La Machine- Long Ma the Last Sleep (Two Photographs)
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Before their last night-time performance the machines were put to sleep in static displays. Long Ma snored with small bursts of smoke coming from its nostrils. Even in this innocuous pose there were lots of people. Some children refused to get close enough so that their parents could take selfies. I should have brought a wider lens; 24mm just barely cut it when I managed to get a clear view. These are the last shots of this amazing performance. I am of two minds if this should be done again. One article said that even with the road closures of which there were many, people shopped like never before. Therefore cars were not so important for downtown merchants to survive and we could do away with parking. I do not see this logic unless you intend to have massive machines constantly roaming the streets. But then I am not a fighter in the war against cars.
La Machine: The First Long Ma Walk (Three Photographs)
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As I said in my first post on La Machine the spectacle had a massive turn out. The photos here were taken on Friday morning, by Saturday the crowds had multiplied and the city set up large screens so people could see the action. On Twitter the authorities told people when the venues were full and to stay away. The best of the performances and hardest to see were at night. After these photos were taken I decided not to get involved in the crowds. What might be of interest is my choice of lenses. For this photography I took the photo-journalistic standard, the 24-70mm and the 70-200mm lenses on two bodies, therefore I could take long shots over the crowd and as the dragon came closer switch to wider angle. I also put myself well ahead of the crowd on the highest part of the street so I was above the heads of most of the crowd. One of the people standing beside me went one step further and had walked the route and chosen a few vantage points. After taking several shots he ran off to the next spot he thought would work. All told I took 200 plus shots to get the three you see here.
La Machine –Long Ma (Three Photographs)
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The story behind La Machine was in my post on Monday. This is the dragon horse Long Ma, by far the more popular of the two beasts. I was lucky we had few crowds at this opportunity. I was using a Nikon 70-200 mm and Fuji 16 mm, a good combination for this type of shooting (I do not yet have a telephoto for the Fuji but I really like the 16 mm lens). You can see here the scale of this machine, stretched out over three stories tall, and walking easily two stories. In future posts you will see Long Ma wade through the largest crowds Ottawa has seen in many years.
La Machine – Kumo (Three Photographs)
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La Machine was a massive example of street performance, featuring a spider “Kumo”, and a dragon horse “Long Ma”. For four days these beasts (often rising over three stories) roamed Ottawa, meeting up and fighting. Long Ma was searching for his lost wings (ironically on the lawn of the Supreme Court). Over four days 750 thousand people viewed this production. The performances went late into the night so that in effect people could see them 24/7. These shots of Kumo were taken the day before the events just after they were assembled. More to come.
A Mural with Birds (Two Photographs)
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This is one of the best murals in town and it’s in a vacant lot on a main street, often used for festivals. I have not captured the entire mural simply because I wanted some of the buildings visible behind it, as well as the pigeons going about their business. There is a connection between new and old here that is somewhat reassuring for those us not as keen on modern glass.
People (Three Photographs)
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Big events are a great time and place for people shots. These were taken on Canada Day. I would like to do more of this type of photography circumstances permitting; and the Fuji XT-2 is perfect for this.
A Constant Amazement (Two Photographs)
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If anyone is wondering why I post the same photograph in color and black and white, these photos should explain the reason. They say that some photos need color and others are best viewed in tones. It is equally true that a color and black and white photograph of the same scene can result in two very different images. This is one case, where there are two very different outcomes and my inclination is for monochrome.
