Lower Manhattan from the Edge

“The Edge”is a new outdoor viewing platform, 100 stories high in midtown Manhattan (New York City). You can find this building in Hudson Yards, at the terminus of the Subway #7, right next to the iconic sculpture “The Vessel.”

In the morning with the sun rising over the East River, your best view is to the south: lower Manhattan. The Freedom Tower, the tallest building in the skyline, recently built on the World Trade Center site, dominates the view. In the distance, see the Verrazano Narrows bridge and the entrance to New York harbor. Locals will recognize many details in this tightly packed neighborhood of skyscrapers.

While this day featured a brilliant blue sky, the black and white photograph seemed to me the best way to focus on the shapes and detail of the skyline. This image can be printed as a large print: such as 40″ wide.

Lower Manhattan, financial capital of the modern world, as seen from the Edge, New York City.

From the Brooklyn Bridge

Early morning is a great time to walk the Brooklyn Bridge, because it’s not too crowded. On this cloudy and windy morning, I was a little sad that I missed the clear blue skies of the day before, but in the end I think the clouds enhance the image.

Looking west toward Manhattan, you can see the Millennium Tower in the center of the skyline.

This photograph was shot with Sony and processed in Lightroom, Photoshop and Luminar 2018. Lightroom does a great job of correcting the distortion created by a wide angle lens.

Back to the moment when I walked the Brooklyn Bridge, winter is here! I had to hold on to my hat as I coped with the wind on the East River.

Gargoyles, “les guardiens” of the churches of Paris

From the North Tower of Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, one can see many other beautiful churches in the skyline. Nearby, also on Ile de la Cite is another Gothic style church with exquisite 13 c. stained glass windows, Sainte Chapelle. It was consecrated in 1248 and was part of the royal family residence until the 14th century. This church was also restored in the 19 century.

This pensive gargoyle on the tower of Notre Dame, seems to watch over Sainte Chapelle in this photograph. Photo by Catherine Kelly, 2004.

On a distant hilltop to the north, stands Sacre Coeur Basilica, a magnificent 20th-century Roman Catholic Church decorated with mosaics inside. Sacre Coeur and its quaint neighborhood Montmartre are also must-do destinations for any visit to Paris. I recommend climbing to the tower of Sacre Coeur as well for a fantastic view.

Gargoyle of Notre Dame Cathedral frames the distant view of Sacre Coeur Basilica in Paris. Photo by Catherine Kelly, 2004.

Do you love Pittsburgh?

Pittsburghers are crazy in love with their sports teams, but we are pumped about the vitality of our city as a whole too. On a sunny summer day, you will find boats in the three rivers, families enjoying Point State Park near the fountain, and restaurants buzzing with activity. You can take in an aerial view without a drone from the lookout on Mount Washington, where I shot this photo.

My own artistic interpretation of the Pittsburgh skyline, as seen from Mount Washington.

If you would like a print of this image, leave me a message in the comment section, and be sure to include your email address. The Sheraton Station Square might like to see themselves at the center of the universe!

Be sure to tune in tonight to watch the Pittsburgh Penguins battle for Stanley Cup: Game 6!

This work has been registered with the U. S. Copyright Office. No reproduction unless by the author/creator of the image.

 

 

 

Reflecting Chicago

Chicago’s public sculpture “Cloud Gate” — nicknamed “the bean” — is always swarmed with visitors admiring its distorted reflections. The Chicago skyline and one’s own reflection inevitably compete for your attention.

On a frigid Sunday afternoon in Chicago, tourists gather around Cloud Gate (the bean) in Millennium Park. Photo opportunities are endless.

Buy prints here.

I wonder if the British artist Anish Kapoor knew it would be such a powerful people magnet when he welded 168 stainless steel plates seamlessly. His work was dedicated in 2006.

Take me out to the ballgame

The experts say PNC Park is one of most beautiful major league baseball park in America. My experience is limited to about 7 ballparks, but I think the experts must be right this time. A sunny summer evening watching the Pittsburgh Pirates at home is one of life’s finer pleasures.

Panorama of PNC Park with evening view of the Pittsburgh skyline

Baseball is one of those great American traditions that hasn’t changed much over the generations.* But the parks keep getting nicer. The Pirates started at Forbes Field (which was torn down), shared Three Rivers Stadium with the Steelers from 1970 to 2000, and finally have a proper ball park with a fabulous view of a beautiful skyline. Having lived in Pittsburgh for the past 28 years, I might be biased. What do you think?

 

*This would be a great prompt for a heated discussion!

Celebrate Pittsburgh with its Skyline

Today is a perfect day to celebrate Pittsburgh and its spirited people, as the Steelers enter a playoff game where most fans have serious doubts about a positive outcome. The Steeler Nation is still behind the team — either in person or via television all over the world. Today’s game might well be the last game of the Steeler season, which is a big deal in Pittsburgh.

Pittsburgh has a pretty fabulous skyline, thanks to the geography of the Three Rivers, at least two successful Renaissance transformations and a currently vibrant local economy. And Pittsburghers never get enough of that skyline.

As a gift to the ever positive people of Pittsburgh, I bring you some summer night skyline images from the North Shore on a special evening when I expected the full moon to rise over the Golden Triangle. The moon rose on cue, of course, but clouds hid the moon from me for all but about 5 minutes that evening. Patience paid off. In this first image, you can see the Fort Duquesne Bridge on the left and the Fort Pitt Bridge on the right. Lots of history here (at Fort Pitt at the Point), dating back to George Washington and the Revolutionary War.

To capture the high dynamic range, I fused three images together.

Here is a closer view of the fountain at Point State Park where the Allegheny and Monongahela Rivers form the Ohio River. The full moon features more prominently.

The Point at Pittsburgh, PA

Lastly, let’s take a turn with creativity. A ten-second exposure captures enough light to make the sky appear blue, and I’ve dropped in a larger moon, taken that night from another exposure when I zoomed the lens in to 200mm. The moon wasn’t this big in relation to the buildings, but the moon was the reason I waited alone on the wharf for 90 minutes, so I personally like to see it big! I think it is AOK to play with the moon size, as long as the photographer is honest about it.  Journalists can’t do this, but I am wearing my artist hat now. As an artist, I would also only play with elements captured that evening. I might be creative, but not crazy with my choices.

Artistic rendition of the moon rise with larger moon added in post processing.

Which photo do you like best? These images can be produced in high resolution  as large prints. Contact me via email at cathykellyphotography@gmail.com

 

 

New York State of Mind

Just returned home from three days in Manhattan helping my daughter move into her new apartment. Unless it’s raining, New York never disappoints. There is always a new restaurant to try, a new boutique,  a new walk, a new vista and an old friend to look up. This time we enjoyed two new restaurants: The Smith on Broadway and Lincoln Center (delicious food and delightful sidewalk cafe) and the Boathouse in Central Park for dinner (fabulous food and serene view of the lake at dusk). On this trip, I was too busy unpacking boxes and making trips to Target to take many photos, but I can share with you some keepers from my April 20 trip.

In April, we enjoyed a Saturday stroll in Central Park and enjoyed seeing hundreds of New Yorkers enjoying the spring day. As one strolls in Central Park, the vistas abound. Lots of walkers, runners, bikers and dog walkers share the paths around the frequent rock outcroppings. Trees, lakes, bridges and buildings of the East and West sides provide ever-changing backdrops.

Two young entrepreneurs (one amateur comedian and one gymnast) drew themselves a stage on the sidewalk, called themselves the Powerhouse and posted a can for donations. “Obama wants change, but WE want doll-ahs!” the diminutive comedian shouted. We joined the other passersby along the rectangular outline. After loosening up with a few one liners, urging us not too look so bored and smug, we turned our attention to the gymnast as he sprinted to center stage for three remarkable flips. Notice his position in the air and shadow on the ground:

I loved this view from the top floor of the Metropolitan Club across Central Park from East 60th Street looking west toward the Time Warner towers on Columbus Circle. Want to see what a difference a lens makes? The second shot was taken from the same location, but with a fish-eye lens. In this shot, you can see the Plaza on the left side of the frame, Fifth Avenue across the bottom, the Time Warner Buildings at center and more sky and more Park. Even though the buildings show dramatic distortion, I think the image is more fun. Surely, it is more dynamic with the traffic flow and cloud dotted sky.

For my last image comparison, I’d like to share two architecture images: an Baroque residential building on West 72nd Street and Central Park West, in contrast to the brand new (not yet completed) Millennium Tower, located next to ground zero, the former World Trade Center site.  The Millennium Tower, sleek and ultra modern, is shown from the Hudson River, where we were taking an “Around Manhattan Architecture Cruise” that disembarked from Chelsea Pier — a wonderful way to spend a Sunday afternoon. There are so many stunning vistas in Manhattan, especially in fine weather.