Last Monday night I journeyed up to Spanish Harlem's most fantastic Moroccan restaurant, Kiosk, with a handful of friends to celebrate the last night of Bush. Little did I know a handful of people would quickly grow into almost twenty of us sandwiched within the narrow confines of the establishment, where we all toasted the beginning of a new era in our lives and ate some delicious kebabs.
I don't know what was in that chicken, but it energized me in a way I haven't felt in the past two years. As soon as dinner was over we cleared all of the tables and chairs to the back of the restaurant, pumped up the music by my fabulous DJ friend Luis, and unleashed a barrage of dance moves inspired by everything from African dance to "Mamma Mia!" prat falls.
Fortunately, my new friend Nick Gaswirth, photographer extraordinaire, was there to document it all. When he removed his camera from his bag, I was awestruck by a giraffe-like light situated on top of the camera body; I had no idea what I was in for. As a photographer newbie, I am just discovering all of the fun toys you can add on. Basically you can turn a camera into something similar to when the Power Rangers all joined together to form that massive, monster-fighting megatron machine. My jaw was on the floor.
Not only did the attached flash ignite without the annoying test strobes the SLR built-ins use, but the color and exposure quality of the pictures left me speechless. It was like that time I went to Target as a kid and saw the Spice Girls album "Spice World" sitting on the shelf; I wanted to geek out, but tried to contain my joy until I got home. Fortunately, the desire to purchase a flash for my camera won't leave me with years of shame like my "Spice World" admiration did. Thank you for opening my eyes, Mr. Gaswirth. And subsequently lowering my bank account a few hundred dollars. Be sure to check out Nick's photo site, a wonderful 365 day experiment with two of his fellow photographers/friends.
(All photos in this post by Nick Gaswirth.)
(Lauren and Michael try to ignore my misletoe/jaws of life hand.)
(Sometimes you must throw your arms behind you and stick your chest out while shimmying. Too many years of observing Ginger Spice.)
(Max loves Jessica. Obviously.)
(Marc, Matt and Darren: LFO 2.0?)
I just bought a flash in December, and now I'm wondering exactly how your friend used it: bounced? diffused? Or just straight on from in front?
If you're interested in learning flash you should check out strobist.com. It's confusing to start with but has tons of valuable information. Now I can't stop decoding the lighting used in my tv shows.
Posted by: kate w | January 27, 2009 at 03:09 PM
Hi Matt,
Check out The Strobist:
http://www.strobist.blogspot.com
It opened my mind up to flash photography and how well (and easily) it can be done. I too had been traumatized by bad flash photos until I read that blog.
BTW, no comments on Superstars of Dance? :)
Posted by: Andre | January 27, 2009 at 05:59 PM
No mention of Baryshnikov's or Mozart's birthday? And you're posture is still ballet perfect in the pictures!
Posted by: lindsey | January 28, 2009 at 11:48 AM
I love those dancing shots. It reminds me of west side story.
Posted by: Natalie | January 28, 2009 at 11:49 AM