Campus morning in monochrome

Yesterday was the last day of classes for Spring semester. I gave my undergraduate evolution class students their last midterm. I'm still grading the papers and take-home exams for my graduate course students. But, otherwise, my schedule is a little less busy - so much so that I felt free to take a morning walk around campus on my way to my office. I decided to carry my Fuji XE-1 camera with me to school again, and this was one of the photos I made during this morning walk.

Faces of China - Changsha

Faces of China - Changsha, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

While visiting Hunan Province last fall, I did a series of street portraits for my Faces of China project. I met this man in a pedestrian tunnel under a very busy and wide street in Changsha. He was selling fruit at the bottom of the stairs.

What this photo tells me is that a smile is the universal language of all humanity. I connected with him by smiling and pointing to my camera and then to my face. He nodded and smiled, and then we had a lovely exchange while I made this photo. He was amused by the image I showed him on the camera LCD, too.

Via Flickr:
While visiting Hunan Province last fall, I did a series of street portraits. I met this man in a tunnel running under a main street. He was selling fruit at the bottom of the stairs.

Espresso, please.

Espresso, please., a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

I think this is the last of my series from the North Market. I've enjoyed working with black and white processing for these photos. If you're interested in how I develop my photos, here's an outline of the process: 1) import RAW files into Lightroom; 2) adjust color, white balance, saturation, vibrance, clarity, contrast, light levels, noise; 3) import processed file into SilverEfexPro 2; 4) choose film type, adjust grain, dodge and burn, adjust contrast and structure, local adjustments to areas that need additional work; 5) work on the edited file in Lightroom to adjust final levels.

Normally, I'll be able to work fairly quickly. Some images require more work than others to bring out the details. I would probably get a more polished look if I were to learn how to use Photoshop properly, but my skills with that software are pretty limited.

Kitchenlittle

Kitchenlittle, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

Another great restaurant at the North Market in Columbus, Ohio. I especially like that they use local foods. Ohio has a lot of farms in Central Ohio. Unfortunately, many of them are being planted with new housing developments...

Patisserie

Patisserie, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

When Steve and I visited Paris last May, we fell in love with the patisseries there. It was so nice to discover this one in the North Market of Columbus, Ohio. The staff are very friendly and the sweets are out of this world.

Whipping cream

Whipping cream, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

I've mentioned all the wonderful fresh foods at the North Market. There are also sweet shops to sample. Yum!

Butcher's shop

Butcher's shop, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

North Market; Columbus, Ohio - Another shop in the market. There is also a seafood supplier there.

Pizza at the North Market

Pizza at the North Market, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

The series continues.... I didn't realize what a treasure trove the North Market would be for doing street photography. It was pretty easy on this particular morning - we were getting some pretty heavy snow, and we were there just as they opened so their weren't many people there. The restaurants were preparing for the lunch rush, and that always makes for good action photos.

I made all my photos in color, but have been using SilverEfexPro to convert to monochrome. I like the monochrome versions better than the color ones for this photo shoot.

At the North Market

At the North Market, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

Steve chatting with Dion about black and white film photography. One of the nice things about hanging around in the North Market to take photos was the connections made with shopkeepers. Dion has a big interest in photography, so it was fun to talk to him.

Bento Box

Bento Box, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

Another from my North Market series. I liked the juxtaposition of the duck-head canisters with the restaurant in the background.

Spices

Spices, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

There's a wonderful spice shop in the North Market of Columbus, Ohio. The folks are friendly there, and I really enjoyed exploring the shelves of exotic herbs and spices. All the standards for American cuisine are there, of course, but there is a wide assortment of herbs and spices from around the globe.

Spices

Spices, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

I made this photo in the Spices shop at the North Market. It's a wonderful little shop with a lovely variety of spices and flavorings. I'm thinking of bringing my students here on a field trip the next time I teach my Plants and People course...

Mocha at the North Market

Mocha at the North Market, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

Fun at the espresso shop. Coffee is my friend....

Firdous

Firdous, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

Another informal portrait from my walkabout in Columbus, Ohio's North Market. Steve actually found this spot first, but I liked it well enough to do an informal portrait, too. I'm sure his photo is much better than the one I made, though....

If I were to set this up again, I'd center the face to be reflected symmetrically on both sides.

Florist

Florist, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

Another photo from my series about Columbus, Ohio's North Market. The folks at the florist shop were very friendly and I enjoyed watching the flower arranging going on there.

Watching the snow fall

Watching the snow fall, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

A few days ago I shared a photo I made of this lovely baby and her grandfather watching a snow storm from the North Market second floor. I asked the mother if she would like for me to make a photo of her with her daughter. I sent a color photo to her, but I like the black and white portrait even more than the color one. The soft light from the large window is perfect for portraiture. This is the kind of lighting the master painters of the past centuries used. Lighting just doesn't get better than this...

The Greener Grocer

The Greener Grocer, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

The North Market of Columbus, Ohio is the best place to find fresh and wholesome food in the downtown and Arena District. There are many different types of shops (bakeries, butcher shops, fish market, spices, wines, flowers, produce, etc.). If you like to shop for food in Paris, you will love this place.

This photo is from the Greener Grocer's stall. I subscribed to a market bag last season, which is a special feature from the Greener Grocer. Each week a selection of local produce was packed into a grocery bag and delivered to my campus.

If you're in central Ohio, be sure to check out the North Market. Your taste buds will thank you.

Which way did he go?

Which way did he go?, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

The North Market in Columbus, Ohio is a fantastic place to visit - especially if you're into good, wholesome food. This photo is from a walkabout this past Saturday morning.

Steve had signed up for a photo walk sponsored by Midwest Photo Exchange. I tagged along to give myself a break from writing lectures and grading papers. We both enjoyed the morning, especially the lovely French pastry we consumed after we were done taking photos.

Watching the snow fall

Watching the snow fall, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

Saturday's snow storm was pretty interesting. I was at the North Market in Columbus, Ohio for a photo walkabout that Steve had signed up to do, which was sponsored by Midwest Photo Exchange. After walking the market for about an hour, we bought some pastries and went upstairs to relax. A family was gathered around a table near a window, where this grandfather and baby were watching the snow falling outside.

The light was so beautiful on the faces of these two. Steve pointed it out to me, and I went over to introduce myself to the family and ask if I could do some informal portraits in that lighting. They were very friendly, and it turns out that we have some mutual connections through my department at OSU. The mother of this lovely baby is friends with one of our graduate student alumni. Small world, eh?

Pick n Pay

Pick n Pay, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

Most of my trips to South Africa have included some down time in Cape Town. My 2013 field season was just too short, and chock full of travel and camping to distant parts of South Africa, so I didn't get to the waterfront until the day before I flew home.

My reason for the visit was to purchase a few gifts, and to buy myself a pair of crocs - wonderful inventions for camping. My friends, Dennis and Gigi, wore crocs around the campsite, after a long day of work. They're great for slipping on and off and for not having to take a few minutes to unlace hiking boots before crawling into a tent.

While we were at the mall, I took a few street photos as we were waiting for Gigi to finish some grocery shopping. I'm still learning the ins and outs of my Fuji XE-1, but it has a nice monochrome conversion setting, which is what I used here.