Midtown Blogger/Manhattan Valley Follies: Slow-Motion Subway Videos-- Adam Magyar

Wednesday, January 15, 2014

Slow-Motion Subway Videos-- Adam Magyar

I don't know if this transfer will work or not, I may have to go Google up links to YouTube or something

I know you can see the Berlin video by clicking on "Adam Magyar" below

Stainless: Mesmerizing Super Slow-Motion Footage of People Waiting for the Subway

DL Cade · Jan 10, 2014

Slow motion video is often mesmerizing, whether it shows creamer being poured ever so luxuriously into coffee, or a dog shaking off water. But the super slow motion series Stainless by photographer Adam Magyar put all of those to shame.
For this series, which is actually a video version of a stills series of his by the same name, Magyar boarded the subway and rode it into Grand Central station in New York, the Alexanderplatz station in Berlin, and the Shinjuku station in Tokyo with a slow motion camera in tow.
As he pulled into the station, Magyar shot slow motion footage of the people sitting in wait for their train. The resulting video shows, in Magyar’s words:

An endless row of living sculptures brought together by the same subway line, the same direction, the same intention of taking the train to get caught and carried away by the urban flow. All their motions slowed down, they are graceful and stainless, holding their breath waiting for their train to pull into the station.

Here’s another excerpt, followed by one of the full 11 minute videos from the stainless series:
If ever a video series deserved the title of mesmerizing, this is probably it. To see more of Magyar’s work, both still and motion, head over to his website by clicking here.
(via PetaPixel Reader Tip)

Update: As several readers astutely pointed out, it’s impossible that this video was shot at 720p and 50fps. We reached out to Mr. Magyar for clarification and he emailed us back to confirm that 720p and 50fps was the frame rate of the original video vs the Vimeo version. The footage above, he explained, was shot using a customized Optronis high-speed camera at 56 times normal speed.
He was also kind enough to point us to this Medium article, in which he details exactly how the videos are shot and all the challenges he had to overcome (he spent two years writing custom software to improve image quality and reduce noise). It’s an incredible read and well worth the time to check out!