10 days in LA

[rafael_macia]

July 18 I leave for LA with 10 for 10 days. I am looking for the great over views of the city center, (which I know is small, compared to the surrounding sprawl),
Anyone have suggestions from where the city is best seen?

I have a car rented and would appreciate any other sights in the area, or worth a drive, ..... that are well recommended.

Thanks

Rafael

[erlingmm]

Try the Getty Museum, you will have a nice overview, and if the air is foggy, you can photograph the museum buildings - very interesting architecture suitable for interesting images.

[wattsy]

Originally Posted by rafael_macia

July 18 I leave for LA with 10 for 10 days. I am looking for the great over views of the city center, (which I know is small, compared to the surrounding sprawl),
Anyone have suggestions from where the city is best seen?

There are plenty of good views of the city from the walk up to and around the observatory in Griffith Park. Also, take a drive along Mulholland - great views of the "surrounding sprawl" both day and night.

Bear in mind that downtown is some distance from the viewpoints I've mentioned. If you want a closer overview of the downtown part of LA you'll need to get in one of the skyscrapers there (I don't think any have public access) or take a helicopter trip of some sort.

[BerndReini]

Just go downtown with a wide angle lens. There are lots of hotels and bars in some of the skyscrapers that you can explore to get a good shot. While you're there, visit Disney Concert Hall and MOMA. They make for good pictures too.

[leicaholic52]

Rafael,
The best places beside the Getty to photograph Downtown are from the Griffith Park and from the Mulholland Drive as mentioned above already. And if the weather is very clear, you can have an awesome view from the Wilson Observatory. But this will be a long drive.

Best regards and have a nice Trip
Marc



View from Mulholland Drive

[photolandscape]

Originally Posted by BerndReini

Just go downtown with a wide angle lens. There are lots of hotels and bars in some of the skyscrapers that you can explore to get a good shot. While you're there, visit Disney Concert Hall and MOMA. They make for good pictures too.

You can walk up into all sorts of crevices and parapets tucked into the facade of the Disney Concert Hall. It's pretty stunning. Check out The Standard Hotel rooftop bar--surrounded by tall office buildings, with a rooftop pool, too. It's pretty snooty, so if you go, go early before the glitterati start showing up and it becomes ridiculous. And last but not least, my all time favorite LA things to photograph--Randy's Donuts near LAX, and Simon Rodia's Watts Towers. Oh yeah, Broadway, downtown, is terrific too. Feels like Mexico City.

[pleeson]

Gotta see Santa Monica and Venice Beach.
Photo ops abound...

[rafael_macia]

This forum is hands down the BEST!

thanks!

The ideas are wonderful
.... any more?

[grober]

Save for the wonderful Getty Museum and the people-watching at any Dodger game, what's to see in that smoggy wasteland?

The mere thought of passing through LAX gives me the willies.

-g

[Iron Flatline]

Pffft, LA is one of the best cities in the world for photography! Anything is possible, from landscapes to architecture and really fun people-shooting.

The one thing to be aware of though is that people are HIGHLY camera adverse, and a lot of LA is private property... and they don't like shooters either. The people wonder why you're shooting... is it commercial? Are you LA Migra or a health inspector? Are you with the landlord? And businesses don't like liability, and ANY good location in LA is used to getting paid for shooting there. That means LA is a place where Rangefinders really shine... because the people with big SLRs get chased away first.

People:

Walk through downtown (Broadway) on a workday morning if you like to shoot people.

Check out the office drones come out of the towers in Century City at lunch (Very surrealistic office area, used for the empty cities during the original Planet of the Apes.)

Melrose Ave in the afternoon for hip shoppers from Japan and Europe.

Walk along Hollywood Blvd. in the afternoon to see the young hip crowd wake up... best is Thur - Fri - Saturday at dusk.

Architecture:

... well, Disney Hall, but it's overshot for my taste. There are other buildings downtown, but LA is not as hot architecturally as Chicago is, or as US-old as Miami Beach. LA's greatest architecture was always residential, but it is hard to get close... Personally I like some of the 1960s architecture such as the Standard Hotel downtown, or some of the high-rises on Wilshire. There are interesting smaller buildings, such as banks and post offices. Don't forget the Cinerama Dome on Sunset (Bucky Fuller's Geodesic Dome!) or the Capital Records building. There's also lots of beautiful old movie theaters. And then you can head up the hill to the Griffith Observatory.


Landscapes:

Landscapes are plentiful, too. There's the beaches, the hills, the mountains, and a lot of the views off Mullholland.

Try following the poured-in-concrete LA River for some surrealistic urban landscapes.

Here's my view from Mullholland to downtown... shot with a Diana from the 1960s on 120 film:

[rafael_macia]

Thanks so much.

Originally Posted by Iron Flatline

Pffft, LA is one of the best cities in the world for photography! Anything is possible, from landscapes to architecture and really fun people-shooting.

The one thing to be aware of though is that people are HIGHLY camera adverse, and a lot of LA is private property... and they don't like shooters either. The people wonder why you're shooting... is it commercial? Are you LA Migra or a health inspector? Are you with the landlord? And businesses don't like liability, and ANY good location in LA is used to getting paid for shooting there. That means LA is a place where Rangefinders really shine... because the people with big SLRs get chased away first.

People:

Walk through downtown (Broadway) on a workday morning if you like to shoot people.

Check out the office drones come out of the towers in Century City at lunch (Very surrealistic office area, used for the empty cities during the original Planet of the Apes.)

Melrose Ave in the afternoon for hip shoppers from Japan and Europe.

Walk along Hollywood Blvd. in the afternoon to see the young hip crowd wake up... best is Thur - Fri - Saturday at dusk.

Architecture:

... well, Disney Hall, but it's overshot for my taste. There are other buildings downtown, but LA is not as hot architecturally as Chicago is, or as US-old as Miami Beach. LA's greatest architecture was always residential, but it is hard to get close... Personally I like some of the 1960s architecture such as the Standard Hotel downtown, or some of the high-rises on Wilshire. There are interesting smaller buildings, such as banks and post offices. Don't forget the Cinerama Dome on Sunset (Bucky Fuller's Geodesic Dome!) or the Capital Records building. There's also lots of beautiful old movie theaters. And then you can head up the hill to the Griffith Observatory.


Landscapes:

Landscapes are plentiful, too. There's the beaches, the hills, the mountains, and a lot of the views off Mullholland.

Try following the poured-in-concrete LA River for some surrealistic urban landscapes.

Here's my view from Mullholland to downtown... shot with a Diana from the 1960s on 120 film:

Thanks so much.
I will be using both my Leica M8 and my Linhof .... (not quite as sharp as your Diana, though.)
between the two I should have my hands full

Rafael

[Iron Flatline]

Yes... few things are as sharp as my Diana... except maybe my sister-in-law....