Yep, I'm just a moth attracted to a flame.

Thursday evening, I was enjoying the downtown Los Angeles Art Walk. Man, there was a big crowd. Scents of food attracted me to a new catering truck food court at 4th and Main.

Then the twirling flames caught my eye. I jay-walked across 4th to get closer and started shooting.

Some 100 exposures later it was time to head back to the office. My dinner break was over.

Here are two of the images of performers from Red Swan Fire.

Photo from Wednesday of the Higgins Building in Los Angeles after using Topaz Adjust 4 sketch charcoal preset.

Photo taken last week with my new Lomo SuperSampler 35mm film camera. I rotated the camera during its series of exposures.

Photo taken on June 2, 2010, of the Wells Fargo Building in Los Angeles. Of course, Topaz Detail used.

One recent walk led to the AT&T building in downtown Los Angeles. Located on the Grand Avenue exterior is the 1961 mixed art 3-d mural titled "Bell Communications Around the Globe." Artist Anthony Heinsbergen used surplus telephone components to create this 36 x 17 foot piece. A couple photos posted processed with Topaz Detail was called for. I just had to make those phone parts ring, oops, I mean sing!

Photo from Wednesday night in downtown Los Angeles given color boost with Topaz Detail Blue Sky preset.

I walked out of the office for a break Saturday night and found this upside down car. Of course it was part of a film shoot. Just down Spring Street on Friday night I got the photo below with Los Angeles City Hall.

Thursday evening was Art Walk night in downtown Los Angeles. I found myself back at the Museum of Neon Art exhibit taking some photos with my iPhone. One of the exhibits is this green neon glass tube with reflections of other exhibits. While very cool looking, right after I shot this image, my iPhone freaked out and locked up. After a complete shut down and five minute wait, the iPhone came back to life. I guess it’s not a good idea to stick an iPhone right up next to one of these tubes — there is a strong electro-magnetic field around them.

Image taken Tuesday evening of Disney Hall in Los Angeles just before sunset. I darkened and added saturation to the image in Lightroom.

Photo from last night of Los Angeles City Hall. Of course I got carried away with software — this image processed with Topaz Adjust 4 ghostly preset and some additional saturation was added. The original was just too boring.

A 1/30 second exposure blurs Vaux’s swifts enter a chimney in downtown Los Angeles.

Appearing nightly for a limited run is the melodrama “The Flight of the Vaux’s Swifts.”

Thousands of migratory Vaux’s swifts are currently using the empty Chester Building in Downtown Los Angeles as a pit stop on their trip to Canada. The entrance is a chimney.

After reading this Los Angeles Times story, I attended last Saturday’s fly in.

The performance went like this: About twenty minutes before sunset a single raven — the villain — camped out on top of the chimney. Soon a Vaux was a fast food dinner. A second raven soon joined in. Loud boos and hisses rose from the audience — about 40 onlookers.

Both Ravens soon grabbed a swift and flew away to jeers from the audience.

Once unguarded, the Vaux's swifts entered the chimney by the hundreds. But after about ten minutes, a loud chorus of boos greeted a returning raven.

The melodrama repeated itself.


One of the villains, a raven, sits on chimney waiting for dinner.

Image of another painted locked door taken last night in downtown Los Angeles. Of course I bumped up the colors in Lightroom and with Topaz Detail 2.

On Saturday I shot this image of a World War 2/cold war air-raid siren outside of Los Angeles City Hall. Of course I have to say it:

It’s a blast from the past!

Composite of two photos taken Wednesday, March 31, 2010, in downtown Los Angeles. The bottom is reflection of scene on a polished stone. Top is straight shot of same tree looking up. Images converted to grayscale, contrast increased and images combined in Photoshop. © 2010 Scott Harrison

Photo from last week of Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles after playing with the dark ghostly preset in Topaz Adjust 4.

During my dinner walk last night I found this artist vehicle parked next to the Victor Building. I used a Lightroom preset to warm and desaturate the image, than sharpened with Topaz Detail 2. Sign on the windshield http://www.kermitfrazier.com/. He does great work.

Rainbow over Los Angeles City Hall late Tuesday afternoon.

Two photos from my early walk tonight in downtown Los Angeles.

Last Thursday dinner break was during the monthly Art Walk in downtown Los Angeles. Robert Lachman and I went over to check out the Luminosity exhibit at the corner of 4th and Spring. Time for a slide show.




Artwork by Sean Sobczak on display at the Continental Gallery on Art Walk night 1/14/10. Show is titled “Luminosity.”

Last week I used one of my walks to visit the Triforium in downtown Los Angeles. From Wikipedia: "The Triforium is the name of a six story 60 ton public sculpture in the Los Angeles Mall Civic Center complex, located at the intersection of Temple and Main Streets in Downtown Los Angeles."

The work by artist Joseph Young was originally installed in 1975 and has been rebuilt in recent years. On this visit I wanted to try a few slow exposure camera twirls. By the look of my flickr Triforium photo set, below, I got carried away. This morning I uploaded about 50 frames.

I was having way too much fun.

1951 AP photo of Los Angeles Times building with current view in background from top of Los Angeles City Hall.

Ok, I'll admit it, I like historical photos.

Back in November I came across a set of seven Associated Press images of downtown Los Angeles taken in January, 1951. They were all shot from the top of LA City Hall. The logical idea was to match the images and document how downtown has changed in 59 years.

My first attempt bombed - the observation deck was closed that day. So LA Times staff photographer Gary Friedman gave me his City Hall contact - Los Angeles Councilman Tom LaBonge.

Councilman LaBonge not only got me up to the observation deck, he held up the proofs of the 1951 images for me to match. That's his hand in the photo above.

I turned in the photos and went off on vacation. While gone, web photo editor Bryan Chan really got behind this project. He went back to City Hall and did one of his 360 panos. Then Chan and web expert Sean Connelley built the final interactive web page on LATimes.com.

The Metro Photo desk editors also got behind this project. Some of the images became a full page Then and Now column for the Sunday, January 3rd, 2010 edition.

What about the original 1951 photographer or photographers? Two images have a photographer byline of Ellis R. Bosworth. The other five had no photographers' byline. I strongly suspect all the images were taken by Bosworth.

The final web page includes six of the images. The seventh overlapped two of the others so was dropped.

Link to the LATimes interactive page.

Tonight's dinner break walk was back to Pershing Square to check out the ice rink. The place was busy, so I shot some video and stills. It was an excuse to start learning iMovie8. Here is the result.

Here are a few photos from last two days in Los Angeles. Top and middle are photos of the Christmas tree in front of Los Angeles City Hall. Bottom photo is of sidewalk cleaning being done tonight at Spring and 4th. Enjoy. Scott

The Los Angeles City Hall searchlight during rain Saturday, December 12. A friend asked if Batman responded?

Friday night, Bob Lachman and I walked over to Pershing Square to shoot the ice-skating rink. I was getting nice boring photos when I noticed Bob just twirling his iPhone camera at the holiday lights. Why not. I started doing the latest dance - the camera twirl, above.

Of course I had to run the image through Topaz Simplify, below, to create something that would have been perfect for those 1960s light shows I used to help put on.

While walking around the new LAPD building tonight I noticed one of the names on the LAPD Memorial had a photo and ribbons.

With the shorter days recently, my evening walks in downtown Los Angeles are after dusk. I found the kit zoom lens just too slow to shoot anything. Last week I replaced the kit lens with a 50 mm f/1.8 and quickly started getting some fun images. Here are a few from last Thursday. The neon lights are at the corner of 5th and Main. The middle photo includes Bob Lachman from www.photographyandthemac.com. The bottom photo is of 5th Street.

Cal Trans building in Los Angeles after mild rain Wednesday, October 14th.

Last night I finally got a chance to visit the new LAPD Memorial recently placed at the Police Administration Building on West 1st Street in Downtown Los Angeles. When the 11,000-pound brass structure was erected there was one problem - it was backwards. The names of fallen officers was facing 2nd Street, not CIty Hall. But the fix was easy. The 2,000 name plates were removable and switchable. During the last couple weeks the memorial was closed as name plates were moved around and placed facing Los Angeles City Hall.

Dedication is on October 14th.

Los Angeles Times story.

Photo from my Friday night walk. The AT&T Tower is in the middle of this image given a bump with Topaz Detail.

Here are some photos from this week in Los Angeles.


Fountain at the Music Center on Tuesday evening.


Restaurant mural Thursday nite.


Helicopter landing behind City Hall on Thursday evening.


Train engine parked at 8th and Spring Friday night for weekend movie shoot. What are the parking fines and towing charges for a train engine?

Low clouds and setting sun led to this image on Friday evening in downtown Los Angeles.

Photo from last night's walk at 5th and Broadway in Los Angeles.

Last thursday was the monthly art walk in downtown Los Angeles. Robert Lachman, of photography and the mac.com, and I had time to visit the Museum of Neon Art. Currently work by Larry Albright is on display, including the plasma globe, above. I was fascinated by the globe and kept taking photos.

One art walk note: almost all the galleries are free during the monthly art walk, but the Museum of Neon Art charges five dollars. I had no problem paying as MONA is a non-profit and needs the funds to survive. The do have two free hours, noon to 2pm, on art walk days.

Outside of the Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA) in downtown Los Angeles is this sculpture titled "Chas' Stainless Steel, Mark Thompson's Airplane Parts, About 1,000 Pounds of Stainless Steel Wire, Gagosian's Beverly Hills Space, at MOCA" by artist Nancy Rubins . Being an aircraft lover, I finally got the chance a couple nights ago to spend a few minutes studying the work. Of course I loved the sculpture - It reminded me of my favorite cartoon characters, a Wiley E Coyote assembled rocket powered aircraft destroyed during a Road Runner chase.

Nancy Rubins has several similar pieces on display. Check out this story from Las Vegas Sun.

Oh, I also googled "Mark Thompson Airplane Parts." Mark Thompson runs a real Aviation Warehouse in the California desert community of El Mirage. The company has supplied aircraft props to the movie industry for some 30 years. Wed site.

MOCA web site.

Last night;s walk led to this image of sunlight reflected off skyscrapers onto other buildings.

My evening walks around downtown Los Angeles are often a mini-photo walk. Tonight Robert Lachman, of photographyandthemac.com and I headed over to the Walt Disney Concert Hall. Of course, to be be different, I had to try Topaz Simplify on a couple of pics. Lachman, in bottom photo, loves to shoot with his blackberry cell phone camera.

Tonight's walk was over to South Olive Street and this photo of the Jubilate residential building with late afternoon light. The 16-story building was completed in 1980.

Here's a pic from last night of Los Angeles City Hall and a second pic from last week of neon lights. Have a fun weekend.

No its not a new football team - its real goats doing weed abatement on the 30 degree slope overlooking Hill Street at 4th in downtown Los Angeles - right next to the closed Angels Flight railroad. The goats have been there the last couple of days. So I spent my dinner break last night shooting sort-of wildlife in LA.

Last night's walk led to 6th and Broadway and the Los Angeles Theater.

Several times over the last month I had walked past The Continental Gallery at 4th and Spring and stopped to check out the fascinating series of architecture detail images of local buildings on display. The black n white prints had the certain darkroom quality.

Last night I went out for an early dinner break. While walking around Spring and 4th, I found the door to the The Continental Gallery was actually open.

Well I really lucked out, Tom Zimmerman, the photographer was there, and yes the images were all shot on film and prints made in the darkroom!.

The month long exhibit was the celebration the publication of “Downtown in Detail,” a book of photographs by Tom Zimmerman. Publication party was on May 14, from 5-9 p.m. Of course I walked in on the last night of the exhibit.

Zimmerman, who admits to having to learn photoshop to produce his book, still is a rare bird is this digital era. He shoots film and still uses a darkroom. We talked about view cameras, Freestyle Photo Supply in Hollywood, and his thirty years of high-school teaching.

Tom Zimmerman Photography Web Site

When I left, I remembered how much I missed the smell of Rapid Fix in the morning! Who needs coffee - one whiff and you are wide awake.


Tom Zimmerman with his showing at The Continental Gallery on Saturday.

Photo from a walk this evening in downtown Los Angeles.

Last month the Los Angeles Times had another round of layoffs. Two co-workers in the photo department were let go. I survived, but now I work five nights a week instead of two. With the new hours, I am spending my lunch, now dinner break, going for walks in downtown Los Angeles. Thus a new category for my photo blog. Enjoy the photos, I enjoy the walks.

Above: Exterior walkway at the CalTrans building. Left, popular restaurant with the LA Times night workers. Below, Second Street looking toward Disney Hall.