Take Your Camera!
Italian Restaurant in Chicago
Tutto Fresco, Chicago
You’ve heard me say this before: Take your camera with you…any camera. It doesn’t matter how big, expensive, fancy, or famous it is…as long as it has glass (a lens) that captures light and can then apply it to a medium (film or sensor) to be recorded, it will do the job. To put it bluntly and profoundly, it’s much easier to take a photo of something if a camera (any camera) is available.
So, sometimes, I think I may look or seem a little meshuggie, carrying my camera out to dinner, plays, museums, people’s homes, etc. It’s not that I expect to take a picture, but it’s more like I’m in a “ready” state of mind. I feel that I look for and see potential photographs in my mind if and when I have my camera with me. But, I must admit there are rare circumstances when I actually do see something that compels me to pull out a camera out to take a photo. Besides the fact that one doesn’t frequently bump into a photo waiting to be taken, it can sometimes be rude or awkward to start taking photos when you’re out with friends and family! (Though, I think my family is used to it by now…)
This photo (above) is a good example of a time when it worked out well, from my perspective. We met our friends Jody and Barry Spilberg at Tutto Fresco at 3829 N. Broadway on Saturday night before going to see the final performance of “Once in a Lifetime” at Strawdog Theater. Also, as it turns out, it was the final performance put on by Strawdog Theater at this location since the entire block and building with the theater and restaurant is due to be razed very soon for new development! The theater will be relocating temporarily to Howard Street in Evanston and Tutto Fresco will soon be moving to a new location, too. Both are worth a visit at their new locations!
Anyways, as we sat at our table, I couldn’t help but notice the quaint still life setting of the table, radiator, chairs, place setting, lamp, and the perfect image hanging on the wall of a man eating pasta, all washed by the gorgeous window light. HAD to take the photo. Processing was easy…I just emphasized what I saw and felt.
Glad to get the photo as a remembrance and record of a restaurant location that will not exist soon. Yet, the scene was worth capturing and preserving! And I hope it conjures up a feeling or atmosphere for you…does it?
Thanks for visiting!
-Stephen M. Levin
www.stephenmlevinphotos.com
A tremendous image! Glad you took your camera!
So appreciated, John.
Yep…it is good to have a camera. And, it’s fun, too! Right?
Steve, that picture’s a story. Just thinking: if someone doesn’t have a camera handy, he or she can still observe and preserve. Kids should be told to take snapshots with their eyes as they go along. And save them in a “mind museum” where they can be revisited. But, if you have a camera, and skill, all the better. Thanks again for sharing a scene worth sharing.
Thanks for your comment and observation, Mike. I agree that we should all be “trained” to look around and take snapshots with our eyes. That is, we should all be more observant of our surroundings since there’s much to see and lots gets by us! But, not everything (not every encounter and experience) has to be photographed to be appreciated…some are more appropriate just being stored in one’s mind (memory). At least, in my opinion!
Glad you like the scene…it definitely caught my attention.
Yes, as much as I like photographs, I like relishing a place with my mind and remembering its smells and feel.
Yes. I actually agree. The tactile and real life appreciation of a scene, time, and place usually does take precedence. But, a photograph can sometimes preserve that or serve as a reminder.
I frequently “miss” a photo…there’s always another. But there’s not always another copy of photos we have. That’s why I think it’s important to save and protect them in some way.
At least….that’s what I think.
Forgive my lack of knowledge but are those the true colors?
Thanks to your help, you’ll soon have another Italian restaurant to shoot.
What an interesting question! Thanks for asking. Lemme try to answer it…though I am certainly NOT an expert on this.
I think the short answer is always “no.” That is, both “scientifically” and subjectively. (Remember the “Colored Dress” controversy last year? http://www.cnn.com/2015/02/26/us/blue-black-white-gold-dress/index.html)
Of course, there are many factors at work….the type of light source, the material or media, etc. The funny thing is that our minds tend to do the work to try to make colors look the same regardless of the factors. For example, we don’t “see” incandescent light when we’re in a room lit with it because our eyes are adjusting for that light source. But, if you look at a photo of the room, you sometimes see the red/yellow shade of that light source (that our eyes/brain have filtered out). Same with the tint from florescents, and so on.
Having said that, we all “feel” we know and can discern colors or shades to varying degrees…but what we’re seeing may not be what the person next to us sees.
Bottom line…if you add salt to your tomato sauce, does it still taste like tomato? Or is it just enhanced? Same applies to color adjustments with photographs…ya add a bit of seasoning, to various degrees depending on your desired end result.
Phew…having said that, I did use a bit of salt with this photo.
Can’t wait to visit the new “Dave’s” restaurant! Please keep us posted on the progress.