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2019 has been an amazing year. It was the first year that I truly enjoyed photography. I walked away from every photography outing feeling like I accomplished something, which makes my photography so much fun. What better way to relive the year than to create a Year in Review Post? I hope you enjoy them, I had a hard time cutting this year's photographs down to just twenty nine shots.
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Earlier this year, and for the first time, I walked the Manhattan Bridge pathway to take a picture of the Brooklyn Bridge and NYC skyline from above. Did I mention I am afraid of heights? When I look down from the top of a building, it feels like I am having a panic attack. The same fear I feel every time I take a plane, but I digress.
Luckily, there are strategically placed holes in the chain-link fence along the pedestrian path, so it is easier to photograph one of the most amazing skylines in the world.
The Manhattan Bridge gives an awesome perspective of the Brooklyn Bridge and lower Manhattan. I spent about one hour shooting the spectacular view, and soaking up the sun on this beautiful day. I like the following image so much that I printed a 20" x 30" poster and hung the picture in my office.
Afterwards, I went to the Top of the Rock at the Rockefeller Center, the iconic NYC historic landmark in the heart of midtown Manhattan. My goal was to get a good picture of the Empire State Building and capture the One World Trade Center and downtown Manhattan in the background.
To try to reduce haze and also to avoid the large crowds, I purchased online tickets in advance for early morning tour to the observation deck. Top of the Rock opens at 8:00 am. I arrived at 8:30 am, it was already crowded.
As always, a good rule of thumb is to research the rules and regulations on photography equipment before you get to your location. Knowing in advance that they don't allow tripods up there, I brought with me my Platypod Ultra.
A group of security guards were standing next to me chit chatting, didn't pay attention to what I was doing. I used the concrete ledge with the cable release and a camera wrist strap, installed the circular polarizer filter and took lots of pictures.
At the end of the day, I was able to accomplish what I set out to do.
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After months of not knowing the cause of the swelling and pain in my ankle, and blaming it on my Rheumatoid Arthritis, earlier this year I was finally diagnosed with Achilles tendinitis.
I've been eagerly waiting for warmer weather to ride my motorcycle, now I have been told that I needed to rest my ankle. For the looks of it, recovering from this ankle issue is going to take longer than I had planned.
I refuse to let the discomfort ruin my life. So despite the ankle pain, I've managed to ride to Maryland Massey Aerodrome Airport to take a couple of pictures of vintage planes (1944 Boing Stearman and a 1937 Douglas DC-3 Airliner) and my motorcycle. It didn't help that I got lost due to road closures and unmarked detours.
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I've also spent a weekend in the nation's capital, Washington DC. Our nation’s capital constant traffic jam, road constructions and major highway closures during the weekend is what keeps me away from visiting more often.
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The following weekend, I traveled to the Big Apple to attend a photography meetup group in New York City. To be honest, I almost cancelled the trip. Photography meetups require a lot of walking, I wasn't sure that after getting the Achilles tendinitis diagnosis I could handle the photowalk.
I am so glad I went. Once I got on board the Governor's Island ferry and saw the jaw-dropping views of Lower Manhattan I realized I made the right decision. The fact that I lived in New York so many years and never went to Governors Island was also a factor. Wasn't easy though, I took my time getting around and moved at my own pace. It was a warm, sunny day, about 75-80 degrees, with a gentle breeze. Perfect summer weather.
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At Governor's Island, I seized the opportunity to actually try for the first time the Platypod Ultra on top of a chain link fence, it passed the test with flying colors.
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One evening after having dinner at my favorite joint, I rode to downtown Philadelphia to take a couple of pictures.
Philadelphia has been photographed ad-nauseam, in fact I am running out of places to shoot in the city. It was still early, so I wandered around aimlessly and finally decided to visit Lenfest Plaza, at (PAFA) the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts.
If you are not familiar with this location, it is famous for a naval plane sculpture called "Grumman Greenhouse" that it's displayed in Lenfest Plaza. It was donated by Philadelphia artist Jordan Griska.
I forgot to mention that lately I've been doing something different, why not include myself in the photograph? Some kind of behind the scene, if you will. By adding myself in the shot, it gives the viewer a different perspective and composition of the entire picture. In my opinion, adding a person to your images can also give a sense of scale and add interest to your photography. Now I can go back and recreate some of my older favorite images by putting a personal spin using this idea.
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In September, I attended a work related conference in Beantown. Prior to this trip, the last time I visited Boston was in 1999. I've been meaning to photograph Boston's waterfront area for a while now, so what better time than the night after the conference ended.
The Fan Pier Waterfront is a magnet for photographers and wedding proposals. Surprisingly, the night I visited was almost empty. I took pictures uninterrupted throughout the night. These are two of the images taken that night.
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If you follow my personal blog, you know that one of my favorite locations to photograph the Philadelphia skyline at night is from the South Street Bridge. Recognizing that I am my own worst critic, and that I am not satisfied with any of the images I’ve taken from this location so far, I tried one more time. These are my favorite pictures from that night, they were taken the first week of October.
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Last month I’ve visited the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. In the past 40 years I've visited several times, mostly to serve as a “tour guide” to some of my friends. This trip was no exception. I have no interest to visit the statue on my own, the place is always crowded, over 4 million people visit each year.
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To beat the crowds, this time I planned the trip so I could board the first ferry to the Statue of Liberty early in the morning. They depart every 15-20 minutes. As I suspected, the first ferry out to the statue and Ellis Island was almost empty. It is why I was able to capture the following image without any people in it. By the time I finished taking these pictures, in a matter of minutes the place became heavily crowded.
Went for a short ride to Nockamixon State Park. The trip goal was twofold, test my new Vello Freewave Plus wireless remote - shutter release, and to capture a colorful image of my bike when the autumn peak colors of fall foliage were in full swing.
I wasn't happy with the pics I took the first time so I returned to Nockamixon State Park again the following weekend. Despite the cold weather I decided to give it a try one more time. I am glad I was wearing my Revzilla balaclava and freeze-out warm long sleeve shirt. It was a chilly ride.
What a difference a week makes; this time most trees shed their leaves ready for winter. The real bummer is that now I have to wait until autumn next year to capture fall foliage again. On the plus side, the wireless remote - shutter release passed the test with flying colors.
As a bonus, I'll include several NYC pictures I took after attending the motorcycle show earlier this month.
Merry Christmas Everyone ; And Have A Very Happy New Year!!!!!
* Last updated by: KoflaOlivieri on 12/25/2019 @ 1:34 PM *
1984 Kawasaki GPz-1100
1978 Kawasaki KZ-1000
1975 Kawasaki Z1-900
1972 Kawasaki 750 H2 triple
