Tips for cool photowalks in NYC - June 4th to 9th

[nutmeg]

Hi there,

after decades of wait..
next week is going to be a wonderful opportunity to see NYC again. And this time, with a camera strap around the neck.!

What your best bets?

Thank you.
Benjamin

you can feel free to DM for very secret places ;-)

 

[Heckel7302]

The walk across the Brooklyn Bridge from Brooklyn to Manhattan is always nice.

Greenwich Village for old timey NYC feel.

Central Park is obvious.

High Line is lovely.

Staten Island Ferry is a good cheap way to get a boat ride that passes pretty close to the Statue of Liberty. Nice around dusk for some classic skyline photos.

If you have time to make it uptown, The Cloisters is a real gem.

 

[MarcelNL]

visit Hoboken, for shots across the water. The light can be spectacular in the afternoon.
Hells Kitchen, Bowery, Battery park, Chinatown, Little Italy, Roosevelt Island, there is just too much...

Other than that ; be prepared to walk around a LOT to take it all in, enjoy!

 

[rickbern]

Everyone sees NYC differently, I tend to approach it as a landscape photographer. I love NYC bridges, they’re majestic in scale.you can spend a lifetime photographing them.

This woman has some nice food for thought:

https://juleeho.com/blog/uncrowded-nyc-photography-spots
Brooklyn bridge is crazy crowded, Manhattan Bridge is a better bet to walk across , plus you get killer shots of the Brooklyn Bridge.

 

[nutmeg]

Everyone sees NYC differently, I tend to approach it as a landscape photographer. I love NYC bridges, they’re majestic in scale.you can spend a lifetime photographing them.

This woman has some nice food for thought:

https://juleeho.com/blog/uncrowded-nyc-photography-spots
Brooklyn bridge is crazy crowded, Manhattan Bridge is a better bet to walk across , plus you get killer shots of the Brooklyn Bridge.
View attachment 246680
View attachment 246681View attachment 246682

I remember I sometimes felt small in NYC.. By watching your awesome pics, it seems like my 35/50mm focal length limitations won't be such a terrible problem whenever the place is right, will it?

 

[MarcelNL]

with lenses it's the same; length does not matter, it's girth that is important ;-)

 

[rickbern]

I love shooting with a 50, it’s my most commonly used lens. Makes you slow down and look for the right shot. My favorite two lens kit around town is a 50 & a 21, three lenses would be 21/50/90, but most often I just take one prime lens and look for shots that work with that focal length. Here’s one of my favorite shots with a 50, right on 42nd street. You can’t shoot everything with that focal length but what you can shoot looks great

The shot of the Brooklyn Bridge was with a 35. The other ones are probably the 90, but those spots are far off the beaten track

 

[nutmeg]

I love shooting with a 50, it’s my most commonly used lens. Makes you slow down and look for the right shot. My favorite two lens kit around town is a 50 & a 21, three lenses would be 21/50/90, but most often I just take one prime lens and look for shots that work with that focal length. Here’s one of my favorite shots with a 50, right on 42nd street. You can’t shoot everything with that focal length but what you can shoot looks great

The shot of the Brooklyn Bridge was with a 35. The other ones are probably the 90, but those spots are far off the beaten track
View attachment 246746

Fabulous pic!

Do you know a shop with large choice of analog films?

 

[rickbern]

Fabulous pic!

Do you know a shop with large choice of analog films?

Bhphoto and adorama are probably where everyone will send you, but if you're asking about film, I want to make sure you know about this place:

https://brooklynfilmcamera.com/
I think they specialize in large format but I'm really a digital guy.

Too bad, I'm leaving for ten days in Lisbon right now, I guess I'll miss you but I'd love to meet you if you make it back this way

 

[rickbern]

Are you going to bring a tripod? I never schlep them around on vacation.

If not, stop in a grocery, buy a bag of lentils and use any odd thing like a mailbox or even a trash can as a camera support. Lots of great pictures if you can hold your camera steady for a few seconds!

 

[nutmeg]

Are you going to bring a tripod? I never schlep them around on vacation.

If not, stop in a grocery, buy a bag of lentils and use any odd thing like a mailbox or even a trash can as a camera support. Lots of great pictures if you can hold your camera steady for a few seconds!

Too bad we can't meet up this time. Your lentils trick is definitely worth a beer!
I wish you a fantastic time in Lisbon.

 

[rickbern]

Bhphoto and adorama are probably where everyone will send you, but if you're asking about film, I want to make sure you know about this place:

https://brooklynfilmcamera.com/
I think they specialize in large format but I'm really a digital guy.

Too bad, I'm leaving for ten days in Lisbon right now, I guess I'll miss you but I'd love to meet you if you make it back this way

Benjamin, that neighborhood around Brooklyn film camera has some of the greatest graffiti in the city

 

[rickbern]

Lisbon, iPhone

 

[MarcelNL]

From the look of things you must have been using filters for breathing rather than lenses , wow...

 

[nutmeg]

Thank you so much. I've been happy to have the chance to discover the city through your tips.

I'm afraid that the the very few pics that have been shot in digital are not great.. Most are wide open shots and/or weird framed.

Now, we can only hope the slide films came out better

Benjamin

 

[nutmeg]

Hello,

a month has passed and I wanted to say thank you to you guys for your great tips.
I am sad to admit I missed many places you mentioned!
It seems like you guys gave me inspiration and motivation to watch and discover the fantabolous NYC.
Good, sometimes, sitting on a bench drinking a beer and watching the show wasn't that shabby ;-)

Here are some modest pics taken during this 5 days. It looks like the keepers are mostly on film this time.

The negatives, Iso 100, 200 and 1600 for the funky drummer at the Blue Note ;-)
(No crop on any pic)

 

[nutmeg]

The slides, hand held @ Iso 100:
(no crop, brightness, white balance or any color modifications from the film scans)

 

[nutmeg]

 

[nutmeg]

 

[nutmeg]

The smog from the Canadian fire gave a funky smell and some weird colors.

 

[nutmeg]

In our time where Iso 6400 looks quite good, even on cheap cameras, using Iso 100 with 5-6 stops of dynamic range made me feel like carrying a dinosaur!
One camera could use a lens with very comfortable aperture but no self timer.. and the second camera had a self timer but a very slow lens and a shabby view finder...
My modest attempt with a tripod:

Cheers,
Benjamin

 

[MarcelNL]

great pictures!

I think I see a common denominator with my first visit to NYC, back in the eighties as a teenager, the architecture and scale of things tends to make quite an impression.
On my later visits (I cannot even recall how many dozen there were) there seemed more of a human aspect shining though all of it. (at least, that is my experience)

 

[nutmeg]

great pictures!

I think I see a common denominator with my first visit to NYC, back in the eighties as a teenager, the architecture and scale of things tends to make quite an impression.
On my later visits (I cannot even recall how many dozen there were) there seemed more of a human aspect shining though all of it. (at least, that is my experience)

you're right. It seems like you took your time to relax and try to understand people.

 

[MarcelNL]

you're right. It seems like you took your time to relax and try to understand people.

yes and no, not so much a decisive action but more a result of more exposure over time, allowing me to tune in on other aspects more and more.