Inspiration: Even during a very busy day yesterday, I made a little time to walk to Union Square with my camera. In my humble opinion, this park, along with Washington Square Park, is one of the best places to take candid street shots. As I neared the park, I heard cheers and chants. Someone screamed into a microphone and the crowd roared in response. Seconds later, I was taking these shots at the "Change for Burma" rally. In anticipation of a significant U.S. policy change with respect to Burma (now known as Myanmar) that will challenge the current regime (widely considered to be brutal) and push for the release of political prisoner, Aung Sun Suu Kyi, local organizers for change in the government of Burma gathered in Union Square to make their own stand in support of the U.S. move.
P.S. I ought to warn you now. This is a rather long post with several photographs. So be sure to scroll down.
Inspiration: In addition to the wonderful photographic moments and array of brilliant color, I soaked up the passion and fervor of the rally. You know, despite the problems in the U.S., we are secure that regardless of the party in power, we don't have to fear drastic upheavals in our political system. It's so easy to forget that. Okay . . . I am stepping off the soap box now.
By the way, Union Square is no stranger to political demonstrations. In fact, the park has been the venue for rallies since the 1860s. Moreover, the first Labor Day parade occurred here (back when Labor Day signified more than the end of summer). See here for more about Union Square's history.
Inspiration: Intense shades of red . . .
Dude, I don't even know what to say! I don't know which picture is more intence, the black and white of the monk or the color!
BTW I showed my brother in law your site(he is a rad artist in sculpture and loves photography) and he was like "I have seen that angel girl on flicker!!" Not sure if you are on flicker but if so small world he was already a fan! We looked through a lot of your photos last night. you rock at what you do!
Posted by: Cristi | September 27, 2009 at 12:14 PM
Cristi -- you are the best. And you know that I am a HUGE HUGE fan of your blog. It is off the hook creative in ways that I don't even know how to be!
Posted by: The Photodiarist | September 27, 2009 at 12:28 PM
I love these pictures, especially the first one that has great contrasts. The monk looks so serene and charismatic, as if he were the leader of the group blending beautifully in the dark background. And that red really reminds me of my trip to Burma back in March. So many good memories, and most of all, Burmese people are so warm and well-educated in spite of what's going on in their country. These pictures really show how monks play a big part in Burmese society.
Your pictures are really inspiring! I've been checking your blog for a while now but have missed some of the color pictures. The RSS feed seems to be all fixed now! (RSS 1.0 works well, RSS 2.0 seems to work in my browser but not in my feed reader).
Posted by: dktran | September 27, 2009 at 01:00 PM
oh these reds!!! that's all i have to say. :)
Posted by: Style Odyssey | September 27, 2009 at 11:07 PM
Nice serie. The first man made me think of Brando in Apocalypse Now.
Posted by: la flore et la faune | September 28, 2009 at 04:03 AM
this series of images is one word : POWERFUL!
Posted by: nora | September 28, 2009 at 01:44 PM
Wow, these are just WOW...the color and capture of expression and soul. Very nice job. Now you are stirring the need for another trip back home...the more I see these, the more I want to go back to New York.
Posted by: Luis A. De Jesus | October 3, 2009 at 05:54 PM