Streetcars

While out on the waterfront at Red Hook I found some mysterious streetcars that seem to be abandoned next to an open-air cafe. Since they're exposed to the elements and easily accessible they've been pretty thoroughly vandalised, but they still retain a kind of mournful grandeur.

Service suspended

Number 7 

Interior

I initially thought they were remnants of a lost age of New York, but according to a page at Forgotten New York (which is a mine of interesting information about "hidden in plain sight" landmarks of New York), they're part of an attempt a couple of years back to bring streetcars back to Brooklyn. Mystery solved!

Prospect Park waterfall

A visit to Prospect Park in Brooklyn a month ago gave me an opportunity to take a close-up photograph of a waterfall at long last. Handheld for 1/3s was a bit of a challenge, but bracing myself carefully and choosing from the best of multiple exposures didn't turn out too badly.

Waterfall

The plant sticking into the frame at the lower left gives some variety, but since it didn't stay still in the breeze it came out blurred.

Dog

The hotel we were staying in while in San Francisco had a dog, but I guess it wasn't a guard dog.

At rest

Red Hook

Since the expedition to the Gowanus Canal a few months ago I've been on the look out for  similar places to go, and a visit to the Ikea store in Brooklyn awakened my interest in Red Hook. I've always been drawn to the Red Hook (the name helps of course), and on a subway map it always looks vast and remote. It turns out that it's not really that hard to get to, in fact it's right next to the canal! Walking along the deserted waterfront I took a couple of photos of the landscape.

Black swan 

A swan and some unidentified and abandoned industrial structure, so it's pretty much another post-industrial landscape. Looking at this again I should have taken this from lower to get more of the two interesting things in the picture and less intervening water, but you learn some things with practice. And the swan wasn't staying still, either. (Update: this is probably a goose, not a swan.)

Idle cranes

These looked like they haven't been used for quite a while, and since this is right next to the Ikea store, I hardly imagine they see a lot of traffic.

If you look carefully you'll find something hidden in this photo!

Leaves

A photo I took a while ago that I came across again recently. The white background is due to a combination of a foggy day and short depth of field. I had to overexpose by quite a bit to get the reds to come out really red instead of brown.

Red and white