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NYC visit, where to go?

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advice for your feet

if you plan to stand in one place for a while to wait for a good pictures or good light

one trick to avoid your feet getting too cold is to stand on a piece of close cell foam

it definitely works

if you walk a lot, if you have nice winter shoes your feet should not get too cold

hope it helps

matteo
 
take your camera anywhere
ny has always something interesting
wskb said:
If you go shopping in Soho, take your camera, there are some great buildings in this area, good mix of colours, shadows, fire excapes etc. But go early before the crowds, and take a very wide lens. Around Grand and Wooster St is good.
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am i the only one to thin they ruined bow brodge with those vases on the top?
before it was so simple and perfect
matteo
kb2zuz said:
I don't expect you to spend all your time in museums, but here's some of the better ones to choose from. Most museums charge around $20 for admission except where noted.

The Met Huge museum encompassing everything, you could spend days in there and not see it all, also while "Recommended Donation" for admission is $20 you can say you only want to pay $1. The collection is definitely worth $20, but if you are only going in to see something quick, like Robert Frank's the Americans exhibition going on and will only be there for an hour, don't let the $20 scare you off.

The MoMA has a great collection of art since 1850. Fridays after 4pm are free, though it does get packed and there is often a line to get in then.

The Whitney has a great collection of contemporary art but my choice to go depends on what exhibitions are there at the time. Fridays from 6-9pm are "pay what you wish"

International Center for Photography rotating exhibtions, see what's going to be there when you're in town. I'm pretty sure Fridays after 5 are "pay what you wish."

The Guggenheim Museum has a great exhibition of Kandinsky up through Jan 13th. Plus it's that famous spiral shaped Frank Lloyd Wright building, if you like architecture. Saturday from 5 to 7 is "pay what you wish."

The Cloisters which is owned by the Met, is really quiet and tranquil at the north end of the city, and a great place to get away for a couple hours if the city gets to be too much.

Galleries in Chelsea From around 20th St to 26th St between Avenues 10 and 11 are tons of galleries. Just walk the streets until you see something that looks interesting and walk in. All the galleries are free, also when you go in to one, ask the person at the desk if they have a "Gallery Guide" which they will give you for free and will list all the exhibitions going on at the various galleries. Also while your there High Line Park is right there. The park is build on an abandoned elevated train tracks should present a number of photo opportunities, both for skyline views and people in the park.

Don't forget Central Park

Wollman Skating Rink is great to see in the winter. With a lot more space than the famous one in Rockefeller Center and it has the gorgeous backdrop of central park. Great to see/photograph around dusk/twilight.

Bow Bridge the pond in the center of the park has a gorgeous bow bridge. It's very pretty in the spring and fall when people are on the lake in row boats, but if there's ice and snow it can be very beautiful.

Strawberry Fields across the street from the Dakota building where John Lennon was shot, this memorial always attracts a ton of fans and musicians, great for people watching. If I recall Lennon was shot on Dec. 8th and on that day there is usually a lot going on at Strawberry Fields.

Outside the Norm

Coney Island will still be good, just very closed and dead... very different feel to it in the winter.

Also look into Roosevelt Island , particularly the ruins of the Smallpox Hospital , plus accessing the island by the skyway tram is a different point of view.

You might be interested in the Cathedral of Saint John the Divine (the enormous perpetually unfinished cathedral) in Morningside Heights.
--
~Kurt
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I am not suggesting you take pictures of people.

There are Dutch street photographers of great insight and skill posting every day on the Canon SLR Lens forum. I pity them because it is much too easy to get good SP photos over there. I've looked at your website. I do not encourage you to follow in their footsteps.

What I was suggesting was that, having 9 days to encounter NYC, you not set yourself a touristy itinerary, but react to the manifold rhythms and geometries of this city once you get here.

Evenyone's NYC is a unique city. Yours would be very different from mine, or anyone else's. I'm just urging you to go through the "golden door" when you get here, and not to follow a predetermined touristic itinerary.
Marcus Antonius said:
fad said:
Are you trying to document that you went where others have gone before, then your itinerary is fine.
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That's what i want to do yes.
Marcus Antonius said:
And it will save you the cost of some postcards. Of course, your shots won't be as good, because the postcard photographer can pick the best time of day, angle, etc.
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May be true, but i like to make my own postcards.
Marcus Antonius said:
NYC is infinitely varied.

From your website, you're obviously not into spontaneous shots of people, which is the best thing about NYC.
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That's because that part of photography does not really interest me
Marcus Antonius said:
It is best to come to NYC not with an open mind.

Let it will teach you something about the photographer you can be. Let it change you.
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I'm sorry, but are you lecturing me? Telling me taking photo's of people will make me a better photographer? My interest is different than yours apparently, but i like to keep it that way.
Marcus Antonius said:
Instead of visiting the Statue of Liberty (yawn), ponder what's written there:

Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame,
With conquering limbs astride from land to land;
Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand
A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame
Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name
Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand
Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command
The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame.
"Keep ancient lands, your storied pomp!" cries she
With silent lips. "Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"

Let NYC be the lamp beside the golden door of your own imagination!
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Taking photo's of people is something i can do here in my own country every day, we have all nationalities here, we also have different boroughs with different cultures, let me say YAWN to that, please. When i want to take photo's in NYC, i want to get home with photo's that scream NYC all over, and not a photo of somebody i could have shot around the corner of my own street.

--
Making a moment last forever
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--
Frank
http://www.sidewalkshadows.com

ego sum via et veritas et vita
 
This is perhaps the highest volume and most extensive photo store in the world. It is a marketing marvel the way the items get transported on overhead rollers and the organization of the checkout. One each for most items are out for display, while your order gets sent to the checkout from stock via the overhead bins. The support staff are knowledgable and helpful. I have never seen so many US customers file though a moderate size store.
 
Hello Frank,

I know what you are saying, however. I just have 9 days, 9 days to see everything i wanted to see. It's not that i'll be visiting back soon. (i'm a person who wants to see something different every time, so my next vacation will be africa's wildlife where my actual photography interest lies and started (wildlife photography)). And i don't want to regret missing anything that was on my list since i was a little kid. It's merely a time issue for me and i am easily dissapointed by not having seen something. That's why i am making alot of plans in advance, i have been on vacation before where i let the city guide me through the days of visit. Most of my actions were spontaneous and i have good memories about it, but regret the fact that i have seen so few things i wanted to see because i did not have a structured plan. (you know, when place x is rairly close to z, then first go to y, then x and miss out place z). This may sound crazy in your eyes but, on vacation i'm all about taking those pics, busy with composition, light, and miss out the real vibe of being actually there. My vibe starts when i get home and see the photo's i made, then this vibe will come to me (not sure if i translated it well).

Cheers,

Marcus

--
Making a moment last forever
 
Mike K said:
This is perhaps the highest volume and most extensive photo store in the world. It is a marketing marvel the way the items get transported on overhead rollers and the organization of the checkout. One each for most items are out for display, while your order gets sent to the checkout from stock via the overhead bins. The support staff are knowledgable and helpful. I have never seen so many US customers file though a moderate size store.
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--
Making a moment last forever
 
 
--I saw that you like abandoned places; . Quite a few New Yorkers do also. Check out ForgottenNY web site.

If you go over to Roosevelt Island, you can see the partial ruins of the old Smallpox Hospital on the south end. I went around the fence one and went inside, it's pretty cool. The first Spiderman movie's ending was recreated here; they did one hell of a job on how the place looks inside.

The Dominio's Sugar Factory (big buliding) over in Willamsburg is pretty neat; I haven't been inside but you can get some shots from the outside. Just a few years ago, that neighborhood was all old abandoned places, but it's changed a lot in just a few years.

I think you'll like Coney if you like the old stuff. You can look where Luna Park used to be (it's apartments now, but there is a small kid's playground called "Luna Park" just beneath the train tracks. On Surf Avenue there are boarded up buildings to look at, that kind of stuff.

You might want to check out Green-Wood Cemetery; beautiful places with hundreds of old tombs, graves, etc. My favorite is the Chalrotte Canda. Some nice views of Lower Manhattan from one of the hills in the cemetery. You can walk around the front of the Brooklyn Navy Yard and see old buildings there also.

I don't know if it's open for the season, but Governor's Island is great. Old Buidlings (but in good shape), and one of the best views of Lower Manhattan that you can get.

Other old builidings out in the Rockaways (take the A train), up in Harlem, parts of Astoria, DUMBO area, etc etc.

I use my 70-200 for people pics also; it's a good lens for it.

I think you'll have a good time; how many memory cards are you bringing or are you going to dump to a hard drive? You'll be taking a lot of pictures.

Bowbridge
 
Hi Bowbridge,

Yes i like abandoned places alot, i did some urbex photography in the netherlands and belguim (a paradise for urbex fans) and had a great time. (Check the pics attached) On the other side, as you might know, usually urbexers have to tresspass security protected area's which is something i was not planning to do in a foreighn country (especially usa).

On the other side, roosevelt island and coney island do sound great and if it's legit to visit i will definitely do so. Cemeteries are not my thing, but old buildings on the other side i like alot.

About your question about storage space, this is something that boggled my mind too, and yesterday my GF and me decided our old laptop needed a replacement. So i ordered a new laptop with enough storage space (so we can store them on there every night, and even have the chance to watch them on a bigger screen for better qualifying keepers).

Thanks for your thoughts,

Marcus

p.s. here's some pics i did on various urbex trips.












Bowbridge said:
--I saw that you like abandoned places; . Quite a few New Yorkers do also. Check out ForgottenNY web site.

If you go over to Roosevelt Island, you can see the partial ruins of the old Smallpox Hospital on the south end. I went around the fence one and went inside, it's pretty cool. The first Spiderman movie's ending was recreated here; they did one hell of a job on how the place looks inside.

The Dominio's Sugar Factory (big buliding) over in Willamsburg is pretty neat; I haven't been inside but you can get some shots from the outside. Just a few years ago, that neighborhood was all old abandoned places, but it's changed a lot in just a few years.

I think you'll like Coney if you like the old stuff. You can look where Luna Park used to be (it's apartments now, but there is a small kid's playground called "Luna Park" just beneath the train tracks. On Surf Avenue there are boarded up buildings to look at, that kind of stuff.

You might want to check out Green-Wood Cemetery; beautiful places with hundreds of old tombs, graves, etc. My favorite is the Chalrotte Canda. Some nice views of Lower Manhattan from one of the hills in the cemetery. You can walk around the front of the Brooklyn Navy Yard and see old buildings there also.

I don't know if it's open for the season, but Governor's Island is great. Old Buidlings (but in good shape), and one of the best views of Lower Manhattan that you can get.

Other old builidings out in the Rockaways (take the A train), up in Harlem, parts of Astoria, DUMBO area, etc etc.

I use my 70-200 for people pics also; it's a good lens for it.

I think you'll have a good time; how many memory cards are you bringing or are you going to dump to a hard drive? You'll be taking a lot of pictures.

Bowbridge
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--
Making a moment last forever
 
Sorry, haven't read through all the earlier threads, but this is what I would do at least one day:

The whole of lower Manhattan is very picturesque from S of 26th St, and especially Houston St and S. This includes Greeenwich Village, The Lower E Side, Chinatown, Financial disttrict, Battery, Fulton St, and so on. A lot of walking, but fun.

For skyline shots at sunset, try to get to Hoboken, New Jersey. This might involve taking the Path train -- one of the local New Yorkers should chime with the details.

There's also some neat stuff in Central Park, especially if there's been any snow.

If you can get to Brooklyn before sunrise, you can shoot back towards Manhattan for the early light on the skyline looking W, and then maybe walk back across the bridge into Chinatown.

So many possibilities... Bring lots of memory cards, and be sure to be careful with your equipment, especially in crowded places.
--
Sadja
http://www.pbase.com/sadja
 
First of all I know that you will have a great time in NYC.

For something off the beaten path and shows the real New York, I would take a trip on the subway and the # 7 line. It passes through some of the most ethnically diverse neighborhoods in NY.

Start out at Times Square and head toward Queens. When you get to Queens the subway goes above the ground so you can see where you would like to get off. Buy a Metro Card and just hop on and off the subway. When you get to Queens you can get off and photograph the skyline of Manhattan. Also you can stop at 5 pointz which is full of buildings with graffiti and artistis murals with the skyline in the background.

Back on the # 7 train and head to Jackson Heights with great Indian and Hispanic markets and restrauants. Colorfully dressed people in native clothing.

Then head out to Flushing Medow Park and shoot the ruins on the Worlds Fair. The Unisphere is there along with a lot of the decaying remains of the fair.

Finally your last stop will be Main Street Flushing. This is the best Chinatown any where. Much better than the Chinatown in Manhattan in my opion. Much more diversity among Asian groups (Koren, Chinese, Thai) Great markets, restaurants and people taking oburtuities.

Here is a link to a website about it

http://queens.about.com/od/thingtodo/ss/7-subway-tour.htm

Enjoy your trip.
 
Make sure that you go to the South Street Seaport in lower Manhattan. You will have some lovely opportunities to photograph the Brooklyn Bridge and nice ships on the river as well as other lovely river views.

There are some nice restaurants at the South Sea Seaport. Last but not least......make sure you film and eat in China Town in lower Manhattan.

Have a great time.

Canon Person
 
Hello Carla,

Thanks for your detailed information, this is definitely something i'll consider to do. Sounds very interesting.

Marcus

--
Making a moment last forever
 
Bowbridge said:
--If you are going to be here for 9 days, you probably should get a 7 day unlimited Metrocard ($27) and for the last 2 days, just pay as you go. That would be the cheapest. You can ride the subways and buses (but not the express buses, which you probably wouldn't need anyway) with the card, but not the trains (PATH, MetroNorth, LIRR).
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You can use the Metrocard on the PATH.
 
Anyone know which transport best to take to downtown manhattan when arriving at JFK? And which best to take when leaving to Newark.

Marcus

--
Making a moment last forever
 
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