Chicago Vibe Alive

Posts Tagged ‘Los Angeles’

some recent black and whites…….because I don’t feel like writing. MW

If you go to Los Angeles you need to go to BOTH of the Gettys. I recently visited the Malibu Villa location and it was like going to another country. You have to make reservations prior so I went online and filled out the form. But, supposedly I needed to bring a print out of my “confirmatuion”. When I got to the gate they asked for my ticket. I told them didn’t have it and I thought I would be on their list. The lady proceeded to explain how I didn’t do what I was suppossed to and then asked if I was really from Chicago (saw my ID). The guard said she lived in Chicago for a bit and asked me to “prove it”.  I then had to lay down some Chicago ramblings: “So I get pastries cooked in a brick oven off Devon and California from a Georgian bakery, I like to stop by Morse Market when I’m in the area, if I want to feel like I’m in Jamaica or the islands I get a meat pie off Howard, I get my daily groceries at Harvest Time market on Lawrence and Rockwell,” I proceed to explain a Chicago dog after that was it. She got the hint and lets us through.

When You enter the Getty the layout is confusing, but then you quickly get a handle on things. The sculpture garden transports you to Italy in about 5 minutes of being there (if not too busy of a day). The pool, the greenery and black iron (I suppose) sculptures spread across an area a bit smaller than a football field.

Inside are amazingly preserved artifacts  from Roman and Greek cultures. There were two statues of Hercules – one from Greek culture and one from Roman. Other pieces to note are the extensive glass and coin collections. They provided some cameos etched in glass that you could view through a digitalized microscope camera. Overall, the food was great (true at both of their museums), not crowded and best of all you felt like you left the country.

Malibu was really crowded so my friend and I drove down to Venice Beach. I always imagined “Venice Beach” as what all of Claifornia and Los Angeles looked like when I was young.  It was everything I thought it would be: Great mix of people, green portions of short dense grass great for sitting, extensive clean sand beaches and great activities like handball, gymnastics, basketball, bikers, rollerbladers, funnel cake vendors, fortune tellers, all around. I really want to get a shot of the iconic handball courts. It was about 4 pm and the sun was going down creating shadows that were perfect. Only problem was I was too far back to get the exact shoot I wanted. Have to go back.

Last spot to mention was the LA Zoo. Very cool set-up for a zoo. All of the cages were placed outdoors and most of the inhabitants were birds. Got some funny shots with the black and white.  There was tropical foliage all over and the zoo grounds were kept very clean. Thinking about the Boston Zoo it is nice to know they are doing well. The seal underwater shoot is my favorite picture I have taken in months.

All black and whites are 35mm film and color are digital shoots. – Matt

Getty Sculpture Garden

View from the top of the Getty Malibu Villa entrance

I heard Hank Williams III was going on tour I was very excited and patiently waited for the full schedule to be released. I kept waiting for Chicago to appear or anything east of the Mississippi and north of St. Louis. Then I noticed that he was playing in LA at the Roxy. Well, where else to see a show – real quick…It was sold out, packed to the brim, big crazy guys who like country and heavy metal, beers spilling, YET, very considerate and welcoming. Every time a younger kid, or someone under 200 lbs. would wander into the pit and get knocked down the most bad ass of the bunch was there to lift him up.

If you never been to the Roxy, the stage is about 2 feet off the ground and sound is great. No matter where you are you have an amazing view. Hank put on a great show and played a couple tunes I definitly wanted to hear. The best part….the crowd. LA got down.

But…..the whole day before the show Mary and I drove all around LA. Slow rollin the Saab to get some great shots of the streets and off the path spots. My digital wasn’t charged so I took out a Nikon F100 and shot some color film. First roll was with a Fuji brand that was excellent – suggested to me by Central Camera Chicago (great shop). Ran through that in about 30 minutes and had to stop at a random store that was like a mix between a Sears and a mini mart. I asked if they had film and they did – some Kodax film came out super grainy and almost unusable due to it being later it the day. When developed it actually put nice effect on the motel sign shots, making them feel as old as they look.

This was the first place we stopped. That guy in the photo wasn’t there. Mary bought this candle to make people shut up.

Inside the store…

old LA…love these signs

The next three shots will be from the garment district….

Love the theme

Great old motel signs and believe me these motels were hopping.

outro….