Subway Entertainers

I try not to take the trains too often.  I prefer to take buses to wherever I'm headed.  The trains are just too crowded and hectic.  Walking through train stations makes my heart pound.  Everybody seems to either be running or cutting in front of someone else who is running.  Then there is the added stressor of getting a seat or being body checked by someone who barrels through a crowded train if they even sense someone getting up from their seat.

We also have to deal with subway musicians and other entertainers.  Who are those guys who do the flips and other acrobatics on a train?  I wonder if they've ever kicked someone when they're flipping around?  You can't go into a subway without seeing someone playing some kind of instrument with their instrument case opened in front of them with a bunch of change and a few stray dollar bills already in the case.

Delancey St. station on the Uptown F platform

 

Subway musicians are as a much a part of the NYC subway system as the transit riders themselves.  From the guys at the 34th St. Herald Square station who seem to have a preference for Michael Jackson songs, to the random rappers, a capella oldies singers, classical musicians, etc., a ride on the trains means free entertainment, whether it's wanted or not.

So what are your thoughts on subway musicians/entertainers?  Are they a welcome addition to an otherwise dreary subway ride?  Are they an all around annoyance that makes you wish for earplugs? Or does it depend on the type of mood you happen to be in that day?

Consistency in Photography

I read a lot of photography blogs, and something that has come up on a few of them has been the need to be consistent in your photography.  I read one blog where the author said they don't like when they see a mix of black and white and color.  Another gripe was the mixing of street photography with the odd landscape shot.  While I can understand disagreeing with mixing street and landscape shots, even though I personally like to see a variety of photos, the dislike of mixing color with black and white confused me.

Sometimes a picture will look better in black and white and sometimes it will look better in color. Should a photographer miss out on good shots because it doesn't fit their usual style?  Doesn't that limit a person's creativity?  Or if they normally shoot in black and white, should they just blindly make everything black and white, even if color would make the shot more interesting?

I normally prefer my photos to be in color but every now and again I will mix it up a bit.  Take this shot for instance.  It would have looked nice in color, but I felt the black and white just added something.

The next day I was walking through Union Square in Manhattan and I saw the chess players.  I snapped this shot, but I left it in color.  I felt that the yellow of the school bus and the different colors of the children's clothes would not be as interesting in black and white.  

Personally, whenever I'm looking through someone's Flickr stream and I see pictures that are all basically the same, I click out.  For instance, if the pictures are close ups of people's faces, and you have hundreds of pictures of people's faces, they all start to look the same after a while.  It's a case of "Seen one.  Seen them all."  There is no variation that makes me want to continue looking at your photos.  I'm not saying one way of photography is the correct way.  Art truly is subjective.  Maybe someone likes looking at pictures that are just close ups of faces, or just black and white, or just color or whatever.  I just get confused when people say that you should either only shoot black and white, or only color, etc.  To me, photography is about what moves you.  What motivated you to take a picture that day?  I personally am a street photographer who prefers most of my shots to be in color, but every now and again I'll throw in a black and white shot or a random landscape.  Like this shot:

I love this shot.  I currently live in NYC, but I am just not down for living in a place where you can't even move without bumping into someone, where the noise never stops and where you can't just stop for a minute and breathe.  I took this shot yesterday when I was walking around in the Bronx. I've never been to the Bronx, but I had some free time yesterday and decided to take the 4 train to the very last stop.  Fine, the Bronx isn't exactly some isolated spot in the middle of nowhere, but it was definitely less intense than Manhattan.  I loved it as soon as I stepped off the train.  This is the kind of spot where I'd just relax and read and be able to spend hours just zoning out.  This spot was so beautiful that I had to photograph it, even though it's not the kind of shot I normally take, like this photo:

There is a variety in my shots and that is how I feel comfortable.  That doesn't mean that my way is right, but it doesn't mean that it is wrong either.  At the end of the day, photography is a creative outlet and however one chooses to express that creativity is the correct way for them.  I have to have a camera with me at all times.  The one time that I forgot to take my camera with me, I was so annoyed because I saw three amazing shots that I missed.  I don't get the same feeling of happiness that I do when I'm photographing what I see.  My mind is always wandering to "this would be a great shot", whether it's when I'm on the bus, or when I'm working at some desk job.  To me, photography is a way to document the present and leave a piece of it behind when we are all long gone.