Downtown with a Leica M3

I hike, kayak and snowshoe as much as I can.  I really enjoy getting out in the backcountry by myself.  Sometimes, though, I find great satisfaction in the urban landscape, wandering around the streets of a city, reacting to what I see with my camera.  Such was the case recently when I made several mid-winter forays into downtown Portland, Oregon, about 10 miles north of my suburban residence.

One of the primary reasons for my visits was viewing an exhibition of Paul McCartney photographs taken by the legendary rock star during the height of Beatle mania in 1964 and 65.  Portland Art Museum hosted the display of McCartney’s work.  I took the opportunity to photograph in the museum and in the surrounding environs.  Another trip took place on a sunny January day when I was just in the mood to photograph in a city.

I shot primarily with Kodak 400TX and Ilford HP5 film.  A few of these shots were taken with color film with the developed and scanned results converted to black and white.  Most of the following images, however, were taken with black and white film.  The common denominator was my trusty Leica M3, which continues to amaze me with its image quality.  It is such a joy to use in just about any location.

In an urban area, or on most photography expeditions for that matter, I usually don’t have anything particular in mind when choosing photographic subjects.  I prefer to just respond to what I see.  Being limited to 36 exposures on a roll, I am much more selective in what scenes I capture than I am with a digital camera.  I like to think my photography benefits from that.

With all the above in mind, let’s dive into the product of my efforts, beginning with a few shots taken inside the museum.  The first image is my photograph of Paul McCartney’s photograph of photographers taking photographs of him.  I’m sure there is something profound about photography in all of that but I have no idea what it is

The rest of these shots were merely of areas of the museum that most people would never think of photographing.  Doing something different with the museum was what I had in mind as I wandered about.

The next two shots were taken in the museum peering out windows.

Of course, when you wander the streets in a city, there is so much to see above you.  Though I love the natural world, architecture has always fascinated me.  The geometry and mathematical precision of skyscrapers, the charm of older buildings, are there in all their glory.

Sometimes there are interesting things above you that are not related to the buildings.

On a pedestrian level, there is no end to the photographic possibilities.  There is plenty to see and capture along the streets, in parks, on bridges and on the sides of buildings,

I end this series of images with a self-portrait of sorts.  It captures what I desire to be when taking photographs, a ghostly spectre, observing and recording what surrounds me as unobtrusively as possible.

A city is indeed a target-rich environment when it comes to photography.  There is seemingly no end to what can be photographed:  people, buildings, parks, windows, vehicles, shadows, reflections, bridges, museums, the beautiful, the ugly.  I burn through rolls of film so quickly downtown.  If you haven’t given a city, or a small town, for that matter, a try, you might consider doing so.

I hope you enjoyed this brief photographic journey in Oregon’s biggest city.  Perhaps it inspires your creative juices in some way.  Thanks for reading this.

More  of my work may be seen at curtisheikkinen.smugmug.com or on Instagram at @curtisheikkinen.  Happy shooting!

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