NOTES
Painted in Black + White
Black and white remixes of older photos.
I sometimes go through old photos, remixing them a little to see if there are particular qualities that will be highlighted more if they were changed to black and white or color. It also works as an exercise because there could be a perspective that I had not considered before. Here is the result of these experimentations.
If you've been following me on Instagram then you've seen some of these already but there are some here that I've never before shared.
Email: info@carlosdetres.com
New Street Photography: New Orleans
Street photography on the rocky asphalt of a city beat down by the sun. Let's go, go, go.
Wet and hot. New Orleans is the stuff my photography dreams are made of. Weird and fun. The city contains much of what inspires me to pick up the camera.
So here's some new stuff. If you haven't seen the old stuff, look HERE.
Photos by me, Carlos Detres. Email: info@carlosdetres.com
Die and Let Die VIDEO
"Die and Let Die" is a video photo project about the haunting of St. Louis Cemetery #1 by people.
I compiled a video from a previous photography project I completed called "DIE AND LET DIE". I had recorded audio while I was shooting at St. Louis Cemetery #1 that was intended to be included in this project. The calliope from the riverboat, Natchez, can be heard from the Mississippi River as well as the mutterings of cemetery visitors and car horns from Basin Street.
The project was inspired by seeing how much vandalism had occurred at the cemetery that, in my opinion, was perpetuated by some of the myths surrounding the cemetery, such as marking tombs with three Xs so that a wish could be granted. I photographed people in this project as incidental subjects such as one would find in a supposed picture of a ghost. One could be taking a picture of a living room and find a spirit when the image is reviewed so that's how I shot this project. A little tongue-in-cheek joke that addresses a serious issue at the cemeteries of New Orleans.
If you're interested in learning more about the local cemeteries, check out the website of Save Our Cemeteries. They're doing very good things.
Email me if you'd like to use this video or just chat: info@carlosdetres.com
One Year in New Orleans Part 3
Photos from one year in New Orleans from April-June 2015. Burlesque, Weddings, Crawfish Boils, Street Photography and more.
A short walk through Treme
Dreamy vignettes from a long ago sleep.
It's been strange to see tour guides coming through here with a gaggle of tourists on Segways or bikes. Although I moved to New Orleans just this last July, I've been familiar with the neighborhood for a while. If you've never been, it's a colorful area just outside of the French Quarter with a history of bringing up legendary local musicians and artists. It's colorful, bright and has a clear creative energy that runs through it.
I chose to go a black and white route with these photographs, which shows the neighborhood in a different light (no pun intended). It's not the best representation of Treme...it's actually a TERRIBLE one but I've been into the idea of making photographs of New Orleans that appear to look like vignettes from distant dreams during long, sleepy nights.
Most of these are barely in the area of Treme but I hope to return soon to get more of this beautiful neighborhood that also includes Louis Armstrong Park (seen below).
Walking Among the Ruins
Black and white New Orleans cemetery photography shot with Lensbaby and Totally Rad! preset.
On March 14th, I led a tour photo tour for a photographer in town from Arkansas. Since St. Louis Cemetery #1 has been closed to the public, we only had #2 to walk around. I really like this cemetery because there's a lot of space to roam around, there's still grass on the ground (unlike #1) and the tombs that are there are just as old as #1's. We spent at least an hour walking around and both of us captured some really nice images.
The photographer and I are fans of the Lensbaby optics system, which I used heavily during the tour. I enjoyed how the lens would allow me to alter the image in camera. Since I was happy with my exposures, I applied a Totally Rad! Tri-X 400+ preset on all of the images so the post process happened in only one click for the entire batch. Life made easier.
If you get a chance to check out this cemetery, do so! It's not as famous as #1 but it's an excellent alternative. Give yourself a couple of hours to roam around. Hardly anyone goes there so you'll likely have it to yourself.
For any more info or questions about the photos, feel free to email me.
One Month Later
My first post of Mardi Gras 2015 photos.
It's been a month since Mardi Gras. This is my first post of photos from March 17, 2015. The day, the entire season was overwhelmingly wonderful. So much that I've barely had anything to drink since. My typical fun nights had been food, some booze and music, which is all out of my system due to Carnival. My entire existence has been consumed by photography since.
I didn't take many photos during Mardi Gras because of how much there was to photograph (I kinda short circuited) and it was my first one. I wanted to really enjoy every bit of it without a camera slung around my neck. I broke my seemingly weightless Fujifilm x100s and carrying around a bulky, expensive DSLR just seemed like a bad idea.
If you were in New Orleans, I hope you had a great time and if you weren't, I hope you didn't freeze to death.
The Antiquated Charms of the French Quarter
A dreamy little set of black and white photos of the French Quarter.
I enjoy the dreamy quality of the French Quarter and how the modern world clashes with its antiquated appearance. I really need to do more of these studies.
There's probably a bit too many photos in this post but I hope that you enjoy them anyway.
Please feel free to leave questions or comments below.
