|
|
| #73 May 12, 1949: Ever since I took up photography, I have been interested in making a straightforward record of how people live. These women were members of the Severn River Garden Club, and they were selling their flowers in front of the courthouse in Annapolis. They had no idea they were being photographed; their expressions are so natural and unposed. I was using a Rolliflex, a camera I didn’t like that much because it required looking down to belt level, which limited the perspective. In a case like this, though, it was a real asset because the angle is exactly where the action is, so it adds drama to the picture. |
  |
|
|
|
| #74 1955: I was the official photographer for the Maryland Port Authority for quite a few years. This was an early view from a helicopter of Baltimore harbor looking northwest toward downtown. Compared to the skyline today, this makes a dramatic record of just how much the city has changed, and how differently we use the harbor area. |
|
|
|
|
| #75 1955: I probably took this photograph for Historic Annapolis. They used to have me go up and down Main Street to document the various buildings and their signs. This storefront was holdover from the thirties or forties, and a rare style of architecture for Annapolis. When Labovitz closed, the second floor window was closed in, though you can see traces of it even today. Now; a picture like this takes on a lot of nostalgia. |
|
|
|
|
| #76 1957: I don't know why I took this aerial view of Parole; probably it was commissioned by some developer. It's a remarkable view of the area before the shopping centers took over. Route 50 was completed, but the old racetrack was still on the site of Parole Shopping Center, and the drive-in theatre was were Hechinger is now. Moreland Parkway and Jenifer Road were dense woods. The intimate detail is lost when you get this far away from your subject, but there's nothing like an aerial to show the big picture. |
|
|
|
|
| #78 1958: Friendship Airport was named for the town it swallowed up. I always thought it was an appropriate name after the war, but the building was never as nice as the name; it was obsolete looking even when it was built. I was there when Harry Truman cam to officiate at its opening. This picture was taken to symbolize the jet age coming to Baltimore. |
|
|
 |
| #81 1969: I was wandering around taking pictures for Charles Center-Inner Harbor Management when I came across this scene in an alley off of Hanover Street. It was just around the corner from the Church of the Living God. I realized that these were the homes of street arabs when I saw the broken-down wagon. I thought the old gnarly tree was a good symbol for the hard life of the peddlers. |
|
|
|
|
| #82 1977: United States Fidelity & Guaranty commissioned me to make a portrait of their new corporate headquarters in Baltimore. I shot it from the air, from across the water, and at night, but I still wasn't satisfied. I decided I wanted to get it from the roof of the Suburban Trust Bank, a nearby seven story building. I told the bank manager that I needed to get up there in the early morning on a clear day when there was no wind. He arranged for the maintenance man to let me in. When the right day came, I was on the roof and set up by 7:30. I knew I wanted to get the Bromo Seltzer Tower in, so I was standing on the ledge, with one leg of the tripod down on the trim of the building. Of course, to focus, I needed to put a black cloth over my head. That's why I didn't want any wind. |
|
|
|
|
| #83 1978: Most of the time, when I did aerials of Charles Center I shot it from the opposite direction. I like this angle, though, because you can see the shape of the harbor. The backlighting on the buildings adds more texture and emphasis. |
|
|
|
|
| #84 1981: This is a conversion to black and white from a 35 mm color slide. I think it's an important perspective because it emphasizes the vertical aspects of downtown, and you can see clearly many of the city's key buildings in 1981. The aquarium is under construction in the foreground. It's view that shows the sparkling new city on the harbor that Baltimore has become. |
|
|
|
