Your favourite NY shooting spots ?

[Khalid]

Hi, I'll be traveling to NY (Rye, Manhattan etc.) for a week following the July 4 weekend. I live in northern california and wanted to ask those who are familiar with NY area about their 3 or 4 must-shoot locations. I know I want to shoot the Brooklyn Bridge (Dept. of Homeland Security permitting :) and the inside of the Grand Central train station.
What would be your other suggestions ?
Any other tips for shooting in NY ?
Thanks in advance,
-Khalid

[Andy]

i'm glad you asked, been wanting to do this for a while :D

i've also put some tourist photography tips here (http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1009&message=8370454)

all along the west side and east side of manhattan there are loads of pedestrian friendly walkways, and lots and lots to shoot

http://williams.smugmug.com/photos/3219079-L.jpg

south street seaport
http://williams.smugmug.com/photos/3368719-L.jpg
http://williams.smugmug.com/photos/7282251-L.jpg

midtown, along the fdr drive (east side)
http://williams.smugmug.com/photos/3219088-L.jpg

yup the brooklyn bridge is a photo op, but don't forget the other bridges too :D

walking to work on the brooklyn bridge
http://williams.smugmug.com/photos/4698468-L.jpg

from the tram to roosevelt island (midtown) and roosevelt island offers nice views of the midtown skyline
http://williams.smugmug.com/photos/3219085-L.jpg

http://williams.smugmug.com/photos/3219109-L.jpg

the fish-market
http://williams.smugmug.com/photos/3219115-L.jpg

the parks offer wonderful shooting opps
http://williams.smugmug.com/photos/3219118-L.jpg

grand central? a great place :D

http://williams.smugmug.com/photos/3219129-L.jpg

http://williams.smugmug.com/photos/20864177-L.jpg

http://williams.smugmug.com/photos/4698465-L.jpg

brownstone stoops in harlem

http://williams.smugmug.com/photos/3397509-L.jpg

soho is full of "interesting" people and photo ops galore
http://williams.smugmug.com/photos/4037569-L.jpg

the subways are great to shoot in. amazing people shot opps
http://williams.smugmug.com/photos/4013698-L.jpg

our security folks are pretty friendly :lol3
http://williams.smugmug.com/photos/1502820-L.jpg

everyone loves to be photographed in nyc, i promise :deal
http://williams.smugmug.com/photos/5425379-L.jpg

central park is a must-see
http://williams.smugmug.com/photos/7282268-L.jpg

http://williams.smugmug.com/photos/1698222-L.jpg

http://williams.smugmug.com/photos/5766047-L.jpg

http://williams.smugmug.com/photos/5766046-L.jpg

the architeture is a treat

http://williams.smugmug.com/photos/2368070-L.jpg

st patrick's, and the cathedral church of st. john the divine are both photographer-friendly

http://williams.smugmug.com/photos/3072906-L.jpg

http://williams.smugmug.com/photos/1744627-L.jpg

oh and here's rye beach in infrared, with the amusement park in the bg... what are you doing in rye, anyhow?

http://williams.smugmug.com/photos/5054504-L.jpg

i'll be happy to help you out with specifics, just holler at me...

[Frank]

Ahh! Thanks for doing this Andy.

A nice reminder of your many pleasurable postings over the past year.

The "Streaming Light" from Grand Central is still one of my all time favorites.

- Frank

[Andy]

downtown, battery park, south street seaport, china town, soho... this could be a whole day, and you'll be exhausted afterwards!!!!!

midtown, central park, grand central, upper west side, this could be a whole day too.

a week? don't forget the cloisters, the bronx zoo, the bronx botanical gardens. go to brooklyn heights, coney island, too!

[Andy]

for fifty cents, take the staten island ferry from battery park (lower manhattan) round trip to staten island and back.. lovely harbor views and you can't beat the price! the boat to statue of liberty and ellis island is great too, though a few bucks more and takes more time (tip: get there at 7am and be on the first boat...)

there's also the circle line tour boats, around manhattan for a three-hour cruise.

[Andy]

falafel on every street corner
dirty water hotdogs, too
ribs and barbecue at virgil's in times square
the best soul food on the planet at sylvia's in harlem
italian in little italy or on arthur avenue in the bronx (if you're at the zoo)
chinese in chinatown
there's fantastic indian food in the 30s east side
morroccan, afghani on the west 50s
john's pizza is in an old cathedral church west of times square
don't forget katz's deli for the best pastrami in town
http://williams.smugmug.com/photos/8625420-L.jpg

[MDiver]

Wow Andy, those are some great shots and that sandwich is making me hungry.http://www.digitalgrin.com/images/smilies/thumb.gif

[Khalid]

Thanks a lot Andy, I remember most of these shots from STF over the past year or two, you have a good eye for spotting the treasure in the mundane. I'll print out your posts and keep them handy with me. Even though I'm going for a week, I dont know how many of those days I can just spend alone shooting, I'll have my wife and two boys (3.5 yrs and 2 months old) with me.
My wife's sister is settled in Rye, her husband is some hot shot in Morgan Stanley.
Do you recommend taking a car to town or are trains better ?
One other question, at what time did you shoot that Grand Central shot with the light beaming in from the windows ? morning or late afternoon ? It would be nice to capture it that way.
btw, I enjoyed your california coast shots from last weekend ... man, you should just move here, considering how much you seem to enjoy northern california :)
Thanks again for your tips.
-Khalid

i'm glad you asked, been wanting to do this for a while :D

i've also put some tourist photography tips here (http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1009&message=8370454)


i'll be happy to help you out with specifics, just holler at me...

[Andy]

Thanks a lot Andy, I remember most of these shots from STF over the past year or two, you have a good eye for spotting the treasure in the mundane. I'll print out your posts and keep them handy with me. Even though I'm going for a week, I dont know how many of those days I can just spend alone shooting, I'll have my wife and two boys (3.5 yrs and 2 months old) with me.
My wife's sister is settled in Rye, her husband is some hot shot in Morgan Stanley.
Do you recommend taking a car to town or are trains better ?
One other question, at what time did you shoot that Grand Central shot with the light beaming in from the windows ? morning or late afternoon ? It would be nice to capture it that way.
btw, I enjoyed your california coast shots from last weekend ... man, you should just move here, considering how much you seem to enjoy northern california :)
Thanks again for your tips.
-Khalid

thanks khalid :D

the streaming light only happens in the spring - you won't catch it this time of year.

the best way to get from rye to manhattan is by metro-north railroad, the commuter line - it's 35mins by train to grand central :deal leave your car in westchester!

cheers