Mardi Gras
I spent Mardi Gras day 2026 in the French Quarter, marking the fourth time I’ve done so. This year was— at least visually— different from previous years. Due to a terrorist attack on New Year’s Eve last year, the city was on alert for violence. In 2025, barricades were put up along major egresses into tourist areas. Additionally, there was a heavy national guard presence.
Mardi Gras tends to draw thieves. Whereas I would normally go downtown with my Canon m6 mk ii camera, I chose to spend the day shooting with my iPhone 16 Pro Max. The security features of iPhones make them a bad choice for theft. And the bottom line is that modern cell phone cameras are at a level of quality where you don’t feel like you sacrifice much, especially in broad daylight.
This was my favorite image of the day. This fellow was offering to take polaroids of tourists on Bourbon Street. This was kind of a perfect encapsulation of the day. Also love the leading lines of the building. In general this is just a fantastic Street image.
Jason walking onto Bourbon.
Though I mostly take a favorable eye to attempts to better men’s souls, the idea of asking sinners on Bourbon Street to repent on Mardi Gras day has always been ridiculous. We saw several Christian activist setups throughout the day, including this guy holding a giant cross and a crew standing in front of the gay section of Bourbon. The latter being kind of annoying. A screaming match was going on between an activist with a megaphone and some woman who had decided she was the spokesman for the rest of humanity. Honestly, they were both equally annoying. At least the guy with the cross was standing in silent vigil.
Jason stopped to film this guy playing the drums on empty paint barrels, which is fairly common downtown. He was good though. He made me laugh, unintentionally. Deep into his performance, he suddenly stopped everything to catcall a woman with… shall we say, a very pronounced posterior and shorts tight enough to strangle a rhinoceros.
If you’re a relatively normal person who wants to experience the French Quarter on Mardi Gras day, I recommend going a bit earlier. The more the day goes on, the bigger the crowd gets. Though that may be what you’re looking for. But please, for the love of God, do not bring your children down there. I saw multiple people who deserved a visit from CPS.
This was actually the first image of the day. I love this shot of a Louisiana National Guardsman standing sentinel atop his humvee, overlooking Canal Street. The cross sections of the architecture and the power lines also give it a very powerful dynamic, isolating and highlighting him.
#mardigras #bourbonstreet #frenchquarter #jasonlanier #iphone #apple #nationalgaurd #streetphotography
