I Love New York City with a little Snapart3

When I go to a "place" different from my own "place" I try to capture what seems most different than "my place." We all have our place which has it's own character and familiarity. New York City with it's fleet of Yellow Cabs filling the city streets is most different from my place! Standing outside of Grand Central Station, I became interested in watching the cabs come and go in strings of yellow, as people quickly jumped inside, escaping from the hectic city streets finding a few minutes of rest allowing a stranger to get them where they needed to go. I try to teach my workshop participants to be an "Observer" first and a "Photographer" second. If you are not "seeing" and "observing", then you can not make compelling images.

This shot was double processed through Snapart3 and then back into Photoshop CS5

 Observing people  moving toward Grand Central crossing the huge white striped intersection in a rush to get their trains was also interesting. Catching people in full stride, coming right at me, with the back drop of the city buildings was fun.
Watching people interact with street vendors and their packed street kiosks is always fun.
And then there are the "standers".....Folks just standing, resting talking doing what they do in a rather staged way....but not staged...just there...for the camera and photographer to see.

The door man for Trump Tower reflects a classic image from New York City where doormen guard the entrances to Apartments, Hotels and Museums....and the masses of people passing by are reflected in the glass windows and doors.

..and heading back to the bus through the theater district I spotted these guys hanging out engaged in conversation, against a painted wall with an architectural feature that acted like a perfect frame. When I looked at it I thought "Trompe l'oreal."
Working with the 28-300 lens was perfect for shooting across the street and making a tight composition, or for reaching out into a crowd to isolate a face. While the lens is a little slow compared to my 70-200 2.8 , it is really great for its size and flexibility and price. It does have a pretty big distortion factor but is easily corrected in the bridge in CS5. It was a great day in New York City with a super group of photographers...I have just posted my fall day trip to New York City if you would like to join me for a fun day on the streets in New York City. Click here for more info.