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I thought long and hard about how I wanted to intro this post, & if you can believe it, all I could come up with was:

“B-I-G-G-I-E AKA B.I.G - Get it!? BIGGIE!!!” (Huge Motha Fuckin Shout Out to Hip Hop, man!!)

When I began putting the thoughts that would become words for this post together I realized, I’ve been a photographer since before I ever picked up a camera. In my youth I got an immense amount of joy any time I was at my grand parents or any relatives house and got to look through all the photo albums. As I got older and as was the case with many of the people around me, I became yet another child raised by Hip-Hop. I can remember going to record stores to buy tapes and CD’s and a huge part of the experience for me was going through the cover booklet. Reading the credits, finding out what samples were used, seeing the artists “Thank You” section but above all else, seeing the photos that adorned each page or fold out section.

Those photos were rarely if ever seen outside of that booklet. You could buy magazines, you could watch music videos, or you could find posters, flyers etc. but more often than not the photo shoot for the album was only available in that booklet. These iconic images seen above of The Notorious B.I.G taken outside of his childhood home by Clarence Davis have lived rent free in my head since the very first time I saw them. Granted, full transparency: I didn’t see these images til years later on the internet, but I know that they were captured sometime around January 18th, 1995.

As a photographer I believe in being as original as possible, but that doesn’t mean I can’t enjoy paying homage and recreating some images from the past. Hey, nothing is new under the sun anyway, right?

For years I’ve said I want to shoot my brother and his friends outside of Biggies old building, rolling up and smoking. I may not have got an exact 1 to 1 recreation, but I'm very happy with what I did get.

Back on June 30th, a very rainy Sunday, I finally got my opportunity. I’d made plans to go to the 35th anniversary block party celebration of another Brooklyn favorite, Spike Lee’s ‘Do the Right Thing.’ Me Rudy and Jay got in the car and headed to Brooklyn Between leaving the house late and the torrential downpour, we ended up not making it to the block party. But I wasn’t too upset about it. Although I really wanted to capture some images of the block party, my bottom line intention was to shoot Rudy and Jay outside of 226 St. James pl., Biggies crib!

The weapon of choice this time around? Penelope! My Canon AE-1 Program was loaded with the film that has stolen my heart! CineStill!! I’ve of course shot all the traditional stocks, Kodak, Fuji, Illford you name it, but I recently discovered CineStill and honestly it’s gotten quite difficult not to opt for it anytime I’m buying a new roll. This time I tried ‘XX’ their Black & White film with a speed of 250.

I don’t want to sound like a hypebeast, but this is honestly the smoothest, monochromatic film I’ve shot. This is my first of 2 rolls that I purchased. When I picked up these prints yesterday, I rejoiced out loud as I waited for my lunch sandwich to be ready! I thought to myself: what perfect contrast, such deep rich blacks and smooth whites and grays. I’ve shot my fair share of black and white film, but I can honestly say, I think I’ve found my favorite.

Somehow I managed to get 37 frames out of the roll, (bonus points) but I’ll share the others on another post. I wanted this one to be strictly about Biggies Childhood home shot on my new favorite Black & White film.

Hope Ya Enjoy

‘Self-Portrait’, Rembrandt

oil on panel, c.1628, H22 W18 cm

The painter who so self-consciously returns our gaze here is only twenty-two years old. Though it was his first foray (of many) into self-portraiture, Rembrandt was not afraid to experiment. He opted for an unusual, almost brazen lighting, sharply illuminating his right cheek while leaving the rest of his face obscured by shadow. Using the handle of his brush, Rembrandt scored lines in the wet paint to accentuate the curls of his unruly hair.

《若かりし日の自画像》レンブラント

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