I was recently in Los Angeles and, while there, took the opportunity to catch up with Gerry Holtz. Gerry is a great guy I met at the Kennedy Space Center when we were both there to witness the launch of the space shuttle Atlantis. Gerry lives in LA where he runs his own business in the video editing and production business with much of his work being on your TV screens on a regular basis.
However, Gerry is also a photographer and a pretty good one at that! One of the things that he has been working on in recent years is a form of panorama shooting that creates a 360 degree view in a single square format image. Gerry has an exhibit running presently at a cafe in Hollywood. If you are nearby, the details of the venue are below and, without jumping to the end of the story too quickly, I do recommend a visit.
Gerry makes use of some familiar software tools to create the panoramas but the important elements of his work are the ability to visualize how the components of the scene will appear in the finished image and the willingness to do more than just use the basic software tools. He works on the details of the image – both the elements and their blending and the dynamic range that can be present in a shot covering such a wide area. The result is a far more time consuming process to create the final image but a result that justifies the effort.
He also has put a lot of effort into the display of the images for this event. A number of them have been mounted on rotating frames since the image can be viewed from many angles and the rotating frame makes this easier for the viewer to achieve. A smart idea and one that works very well.
You might have noticed that I normally have a number of images in my posts but this time there are none. Since this is Gerry’s work, I did not want to reproduce it here. However, you can certainly take a look at what he does by visiting his Facebook page. Go to www.facebook.com/gerradaholtzphotography to take a look at examples of Gerry’s work. I think you will be both impressed and fascinated. Some of the images can appear very abstract but then you can explore them further to see more of what is there. Some will be of familiar locations and others you will not have seen before.
I would like to thanks Gerry for taking the time to show me around the exhibit and to wish him well with further displays of the work. I understand he is considering a book of more of the images and think this would be a great idea. The exhibit is at 6547 Santa Monica Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90038 . If you are in the area, take a look!
YouTube is the source of information on so many things. One such thing is the re-purposing of old public toilets. I had watched a video about Attendant and decided we needed to check it out when in Town. We actually ended up meeting with some family in the West End and, since it was time for lunch, we went to check it out.
The café is set in an old, underground Victorian toilet. It looks virtually unchanged on the surface and there is not much change below the surface either. The urinals still line the wall but have been provided with table surfaces so you can sit in one like an individual cubicle. There are still cisterns mounted on the walls above your heads. It is a not a big place so you might find it hard to get a table on a busy day but we timed it well. Even so, we were a little squashed in to fit.
The food and drink was fine. It isn’t the greatest place we have ever been but it was good and the staff were incredibly friendly and helpful. It isn’t a place you would end up relaxing for a long time but it has a unique vibe and a special look to it. Don’t go a long way out of your way to visit it but, if you are nearby, you might be interested to check it out.