The Brooklyn Bridge, New York City — An American Icon
It is as iconic as the City, the country. It represents a time and a sense of being uniquely American when nothing could not be done, no frontier could not be explored, no depths could not be plumbed. It is as down to earth as the thousands that cross it every day, as heavy as its stone, mortar, and steel, yet suspended on air. Crossing it, you feel as though you could fly to the city beyond.
I've photographed the Brooklyn Bridge from several prospects and perspectives, but never from on the bridge itself. So, I visited the afternoon before and quickly realized that the classic suspension cable shot would not be as simple as I had hoped. Depending on what you want to reveal, you face several challenges, not the least of which are the thousands of pedestrians crossing the upper deck at any given moment. The vibration caused by all those feet, and the cars below, is challenging if you want to use a long exposure to remove all the people from the image. In some ways, it's even more difficult because, at the opposite end of the "speed spectrum," you also inevitably have the problem of people standing stock still for a long enough time to become firmly planted in your image. It's another version of what I call the Whiny Photographer's Goldilocks Problem: no matter how much you plan, something is not right: clouds, rain, sun, people. And of course, all that is premised on getting a tripod set up, and hoping no one bumps into it.
When I was there in the afternoon, the bridge was mobbed. And of course, the light wasn't any good anyway. What I wanted was a dawn shot, with something interesting in the sky. TPE made it clear that wasn't going to happen, so I had to make do with the bridge itself in warm golden sunrise. That meant getting up early and taking the nice walk over. One of the things I love about NYC is that it's not a very "early" town. There's a lot going on to be sure, but the crowds don't show up early. You can watch people unloading supplies, rolling up their store shutters, and you can see it all plainly.
The Bridge this morning had only a few people on it, a few joggers, some tourists taking selfies. TPE was right about the weather and sky, so I shot for the light and the symmetry. In the distance, you can see Freedom Tower's modernism..Classically Victorian, yet somehow futuristic in that steampunk way, it is a path between worlds.
Provenance: Sony A7CR • Sony 12-24 GM @ 24mm
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For another New York landmark where stone and steel carry the full weight of the city's ambition: Grand Central Terminal — the great hall of New York's busiest station.
For a more contemporary New York architectural landmark built to move people and inspire them: the Oculus — Santiago Calatrava's soaring form at the World Trade Center.
For the city that the bridge has always pointed toward: the NYC skyline at sunset, photographed from the Exchange Place prospect in New Jersey.
