Photographing in South Central

[RobinFinderson]

Yesterday a good chunk of my day was filled dealing with Faith's car, which has needed service ever since our trip to Death Valley (lots of dusty dirt roads at high speeds). So I took the wheels off of my Rockhopper and put the three pieces into the trunk of the car and headed to our local garage. After turning the car in I hopped on my reassembled bike and started riding around. There was a cool looking billboard near the garage so I brought my camera to photograph it:



I went on to ride all over a good chunk of South Central, photographing buildings and signs. I love the look of South Central. I love the businesses with their hand-painted signs. I love the texture and color of the garbage in the streets and all of the rust and peeling paint.

Here are a few of the other photos from my mini-photo safari:

[BigPiney]

June Gloom? The skies look bad for you.

How was the Death Valley trip?

I love it there and so do my kids. I hiked Telescope peak a month ago and it was great.

Oh the pics are cool and eerie.

[Jeff Lebowski]

Once again, cool pics RF.

[ERCougar]

You take great pics, RF. Keep em coming.

[RobinFinderson]

June Gloom? The skies look bad for you.

How was the Death Valley trip?

I love it there and so do my kids. I hiked Telescope peak a month ago and it was great.

Oh the pics are cool and eerie.

April has been peculiar. We had a couple of record-breaking hot days where it hit 98 degrees, and now we have these strange overcast and partly cloudy days where the temps hover around 70.

Death Valley was gorgeous. I'll see if I can put together a collection of photos for that. I love death valley, and the Spring bloom was just building up steam.

[BigPiney]

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Death Valley was gorgeous. I'll see if I can put together a collection of photos for that. I love death valley, and the Spring bloom was just building up steam.

That's great. I was over there just before the flowers started to really hit. I made it down to Panamint Springs for work last week so I did get to see some of it.

[I.J. Reilly]

Robin, sometimes I romanticize the idea of living in an inner city community or in a hard scrabble neighborhood but I honestly don't think I could do it. I enjoy a quality urban environment (i.e. NYC, SF, etc.) but I visited your barrio a year or so ago and I don't think I could do it. At least not with a wife and potential kids. The decay would eat at me and specifically in L.A. the constant feeling that I was in another country would probably not sit well with me.

I've been in pleanty of bad neighborhoods at not so good times (hilltop favelas, the non-gentrified parts of Harlem, among others) but I think the feeling of being in SC LA late at night/early in the morning was probably the most I felt like I had to be on alert without being physically threatened.

I watch some of the scenes in Training Day and recall my experiences and I know that gentrification makes me feel much safer.

[HuskyFreeNorthwest]

Very good pics RF, kind of depressing.

[SoCalCoug]

Ah, home. Great pictures.

(Okay, the first phrase was a little facetious - but the second wasn't).

[TripletDaddy]

RobinFinderson,

Those are great pics. There is something very raw about the darker underbelly of the City of Angels.

Have you ever considered going downtown in the evening and photographing Broadway? All the neon lights and stores. It would probably provide some interesting perspective yet still be in a safe environment.

After the SC scrimmage on Sat, we all caravaned over to City Terrace and ate burritos at El Tepeyac. As we drove over the 6th street bridge into Whittier Blvd, I was reminded how interesting the hispanic neighborhoods are, as well. The graffiti and wall art is different, the shops are different, the sounds are different.

I love la Ciudad.

[RobinFinderson]

Very good pics RF, kind of depressing.

Especially depressing for Paco. www.pacoservice.com is currently available for purchase.

I don't know man, I like the look. I like the texture and color and grit and authenticity. I could do without the violence.

Speaking of violence, I don't remember if I ever posted the photos of burning cars taken around the corner from my house:



Or the graffiti:



The violence sucks, but I love the urban landscape.

[RobinFinderson]

I was reminded how interesting the hispanic neighborhoods are, as well. The graffiti and wall art is different, the shops are different, the sounds are different.

I love la Ciudad.

We luv East Los.

[DU Ute]

The folks at Nestle missed a golden opportunity by not putting their "Go To Your Happy Place" billboard over the Anger Management place.

[TripletDaddy]

Is that for Dia de los Muertos? Or were you guys just going to an Oingo Boingo concert? Either way, very cool.

Do you have any of Watts Towers?

[RobinFinderson]

Is that for Dia de los Muertos? Or were you guys just going to an Oingo Boingo concert? Either way, very cool.

Do you have any of Watts Towers?

Yes, for we participate in Die de los Muertos with the Self Help Graphics crowd in East Los.

Here is a Watts Towers photo:



And HERE is a Watts Towers panorama I took.

And HERE is a messy Pano from when we were making the Calaveras at Self Help Graphics.

Edit: In case you don't realize, you can change the view in the panoramas by drag-clicking the photo.