Alan Abrams Photography

New Website Launched!

2009-05-31T11:57:00.002-04:00

Finally!

After several weeks of long, sleepless nights the new website has been launched! It's a work in progress, but we are proud of the outcome and feel really good about our new internet home.

Check out the new Alan Abrams Photography.com website to view the new site.

Just Delicious!

2009-05-24T14:26:00.014-04:00

My long-time friend Jason Wallace recently opened up a new ice cream shop in Newark, New Jersey. Just Delicious simply has the best ice cream East of the Mississippi. In fact, I doubt you'll find a better ice cream on either side of the Mississippi. Wait, why are we even talking about Mississippi in the first place?!? Crooked-letter, crooked-letter, yada-yada-yada...

This blog is about good people, some really good ice cream, and a great Mayor. Oh yeah, I forgot to mention earlier that Newark's mayor, the Honorable Cory Booker was on hand to help celebrate his city's latest and greatest place to grab a good bite to eat. Located at 209 Bloomfield Avenue in Newark, "Just Delicious" will be the place to visit when you need something that's just delicious to cool you off during the hot days of Summer.

I've known Jason and his wife Dorothy for nearly 25 years. They've been an incredible team for as long as I've known them and this latest endeavor is a testament to the energy and drive these two have always shown. Whether its a running a restaurant, a real estate business, or dabbling in entertainment, they've always done everything first class. Did I mention that they've done all of this while raising 4 children? Yeah, they're definitely something special.

As you can see here , the ice cream is the real deal. No artificial flavors, no hormones, no preservatives, and no stabilizers. The only ingredient here is good taste! And to top it off, it's all made right there on the premises.

Mayor Booker, who seems to be just about everywhere, made an appearance and stayed around long enough to do some meeting and greeting with the neighborhood residents, take a tour of the facilities, and enjoy some cool refreshments on what turned out to be a pretty warm day. His enthusiasm is contagious and things certainly have a way to livening up whenever he's around.

As part of the tour, Jason revealed his plans to open up a fully accredited School for Restaurant Management in a separate part of the building. The Mayor appeared to be particularly impressed by this as well and Jason's plans to use the local community as a source of employees for this restaurant and others that he plans to open in the future. It's uplifting programs and ideas like these that prompted the Mayor to run for office in the first place.

If anyone can judge good ice cream it's kids and these young fellows most definitely approve.

Having a family run business means putting your own kids to work!

Thumbs up!

News of "Just Delicious" travelled quickly and had kids running to the store from miles around.

(Note: That's actually Jason's daughter, but she was running for some ice cream....lol)

One of the rigors of being a celebrity involves interviews, something Jason handles like a true pro.

"A Rose Is Still a Rose"

2009-05-01T11:10:00.004-04:00

As much as I like taking photos of people, one of my joys as a photographer is to shoot still life. Every now and then it can be fun to shoot something that isn't moving. Looking around for something to shoot, I remembered that I had brought home a beautiful rose arrangement from last week's LIHCC event. I figured they would be in bad shape but when I found them, I noticed that they still looked pretty good. So I decided to do what I always do......I photographed them!

Since I really wanted to get in close, I used one of my macro lenses. In this particular case it was the Pentax FA 50mm Macro.....one of the 2 or 3 sharpest lenses even made by Pentax. Not only is it sharp, it really renders beautiful color and produces some really soft out-of-focus areas. The pink-white rose made for a really nice subject.

Up, Up, and Away! Helicopter Flight...

2009-04-25T18:33:00.008-04:00

This past week I took my first ever flight in a helicopter. Sponsored by the U.S. Marines, this flight exercise took place at the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy in Kings Point, NY. This gave regular folks like me the chance to fly in a real live chopper. I was amazed at how smooth the flight was. I was expecting a pretty choppy ride, but my commute home afterwards turned out to be the bumpier than the helicopter. The fact that you're not flying as high as a jet and not moving as fast, allows you to see more during the flight and makes for some pretty good photo opportunities as well.

I'd like to thank GySgt Lionel Saulsberry and Captain David Kim of the United States Marine Corps for allowing me to go up and capture these image. Thanks guys....OOO-RAH!

The Cockpit

Taking off...

Nassau County's North Shore

New York City skyline from a distance

USMMA Boat Basin

Aerial view of the USMMA campus

Mariner's Chapel

Kings Point, New York

LIHCC "Cigar Night"

2009-04-24T17:30:00.013-04:00

I shot another Long Island Hispanic Chamber of Commerce event earlier in the week. This one was the LIHCC's "Cigar Night". Another fine event that featured a great group of people, good music, and good food.

The centerpiece on each table consisted of a rose arrangement placed beautifully inside an empty cigar box. Designed and assembled by events coordinator Karen Cerna, they were the talk of the night. My begging paid off when she decided to give me one to take home.

Loly's Sweet 16

2009-04-12T23:12:00.021-04:00

This past weekend I had a chance to shoot a Sweet 16 for my friend Pete's niece. Loly, who is a beautiful young lady, was the centerpiece of this celebration. It was great night of beautiful people, good music, and great food. It was a memorable night for me, since this was actually my first Sweet 16. I've been to quite a few of these celebrations, but never as the photographer.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, LOLY!

Getting ready...

So pretty!

Mom putting on the birthday ring...

Proud parents...

Loly's brother keeping an eye on his sister...

The "Birthday Girl"

Proud Papa...

Loly's parent's enjoying a night out...

Sisters...

The chariot has arrived!

Meanwhile, the guests anticipate her arrival...

On her way to the party!

The Birthday Girl arrives!

Getting help with her tiara....courtesy of Mom.

Time to pop those balloons...

Dad putting on her dancing shoes...

...and getting the first dance.

Out with the old...

...and in with the new!

Lighting of the birthday candles

Blowing them out one at a time...

Followed by a dance with Mom...

Dancing the night away...

My friend Pete and his beautiful kids. They must have gotten their looks from their mother....lol!

LIHCC "Wine and Cheese Night"

2009-03-29T18:22:00.011-04:00

Photos from the recent "Wine and Cheese Night", hosted by the Long Island Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. The event was a tribute to Long Island's Non-Profits and was held at the Long Island Hilton in Melville, NY.

This lucky woman was the winner of this Limited Edition print, courtesy of Alan Abrams Photography

Hanging Out With the Family

2009-03-15T14:18:00.016-04:00

One of the things about having such a HUGE extended family is not being able to keep up with everyone. It usually takes either a wedding or a funeral to bring us together. Last night we had the opportunity to get together to celebrate my Aunt Janie's 75th birthday. The family is spread out all over the country so it's pretty much impossible to get everyone together at once, but even a "small" family gathering involves no less that 100-150 people.....and last night was no different.

PLAY BALL!

2009-03-13T18:17:00.010-04:00

With baseball season around the corner and the introduction of the new Yankee Stadium in a few weeks, I figured I'd take a look back at the old stadium in its last days.

Silke and I were fortunate enough to get our hands on some tickets for one of the last games at "The House That Ruth Built". Gotta give a big shout-out to Gregg Matalas for finding those seats for us. As a life-long Yankee fan, getting to see the old Yankee Stadium one last time meant a lot to me.

Takin' It To the Streets - Part 4: Chinatown

2009-03-05T20:22:00.005-05:00

Part 4 of the series takes us to Chinatown. With all the crowds, the shops and markets, the hustle and bustle, it's one of the more vibrant parts of the city.

Takin' It to the Streets - Part 3: Harlem

2009-03-02T17:14:00.009-05:00

This is the 3rd installation of the "Takin' It to the Streets" photojournalism series. Part 3 features some images I shot last year in Harlem, the place where I grew. Even though I haven't lived there in a while, I still call it home.

Just in case you missed them, here are the links to Part 1 and Part 2

LIHCC Latin Jazz Night

2009-02-28T17:33:00.013-05:00

Another thing I enjoy doing is shooting social events and parties. Although I take some posed shots at these events, I much prefer to shoot them in a photojournalistic manner. Capturing people in their natural setting, doing the things they normally do is what Alan Abrams Photography is all about. Besides, it's so much better than walking up to someone and saying, "Smile!".

I recently had the pleasure of shooting another networking event for the Long Island Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. The LIHCC is a non-profit organization that understands the importance of giving something back to the community and an organization I feel is worthy of my time and one that I am honored to be a member of.

This particular networking event, dubbed "Latin Jazz Night", is one of the many networking and fundraising events that are held throughout the year. Featuring live music by the Cuban Cigars, it was an energy-packed evening and a good time was had by all. I've shot quite a few LIHCC events and all of them have been a blast. Great music, beautiful people, a really good cause.....what more could you ask for!

One lucky person was fortunate to go home with one of my limited edition prints, courtesy of a business card raffle.

The one and only Cuban Cigars, led by Rob Spano.

More photos from "Latin Jazz Night"

Germany '09 - Part 1

2009-02-24T08:47:00.005-05:00

The following is a series of images were taken during our recent trip to Germany. I've divided the posts up into different segments based on location.

Part 1 of the series covers our arrival at Frankfurt Airport and some images from downtown Heidelberg.

Here's something you don't see in the States.....a "Smoking Zone"

A street musician blowing his horn...

The restaurants in Germany are out of this world, as is the wide variety of beer...

Germany '09 - Part 2

2009-02-24T08:26:00.007-05:00

Part 2 of this series shows images taken in Düsseldorf and images shot from the road on the way from Düsseldorf to Nienburg.

Germany '09 - Part 3

2009-02-24T07:37:00.006-05:00

Part 3 of the series includes images taken in and around Nienburg, a quaint little town located near Hannover in northern Germany.

Germany '09 - Part 4

2009-02-24T07:19:00.011-05:00

Part 4 of this series shows images shot in around Bamberg, a medium sized city located in the state of Bavaria.

Takin' It to the Streets - Part 2

2009-01-04T21:41:00.007-05:00

Part 2 of the "Takin' It To the Streets" series chronicles a LIRR/Subway trip into the city...

This was a particularly touching scene...

Takin' It To the Streets - Part 1: Brooklyn

2009-01-03T09:16:00.007-05:00

One of the things I really enjoy is shooting street candids. "Street Shooting" has always been a passion of mine. New York is such an interesting city with some truly unique neighborhoods. What I like to do is pick an area and just spend a few hours capturing the essence of that particular area. Most of my efforts are concentrated on the people who make up this wonderful city, but I also like shooting the architecture that is sometimes unique to certain areas.

This first installation of the "Takin' It to the Streets" series takes place in the Brooklyn Heights area of Brooklyn. We were actually heading into the City when I decided to make quick detour. This is a part of town I hadn't been to in a while so it was kinda cool to see how it changed over the years. It's an artsy place, kinda like Greenwich Village, but without the hustle and bustle you find in other parts of the city. The main street has some nice shops, bars, and restaurants.

You see everything from people walking their pets, hanging out at the Brooklyn Promenade looking into Manhattan, or just hanging out and enjoying the day. Like any other part of the city, Brooklyn is all about its people....

Baby it's cold outside!

2009-01-01T11:28:00.001-05:00

An Introduction

2009-01-01T09:55:00.004-05:00

Hey Folks,

Happy New Year!

This is the start of our new photography blog. The goal is to chronicle our progress as we navigate our way through life while building upon the photography business. I have no idea where this is going to take us, but we hope you enjoy it and tag along for the ride.