Category Archives: Photography

A Month of Instagram

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David Hilgier’s Instagram Photographs

A little over a month ago, I decided to give Instagram a test drive. While the medium of cellphone photography will never replace my preference for shooting with my SLR cameras fitted with fixed focal length lenses, I really appreciate the tool it has become in my continual quest of documentation and creative expression. As I’ve previously written on the topic, it is my assertion that the popularity of cellphone photography is rooted in a desire to not only document, but also in how they allow anyone who wants to try their hand at a slightly more advanced (shooting and editing versus simply shooting and viewing on a computer) form of photography to do so. With the advances in the devices we constantly carry in our pockets the novice now has the ability to edit and alter their photographs, albeit rudimentarily, in a manner that was not possible, or far to cumbersome, with film photography or even the point and shoot digital cameras that preceded smartphone cameras.

Regardless, I love taking photographs with my cellphone. To break some of the daily monotony and malaise I feel, I’ve forced myself to seek and document interesting aspects of my commute to and from work with my cellphone camera. The truth is that I’ve grown rather jaded towards Denver, Capitol Hill and the neighborhood I work in. Thus, until a change is feasible in the aforementioned, I am forcing myself to find points of inspiration and beauty in these areas that I’ve overlooked for the past years as a way to shake these feelings. After all, despite the routine I live, I am a very lucky person to live the life I lead and this new ritual has helped me to re-enforce that fact. This post contains a few of my favorites from this project: everything from beautiful design, ghosted type, the explosion of spring and worn out automobiles.

So yes, Beer and Coffee has been on a bit of a hiatus as I’ve been working on more important things such as another revamp of my portfolio to simple rest after long days of work. I have also considered whether this venue has run its course or not. Only time will tell.

A Few From Fall

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Fall In Denver 2011

I’ve never been one who looks forward to the end of summer. I prefer the re-birth of spring and the warmth of summer over the short days and snow of winter. With that said, the transition from the dog days of August to the depths of winter bestows much worth looking forward to, such as football, season appropriate beers and fall foliage. Nearly missing this year’s color, these are a few of my favorites that I captured.

Fall Foliage In Denver 2011

Denver Fall Colors 2011

Denver Fall Foliage 2011

She’s Back

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Peugeot Road Bike
Back in August, while hiking the mountains surrounding the beautiful Crested Butte, Colorado, my knuckled head bashed my favorite lens into non-working order. Heartbroken, I shot the rest of the weekend missing my good friend. Returning to what would eventually become my new job, new schedule and limited time to get her fixed, she sat on my desk begging to be repaired. Feeling rather naked without my 50mm prime for my digital, I turned back to shooting my images with another best friend my Nikon FM2 and experimented with using the cell phone as a documentary device. A few weeks ago, I sent her off to the Canon repair facility* in Irvine, California to be worked on by a team of specialists. While at lunch at Euclid Hall with my co-workers this past Friday, I received a call from Fed-Ex indicating her arrival at my apartment.

Peugeot Road Bike
This past summer, after a stint of trying out running and absolutely hating it, I took to biking to work some form of exercise into my life. After finding it more and more enjoyable, I decided to ask my father to loan me his road bike: a late 1970s early 1980s Peugeot road bike which I’ve named White Lightning Thunderbolt Booyah! Not only does she fly, she’s fucking sexy as all hell. From the white paint to the boss Peugeot typography she is a work of beauty. What she lacks in modern technology, she makes up in her visual appeal. Therefore, since I acquired her on loan back in July, I’ve wanted to document her aesthetic appearance, but I was without proper digital means to do so. Thus, with my lens fixed, my first shots would be of her. If these vignettes don’t quench your thirst, you can see us cruising the Platte Trail, commuting to work or at next years Tour de France.

*Canon’s customer service and my experience with this repair and other issues in the past have been absolutely antiquated and miserable. I love their digital gear (while hating their film gear), but their service is at best shit.