NYC - A Week In The City

Camera: Panasonic Lumix GX80/85

Lens: Lumix leica dg summilux 25mm f1.4

It may be 64 times smaller than the size of Scotland but it still manages to pack in 2.3million more people. That's a whopping 7.3 million people, in a area smaller than the isle of Skye.

New York City is truly a metropolis. A monster. Manhattan a island where it's feels every inch left green has a sky scrapper peering in waiting for its moment to pounce and take another bite out of Central Park. But some how once you do take a stroll out of the Manhattan area, away from the hustle and bustle of time square, broadway and Wall Street the city transforms.

Brooklyn, for me, is the true heart of the city. It's bristling with culture, activity and creativity. You don't have to wander far for a "authentic" NY experience. Guys on the street corners playing dominos, boys shooting hoops and playing music. Hanging by cars. The cars alone are worth wandering down a back alley for, they really were something else. Everything from 1970's Cadillacs to brand Corvettes. Big old trucks to hummers. But the biggest change from the NY City of the movies is the taxis. 

There are no more Lincolns. No fords. It's all gone electric. The Prius is now King of the New York City streets. This change of the travel infrastructure within the city has transformed it. The air genuinely feels clean. There is no smog. Even when coming into the city via the Staton Island Ferry there is only a small hint of pollution visible in the atmosphere. And even then this is well out to the suburbs. Quite a feet when you consider the shear population destiny of the city, and the amount of cars crammed into one small patch.

 

Wandering the streets you also get the impression that this city is very much still under construction. At every turn there seems to be a new development, a demolition or a upgrade going on. I guess that's just one of those things you would get used to if you lived in the city, it's constant development. The landmarks, the Statue of Liberty, the Empire State, the Chrysler building. These will never change. But everything else around them seems to be in a constant revolving door of bigger, better and bolder.

If you venture a little further from the main boroughs you only need a 20 minute tube ride to escape to the lunacy of Coney Island. This boardwalk suburb felt more like the Jersey Shore than part of New York City, and with the recent redevelopment of the region it was well worth a visit. Its a tacky, twee and eccentric spectacle, with actual “Freak Shows” and gallon sodas.

One final thing that really did surprise me was the quality of food in the city. Long gone are the days of weak coffee and greasy burgers. We had amazing soul food at Peaches Hot House, unbelievable burritos in Tepaches and superb coffee from Brunswicks. In fact its nearly impossible to get a normal cup of coffee in NY now. Its all “Cold Brews” with fizzed coffee coming next.. apparently.. One thing is for certain though, once your visit NYC you cant help but want to go back and see whats happened next in the city that is always changing.

My goal is to deliver the best creative imagery and video content possible. Based in the Highlands of Scotland photography, film and image making have been a large part of my life for the last 15 years. It gives me a reason to travel, a opportunity for adventure and way of cataloging life as it passes us by.