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When I first moved from the Midwest to L.A. I was not able to photograph anything other than the people around me, and my immediate surroundings. Once I stepped out the door I was only capable of taking touristy pictures. I didn't realize it at the time, but I just simply didn't have a grip on the place. Recently, after years of living at the corner of North Hollywood and venturing around the surrounding area, I got the urge again to pick up the camera.

The neighborhood is going through changes. The over inflated real estate market and the new subway line stretching from the Valley to Downtown have started making this generally uncool area of the Valley more attractive. And thus gentrification has started creeping over the hills. It's a mixed bag. Ratty old commercial buildings get bulldozed off, but in the process the mom-and-pop shops, some of which have been there for decades, get forced out of business. Neighborhood stable, Bob the printer finally gave up the fight with cheap home printers and increasing rents, and closed shop for good. Iliad Books, the best bookstore in the Valley fortunately stayed open, but was forced to move.

The new building going up are not all that great themselves. Not many of them are built to last. Most are cardboard condos and apartments covered with plaster and painted with bright colors. A few decades from now they can be bulldozed off just like their predecessors. Some the decrepit old buildings also have a lot of character, at the same time I can't wait for the car dealerships to disappear.

The Photos >