So yeah, I’ve been quite busy finishing my thesis over the last week or so, and will be until the deadline in mid-September, so this site has taken a backseat for the time being. But that being said, and though the day is almost over, I couldn’t let Blog Day go by unrecognised, could I?
Now the point of Blog Day is to recommend five new weblogs, places different from my culture, point of view or attitude. However, I haven’t really found any lately (with one exception, probably the greatest weblog ever). So this is the point where I cheat a little, and link to five weblogs that are not necessarily new, but are new to me.
And would you believe it? There’s even a method to my madness, because each of my choices is a photoblog:
Vudeja / The personal site and photoblog of Mark Hegge, a Canadian who visually documented his life in Japan until this summer. His photographs remind me of the cinematography of Takeshi Kitano’s films; I love his eye for the compelling in the relatively ordinary, for the atmosphere of seemingly empty spaces. He and his family have recently relocated to Canada, so I look forward to seeing his future work. / Samples: 33; Family Mart; Untitled (No. 176); Good Bye Sagami-Ono
Express Train / A photoblog by Brooklyn denizen Travis Ruse, who documents his subway commute to and from work in midtown Manhattan. I’m a sucker for trains, especially subways; I could philosophise about that for paragraphs, but I think I’ll let the pictures do the talking. / Samples: 6 Train, 23rd St., 9:15am; D Train, Broadway, 6:30pm; F Train, sitting over Carroll Gardens, 8pm
Infrangible / By Khoi Uong, another Brooklyn resident, this is a beautifully designed website with photographic richness to match — and more beyond that. Not only does his photoblog span a whole spectrum from headshots to candid action shots to stunning compositions like this one, but each shot is accompanied by an optional soundtrack to enhance the sensory experience. (Sure, a few of his musical choices leave something to be desired — Crystal Tips and Alistair, anyone? — but hey, nobody’s perfect.) / Samples: Haze; Goat; Shenandoah
Big Empty / The photoblog of Tim Gasperak, a San Francisco-based photographer and designer, it serves as a first-class portfolio for his skills in both areas. Just witness the entrancing purples and reds of this Italian sunset. Or check out the focus technique making this image of chairs seem like a macro shot of a minature model. / Samples: Bike at twilight on the Mura; Amphitheater chairs, Seattle Public Library
Absenter / By Nazarin Hamid. Quirky, colourful perspectives of everyday life in the Windy City, and then some — with a clean design that adapts in both layout an colour to match the image on display. Very impressive. / Samples: 08052005; The tracks of sunset; Shoes on a wire
Hopefully these five sites, and the many other photoblogs they link to, will keep you entertained until we return to our reguarly scheduled programming.