Taking Notes. © Reinhard Kargl 2012. Click to enlarge.
Archive for the ‘Photography’ Category
Taking Notes
Monday, April 16th, 2012Palmtrees
Friday, March 2nd, 2012
- Palmtrees, Santa Monica, California
© Reinhard Kargl, 2012. Click to enlarge.
Mysterious Journeys
Monday, October 31st, 2011At this time of the year, the barrier between the physical world and the other dimensions of the netherworld is said to become porous. For those who seek them, hidden gateways open the possibility for passage from one world to another. Mysterious journeys in both directions may be undertaken. Enjoy Halloween. And return safely to your respective worlds.
The Abandoned Railroad
Wednesday, September 14th, 2011I have a fascination with hidden, forgotten and deserted places. Sometimes, one can find them even in the busiest of places. Here is a picture of an abandoned railroad track in the middle of Los Angeles. I accidentally found this site by following some stray cats in a park. Not far from this place are residences, freeways and traffic jams.
Railroad Tracks. Photo: Reinhard Kargl, 2009. Click to enlarge.
Post Industrial
Wednesday, August 3rd, 2011
Post Industrial. Photo: Reinhard Kargl, 2011. Click to enlarge.
Lost And Found: Portrait Of Maria Altmann
Thursday, June 2nd, 2011This was driving me crazy: I once took a series of photographs of Maria Altmann, the heiress of several Gustav Klimt paintings. (She successfully sued the Republic of Austria for the return of famous art worth $328 million, and passed away earlier this year. See my other blog post on Maria Altmann).
But the pictures I had taken went missing. As I was going through old boxes yesterday, the set re-emerged. (It turns out I had just tossed them into a box, along with all kinds of other “stuff”, instead of filing them away). Here is what I think is the best image from the series:
Maria Altmann in her garden. Click to enlarge. © Reinhard Kargl 2000
Previously unpublished and available for licensing. Original: Ilford XP2 Super, 35 mm negative film.
Portrait No. 4780
Monday, March 7th, 2011
David and Norman. © Reinhard Kargl, 2011. Click to enlarge.
Fences
Saturday, March 5th, 2011
"Fence 1" - © Reinhard Kargl 2010. Click to enlarge.
"Fence 2" - © Reinhard Kargl 2010. Click to enlarge.
(The Rolling Stones: “Sittin’ On A Fence”, written by Mick Jagger & Keith Richards, 1965)
The Breakfast Guest
Sunday, February 6th, 2011
"The Breakfast Guest". Photo: Reinhard Kargl, 2010. Click to enlarge.
No Dialtone
Wednesday, January 12th, 2011Even though they were usually dirty and often defective and frustrating, I hate to see public phones go. Here is a picture I took in Westwood, a part of Los Angeles.
Photo: Reinhard Kargl, 2010. (Click to enlarge).
Portrait No. 4201
Friday, November 5th, 2010
Randy. Photo: Reinhard Kargl, 2010. Click to enlarge.
Halloween 2010
Sunday, October 31st, 2010
Click to enlarge. Photo: Reinhard Kargl
Infrared Reinhard
Wednesday, October 20th, 2010This is what I would look like if your eyes could see infrared light, which is emitted by all warm bodies. The image was taken with a thermal imager at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California. (Apparently, I have a cool nose).
Rotary Speed
Saturday, October 16th, 2010Here is a picture I took at Mazda’s North American headquarters in Irvine, California. The occasion was the 2010 SevenStock meet, an annual gathering for rotary engine enthusiasts.
Mazda RX-792P race car. Photo: Reinhard Kargl, 2010. (Click to enlarge).
The car pictured is the RX-792P of 1992. This particular car was not very successful on the track, but I think it remains one of the most beautiful race cars ever built. One year earlier, a similar car with the same 4-rotor Wankel engine had been victorious in one of the most grueling auto races the world has ever known: the 24 Hours of LeMans.
I am fascinated with Wankel-type rotary engines. Designed in the 1950s by the German engineer, Felix Wankel, they offer many advantages over conventional piston-engines. And yet, Wankel’s design was never universally adopted among auto makers. Today, its only global, large scale manufacturer is Japan’s Mazda Motor Corporation.
Truth be told, all types of rotary engines also have disadvantages. But it seems to me that many doubts regarding the Wankel engine’s design are based on outdated information. When the engine type was first fielded by Germany’s NSU Motorenwerke AG, its contemporaries and licensees during the 1960s, the technological prerequisites had not evolved yet. The rotary concept was simply ahead of its time.
Today, after decades of experience and with much better materials, a more thorough understanding of thermodynamics, big advances in lubricants and seals, as well as the benefits of turbo or compressor charging, fuel injection, electronic engine control and emission control technologies, things have changed. Mazda has done quite well with getting the Wankel’s inherent problems under control.
Given more R&D funding and a better supply of skilled and experienced maintenance personnel, Wankel engines could be made ideal for sports cars, motorcycles, aircraft and — due to their high power output at a relatively small size and low weight: as auxiliary engine for hybrid cars. Audi’s A1 e-tron concept study incorporates this configuration!
中秋節
Friday, September 24th, 2010Originating in China about 3,000 years ago, the “Mid-Autumn-” or “Moon Festival” (Zhongqiu in Chinese, Tết Trung Thu in Vietnamese) is one of the year’s most important holidays in much of Asia.
Having admired and loved the Moon since childhood, I have come to think that the Chinese had the right idea by giving the Moon its own holiday. There are of course many beautiful myths and customs surrounding it, the details of which vary by region. But the roots go back to the beginning of science, as the festival marks both Autumnal Equinox and Full Moon. This year was very special, because both occurred simultaneously, which has not happened in 20 years.
Full Moon and Jupiter over West Los Angeles. Photo: Reinhard Kargl, 2010. Click to enlarge.
I took the above picture from a hilltop west of Los Angeles, looking east just before 11 PM last night. (B&W, digital SLR, ISO 50, 24 mm lens, f/2.8, 15 sec., 2 stops underexposed. Digitally processed and vignette added. The blur was natural and caused by moist marine layers drifting in from the ocean).
PS: And yes, I did get to enjoy the traditional moon cakes. (Three different kinds!)
Veni, Vidi: Fravors
Tuesday, September 7th, 2010While exploring downtown L.A.’s Little Tokyo at night, I needed a fravor.
"Fravors". Photo: Reinhard Kargl, 2010. Click to enlarge.
R.I.P. Mrs. Death
Monday, August 23rd, 2010I must confess that I like old cemeteries. I don’t perceive them as eerie, but as peaceful and tranquil. To those with open minds and eyes, cemeteries offer a glimpse into the lives of people who have long gone.
Here is a picture I took in a Southern California graveyard. Mrs. Death passed away 98 years ago, at the age of 81. Who was she? And how did she get that name? Surely, introductions at social gatherings would have resulted in some comical consternation.
I assume that Mrs. Death must have possessed a sense of humor — otherwise she would have changed her name at some point. (Quite easily accomplished in America, name changes are a time honored tradition among immigrants).
Peace be upon her.
R.I.P., Mrs. Death. Photo: Reinhard Kargl, 2010. Click to enlarge.
Big Buddha Is Watching You
Thursday, August 19th, 2010A post office I know in West Los Angeles has more security cameras than postal workers. (The cameras are monitoring the long line of waiting customers, but not the postal workers who usually move slower than sloths. Then again, since the price of postage keeps rising by the month, they must guard against the distinct possibility of armed stamp robberies).
These days, surveillance cameras are watching us in the most bizarre of places. Here is a picture I took at the entrance to a Buddhist temple.
- Cameras are monitoring the entrance to a Buddhist temple.
Photo: Reinhard Kargl, 2010. Click to enlarge.
Late Night Lemon Drop
Thursday, August 5th, 2010So far, this year’s summer has been rather chilly and cloudy in Southern California. I can only dream of cold cocktails on hot summer nights.
Night Hike
Monday, July 26th, 2010Something I love about the Los Angeles area is that despite all its insane sprawl, it still offers the possibility of escape from the urban mess; to seek moments of refuge and relative solitude in the wilderness of the mountain chains surrounding the basin.
These pictures were taken on a night hike last weekend. (Click to enlarge).
Venus is hanging low in the east as the Sun is setting over the Santa Monica Mountains and the Pacific Ocean. Photo: Reinhard Kargl
Seen from Parker Mesa Overlook in the Santa Monica Mountains, the Moon has risen over West Los Angeles and the Santa Monica Bay. Photo: Reinhard Kargl
The Mystery Truck
Thursday, July 15th, 2010I have no idea why this old pick-up truck was parked on a Westside school campus at night. It was completely covered with rust and looked a little eerie in greenish light — as if it had appeared right out of the past.
Mystery Truck. Photo: Reinhard Kargl, 2010. (Added vignette and adjusted tint, exposure and sharpness digitally). Click to enlarge.
Crossing The Bridge to Nowhere
Tuesday, June 29th, 2010Trekking up and down the East Fork of the San Gabriel River last weekend, through intense heat and about 20 wildwater crossings, we found the mysterious Bridge to Nowhere.
- Bridge to Nowhere. Sheep Mountain Wilderness, California.
34°16′59″N 117°44′48″W. Photo: Reinhard Kargl, 2010
Why is there a bridge in the middle of the wilderness?
I was wondering too.
Built in the San Gabriel Mountains in 1936, the 120 ft (27 m) high bridge was supposed to be part of a road connecting the San Gabriel Valley in Los Angeles County with Wrightwood in San Bernardino County. But the road was never completed.
After being overcome by a flood in March of 1938, the road construction project was abandoned.
The bridge remains, leading nowhere. It is accessible only on foot.
Beast of Burden
Wednesday, June 2nd, 2010
"Beast of Burden", Reinhard Kargl 2007. Click to enlarge.
One late afternoon, I observed this scene in a supermarket parking lot. The dog’s owner, a retired college professor was shopping in the store while his canine pillion rider was guarding their vintage BMW motorcycle. (The two of them routinely ride together).
Urban Safari No. 2
Friday, April 9th, 2010
Los Angeles Theater. Photo: Reinhard Kargl, 2010
L.A. Noir at Musso & Frank
Thursday, April 1st, 2010Here is a shot I captured during a cocktail hour at Musso & Frank, one of Hollywood’s legendary old joints. In its heyday it was a popular hangout for the Hollywood scene, including movie stars, film directors, producers and writers such as F. Scott Fitzgerald, William Faulkner and Raymond Chandler. Ernest Hemingway sipped cocktails here, and Orson Welles used to hold court.
Legend has it that Charlie Chaplin, Rudolph Valentino, and Douglas Fairbanks raced each other down Hollywood Boulevard on horseback, the loser having to pick up the dinner tab at Musso & Frank.
This shot takes me to L.A. Noir. Perhaps this is Philip Marlowe‘s hat …
"Marlowe's Hat" • Photo: Reinhard Kargl