-- Alley Cat -- Nikon 35mm f/1.8 DX: ISO 100, f/1.8, 1/500

Well, hello little friend.

Caught this guy red-handed drinking from the saucer this morning. What caught my eye upon quickly pulling my camera to my eye was, just as he turned, the sun reflected off of some peripheral object to frame only half of his face. It was amazing, as if I had an assistant lurking behind me framing the lighting for my photo. Even the shadows of the object all point directly to his face, to the break between light and dark. An abstract symbology of the existence of both in all creatures. Zooming in closely, you will notice the light creates a distinct white spot on the face of our guest, perfectly outlining the cat’s left eye and bending around it.

However, unfortunately, maybe you noticed that one negative thing. Yes, over there to the right, in the reflection, is me ha. I couldn’t believe it once I saw it. I usually make it a point to avoid such things, but I guess I was so focused in on my subject, I missed myself. Luckily, I’m heavily darkened by the exposure and if I really wanted to, I could probably just Photoshop myself out. But I still don’t like doing those things just yet. I’m not getting paid for any of my work, so I like to keep it as real as possible, it speaks more to me that way, to the actual use of camera techniques to get a photo, not just the post-processing.

This place I wandered into this morning was incredibly interesting. It was more of a slum of Korea, holding all the old cheap Korean architecture you might imagine in run-down Korea. It seemed as though a fire had destroyed a significant part of the place, leaving only the people who can’t afford to get out in the area. I got a lot of looks here, so I avoided taking photos of anybody, I didn’t want to offend them. It’s not too far from where I live so I think I will be returning again in the future. It was my kind of place, derelict, and retaining all the antique beauty of a place long-forgotten by the modern city, revealing more of a real Korea than the towering glass facades that overrun the city.

Although I’ve been in Seoul for five months, it felt like the first time I’d really seen it.