Greg Gulbransen Photographs the TWA Hotel at JFK! « Arthur Morris/BIRDS AS ART

Greg Gulbransen Photographs the TWA Hotel at JFK!

What’s Up?

Wednesday morning — 10 JUNE 2020 — was still and foggy to start followed quickly by still and sunny. I made two really good flower images and found a wonderful old oak tree in damp woods. It was covered with moss and Baton Rouge (strawberry) Lichens and more than a few air plants. Those photos were somewhat disappointing. As I continued exploring and photographing, I met a Willie Nelson-type guy named Ralph on a bike. We got to chatting and he took me to a spot a block from his home near Orange and Magnolia that was rife with several new-for-me wildflower species. Ralph volunteers at Bok Tower Gardens in Lake Wales. He knows a lot about a lot and is quite willing to share. Bingo!

I’ve been doing my now regular 66 lengths (3/4 mile) earlier in the day to avoid the late afternoon thunderstorms. On Tuesday afternoon it rained hard for more than four hours. On Wednesday the daily monsoon lasted only about an hour. How’s that for progress?

I was thrilled to learn that thee sale of Carol Anderson’s Canon 200-400 with Internal TC and her 1DX Mark II became pending.

On Thursday, I am planning to record the RawDigger Flower and Static Subjects Exposure Guide. I will follow that up with the RawDigger Avain Exposure Guide. More on those soon.

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This image was created on 3 JUNE 2020 at the TWA Hotel at John F. Kennedy Airport by Greg Gulbransen. He used a tripod-mounted Rodenstock 32mm lens on the Phase One IQ4 150MP Digital Back with the XT Camera body. ISO 100. Three seconds at f/14.

Image courtesy of and copyright 2020 Greg Gulbransen. Click on the image to enjoy a larger version.

TheRe-constructed Lounge

TWA Hotel at John F. Kennedy Airport

The TWA Hotel is located on the grounds of John F. Kennedy International Airport in Queens, New York. It opened on May 15, 2019. It utilizes the headhouse of what was the TWA Flight Center airline terminal, designed in 1962 by the architect Eero Saarinen. The TWA Hotel project added two buildings on either side of the existing headhouse. The two buildings contain a total of 512 rooms between them along as well as a conference space, six to eight restaurants, and an aviation history museum. There is a rooftop infinity swimming pool and a 10,000 square feet observation deck. Many of the TWA Flight Center’s original details, such as the custom ceramic floor tiles and the 486 variously-shaped window panels, were replaced with replicas of the originals. These details give the hotel a 1960s-era vibe, and include brass lighting, walnut-accented furnishings, and rotary phones. The hallways contain red carpeting, evocative of the color of the furniture in the original TWA lounge. The rooms, however, also contain modern amenities such as blackout curtains and multi-pane soundproof windows. The large departure board, a split-flap display made in Italy has been a feature of the building since the Flight Center’s opening in 1962; it was fully restored as part of the hotel project. The TWA Hotel also includes a cocktail lounge inside a preserved Lockheed L-1649 Starliner, the last model of the Lockheed Constellation line of airliners; the lounge is nicknamed “Connie”.

Right now, room rates at the hotel are surpsingly low, almost surely due to the restricted travel policies in place. Learn more here.

Greg Gulbransen

Greg Gulbransen, a pediatrician from Long Island, is an incredibly talented photographer. You can see collection of his an eclectic images on his website here. If you take a minute to follow the link to Greg’s gallery, you will see some gorgeous and moving photography. After browsing several of the galleries I spent an hour reading and following a few links under the IN THE NEWS tab. One of Greg’s polar bear images was named grand prize winner in the 2016 The Weather Channel “It’s Amazing Photo Contest.” The first prize was a handsome $15,000.00.

If you are curious about the gear that Greg used to create today’s two featured images, note that the price tag for his kit is well in excess of $75.000.00. Greg has led a beyond-amazing life and I am proud to call him a friend.

This image was created on 3 JUNE 2020 at the TWA Hotel at John F. Kennedy Airport by Greg Gulbransen. He used a tripod-mounted Rodenstock 50mm lens on the Phase One IQ4 150MP Digital Back with the XT Camera body. ISO 64. Four seconds at f/14.

Image courtesy of and copyright 2020 Greg Gulbransen. Click on the image to enjoy a larger version.

The Long TWA Hallway

The Long TWA Hallway

Greg stayed at the hotel last Wednesday night and did some fine architectural photography. He sent me a selection via DropBox and I fell in love with the two images featured here today. Each image is a 2-frame X 2-frame stitched panorama. His photo sessions at the hotel marked the end of his COVID QUIET project. He photographed streets and parks and buildings all over New York City, all completely devoid of people. In his words, he was documenting NYC empty.

The Long TWA Hallway leads from a lower lobby to an upper lobby. Outside the windows of the second-floor lobby is an old Lockheed L-1649 Starliner painted in TWA colors. TWA was in and out of bankruptcy twice during the 1990s and closed up for good in 2001 when it filed for a third and final bankruptcy and was acquired by American Airlines.

Your Fave?

Which of today’s two images is your favorite? Please let us know why you made your pick. I will share my clear favorite with y’all here in a future blog post.

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7 comments to Greg Gulbransen Photographs the TWA Hotel at JFK!

  • avatar Adam

    Had many good memories passing through that terminal repeatedly when I was young. Back then the country was optimistic and focused on a bright future of possibilities. It seems like so long ago. Though I like the photos, I’m not sure that I am enamored with what they’ve done to the place?

    • avatar Arthur Morris/BIRDS AS ART

      Well, as the alternative was the wrecking ball, me-thinks that it is a pretty cool place; I hope to stay there one day on the way to somewhere great.

      with love, artie

  • avatar Steve

    I like the second image. It reminds me of the space station in 2001: A Space Odyssey.

  • avatar Gloria Matyszyk

    Great images! And thanks doc!

  • avatar Craig Elson

    Greg’s images are amazing Artie! Thanks so much for sharing / shouting out. The COVID Quiet section is just incredible. All very moving and technically perfect.

    • avatar Arthur Morris/BIRDS AS ART

      Thanks, Craig. That’ss what I said. It is always a plus to view good photography no matter the subject material …

      with love, artie

  • avatar Charlie Curry

    The first image strikes my fancy. Love the nastalgia of the TWA Starliner, royal red furnishings, and the feeling you are about to travel somewhere interesting. Tack sharp. Perfect exposure. Love the way your eyes are directed toward the plane which is shown in crisp detail.

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