The (Obligatory) Brick Wall Shot - Share Yours

jcdeboever · Dec 15, 2017

zulu42 said:
jcdeboever said:

Downtown Jackson, Michigan. These were stuffed away in an alley. Stumbled across them, long forgotten until this day of exposure on TriX .

1. Race field corner
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2. race corner detail, +2 ec
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3. Detail Driver
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What are these? Paintings on a wall in an alley? They're awesome! "A-Ha" video, anyone?

jcdeboever said:

Minolta Maxuum 9, 35-70 f4 mini beercan, TriX, box speed.

Detroit Alley Way, Downtown, real seedy, take a chance, hid away spot. Wonderful graffiti. I had an encounter in this alley, three men up to no good for sure, soon two more came up. Drug users, homeless, and thugs occupied this darkway. I went in anyway. The guys said, "why ain't you finna take some pics of them nasty homeless roach's"? I said, "I don't take pics of people that appear to be at a disadvantage and besides, y'all are a way better subject, I came to shoot you". They just looked at me for a moment, and said, "you can locate with our permission but ain't no shooting of us going down here". So I said cool, "I can render these walls then, too bad because y'all are steel and would look righteous in black & white film". They said, " cracker Oppie, you be crazy, dog, render your s*it up against that brick b*tch". "Then you can give me that camera when your done!" I said, "man, you don't want this camera, it has film in it... what are you going to do with it? sell it for like $5.00"? They all started laughing at me. They said, "you be some real oppie cracker s**t with some low hangin steel". I said, " my brothers from the Purples tell Oppie this s**t all the time". "Aunt Bee said you should let me take some pics of you but unfortunately, I don't have any sandwiches in a sack to give you, I know all y'all like sacks...." One guy said, "that M****r F****r is Andy dog", and another said, "yeah but this alley ain't in Mayberry dog." Anyway, that was the jist of it but went on for a while and turned into momma jokes and the like. Good times but I failed to get any pics of great subjects. I got some number of my new friends and hope to capture them in the future. All the numbers worked too. I called them not long after I left. They are calling me Andy now.... You be Andy in the alley b***h now. The one dude said, "man you look like the police bra" LOL

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Low hangin' steel, fo sho! Are you a big dude? I would never have the fortitude to approach people like that.

The story is so great that it takes attention away from these great photos!

You have a real talent/skill/perseverance in finding subject matter.

they are on a finished brick wall.

I am a rather large man, nothing special but been told I am intimidating. Large as in over weight but I have lost a lot of weight but I am broad, long arms. I can handle myself very well and I suppose the confidence comes out but reality is that I love people and treat them with respect no matter what their walk in life is. I didn't mean to distract the photos but wanted to communicate the challenges one may face in getting an image on the street, inner city. My heart is in the right place and I believe it carries me.

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zulu42 · Dec 15, 2017

Perhaps you nailed it in your last line there: your heart is in the right place. Most people can sense that. You probably disarmed them with a genuine, warm smile from the get go. I also can see feeling much more comfortable in a seedy area carrying my AE-1 with a 50mm rather than a DSLR with a hooded 70-300. Another reason I need to get that AE-1 out. I nearly bought a roll for it on a whim the other day.

Interesting that a fellow photog views photos of street art as a "rip off". I disagree. I actually had an internal conversation along those lines while I was viewing some of your images. The images are striking, in part because the artwork is striking. But the images are photographs of street art in context. A mural above a dirty sidewalk. A man walking. He looks uneasy, as if he's walking in front of a giant fist. Coincidentally, he's walking in front of a giant fist. Architecture, industrial design, commissioned murals, it's all art. I mean, geez, if I take a photo of an interesting building, am I ripping off the architect? A good photograph of a Ferrari is a striking photo partly because the artist designed a striking car.

As always, enjoyed the photographs.

katsrevenge · Dec 16, 2017

I think this is the only brick wall I've every photographed. It was just odd, no reason for there to be numbers.

EndofSummer by https://www.flickr.com/photos/katsrevenge/, on Flickr

Olympus PEN with a c mount lens.

Philmar · Dec 17, 2017

Building #3 - Liberty West Village by Phil Marion, on Flickr

jcdeboever · Dec 19, 2017

smoke665 · Dec 19, 2017

jcdeboever said:
I didn't mean to distract the photos but wanted to communicate the challenges one may face in getting an image on the street, inner city. My heart is in the right place and I believe it carries me.

Said it before and say it again JC you never cease to leave me shaking my head in amazement. You are one crazy A$$ dude, but your wall art images are out of the park good!!!

Jamesaz · Dec 19, 2017

About post# 269 and the rip off comment: In my neighborhood there was a car wash with a mural. It's now a Starbucks and the mural is gone. I spoke with a guy who paints street murals (not the car wash painter) and his take is " it comes with the territory, walls come and go". Maybe it's just photographers that are concerned with the permanence of their work.

zulu42 · Dec 19, 2017

A lot of artists of different media are concerned with permanence, not just photographers of course. But I see what you mean about a mural artist.

Some sculptors make amazing sand sculptures at the beach. Maybe some of those same guys cast their other work in bronze.