A Carousel in Dumbo

February 23, 2012

New York, Photoblogs

The new Brooklyn Bridge Park continues to innovate and recently saw the opening of a strange rotating attraction.

Jane’s Carousel, DUMBO, Brooklyn

Jane’s Carousel is an original 1922 piece donated to the people of the City of New York by the Walentas real estate tycoons. It has been carefully restored and will be operated year-round on the DUMBO (Down Under the Manhattan Bridge Overpass) waterfront. Encased in a mesmerizing all-glass cage that protects it from the elements and gives it a futuristic appearance, the carousel can be seen from all directions, spinning lazily, melancholic symbiosis of the old and the new. A sign of times, free open-air Wi-Fi is available in the surrounding park.

Jane’s Carousel against a backdrop of Brooklyn Bridge and Manhattan

These pictures were shot with the new EF 24-105 mm f/4 L IS USM lens, an exceptional all-around passe-partout lens that has instantly gained my heart. They were developed with Adobe’s brand new Lightroom 4 Beta which I am taking for a test run and loving already despite the unavoidable beta roughness.

And yes, I am in a slight artistic blur and vignette mood these days…

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13 Comments

Comments

Marie

February 23, 2012

reply These image are luminous.

Vince

February 24, 2012

reply Thank you. The scene was luminous, I merely reproduced it. :-)

Winston

February 23, 2012

reply Wonderful shots. Love the the light and composition What camera do you use?
Winston

February 23, 2012

reply I see the EF 24-105 mm f/4 L IS USM lens is from the Canon stable. Great write ups...My guess is you are using the EOS 7D? :-)

Vince

February 24, 2012

reply Hi Winston, I'm glad you enjoyed the shots! Your guess is spot on, 7D with the Canon 24-105. But here I must correct myself, I completely forgot to mention that the wide angle shots were taken with a Canon EF-S 10-22 mm f/3.5-4.5 USM lens, there's no way I could have included the entire carousel in the frame at close range with the 24-105...

dreamer

February 25, 2012

reply I'm late but speechless ! These pictures are just... merveilleuses. Thank you.
Winston

February 28, 2012

reply Hi Vincent Thanks for the clarification. I have finally managed to allign my heart, head and wallet around a choice of camera and look forward to holding my very own D7 in the days to come! The particular package on offer includes a 15-85mm kit lens. [for what its worth - http://www.the-digital-picture.com/Reviews/Canon-EF-S-15-85mm-f-3.5-5.6-IS-USM-Lens-Review.aspx] Still - to be be honest - I have a strong bias toward the picture quality of Nikon cameras especially on the low end of the light scale. The D7000 was a strong contender - the rapid filling buffer with continual shooting made me decide against it though. My young son is a budding but avid gymnast - you have to be quick to catch him in action! I believe the D7 is a great cam. Your review also cemented this notion. I am really enjoying your very expansive blog and have scratched around quite a bit. The comments on "Abe" are a salient reminder of the truth around kit lenses and picture quality. In my economy though - I have to be clever and buy one maybe two additional all-round lenses that suit my pocket. Your shots taken in Namibia are really special. I am from there. As a boy I spent many memorable years in the Namib desert. My father ran an open cast mine there - just slighly north of Cape Cross on the west coast and about 35km due east, from the salt road that courses north along that interesting coast line. If you have not already done so - you should try and visit the area around Palmwag - an oasis in Damaraland in the northwest part of the country - if you have the opportunity again. It is truly a photographer's paradise. The harsh beauty of the surrounds the flora and the fauna - are all just truly breathtaking. Anyway enough babbling - Blue Skies! Winston

Vince

February 28, 2012

reply Hey Winston, that's fantastic, I can't wait to hear what you'll think of the 7D (also known as the D7 ;-) And that review of the EF-S 15-85 is impressive, should be a great combination! I'm sure Nikon gear is as good as Canon's, I actually don't believe there is much difference in terms of the quality of the results. For me it all comes down to features and ergonomics, and I have been with Canon ever since my first digital point and shoot because it moulded itself in my hand better than the Nikon's did, and that has never changed. It's funny you should mention Abe though - I had actually forgotten my 7D is called Abegone - but I am surprised that I gave the impression that I was criticising kit lenses. Now that I have finally managed to start shooting with top glass, I obviously wouldn't want to go back, but those kit lenses have seen me through years of fantastic photography, Vancouver, Namibia, most of South Africa, and while they could not compete with better lenses, they hold their own brilliantly for what they cost. So you grew up in Namibia. Wow, that must have been an extraordinary childhood playground! We did consider the north on our trip and Damaraland certainly appealed but we had to be distance-reasonable and we ended up in the Kgalagadi instead. But I will keep Palmwag in mind for the future. So as you will be dreaming about the Nikon D800, I will dream about the Canon 5D Mark III about to be released. And in the meantime, let's enjoy our 7D. Cheers!

Winston

February 28, 2012

reply whoops ....mybad...I meant 7D! :-) Incidentally my dream full frame is the recently announced Nikon D800. http://www.dpreview.com/products/nikon/slrs/nikon_d800 Cheers
Winston

February 28, 2012

reply Hey Vincent - Maybe I simply misread this extract of your post. "As some will remember, the initial nickname Abe was a short for the French "Aberration chromatique" or chromatic aberration, a color fringing effect of cheaper lenses that manifests itself around lines of strong color difference in an image due to the failure of said lens to focus all colors to the same convergence point. I was, and still am to some extent using kit lenses of marginal quality and the term was an affectionate reminder that while the sensor quality was increasing, glass would remain the governing factor in final images." All the same - I appreciate from your overall comments that good fun and amazing results can be had even with kit lenses. As we grow in our crafts we appreciate more aspects and clearly then we may make different choices. The Namib was an amazing playground for me as well as my sisters. We loved the open spaces and the frequent trips to the sea and further explorations inland. Will let you know about my first steps on the 7D. Keep up the great work. I have shared your blog with my friends on Facebook I look forward to your future "installments" Groete!

Vince

February 28, 2012

reply Aj no man, you're right again! :-) That was my first kit lens on the Canon 400D. It really wasn't very good. The new 18-55, though, was much better, and the 55-250 is also a bargain for the price even though not specifically a kit lens. But yeah, when you start doing some pixel-peeking, there's no question, good glass rocks... I don't have much time to shoot and post these days but will keep trying! Glad you enjoy it!!!

JANE WALENTAS

January 29, 2014

reply Vince- I love your photos of my Carousel. I think even Jean Nouvel would love them. I was just made aware of them by the DUMBO BID. Would you consider allowing me to use any of them on our web-site in the future? BTW--my husband & son are the Real Estate Tycoons--I'm just a hard working artist. Thanks again for the stunning photos! Jane

Vince

January 29, 2014

reply Hi Jane, Glad you like the pictures! And glad, also, that you are not a tycoon. I've never really know how to speak to tycoons. ;-) I'll shoot you an email regarding using the images.

A Carousel in Dumbo

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Marie

Vince

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Winston

Vince

dreamer

Winston

Vince

Winston

Winston

Vince

JANE WALENTAS

Vince

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