Whats The Context?

New York City is a Street Photographers dream. I was on my way to Europe but wanted to spend a few days exploring New York City. While cold weather isn’t usually my thing, New York City was unseasonably warm for January. And there were more people on the streets at night than usual. Making for some excellent shooting opportunities. This was the last trip with my trusty Canon 7D and 24-105 setup. After this, I switched over to Sony. While Sony has superior low light, there’s a grittiness that I could pull from Canon that I miss. Perfect for Urban photography. While a lot of things can be achieved in post processing, I prefer to get my best results straight out of camera. 

What Was I Trying to Capture?

My subject in this shot was the lighting. I didn’t notice the couple until I had shot a few frames because they were in the shadows not moving much. I was attempting to get the Subway sign in the lower left of the frame while capturing people crossing in the background. Lowlight can make manual focusing difficult, so I was already taking a bit of time when I noticed the couple. And totally recomposed my shot to feature their silhouette. I intentionally exposed for the light because I didn’t want the couple to be identifiable in such an intimate moment. While New York City is a place that has a deep history with street photography, I always try to respect peoples privacy in intimate situations like this. And I believe just having their outline makes for a stronger image. 

My Settings:

Hand Held or Stabilized: Hand Held
Exposure: 1/60th at F4
Focal Length: 105mm
ISO: 3200
Lighting: Natural Street Light. Shooting from shadow into Florescent.
Body: Canon 7D Mark I
Lens: Sigma 24-105

New York City Travel Tips and Guide: My favorite area when shooting NYC is near Times Square. On this visit, I was staying at TRYP Hotel on 34th. The reason I enjoy staying in this area so much is it’s easy to find things to shoot and places to explore. You’re basically in one of New York Cities central arteries giving you access to pretty much everything. Walking is my favorite thing to do in life. And staying near Times Square makes walking a breeze. Especially if you stay around 34th street where I prefer. The only landmark that’s truly “close” is Madison Square Garden. The area isn’t too crowded when there isn’t an event happening so it’s pretty relaxed. NYC has changed quite a bit. While I don’t necessarily think NYC is an unsafe place, I will say be cautious at night regardless. 

Also, not far from here is my favorite NYC Pizza spot. It’s called 2 Bros Pizza. The perfect late-night munchie spot after a long day of exploring. Also, think about staying in Hells Kitchen. It’s changed A LOT and is a cool place to stay. Be sure to check out Landmark Tavern. Legendary watering hole. And I almost forgot to mention the dope experience I had with Hop on Hop Off NYC. They are STILL the best hop on hop off company in the game.