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Phil Douglis | all galleries >> Galleries >> Gallery Thirty Nine: Juxtaposition – compare and contrast for meaning > Hanging a right, New York City, 2006
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03-AUG-2006

Hanging a right, New York City, 2006

This night-time image of the intersection of 24th Street and Lexington Avenue was made from the roof of a residential building by using a one second exposure. The moving traffic has created a contrasting juxtaposition for us – the car making a right hand turn is reduced to a streak of curving lights, while the traffic roaring through the intersection is abstracted down to diagonal blurs. A secondary juxtaposition contrasts the stationary cars parked on either side of the crossing streets to the moving traffic.

Leica D-Lux 2
1s f/2.8 at 6.3mm iso80 hide exif
Full EXIF Info
Date/Time03-Aug-2006 19:14:16
MakeLeica
ModelD-LUX2
Flash UsedNo
Focal Length6.3 mm
Exposure Time1.00 sec
Aperturef/2.8
ISO Equivalent80
Exposure Bias-0.33
White Balance (10)
Metering Modemulti spot (3)
JPEG Quality (6)
Exposure Programprogram (2)
Focus Distance

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Phil Douglis18-Aug-2006 20:01
Yes, Lorraine -- there is indeed symbolism within symbols here. You tie this crossroads to life itself. When we come to such places in life, we must make a decision. And some decisions take longer than others. Thank you for adding this thought -- you have bought a fascinating layer of meaning to my image.
Guest 18-Aug-2006 19:35
This is life! A symbol within a symbol. As Ai Li points out a cross road, but also there is movement with these decisions some at a faster pace than others. L.
Phil Douglis16-Aug-2006 21:23
You are right, Ai Li -- it is nice to be out of that traffic, and make our decisions from a more lofty perspective. These drives are making their own choices, but can't see the total effect those decisions are having on the traffic flow. We can. I must have shot twenty different moments to find this one, Ai Li. So many different juxtapositions are possible between traffic moving straight, turning, or in the case of the parked cars, not moving at all. The key, of course, is my roof top vantage point and the time of day i choose to shoot. Night abstracts, simplifies, and creates a mood and atmosphere all of its own.
AL16-Aug-2006 08:12
A cross road. Do you move or stay? And which way to go? A decisive moment, wonderfully captured by you, Phil. Don't we wish at times to have such a high vantage point, to gain a better perspective, to make a wiser decision? :-)
Phil Douglis15-Aug-2006 20:28
Thanks, Dandan, for coming back to this image. I think it sticks in the mind because of its unusual perspective, and the juxtaposition of what is moving to what is still. You see here a huge golden X, its contents both in motion and static. You and I have often walked or taken a taxi down this very street, yet we have never seen it like this. Thanks to my daughter, who lives in this building, I was able to use her roof deck to make this image.
Guest 15-Aug-2006 17:17
Phil, this image has such great visual impact. I looked it yesterday, the image just stuck in my mind… I have to come back to tell you that.
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