NY Through the Lens - New York City Photography

New York City at night - Financial District street with a smoke stack.

At night after the multitudes have retreated to their homes away from the buildings and streets that hold them close during the day the city relaxes shaking the dust of the long day from its concrete limbs.

The street lights flicker like dream-heavy blinks of an eye while smokestacks exhale world-weary breaths of smoke into the yawning night air.

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Walking the dog towards Mill Lane. Financial District, New York City.

I have been thinking a lot about different visions of New York City a lot lately which I wrote about recently in this post about everyone’s different version of New York City in their minds. I had an interesting interview for a project I am being considered for a few weeks ago where I found myself talking about what I try to convey about New York City with my photography and writing.

It was interesting to talk about it face to face (over Skype) rather than write about it because in a sort of stream of consciousness way I had to explain to someone who had never been to New York City how I try to show how I experience New York City on a regular basis via my own views of it colored by falling in love with a combination of streetscapes in classic film noir cinema, futuristic sci-fi city environments in literature and film, and years of traversing New York City on foot.

A few nights ago, I watched a documentary about Woody Allen and there was a segment in it that resonated with me deeply which is no surprise since I am a huge fan of the Annie Hall and Manhattan era Woody Allen films. Martin Scorcese, the director of masterpieces such as: Mean Streets, Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, Goodfellas and Gangs of New York talks about Woody Allen’s extreme nostalgia for the present that is evident in Allen’s film Manhattan. He states that for Woody Allen it is as if New York City is constantly alive and continually evolving but Allen’s New York City is an entirely different planet from his own. The documentary switches over to Woody Allen who then states: “I wanted to show New York in a very beautiful way, the way I see it. I never had any interest in showing it except through my rose colored glasses; my romanticized view of it.”

There is definitely a romanticized element that is evident in my photography of New York City. When I walk from my apartment on the Lower East Side through Chinatown and Soho or up through the East Village towards midtown, I am bombarded with memories and desire to capture the fragments of life and architecture that, for me, tug at the visions of New York City I have in my own mind. I hope that one day if and when I have the means to travel I will be able to do the same which each place I explore and experience.

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Rain in the afternoon. Flatiron District. Midtown, New York City.

As rain falls onto the city’s buildings, a sea of umbrellas washes up to sidewalk shores as streets glisten with light and promise.

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This photo was taken with my phone. I am @newyorklens on Instagram (view my feed here). Check out my other Instagram posts made to this blog here. You can check out all of my Instagram photos on Flickr here. Additionally, you can view my phone photography for sale here.

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Looking down Staple Street in Tribeca. New York City.

There are streets that I return to over and over again. These streets tug at memories I haven’t made yet while yanking memories I treasure from the deep recesses of my mind. They haunt me in all the best ways. They represent the New York City in my mind.

Everyone seems to have a different version of New York City in their mind. It’s the version that they look for when turning a corner and glancing down a street. My own version of New York City was formed early on. It’s a result of falling in love with a combination of streetscapes in classic film noir cinema, futuristic sci-fi city environments in literature and film, and years of traversing New York City on foot.

This is one of those streets that I could have only dreamed existed until I turned a corner one day and stopped dead in my tracks as I looked down the street towards the skybridge that crosses between buildings. It’s Staple Street in Tribeca. A tiny alley-like street, it contains one of the most fascinating pedestrian bridges (also known as a skyway, traverse, skywalk and a host of other terms) I have ever seen in New York City.

Some history about this street: “In 1894, New York Hospital built the House of Relief, a downtown clinic, on Jay from Hudson to Staple, with an ambulance entrance facing Staple. In that year The New York Herald noted that the hospital was sending its ambulance out as often as seven times a day, sometimes on emergencies involving sunstroke, ”which so often occurs in the lower part of the city,” perhaps because of the large number of men working outdoors on the docks.

In 1907 the hospital built an annex across Staple Street (replacing the saloon/row house at Jay and Staple) as a stable and laundry, connecting it at the third-floor level using a pedestrian bridge. Although Staple Street was then just an industrial alley, the hospital had the architects Robertson & Potter design a handsome little building with a terra cotta plaque bearing the ”NYH” monogram on the Staple Street side. The monogram is still there.” - from “Streetscapes: Staple Street in TriBeCa” New York Times By Christopher Gray, February 2001

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Doyers Street on a rainy summer afternoon. Chinatown, New York City.

When the sky seduces the city with its tears of happiness, the streets swoon illuminated by the glow of nearby lights.

Broken-hearted alleys fill up: lovers with empty recesses in their hearts soak in the warm afterglow of what the sky has wrought.

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Sunset over a cobblestone street. Tribeca, New York City.

The first whispers of summer are carried on warm breezes urged on by the sun stretching itself out from under the faintest cover of clouds.

As cobblestone streets soak up each and every last bit of golden summer sunlight the buildings glow like fiery embers in the sun’s wake.

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Over East Broadway on a busy, sunny afternoon. Two Bridges. Lower East Side, New York City.

There are streets that, for me, fill in the image of New York City that exists in my mind.

I have spoken about this before in older posts. Everyone seems to have their own image of New York City that, for them, represents so much more than just the geographical spot that New York City inhabits on any sort of map.

It took me about a year of thinking about my own approach to New York City with photography and via writing to figure out what I was trying to do every time I took a photo of this city I have called home since my birth. But now I know and it has changed my own view of my surroundings.

It’s not easy to attempt to distill something as enormous a concept or location as New York City into visual and tangible emotion but that is what I try to do with every photo I feel proud enough to post, whether it is taken with my phone (like the photo in this post) or with my regular camera.

I will post a few companion photos to this one later this week (that I took with my regular camera) and expand further about what this street means to me currently.

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This is my weekly mobile photography post. I am @newyorklens on Instagram (view my feed here). You can read about my thoughts on mobile photography and Instagram here and you can check out some of my Instagram photos on Flickr here. Additionally, you can view my phone photography for sale here.

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Above a street in the Two Bridges neighborhood. New York City.

There are areas in lower Manhattan where fragments of the city’s history have settled like fine dust, fragile and prone to the whims of time.

Around these hallowed enclaves, newer history reaches higher towards the sky and rises from the ground borne from the dust of the city’s past.

This particular spot is known as Two Bridges and sits along the East River. It borders Chinatown and the Lower East Side and has long been a dwelling spot for many different immigrant communities over the years. It sits alongside the infamous and historic Five Points area where Irish, Jewish and Italian gangs battled to the death in the mid-19th century. It is currently home to a large community of Chinese immigrants and many of the buildings are tenements dating back to the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

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Trees do indeed grow in Brooklyn. Cobble Hill Brownstones. New York City.

The light after a heavy rain is transcendent. Deep golden hues cling to the damp tree branches as they frame lush green leaves reeling under the weight of the rain water.

It’s all the more impressive against a backdrop of beautiful brick brownstones that can be found in neighborhoods like Cobble Hill located in Brooklyn. Cobble Hill (or Ponkiesbergh as it was first called) was originally settled during the 1640’s by Dutch farmers. The name “Cobble Hill”, according to various historical sources, came from the large amount of cobble stones being disposed in the site.

The cobble stones were used as ballast on the trading ships arriving from Europe. The high elevation point at the corner of present day Atlantic Avenue and Court Street, where the greatest amount of the cobble stones was disposed, was used as a Fort during both the American War of Independence and the War of 1812.

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Doyers Street. Chinatown, New York City.

Out of the way streets tell a wealth of tales. The bright afternoon sun beats down on old decaying walls and fire escapes creating elongated shadows that seem to stretch indefinitely. If the well-worn awnings could talk, just think of the secrets they would reveal.

This particular photo is of Doyers Street, one of my favorite out of the way streets. It is a winding street that curves around and is tucked away from its hectic surroundings. The street is only about 200 feet long and runs from Pell Street to Chatham Square. It’s home to very old tenements and long-standing businesses like The Nom Wah Tea Parlor which opened in 1927.

In the early 20th century the curve in the street was known as “the Bloody Angle” because of a plethora of violent acts carried out by Chinatown gangs. The expression ‘hatchet man’ is said to have come from this era and these violent acts which often included hatchets. While the street is not bloody or violent today, it’s worth a visit to soak in the history, vibe and incredible scenery.

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I wanted to thank those who helped me out this past weekend with the Artists Wanted contest. The response warmed my heart. I used to be phobic and against contests for various reasons but I am realizing that I need to put my photography out there in different ways and I can’t let failure or fear of failure prevent me from doing that.

For those who didn’t see my post, you can still help me out by going to my contest entry page and clicking COLLECT ME

Thanks, once again. I have so many dreams that I hope can take flight with my photography and it really makes me emotional when I think of the supportive friends I have made along the way in various online communities who inspire me in so many ways.

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Rainy day. Greenwich Village, New York City.

Every drop of rain paints the city with an otherworldly light: tiny illuminated universes cast their glow onto the city with every luminous splatter.

Wet earth in the form of darkened concrete springs forth new life in the form of urban wanderers who migrate quickly from one patch of earth to another as their wet reflections echo their movements.

And after the day has unleashed its deluge of light, the city soaks in the infused-afterglow.

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Rainy Doyers street in Chinatown. New York City.

When the sky seduces the city with its tears of happiness, the streets swoon illuminated by the glow of nearby lights.

Broken-hearted alleys fill up: lovers with empty recesses in their hearts soak in the warm afterglow of what the sky has wrought.

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View this photo larger and on black on my Google Plus page

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Buy “The Seduction of the Sky - Doyers Street - Chinatown - NYC” Posters and Prints here, View my store, email me, or ask for help.

Happy Halloween. Balloons. Lower East Side, New York City.

Sometimes there are moments that occur that are so whimsical and perfect for the time of year that it makes you stop dead in your tracks and smile the widest smile that you can accommodate. This was one of those moments.

I was walking around my neighborhood and a man was standing perfectly still with a gaggle of black balloons the day before Halloween. In typical New York City fashion, passerbys hardly even blinked an eye. They sort of resembled a very large bunch of grapes. I am sure they were for a Halloween event. At least I would like to imagine they were.

Happy Halloween everyone!

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Doyers Street illuminated by the sun. Chinatown, New York City.

Out of the way streets tell a wealth of tales. The bright afternoon sun beats down on old decaying walls and fire escapes creating elongated shadows that seem to stretch indefinitely. If the well-worn awnings could talk, just think of the secrets they would reveal.

This is one of my favorite streets in Lower Manhattan. It’s Doyers Street located in Chinatown. I have always considered it more of an alley. It’s a peculiar street that winds and curves around tucking itself away from the rest of Chinatown. At only around 200 feet long, Doyers Street runs from Pell Street to Chatham Square. It’s home to very old tenements and long-standing businesses like The Nom Wah Tea Parlor which opened in 1927.

In the early 20th century the curve in the street was known as “the Bloody Angle” because of a plethora of violent acts carried out by Chinatown gangs. The expression ‘hatchet man’ is said to have come from this era and these violent acts which often included hatchets. While the street is not bloody or violent today, it’s been used in a variety of films and is definitely worth a visit.

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Buy “Doyers Street - Chinatown - New York City” Prints and Posters here, View my store, email me, or ask for help.