I spent a lot of my youth watching Tv. Sometime when I was really young I must have come into contact with some noire films over the tube. I seemed to have a very strong affinity for this genre of film without knowing what they were called. These films felt different to me. There were also a fair amount television programs that fell into that category like Perry Mason and The Untouchables. Another show that I watched had moments of noire – 77 Sunset Strip.

Throughout my life I have enjoyed seeing photos and films that have a noire feel. I liked the strong, deep shadows and how the actors revealed themselves by emerging from or hiding in darkness. I never intentionally tried to mimic this in my own photography until recently. In the last two years I have been trying to see city scenes through a noire point of view. It’s not always an easy thing to do, living in a fairly new-looking city like Minneapolis. But I have managed to find some subject matter and times of day (even seasons) to make noire type images that conjure a “sleepless city” and an air of mystery and intrigue. I do my best to make the place I photograph not readily recognizable so that the mood of the moment is the more dominant.

 About These Images

There are two main types of noire type images I try to capture – so far. Street scenes and small, intimate spaces with deep shadows. (I plan to do a third type which will include actors).

The first photo is a street scene around dusk. The image is intentionally blurred for effect. It’s like the bustling background into which the protagonist enters. Noire films are normally B&W but I felt the color in this case made the image more interesting.

The second image was made when the sun was low and cast long shadows into the entrance of an historic old building. I put my shadow in the photo to add some mystery and tension. Being at the right place at the right time is key to getting these images when working without lighting equipment and a crew.

I just recently started shooting this way. It will be interesting to see what happens when I put more time and resources into these images.

I wrote a recent post about my conflicting feelings about Instagram. About how the camera and filters are limiting. About the ability to manipulate the image on the spot and share immediately.

All of this contributes to a satisfying user experience because the user gets instant gratification through taking the picture, using the filters to personalize it and get instant feedback from anyone who happens to be online and seeing the post. With some of my urban images, I shared and got instant “Likes” from people I know in Europe. That is quite a long reach! It goes a long way to making one feel connected and a little powerful.

I use an iPad mini. I have found the iPad camera experience to be similar to Instagram in that I can, through a third party app, manipulate the image on the spot. In that way I capture more of the mood I am feeling at that moment. The photo app I use is PhotoForge.

Without a data plan I depend on access to wifi for sharing the image. Sometimes there are places in a dense urban area where it is available but often it’s not. Sharing has to wait till later. But at least the mood of the moment is preserved till it can be shared over social media, including Instagram.

I am getting more comfortable shooting in public using a tablet. I guess I blend in more with all the smart gadgets that are so ubiquitous. I suppose carrying and using a regular DSLR camera will make a photographer stand out more.

About this Image

It was late afternoon and very hot downtown. The light from the lowering sun bounced off one building and reflected it’s grid-like window pattern onto the one across the street. This happens everyday and creates countless photo opportunities. The iPad camera and PhotoForge app allowed me to capture the mood of the moment and process the image to preserve it for posting later.