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Where to Photograph in NYC — New York City Photo Opportunities

Best Places to Photograph in NYC

NYC has amazing photo opportunities around every corner. From skylines and night photography, to portraits, architecture, street photography, and even wildlife, NYC has it all.

This guide to the best places to photograph in NYC will highlight many of the popular locations so you can capture that magic image.
 

Brooklyn Bridge from Brooklyn Bridge Park

Brooklyn Bridge Park is one of the very best places to photograph the Brooklyn Bridge with the NYC skyline in the background. It’s very easy to get there via subway. You can also walk right over the bridge from Manhattan.  Be sure to take your wide-angle lens and your tripod. Sunset and "blue hour" are fantastic times for photos.   Blue hour is the brief period right after sunset, but before it's fully dark.  The photo above was taken shortly after sunset.

As an added bonus for this location, the Manhattan Bridge can be photographed from here.
 

Wall Street, New York Stock Exchange

Wall Street and the area around the NYSE area can be a great place to capture the hustle and bustle of life in the city. The subway goes right to Wall St., so this is another area that is easy to get to.  The photo below was taken from a set of stairs across the street from the NYSE.

 

Rockefeller Center & Radio City Music Hall

The Rockefeller Center / Radio City area in midtown provides many great photo opportunities.

The photo below of the Rockefeller Center ice skating rink and Christmas Tree was taken during the holiday season in New York.

 

This photo of Radio City Music Hall was taken from a tripod at 6th ave and 50th street.

 

This is the statue of Atlas at Rockefeller Center, with St. Patrick's Cathedral, taken from 5th ave between 50th and 51st streets.

 

The following is a street scene in the Rock Center area:

 

From this area, you can also take an elevator to the "Top of the Rock" observation deck which provides incredible views of the city.

 

Skyline from Gantry Plaza State Park

If you’re looking to a get a super-wide skyline shot, Gantry Plaza State Park right across the East River is a great place to do it. You can take the subway (#7 train or G train) to the park. The following NYC skyline photo was taken from Gantry Plaza State Park just after sunset during "blue hour".

 

South Street Seaport 

The South Street Seaport is a fascinating place with endless photographic opportunities, from the pier to the ships to the river.

 

The photo below of the South Street Seaport was taken from the pedestrian walkway on the Brooklyn Bridge.

 

You can also take photos of the Brooklyn Bridge from the South Street Seaport.  The following photo was taken from the Seaport during the "Waterfalls" art installation.

 

Times Square

Times Square is of course one of the iconic locations in NYC.  There are countless photo opportunities here, so take your time and explore.

In this more “abstract” shot, my goal was to capture the energy of Times Square. This was a panning shot...

 

Grand Central Station

Grand Central Station is one of the major transportation hubs of New York City. 750,000 people pass through every single day! While tripods are not allowed to be set up in Grand Central, there is a short wall by one of the sets of stairs where you can rest your camera to take a long exposure such as the one below.

 

Empire State Building 

There are many places to photograph the Empire State Building, which is located at 34th st and 5th ave. This photo is taken from Brooklyn through the structure of the Manhattan Bridge. You can also get great photos from up close, or from up high such as from the observation deck at “Top of the Rock”, Rockefeller Center.

This photo was taken with a telephoto lens from Brooklyn, near Brooklyn Bridge Park which was discussed above.

 

Central Park

There are so many wonderful photo opportunities in Central Park.

One of my favorites is of “Literary Walk”.

 

Bow Bridge on "The Lake" provides a peaceful scene to photograph, and is a great place to relax.

 

The Ramble in Central Park is one of my most favorite places to go, both for photography and for relaxation.  You wouldn't think you could find scenes like this right in the middle of NYC!

 

 

Some other great places to photograph in Central Park are:

* Central Park Boathouse on “The Lake”, where Venetian-style gondoliers transport guests over the lake

* The Great Lawn is a fantastic place to photograph people enjoying the outdoors

* Bethesda Fountain
 

Roosevelt Island

Roosevelt Island is a place where you can get great skylines and bridge photos. You get to Roosevelt Island via the Roosevelt Island Tramway, which is a short “gondola” ride over the East River.  The following photo of the 59th Street Bridge and the Tramway was taken from Roosevelt Island facing Manhattan.

 

The photo below of the East River was taken from the Roosevelt Island Tramway as it crossed the river.

 

Washington Square Park, Greenwich Village, East Village

Washington Square Park is in the heart of the "Village" area of NYC.  Walking west takes you right into Greenwich Village, while walking east takes you into the East Village.  Both present great photo opportunities.  The photo below is of the arch in Washington Square Park.

 

Columbus Circle

Columbus Circle is on the southwest corner of Central Park, and marks the beginning of the Upper West Side.  The photo below is of the fountains in Columbus Circle.

 

Central Park Zoo

If you want to capture some wildlife photos, the Central Park Zoo provides plenty of opportunities.  As you can see below, even the NYC monkeys are cool.

 

Other Photo Opportunities

The locations presented above highlight some of the more popular photo opps. There are of course so many other opportunities in NYC, including the Statue of Liberty and the rest of the boroughs. The photos below are some additional images from around the city.

If you can get up high, you can capture fantastic photos of the rivers and skylines.

 

This is a photo of the skyline reflected in a wine glass.

 

This photo of lightning over the East River was taken from a tripod.

 

The following two photos of the Brooklyn Bridge were taken from from Brooklyn Bridge Park and from standing on the bridge.

 

 

And lastly, the sun sets over NYC.

 

There are so many photo opportunities in New York City, you can explore for a lifetime. I've provided just a sampling of photo opps as inspiration for you own photos, and to highlight some of the more popular locations.

For those looking to improve your photography, I've also created an app for iPhone / iPad / Android which teaches photography and how to get photos like these while you're out taking pictures. It's perfect for when you're traveling. Click here:

Photography Trainer for iOS and Android

 
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Thanks for reading, and best regards,
Paul

 
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Copyright 2014, Paul Timpa

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