these are from a few weeks ago in the canal behind our house… it was quite magical to walk in the frozen ice and even beneath the bridges. definitely a new perspective, and only slightly scary!

autumn was intense in berlin, perhaps to make up for a lousy rainy summer. the streets turned into immense fields of yellow, leaves smoothing our steps. it was gorgeous.

we had s. & g. visiting just at the peak of autumn, and they took really nice photos of those days. :)

it’s cold, wet and dark, and mould is sneaking into a few corners, despite our bleach-infused efforts to tame it. i don’t like to whine about the weather, but i can feel it chilling my bones and damping my enthusiasm… i’m dreaming of warm sunny days, and keeping the image of these blue skies in my head as a way to make it through this cruel january.

more photos from the holga, here.

today in class, we translated the expression “she sees life in pink”, which some people didn’t know. perhaps mrs. piaf wasn’t all that special outside of europe, eh? :)

i’ve always wanted to live in a city with one of these…

…and now we do! :)

In the wild 1920s, the pleasure-seeking population would meet here in the cafes, varietés, cinemas and with the “women of the night”. And today? Let’s just say this: Potsdamer Platz is without a doubt, the place in Berlin that feels the least like Berlin. Berlin is eternally unfinished, raw, surprising, a little rough around the edges, confusing, ugly and yet beautiful. Potsdamer Platz on the other hand represents the highly polished picture of the modern urban dream that can be found all over the world. It has slick and smooth facades but it’s also disposable and hollow somehow. In the language of photography: Berlin is analogue and Potsdamer Platz is digital. But you should photograph it anyway, and then jump quickly back into Berlin!

quote from the awesome lomography city guide to berlin (thanks silvia!)

i got a fuji instax last week, a very generous present from our last guests. i’ve had my eyes on one for years… my polaroid stock is running dangerously low, and i’m not buying impossible project film until they get their act together, so instax was the logical option. yet for months i’ve hesitated. i like the simplicity of instant photography, the immediate results and the easy scrapbooking, but my back didn’t really need another big camera to carry around…

now that i have one, i love it! it’s big and bulky, but much lighter than it looks. and the photos, such sharpness and bright colors! my jaw drops every time the colors come to life in the little white square.

i took these photos on the instax’s inaugural tour through the olympic stadium (click for bigger):

(the visit was unplanned, so i’ll let you enjoy the pictures and leave the history of the place for another time, lest this cheerful post be damped by somber memories.)