Category: Snapshot Day (Page 2 of 2)

On the night of snapshot day I found myself wandering the streets of Brooklyn with some friends. Although there was an array of graffitied walls with elaborate murals that I could have photographed none of them really captivated my attention as much as a little corner restaurant that was lit up with all kinds of lights. It was small, intimate and right outside of the entrance hung a glowing sign that read “Late Eats”. I found the sign coincidentally funny since in that moment my friends and I were going out for a late night bite. Visually, I just found that the restaurant’s aesthetic was pleasing to the eye and it looked even better in black and white. I liked how the graffiti looked on the white brick walls on righthand side of the photo. I’m glad I got some people walking on the sidewalk in the shot because to me it is representative what New York City is to me. Even though this was one of the quieter streets of the city, no matter how late it is you will find people roaming the streets and the sidewalks being lit up by the numerous good food places.

While taking the photograph I kept in mind the rule of thirds. I knew I wanted the restaurant to be the focal point of the picture so I tried to place it not in the center but towards the right third of the photo. Although there were no cars in my shot, on the left third of the photo I made sure to show that the street continues down so that the cars figuratively have a place to go rather than straight out of the picture.

Ariella Caminero

I happened to be by the World Trade Center on the 11th and ended up visiting the Irish Hunger Memorial. I’m the kind of person that loves city vibes but also really appreciates nature (without all the bugs). I’m especially interested in how cities maintain nature beside all the skyscrapers and buildings. When I got to the top of the Memorial, I looked out toward the water and saw this view. I loved how there was a mix of nature–rocks and trees–and the city skyline–in this case the NJ skyline. I think it’s such an interesting balance, and I wanted to capture the importance of nature, so I made the rocks in focus, while the skyline is out of focus.

When I took this picture, I was aware of focus–as I said above, I focused the camera on the rocks rather than the skyline–and the Rule of Thirds. In the top third, I captured the NJ skyline. In the bottom third, I photographed the rocks. And the middle portion was filled in by park/run path. This allows for the focus of the viewer to be drawn to the rocks and to the skyline above, while not leaving any section of the photo blank.

Jessica S

I chose this image for snapshot day because it holds a special meaning to me. I live in Washington Heights and every time I go for a walk, I go through Riverside Park. During my walk in Riverside Park, I always pass through the George Washington Bridge. The area where I captured this picture is where I usually go when I have to relieve some stress or just need to relax. This view helps me to feel calm and it just brings peace to me. I like to look at the bridge and the river beneath it. I like how New Jersey is on the other side and I just overall love the view.

As I was taking this picture, I kept in mind the rule of thirds and position. I tried to position the end of the bridge on the top right third and the tree on the bottom left third I think that this adds to the picture and helps create an interesting distance from the bridge to the tree, where I was standing, I also used position by making sure that I didn’t put too much of the tree, river, or bridge. I put only the leaves of the tree, a certain amount of river, and almost the entire bridge, but not completely. I also kept in mind that the cars are going towards the end of the bridge, and I made sure to leave enough space at the end of the bridge for the cars to go in to.

The reason I chose this picture for snapshot day was due to my inspiration of Ansel Adams’ photo titled Central Park and Skyscrapers. I have always been a fan of black and white photographs and I knew that I wanted my picture to have the simplicity and beauty that these two colors bring to an image. I feel as if this picture captures the industrial structure and busy-ness of the city, while showcasing a less colorful side. With the lack of color, the architecture and lines are brought more into perspective. While the taxi cab is moving out of the image, it is still visible to the eye and the structures around it remain perfectly still giving a juxtaposition of movement to the image.

While taking this photograph I kept in mind the rule of thirds, I knew I wanted the Chrysler building to be the focal point of the image so that it took up the middle third of the picture. The taxi cab takes up the bottom right square of the picture and I used the golden ratio technique to ensure that both sides of the building contained a somewhat equal amount of city structures.

-Monica Huzinec