8/22/10

Summer skies

Summer is the best time to capture the sky in any scenic picture you take. My boyfriend always bugs me that I never take any pictures of people (or me with the people), but ever since summer of '06 when I first lived in the city, I've had a thing for the sky.

Summer skies are the best. They are almost always blue and clear. Cloudy is a good thing, because then you have some texture and contrast.

I was looking through some of my recent photos from June up to now, and I noticed one common element, thanks to my love for photographing buildings and anything else that touches the sky...

Here are some of the skies I've seen this summer:



Calm skies

Clear skies


High contrast skies

Orange skies

Museum skies
(the Met)

Reflective skies

Pink skies

Long skies


Cloudy skies

White fluffy skies

Skies through bus windows

Scary skies

Perfect skies

: )

8/17/10

Times Square V-J Day kiss

As part of the 65th anniversary of the U.S. triumph over Japan, a statue created by Seward Johnson was put up in Times Square last week, based on the famous photograph V-J Day in Times Square by Alfred Eisenstaedt. We've all seen it, and know at least some of the story behind it, like how the nurse in the photograph was identified some 30 years later in the 1970's as Edith Shain. No one knows who the sailor was or is though.

Life-size sculptures of the kissing nurse and sailor have been put up in Times Square in past years, but this year a large-scale bronze sculpture was erected for a kiss-in reenactment on Saturday, August 14th.

I didn't hear about it until the last minute so I went by on Monday night while it was raining and with what felt like 10 lbs of groceries in each hand, snapping away before it was to be taken down.

Until next year!

Close-up VJ kiss

The trucks were there to take it down...

V-J Day in Times Square Statue





8/13/10

Times Square live video!

The new Forever 21 in Times Square (which took the old location one of my old favorites, The Virgin Record store), has a large video screen above them that displays live footage of pedestrians on 46th and Broadway. This central spot of Times Square usually attracts the biggest crowds. Just a block or so south of the tkts booth in Duffy Square and near the Lion King on Broadway and MTV's studios, there's already reason enough for Tourists galore to stand in this spot!

One night while taking a bus through Times Square, I decided to join the large group of people waving at the reflective video screen. I quickly hopped off the bus and joined them in waving at the screen as well, only to have a hard time finding myself because, well, EVERYONE was waving so we all looked pretty much the same!

This is just as much fun for a local as it is for an out-of-towner, so if you are around, I suggest stopping for a fun glimpse of yourself braving the crowds of one of the brightest attractions on Earth!

The Forever 21 video screen above the new store


Me on the screen!


Move over! We can't see ourselves!
(a model spraypaints over our waving hands and smiling faces)

8/11/10

Another view from above NYC

Over the past year and a half I've been flying in and out of New York much more often, so I am able to get some views from above the city. I always pick a window seat and get my camera out for a few minutes as we fly over the many skyscrapers and famous landmarks of Manhattan. By now I know just the right seat to pick and the what side to pick it on.

Leave a comment and I will tell you which side, haha!

Central Park

View of Central Park with the Boathouse, Conservatory Water and Banshell in sight
The Upper East Side
Thanks Curbed for featuring my photo on your site!
View toward Midtown, Madison Square Park, Gramercy
New York Life Insurance Building


View toward Long Island City, Queens and Roosevelt Island
Citibank

8/9/10

230 5th

20 floors or so above 5th Avenue and 27th Street (and only a few blocks from where I work), the best roof top garden in town is set against a perfect blue NYC sky.

I'd heard of this place before but had never been lucky enough to be invited to a party or get together here until this weekend. A few friends and I went, willing to brave the expensive cocktails and appetizers for a chance to enjoy all of the views and comfort that this spot has to offer.

I recently saw a scene from The Bachelorette set on this roof top, but it all looked so different in person. There were beautiful plants, flowers and topiary structures everywhere. Benches, bars, palm trees, fans, umbrellas and candles were everywhere too.

And even though my camera lost both memory space and power, I was able to capture the views of nearby landmark buildings and the aforementioned flowers, palm trees and topiary structures.


View toward Gramercy/the East of the NY Life Insurance Building
View of NY Life Insurance Building

Cat topiary behind one of the bars
Cat topiary at 230 5th's bar

230 5th roof top flowers

View uptown of the Empire State Building

Empire State Building view

View toward Gramercy/the East of the NY Life Insurance Building later in the night

8/3/10

Out by The Fying Pan

It's only a few blocks from where I work, but I seem to rarely find myself out on this NYC gem and photo opp spot: Pier 66 Maritime. The pier is off of 26th Street and juts out into the Hudson River, with impressive views (at least to me) of New Jersey. I'm always a fan of views.


After visiting some of the Chelsea art galleries, a group of us attempted to get dinner and/or drinks at The Frying Pan, the seasonal bar and grill located at Pier 66, but I paid no attention to the food or drinks. All I cared for were the views, as you can see.


Out by the Frying Pan

View from Pier 66 Maritime

8/1/10

Citibank in Long Island City

I ended up in Long Island City again in an attempt to get some Panera. Beforehand, I stopped by the Warm Up party at PS1 MoMA. It was so hot outside I didn't really get around to the partying part (the party was held in the front courtyard), but I browsed through the hallways (formerly public school hallways) of this contemporary art center, viewing video installations, photographs, mixed media and what not.

Anyway, before all of this, I was at the subway station near the Citibank building, the only skyscraper in Queens.

I feel like this is one of the most iconic skyscrapers in New York City—at least for me—because it's so easy to recognize, even from afar. I always notice it when I am flying into La Guardia airport or running around Brooklyn or the east side of the City, and I used to have a pretty good view of it from my old apartment in Astoria, Queens.

Citi