calendars were also not ignored. Memorial Day is always an homage to the "Opening" of the Hamptons season. Flag Day, the 4th of July, Labor Day, Thanksgiving and the Christmas season were all duly noted and celebrated with photographs too.   

Meaty Tomato painted by Barbara Andolsek

Let me also add, ever so humbly, that I have once again been thrilled that Barbara Andolsek continues to make paintings based on some of my photographs. Barbara and I have yet to meet but feel a friendship beyond pen-pals. Nearly 3,000 miles apart but with a shared appreciation for the beauty of the world around us, Barbara and I have forged a friendship that could only occur in this wonderful 21st century. It still astounds me at how incredibly open and selfless so many people are using the internet to connect, communicate, and share. I feel incredibly fortunate to be able to be a part of it.

The word "blog" is derived from the expression "web log", which originally was an online journal of sorts and has morphed, over time, into a platform for communicating and exchanging information and ideas. I want to thank you all for your enthusiasm and support over the last two years but more importantly for your participation - "communication and exchange" are exactly what has occurred when you've left comments for us, and you've made it just that much more fun and interesting.

So here is a slide show which represents a snapshot of Open-Window's second year. It's shorter than last year's and yet still longer than most at just under 10 minutes. Perhaps you can set aside a little time next Sunday morning. We've made this for you, to enjoy and remember a year that we shared, and for that I want to say with great sincerity "Thanks for the memories". 

  

Photos & Slide Show by Claudia Ward & Peter Tooker © 2011
Music: Concerto in E-flat Major for Trumpet & Orchestra: 1. Allegro Con Spirito by Wynton Marsalis, National Philharmonic Orchestra & Raymond Leppard 

 

P.S. Please feel free to leave a comment and let us know what you thought of year two and if there is something you'd like to see more of in the coming months.

 

 

New York City Subway Art

Peter and I love New York and truly believe there's no better way to get around than by the subway. Over the years the subway stations have certainly improved and mosaic art work has sprung up in several stations. When we were in the city recently we found this mosaic mural which neither of us had seen before. Peter took this HDR with his iPhone, once again validating the quality of its camera. Can anyone tell me where we found this mural in Manhattan? We know but do you?

© 2011 Peter Tooker, NYC Subway Art
 

Tulip Trash?

We came to City Hall Park to photograph the gardens but most had yet to bloom. It's still in the mid-40s here in New York today. But I was determined, and low and behold look what I found poking out of the trash. It never had a chance to truly blossom but I bet it would have been pretty.

Tulip Trash ©2011 Claudia Ward

Holidays In New York

Everything dresses up for the holidays in New York - the buildings, the boats and of course, the Christmas Trees. Dressing the columns of the New York Stock Exchange in lights depicting the American Flag began in 2001 - the Christmas after 9/11 and continued for eight years. That became one of my favorite holiday decorations, especially because it was in "my hood". The South Street Seaport puts christmas trees on all of the tall ships and even some tugs, elegant Fifth Avenue shops wrap themselves up as gigantic presents or cinch themselves in golden belts, and of course, Rockefeller Center brings out life-size toy soldiers to herald the season's Greetings.

When we posted Harbour Lights earlier this week, a friend who is a former New Yorker and now an ex-pat in the English countryside, said she'd "love to see some more shots of the city at holiday time." Well, this one's for you Deb, I hope you enjoy them.

  Photos ©2006 Claudia Ward
Music: Guillâume, prends ton tambouri by The Christmas Revels

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to one and all!

Harbour Lights in Downtown New York

Downtown New York holds a special place in my heart, as many of you know. It just suits all my sensibilities - the narrow streets, the architecture, the history, and easy access to views across the waters of the Hudson River, New York Harbor, and the East River. Perched above the East River, set deep in the South Street Seaport, is one of my favorite places in all of New York - Harbour Lights, a restaurant with one of the all time best views in the city, hands down.

Harbour Lights is on the third floor of Pier 17, tucked securely into the northeast corner of the building. Peter and I have been going to Harbour Lights for years and were so glad when we saw it reopen after 911. We've loved sitting out on the deck on a summer day, enjoying a lobster salad but even more enjoying the panoramic view of Brooklyn, the river with its three southern bridges - the Brooklyn, the Manhattan and the Williamsburg, and lower Manhattan. Spectacular on any day, this view is breathtaking at night when all the lights of these burroughs and bridges come up, and on a crisp evening around the holidays, there's no more festive location. Harbour Lights dresses itself elegantly in garland and white lights in December, but never seems to detract from the city just beyond it's picture windows. 

Peter and I met friends here last week and of course Peter came with cameras in hand. He couldn't wait to see how HDR (High Dynamic Range) photography would reveal parts of the city we both love. We sincerely hope you feel the festiveness of the holiday season in downtown New York.

 

Photos @2010 Peter Tooker; Slide Show by Claudia Ward & Peter Tooker 

New York's Thanksgiving Day Parade

I have lived in New York City, on the island of Manhattan, for 27 of my adult years, and in all that time I attended Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade only once, just two years ago, and boy did that make me regret not going before! I'd heard many a friend talk about seeing the balloons being inflated on the upper west side the evening before, and the incredible joy and excitement that is in the air on the day of the parade, but none of that ever enticed me away from watching the parade on television, as I have every year of my life. What a shame because I can honestly say it was one of the most wonderful experiences ever. 

I polled a number of people in advance to determine where it would be best to stand. Hating crowds and not being very tall, I was hoping to find a vantage point that would afford us a fairly unencumbered view and the ability to photograph the floats, balloons, and, of course, Santa and his sleigh coming to town. I know I was asking a lot, but a girl can hope. The best advice we thought we'd received was to go up to the 70's, get on the park side of Central Park West and perch on top of one of the gigantic rocks - that would separate us from the crowd and create a good vantage point.

On Thanksgiving morning we targeted to be on the upper west side about an hour before the parade started which was a mistake. The subway left us on the west side of the avenue and there was absolutely no way to cross Central Park West; it was completely barricaded off and lined with police. We meandered north along Columbus Avenue which runs parallel to the parade route and saw the balloons queued up along 77th Street on the south side of the Museum of Natural History. Thinking we might be able to cross to Central Park if we continued walking north, we eventually came across the another queue of balloons along 81st Street. But it was still painfully evident that we weren't going to be allowed to cross to the park. We didn't know it immediately but eventually it became clear that we were smack dab in the middle of the staging area for the entire parade.

You see, the parade starts at 77th Street and Central Park West, and all of the floats and people stand at the ready along Central Park West, and the balloons float patiently together along 77th and 81st Streets. Faced with impenetrable crowds of clowns, jesters, pirates, cowboys, elves, dolls, band members, and balloon handlers, and hearing the announcers starting the parade, we stopped in our tracks and looked around, and to our immense satisfaction found that we were inside the grounds of the Museum of Natural History at the corner of 81st and Central Park West. From here we could see over half of the parade's participants waiting to be called to "Join the Parade". It was wonderful watching all these characters "before the curtain went up". We saw two cherry pies sharing breakfast from a paper bag and another one taking pictures, two brightly clad clowns dancing together under the sun, and the Raggedy Andys admiring Kermit the Frog as he turned from 81st Street. 

Set back from Central Park West and 81st Street, we could watch and photograph the happenings on each with not a single soul in front of us to impede our view or dampen our joy. So we hope you enjoy the slide show of that wonderful morning - but remember it's still no substitute for the real thing. There's real magic in the air in New York, New York on Thanksgiving morning - try to experience it at least once in your life time.

 Photos and Slide Show ©2010 Claudia Ward; Peter Tooker, Production Assistant

Music: New York New York by the Broadway Kids

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! 

SoHo Slide Show - YouTube

SoHo is where we stayed earlier this week when Peter and I went in to New York to photograph the gardens in lower Manhattan. We've come to love this area of New York and thought we'd share some of the highlights of its history and photographs from "today". 

SoHo, meaning South of Houston, is an eclectic section of New York, the core of which spans from West Broadway to Broadway, and from Houston to Canal. It's surrounded by Greenwich Village to the north, the West Village to the west (where else would it be?), Tribeca (Triangle Below Canal) and Chinatown to the south, and Little Italy and Nolita (North of Little Italy) to the east. 

Residential at its start, the "SoHo" neighborhood with cast-iron warehouse buildings and cobblestone streets was built after the residential population moved north, circa 1850. The ornately decorated buildings that you see today housed merchandise and fabrics for the likes of Tiffany's and Lord & Taylor, displaying wares through the large first floor windows. When these businesses moved uptown as well, the area deteriorated into a sweatshop-filled slum known as "hell's hundred acres".  Labor laws changed and the sweatshops were closed in the mid-1900s, leaving the buildings empty. Artists began occupying the vacant lofts in the '60s and by the '80s the neighborhood had fully morphed into SoHo, a neighborhood of high-end fashion boutiques, art galleries and gourmet restaurants. 

Trendy and edgy at the same time, in SoHo a high fashion window dressing can have full-length graffiti as its neighbor, as you can see ...

Housekeeping: Click on the 360 and select either 480 or 720, the latter being high def. Don't forget the four arrows enlarges the slide show on your screen.

So tell us what you think? Did you know the history of SoHo? Leave a Comment and add some color to an already colorful story.

School's Out ...

After two and a half days of various classes and workshops in the city (New York City that is), Peter and I decided to reward the student body - literally. We went to one of our favorite restaurants in Manhattan - Balthazar - for lunch. Balthazar serves traditional bistro food in a perfect bistro environment. Tell me we weren't happy spending a couple of hours here!

Looking at the menu (and we recommend you do too), we grappled with our choices because there wasn't one thing listed that we didn't like. Peter decided to order completely off the appetizer portion of the menu and my eyes landed on Wednesdays' special, Koulibiac - a salmon dish wrapped in pastry with wild rice and spinach accompanied by sauteed mushrooms in a delightful white sauce. After sharing a sampler of east- and west-coast oysters and some delicious split pea soup with smokey bacon, Peter was served his "entree" - Chicken Liver and Foie Gras Mousse. 

Being a bistro, tables are quite close to one another which is cozy to the clientele but can be challenging to the wait-staff. As one of the waiters was delivering lunch to our neighbors, he accidentally tipped my water glass over. I successfully caught it before it emptied all of its contents in my half eaten lunch plate but some "damage" was still done. I mention this not to criticize but, in fact, to compliment the staff as they efficiently corrected the problem by whisking my plate to the kitchen, replacing the paper that covered our table cloth and delivering an entirely new entree - all within a matter of minutes. 
I certainly would have thought this would be enough compensation for what was obviously an accident, but not for the staff of Balthazar. Look what they brought to us ... homemade sorbets and assorted berries, "compliments of the house".

So our wonderful lunch became dinner for our last day in the city. For those of you who live in or around New York or plan to visit, we recommend you call to make a reservation at this very special restaurant. You'll probably have to wait to get through, but we assure you it's worth any amount of time.

For those of you who are interested, all of these photos were taken with the camera on our iPhone. 

Like what we're writing about? Let us know, leave a comment and we can "chat".

New York, New York ...

it is a wonderful town, but it's been seriously testing that lyric the last two days. At last count we've had between 4 and 5 inches of rain in two days and we feel like drowned rats! But enough sour grapes, today is simply cloudy which is a marked improvement.

Peter and I came in to the city on Monday so that we could attend a number of workshops at the Apple Store in Soho, one of my favorite places in all of NYC. At the risk of sounding like a paid advertisement, which I assure you I am not, I have to say that the service provided by this company and especially at this store is superb. There is no such thing as a dumb question to Apple people, at least they never let you think there is and they're all so friendly! But the FREE workshops are phenomenal. Trying to establish a photography business, Peter and I can use all the support we can get and the workshops on setting up websites and integrating social networking into a business are proving to be invaluable. So we have one more day of "classes" and then return home to start using all that we'e learned.

Photo by Peter Tooker 2008 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 

In the meantime, we want to share this photo that Peter took of the NY skyline, pretty spectacular wouldn't you agree? Leave a comment and let us know, we love hearing from you.