Sweat and Sandy Feet: Coney Island, Summer 2026

David Pauley replied:

Comment posted: 01/10/2026

Thanks Gary! I'm sure your Oregon beaches are much prettier and more pristine, even if the water is likely a whole lot colder. The appeal of Coney is the mass of humanity. This year especially it was so crowded and hot/humid it reminded me of New Delhi, which is also an amazing people watching destination. Hope you had a good day at the beach in any event.

David Pauley replied:

Comment posted: 01/10/2026

Thanks so much, Walter. It's amazing to be mentioned in the same paragraph as Martin Parr! I'm very interested in the different ethics of street photography (broadly conceived) in Germany versus the U.S. In my experience there 3 summers running people are often eager to be photographed, hence the smiling direct portraits. Part of that is undoubtedly the strange old gear. In terms of class issues and exploitation of the proletariat—it's again an interesting question. What I see in Coney isn't so much "lower-class people" but a gorgeous mosaic (to quote our former Mayor David Dinkins) of people from a wide array of classes, nations and backgrounds. For me it's among the most democratic spaces (small "d") in the U.S. But I recognize that other folks might see my attitude and photos differently. Thanks for the thought-provoking response.

Walter Reumkens replied:

Comment posted: 01/10/2026

Thank you, David, for your reply. Here, such photographs are regarded as discriminatory by many ‘woke’, well-off people with academic backgrounds, and this is the view expressed in the media as well. Where are the photo series of golf clubs or life in the marinas? From their own social circles? I’ve been out and about on the streets with a camera almost every day for years. Such photographs would be unthinkable here! Not even with a Hasselblad, Rolleiflex or Leica. People tend to look at you suspiciously if you’re carrying a camera and tell you to put it away.

David Pauley replied:

Comment posted: 01/10/2026

Wow! Amazing and surprising Walter. My only time in Germany was 24 hours in Frankfurt last year. I had only my tiny Leica III from 1933 with me and had no idea of the local feelings on this subject. I'm glad I didn't offend anyone overtly—perhaps being a foreigner helped. And we were mainly in the city center near the museum, tourist central. One or two people did give me a thumbs up as in "nice camera," which I guess makes sense as Wetzlar isn't terribly far away. At some point I hope to visit Berlin and may try to play the clueless foreigner card there too. Much more interesting than a golf course...

Walter Reumkens replied:

Comment posted: 01/10/2026

In Frankfurt, the banking capital, there are probably a few well-off people who have a Leica on display in their glass cabinet. To be honest, at the age of 78, I’ve never seen a Leica photographer here going about their hobby. Most of the cameras were exported to America anyway. I think the photos of the golf course or the marina can be interesting too. But who would dare to take photos there with their Leica amongst like-minded people? :-))))

David Pauley replied:

Comment posted: 01/10/2026

Thank you Richard! It's amazing how different the two cameras and lenses draw even on the same day and film stock. The Rollei and Tele-Rollei are very much a "native language" for me, but I'm determined to keep using and learning how to best exploit the SWC. Thanks also for the compliment regarding Kasia. She was a delight.

David Pauley replied:

Comment posted: 02/10/2026

Hi Jeffrey, thanks so much for the kind words! The apocalypse photo is absolutely real -- red filter plus dialed up contrast (grade 3 I think) when printing. The clouds went boom! The SWC is a hard camera to learn (for me) but when it works it's like nothing else. I'm going to Europe the week after next and had planned to just shoot 35mm but after printing some of the super wide frames for this post I've decided to take that camera along too. The sharpness and resolution over such a wide field of view are astounding. I hope one finds its way back to you, maybe not for $600 but hopefully not for too much more than that.

David Pauley replied:

Comment posted: 02/10/2026

Hi Scott, I thought of you throughout my time on Coney in August. It was the opposite of January 1, when I recall having to buy a T-shirt in a store with you as an excuse to get indoors and warm up. This time it was wet-blanket sweat through every layer of clothing and commence stinking kind of NYC summer weather. If I didn't have two fancy antique cameras with me I would have plunged into the water for sure. The SWC is a strange beast I am learning to love. You're right about the red filter on Apocalypse. The Crowd frame I cropped in the darkroom. I did eventually end up acquiring a 16 frame (6x4.5) back for the SWC but didn't have it yet when I went out to Coney. Looking forward to trying it. Cheers and thanks.