South Louisiana Life

[Ed Richards]

Added some new images of south LA to the beginning of my new work gallery:

http://www.epr-art.com/galleries/a1-new/

If you have some south LA shots, pile on.:-)

[fenderbja]

Nice work... they look great

[Thom Bennett]

Nice work Ed! You certainly get around. I know you just entered the Four by Five exhibit but take a look at this one as well:

http://neworleansphotoalliance.org/CFE/callEntry.php?CFE=10

[tgtaylor]

Nice work Ed! You certainly get around. I know you just entered the Four by Five exhibit but take a look at this one as well:

http://neworleansphotoalliance.org/CFE/callEntry.php?CFE=10

I don't know about Ed, but I clicked on it and man do you guys bring back some memories. Is Mary's Tavern still there? What about the Half Moon? Not that I frequented those places - the former during my mid teens as a dare with my best friend and the latter when I was maybe 5 or 6 with my father who was in commercial real estate. My "hood" was a few blocks down towards Canal street: Thalia & Coliseum (1118 and 1301 - right across from the Coliseum Theatre).

Ed: IMHO, the photos generally lack impact and intimacy. A Voodo Shop? I thought it was a take-out window until I saw the sign on the far right. Try experimenting with different films - I bet IR would work for some - and getting CLOSER for others. I bet the occasional soft focus would work as would a lith print, here and there.

Thomas

[Henry Ambrose]

Ed, you're doing some fine work!

[Ed Richards]

Thomas,

You have to remember that these are LF - they depend on fine detail and tonality, which is, of course, useless on the WWW. (If I only shot for the WWW, I would use a Canon s90 set to vivid.) If you want in your face intimate, shoot 35mm. My boucherie shots were mostly with a 24mm, which is blood on the shoes close.

[Kirk Gittings]

Ed, you're doing some fine work!

dittos

[Don Dudenbostel]

Very nice work!

Where are the plantation ruins located?

I've been shooting ruins of churches in the costal areas of South Carolina.

[Ed Richards]

Windsor plantation is outside Port Gibson, MS. It is the subject of a famous photo by Clarence John Laughlin. It burned more than 100 years ago, and is remarkably unchanged from when he photographed it in the 1940s.

[tgtaylor]

Is the Tchoupitoulas Plantation across the river on (I believe) River Rd. still around? It had a colorful history and was a great place to take dates to.

[Don Dudenbostel]

Thanks for the info.

[John Kasaian]

Beautiful work Ed!

[Ed Richards]

Tchoupitoulas Plantation (http://www.cgtplantation.com/) that is across the river from New Orleans is going strong as a restaurant and venue for events and weddings.

[tgtaylor]

That's good to hear! My favorite spot was outside in the back next to the field. The prices were reasonable back then and I was always treated like a king by the staff. Of course back then I was young, good looking (I still am, thou :) ), and always had a fox for a dinner companion.

What about Mary's Tavern and the Half Moon in the post above? Mary's had the reputation of being the roughest bar in the city - plenty of fights but few if any murders - which wasn't as fashionable as it is today. That's what I thought until one day I absently minded walked into to a bar in the Quarter which had the "heaviest" atmosphere that I have ever experienced. Not "rough n ready" like Mary's but super heavy - like in the midst of professional assassins, assorted mobsters, and cops. Later I did my research and this was the place where Crow Collins was gunned down outside on the street by the NOPD. I guess they got tired of getting their ass beat by Crow who at that time was the roughest character in the City. I briefly knew his younger brother during my childhood.

[Ed Richards]

I am not sure if Mary's is still in business, I do not find it on google and do not remember seeing it. Not only do I know the Half Moon, but it is around the corner from the New Orleans Photo Alliance, and would probably be the offical NOPA bar. (But Thom know would better.) I would post a picture, but I do not have a good one.

[tgtaylor]

Good to hear that the Half Moon is still there. It was always frequented by a decent if mixed crowd - plain folks, judges, mobsters, etc. One of my earliest (kindergarden/1st grade) best friends lived across the street on Camp Street in that motel style apartment complex. Mary's was located across the street on Magazine Street and catered to the "seedier" side of humanity.

[Thom Bennett]

Oh yeah! The Half Moon is the New Orleans Photo Alliance's unofficial watering hole. Still a colorful place.