Misha Erwitt | Redondo Beach & CBGBs

Posted: November 21st, 2011 | Author: doug | Filed under: Film, Leica, Los Angeles, New York City, Photography, Quotes

Cosmo, Redondo Beach, California, 2004 © Misha Erwitt

Well I’ve done a lot of street photography in New York City so let me say something about that. New York is a constant parade of humanity. It’s a very familiar place, but it’s always changing. If you look around there are a lot of amusing juxtapositions, so yes, humor does play a definite part in my work and it’s an element in many of my Leica Gallery pictures that were shot in New York. By contrast, trying to take street pictures in L.A. is challenging. L.A. isn’t a walking city — I considered shooting drive-by pictures and I’m always taking pictures out of my car window, but then you have nowhere to park it. Let’s just say that L.A. isn’t as conducive to street photography.

- Misha Erwitt

Jimmy Gestapo and Murphy's Law, CBGBs, 1985 © Misha Erwitt

Tags: CBGBs, Elliot Erwitt, Jimmy Gestapo, Leica Gallery, Los Angeles, Misha Erwitt, Murphy's Law, Punk Rock, Street Photography | No Comments »

Ed Colver | Bad Religion

Posted: May 27th, 2010 | Author: doug | Filed under: Film, Los Angeles, Photography

I had the pleasure of hanging out with Ed Colver at a party in The Brewery in Los Angeles a few years ago. He is a cool old timer with tons of stories. At the time, he was driving a great hearse with a Dodge 400 in it and his business cards were blank bereavement cards for funeral homes.

I asked him about this iconic photo which has always been one of the great hardcore album covers and posters. He said he took this shot handheld at night outside of a show in LA, using only the light from a hot dog vendor cart. He never uses a light meter, has never used one and has such a refined eye that he can judge the light and get the exposure right every time. Even in the studio.

Check out his work and buy his book.

Bad_Religion_'80-'85 © Ed Colver

Tags: Album Covers, Bad Religon, Ed Colver, Film, Hardcore, Music, Punk Rock, The Brewery | No Comments »

Tompkins Square Park

Posted: July 30th, 2009 | Author: doug | Filed under: dougKIM photography, New York City, Nikon

There was a punk rock show in Tompkins Square Park last weekend, an anniversary of a big riot there in ’86 when the park was full of punk squatters and dealers. That was back when going to a hardcore punk show many times had a strong element of danger and fear; fear of getting stomped, sometimes fear of the police, or just in general, fear of getting hurt.

So seeing reunion shows or bands that are still performing 20 years later is always a dicey proposition. I remember at the tail end of the summer in DC in ’84, everyone was agreeing that hardcore was dead and you could feel the energy of the scene move elsewhere. I kept going to shows but they were not the same. Sometimes these shows are depressing. We’re all old and slow and fat and should know more than three chords by now. Other times, you remember the energy and the reason why you went to every show. Plus seeing the East Village Whole Foods crowd with their little doggies watching the show was funny.

This was a good show. Mongrel Bitch, Urban Waste, Hammerbrain, Nihilistics and Reagan Youth.

When I moved to New York in January, I met Laura of Mongrel Bitch while looking at apartments. She gave me the heads up on the show so thanks, Laura.

L. Brownia, Mongrel Bitch

Laura Sativa, Mongrel Bitch

Charlottica, Mongrel Bitch

Mongrel Bitch

Ron Rancid, Nihilistics

Nihilistics

The only time I saw Reagan Youth was in 1985 or ’86 at the Rock Against Reagan show on national mall in DC. That was a long time ago, with a massive outdoor crowd, cops driving their cars through the crowd periodically, helicopters overheard. Dave Rubinstein has long since passed.