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Before we went to New York I had high hopes of taking beautiful artistic photos to keep forever as memories of our trip – you know the kind of photos I mean, the ones that are so good that people look at them and say ‘that’s amazing, you should definitely get that one printed out and framed’.
I researched where I wanted to go to take the iconic New York photos that I had in mind and as with the rest of our trip, I had it planned out with time to visit each place in turn over the course of our trip so that I could get the shots I wanted. I made sure everything was covered with our New York Pass and had every day planned to get the most out of it all.
It wasn’t to be though as we decided not to stick to out planned schedule when we got there so I didn’t get the time I wanted to take the photos.
I don’t mind at all though as we had such an amazing time and I got most of the shots I was after in one way or another but it does mean that this post, which I had planned before we went, isn’t as professional as I wanted it to be. Some were taken on my phone, some on my camera and there’s even one taken from the top of a moving bus but it’s not the quality I love about them, it’s the memories they bring back so ultimately I guess it doesn’t matter that I didn’t get time to line the shots up as I’d wanted to or to find the perfect position to capture the shot.
Essential New York Photos #1 – Top of the Rock
In my opinion, the best place to get a great photo of the view of the New York skyline is at the top of the Rockerfeller Center – 800ft (70 floors) up. It’s better place to take a photo than the top of the Empire State Building in my opinion because it’s the only way to get a great shot that includes the iconic Empire State Building in all it’s glory. From one side, you get the Empire State Building, Freedom Tower and a teeny looking Statue of Liberty and on the other you can capture the sheer size of Central Park. From another side you can even get a shot of the beautiful Chrysler Building but I’ll be honest, that’s not a great shot as it’s partially obscured. You can get to the top for around $34 but our fast pass entry was included in the New York Passes that we bought before we went.
Essential New York Photos #2 – The Statue of Liberty
No trip to New York is complete without a sail by the Statue of Liberty and there’s no excuse not to do it as the Staten Island Ferry is completely free. I do have better photos but I chose this one to share so you could see the people queuing – someone in our hotel waited in a queue for two hours before giving up (or so I overheard at the Concierge desk anyway).
Essential New York Photos #3 – Walking across Brooklyn Bridge
The 1.3 (ish) mile walk across Brooklyn Bridge is one of my favourite memories from our trip – it was such a beautiful walk with the cars beneath us, amazing architecture above our heads and stunning views all around us. I must have taken a hundred plus photos while we were on there because everywhere I looked there was something I wanted to capture. It’s free to walk across and although it’s busy at the start of the walk, it definitely feels less crowded the further onto the bridge you walk. Just a tip though, don’t wander in to the bike lane by accident to get the perfect shot – the bikers can be aggressive and they do have whistles that they’re not afraid to use. 😉
Essential New York Photos #4 – Dumbo, Brooklyn
After a walk across the Brooklyn Bridge, I definitely recommend a quick stop in Dumbo to take some beautiful shots of the New York skyline from over the water. This was my favourite photo from there – it’s a view of the Manhattan Bridge taken from the streets of Dumbo but the area is filled with photo opportunities. Everything from Street art to the amazing little coffee shop called One Girl Cookies which is the most photogenic place ever!
Essential New York Photos #5 – The Flat Iron Building
This iconic building was one that I had planned to get a great photo of, as many other people were doing as we drove past on our open topped bus. The guide said that apart from the building itself there was very little to do in the area so we didn’t get off and I satisfied myself with a photo from the top of a moving bus. You might recognise it as the Daily Bugle from Spiderman if you’ve seen that film.
So there you go, if you’re heading to New York, these are my suggestions for the best places to capture those iconic New York photos.
