From my father’s viewpoint

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For a long time, I wanted to share three photos that my father, Hans Nagl Sr., took as a photographer during a business trip from Vienna, Austria, to the United States. This was his first trip to this country, despite having worked for many years for USIS as a professional photographer. Many of his photos represent a viewpoint of excitement when seeing a country for the first time. At this time, my father took most of his photos with his Leica M2. This was his go-to camera for various purposes, especially for many black-and-white images. The three photos I am posting here have been stuck in my mind for a long time, ever since I first saw them as a child in Austria. They feature the famous Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in Manhattan, probably shortly after their completion in 1973. Back home again, I believe my father must have viewed them so many times and showed them to any visitor of our home whenever possible. Escape was impossible. It was clear that he was more than impressed, and so these towers became a summary representation of his excitement and pride around his profession and the people he worked with.

While on a business trip in the 70s my father visited the Empire State Building in New York City and waited for the sunset. – Leika M2 – Photo reproduced from a slide not viewed in almost 40 years.
©Hans Nagl – Credits: Hans Nagl, Sr.

Captured by this amazing late-night view taken from the Empire State Building in New York.  ©Hans Nagl – All Rights Reserved

The photos were stored and forgotten for a long time in a place that was not very conducive to their survival. Somehow, the slides survived, and with some minor fixes, such as the removal of dust marks, they came back to light. After 9/11, they shine even brighter in my mind, and it seems that I have lost sight of all their imperfections.

While on a business trip in the 70s, my father visited the Empire State Building in New York City and waited for the sunset. He was so impressed by what he saw – Leika M2 – Photo reproduced from a slide not viewed in almost 40 years.
©Hans Nagl – Credits: Hans Nagl, Sr.

A place without equals, inspiring, silent from a distance, never standing still – Manhattan, New York – ©Hans Nagl – All Rights Reserved

While on a business trip in the 70s, my father visited New York City as part of a business trip related to photography. – Leika M2 – Photo reproduced from a slide not viewed in almost 40 years.
©Hans Nagl – Credits: Hans Nagl, Sr.

I also always thought that it must be really exciting to show my photos of Manhattan together with my father’s. One thing, however, is clear. The skill it took to operate a 35 mm camera was tremendous, and I deeply admire anyone with this knowledge. By this I do not mean that these photographers had the ability to very quickly turn some knobs to achieve great photos. These people could read the light without tools in a fraction of a heartbeat and make almost intuitive adjustments. No thinking, just complete focus on the subject matter. Many times, without a second chance to retake a photo, the results were very astonishing. This generation of photographers literally lived around and inside their cameras. I am a long way from this.

Photo taken from the Empire State Building, Manhattan, New York, with Times Square on the left.

This sax player was a very welcome surprise adding to the capturing view of Manhattan’s city lights. ©Hans Nagl – All Rights Reserved

This photo was taken in spring 2014 looking towards Times Square. Colors everywhere, even when black- ©Hans Nagl

There is always movement on the streets of New York, restless people with or without purpose, still moving, even reflections will never become clear, however, are colorful if one pays attention.

Hanging out at the sandwich deli in Manhattan – place for latest news, speculations and amazing stories – ©Hans Nagl – All Rights Reserved

While travelling with a camera in New York there are many interesting situations worth a photo. ©Hans Nagl – All Rights Reserved

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