Texas Energy Photos
Wind and petroleum are two of Texas’ largest energy sectors.
For more photos depicting the energy industry in Texas, contact robert@roberthart.com.
Cigar Havens in D.C. and NYC
Velvet Cigars Lounge on NYC’s Lower East Side
Any time I’m in NYC I make it a point to spend a few hours enjoying a cigar and fine company at Velvet Cigars Lounge on New York’s Lower East Side. The shop is located at 80 East 7th Street between 1st and 2nd Avenues. I discovered the shop four years ago and I wouldn’t dream of visiting the city without spending time chatting with Arthur and the other regulars.
It’s a rare gem of a place.
J.D. Talasek smoking in his favorite D.C. cigar lounge.
My recent trip to NYC and the east coast took me to D.C. for three days to see my friends at The National Academy of Sciences and National Geographic Magazine. J.D. Talasek took me to his favorite cigar hangout, Signature Cigars, at 4835 Wisconsin Avenue, NW, where we spent an afternoon visiting and enjoying fine smokes. It’s a big two-story space with plenty of seating, a poker room and an excellent humidor. It’s JD’s favorite shop and I look forward to my next visit.
Stay at this FABULOUS Brooklyn B&B
If you’re traveling to NYC, stay here
Front parlor at The Erhart.
Increasingly, I’ve been staying in Brooklyn because neither of my sons nor any of the artists I know in NYC can afford to live on the Island of millionaires.
I stayed at Jessica Warren’s B-and-B, The Erhart, on Washington Avenue, in Clinton Hill just two blocks from the Pratt Institute campus (ask me about the Pratt cats). Jessica is a delightful hostess and she really does want her guests to feel at home in this meticulously restored 1887 Brownstone.
My room was HUGE and would have cost $1,000 per night had it been in a Manhattan hotel. My only regret is that I was so busy and the trip was so short that I had no time to hang with Jessica. “Pretentious” simply is not in her vocabulary.
I can’t wait to go back.
Marvin Hamlisch photos
Marvin Hamlisch at Dallas’ Winspear Opera House on August 2, 2010.
Composer Marvin Hamlisch, 68, died yesterday August 6, 2012 in Los Angeles, according to the New York Times. To see more Marvin Hamlisch photos, click here.
Damon Winter’s London Olympians Portraits
The NYT’s Damon Winter consistently shoots beautiful, compelling images. These portraits of U.S. Olympians from the 1948 London Olympics are simple, elegant and straightforward. Damon, a former Dallas Morning News staff photographer, won the 2009 Pulitzer Prize in feature photography for his coverage of the 2008 Obama presidential campaign.
Damon Winter’s portraits of U.S. Olympians who participated in the 1948 London games.
Photo editor Chris Wilkins on seeing and utilizing good light
Chris Wilkins, assistant director of photography at The Dallas Morning News, blogs about the importance of great light and provides several examples from a week’s worth of wire photos. There’s good info here for my SMU and TCU students as well as anyone else interested in improving their images.
I stress “looking at the light” in all my classes. In weekly critiques, I ask each of my students to analyze the light in their classmates’ photos. Whether you’re looking at photographs, a film, or simply marveling at the way a sunset glows in ruby-colored hues at dusk, seeing the light is a critical step to making great images.
On Assignment: War Horse Author, Michael Morpurgo in Dallas
“War Horse” author Michael Morpurgo in Dallas.
I had time to make eight frames of Michael Morpurgo in a small meeting room at Dallas’ Fairmont Hotel. He is a fascinating interview and his story will run soon at www.theaterjones.com. War Horse opens at Dallas’ Winspear Opera House. on Sept. 12.
Michael wears the hell outta that hat!