NYC EXPOSED
Part of the "Great Cities Exposed"
Online Photo Exhibit Series

"NYC EXPOSED" Online Photography Exhibit  -  GALLERY 03



 
"THE KISS"
(Recreation of Alfred Eisenstaedt's famous 1945 V-J Day in Times Square photo in LIFE Magazine)

Photography by LEON HERTZSON
East Northport, New York
Photo re-creation of 'The Kiss' 1945 V-J Day in Time Square; © 2010, Leon Hertzson. Part of the 'NYC Exposed' Photography Exhibit from www.FreePhotoCourse.com; all rights reserved
'The Kiss'
Canon 7D with 24-105 L lens; f/8.0; 1/160; ISO 2000 (diminished light); RAW format
© 2010, Leon Hertzson
If you think you've seen this picture before...There's a good reason!
Leon Hertzson was in the right place at the right time last November when he photographed this beauty.  Of course, the veteran professional photographer remembers the original photo gracing the cover of LIFE magazine in the late summer of 1945.   

Alfred Eisenstaedt photographed the original "The Kiss" image in Times Square, NYC on that joyous, if not chaotic, August 14th day.  Shortly after Japan's surrender, World War II came to an end and the sailor, a young Carl Muscarello, did what any red-blooded American man would do to share his excitement and celebration on Victory over Japan day...kiss the first beautiful young woman he encountered!  In this case, it happened to be the late Edith Shain who had just begun her nursing career.

The rest, as they say, is history!  But there's a lot more to Leon's modern-day version than merely being a remarkably similar one to the original image.  From a photographic perspective, Leon's work here is outstanding!  The excellent monochromatic tonal range and detail give his photograph an authentic 1940's silver gelatin appearance.  His composition is also very engaging.

Leon happened to be in Times Square when a civic attraction was being staged by a tour bus company.  He immediately recognized the re-creation and went to work.

Leon explains: "I spotted the sailor and nurse in authentic costumes just posing with the multitude of tourists milling about. Having a vivid recollection of the 1945 Alfred Eisenstadt Times Square Kiss image, I asked if the two would recreate the scene and with the same emotion. With a big stroke of luck, the throng of people seemed to disappear and I was left with a clear path for the shot. The third person with his drink added just the touch of human  interest and balanced the composition. Comparing it to the 1945 scene, I was struck with the similarity. Background people and theater marque signs completed the final image."



Leon's wealth of experience in photography have given him an enviable cache of insight and a photographic eye that has obviously served him very well.  He mentions the importance of the fellow on the right (the one holding the drink); he becomes a crucial element, providing a slightly offsetting aspect to the balance. He, along with the woman in the background taking the picture with the little point-and-shoot, also provide an element of the present day which contrasts wonderfully with the 1940's theme. Although the crowds are gone, there are just enough people milling about to give it another layer of context without overwhelming the main subject itself.

We at FreePhotoCourse.com would also like to take this opportunity to let our readers know a bit more about Leon Hertzson, as he will be the subject of an upcoming feature in our Photographer Profiles section.

This will definitely be something to watch for, because Leon has been involved with photography for over 65 years, as a photographer, photography lecturer and mentor.  He has also served as president of five camera clubs in New York and Conneticut and is  past president of the Photographic Federation of Long Island (an 800 member group).

Leon has photographed a massive portfolio of over 60,000 fine art photographic images in various genres; street photography being one of his favorites.  Through this he has shot and curated various independent exhibitions on Long Island.

We look foward to publishing more of Leon's captivating pictures in a future Photographer Profile feature!



You can see more of Leon's photography at his website: http://leonhertzson.com/

                   
                                                         Take a look!
                  "The Kiss" Then...                                      ..."The Kiss" Now

Picture of 'The Kiss' by US Naval Photojournalist Victor Jorgensen, 1945. Similar to 'The Kiss' photo by Alfred Eisenstadt that famously appeared in the VJ Day issue of Life Magazine. Appears in a photography exhibit from www.FreePhotoCourse.com.
While not Alfred Eisenstaedt's LIFE version of 'The Kiss',
this very similar photograph of the same sailor and nurse was
taken at the same moment by another photographer.
Victor Jorgenson was a US Naval Photojournalist who happend to snap a picture of the same moment at Times Square on VJ Day,
August 14, 1945.
Modern-day version of the famous 1945 LIFE magazine 'The Kiss' photo featuring a sailor kissing a nurse in Times Square on VJ Day in 1945. This photo was taken by Leon Hertzson in 2010 on the Father Duffy traffic island. Part of the NYC Exposed photography exhibit by http://FreePhotocourse.com; all rights reserved
Leon Hertzson's modern day version of the same moment.
Interestingly, Leon's work with contrast, shading and composition
would be hard to pick apart from the original
were it not for the modern-day clues in the background.




Einstein said, "E=MC squared".
(But Bobbie Turner's photos say "Energy = NYC!")
Bobbie Turner is the Secretary of the Huntington Camera Club of New York.  What makes Bobbie's NYC photos compelling can be summed-up in one word...ENERGY!

When you look at Bobbie's picture to the right, you may initially feel a sense of relaxation that the guy in the window is obviously engaged in.  But look closer and you'll feel the buzz of the city that never sleeps!  You can almost hear the traffic in the street below, the hum of the air conditioner that isn't keeping up, the car horns beeping, the people shouting.  Yes, it's all there!

You may also feel the energetic grittiness of life in the city. While most people would be OK with opening the window to get some breeze, a true New Yorker wouldn't think twice about chillin' the 'dogs' by hanging them right out in the open air above the people in the street!  Add to that the bit of carpet and you have the sense of inventiveness and self-reliance that is the City.

Bobbie's picture captures so much more than feet and an A/C!
Cooling-Down...New York City Style!
(NYC Apartment in the summer)

Photography by Bobbie Turner
Melville, NY
Picture of a man's legs and feet hanging out of a New York City apartment window. Photographed by Bobbie Turner, part of the FreePhotoCourse.com 'NYC Exposed' photography exhibit; all rights reserved.
Panasonic DMC-ZS7; 49 mm focal length;
f/4.9, 1/400, ISO 80
© 2010, Bobbie Turner

 
"MANHATTAN ABSTRACT"
(Digital Manipulation, Night Time Street Scene)

Photography by Bobbie Turner,
Melville, New York
Digitally manipulated night picture of busy street scene in Manhattan, NYC; shot by Bobbie Turner; part of the popular photography exhibit, 'NYC Exposed' by http://www.FreePhotoCourse.com; all rights reserved
Sony DSC-W200; f/2.8; 1/15; ISO 400
Digital Image, Manipulated
© 2008, Bobbie Turner

Talk about energy!  Bobbie's combination of long-exposure nighttime camera work, digital manipulation and creative artistic abstract expression help this busy Manhattan street scene to absolutely BUZZ with excitement!  The street must have been wet the night Bobbie shot this picture, because the glow (enhanced by the Photoshop work) reflected on the street is so vibrant!  The night scene comes alive as the slow 1/15 of a second shutter speed reveals the closest vehicles swift motion.  The cab on the bottom right swooshes along, while the vehicles in the background remain clear enough to discern the busy things going on in the City.

Bravo to Bobbie for having the creative insight and following-through with digital manipulation that transforms the 2-D representation of reality into something that has an almost palpable energy!



 
"PACK IT ALL IN...Times Square Style!"

Photography by Bobbie Turner,
Melville, New York
Picture of storefronts and congestion in the heart of Times Square, New York City. Photographed by Bobbie Turner. Part of FreePhotoCourse.com's NYC EXPOSED Photography Exhibit; all rights reserved.
We decided to publish one more of Bobbie Turner's pictures in our NYC Exposed exhibit.  This one is yet another image that illustrates the reality of life in the big city.  With the help of a long focal length, the tight zoom on this frame enhances the feeling of congestion, as though things are even more crammed together than they are. (...and, yes, things ARE crammed together to start with!)  While the shutter speed is unknown for this particular image, our guess is that it's in the 1/60 to 1/90 range, because the vehicles show just enough motion blur to reveal a bit of motion, while maintaining a decent level of edge definition.

The "in your face" commercialism and storefront after storefront becoming advertisements in themselves, is all part of the energy.  The scaffolding represents the constant change that is just part of living here.  People walking along seem to be rather oblivious to the chaos that's unfolding around them; yet another interesting irony of life in NYC!

Thank you Bobbie for your very thoughtful, creative and energetic photographic representations of New York City!




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