Studying Light In The Streets of NYC

I spent the weekend in NYC visiting a few museums and galleries, and enjoying some quality time with the family. The MET just opened the new American Wing that has a great collection of paintings from the Hudson River School. I wanted to go see the paintings, as well as  take some photos and do some research for an upcoming article I’m working on. But really any excuse to get into an art museum is always a good thing, there is so much to learn and get inspired from.

While walking the streets of NY, I noticed how I was constantly studying the light, seeing how it interacted with different surfaces and shapes, and how it changed at different times of the day. I find that the more I practice photography, the more I see things in terms of lines and shapes, and notice the quality of light much more than I did in the past. These are critical skills to develop, regardless of whether you shoot landscapes, wildlife, or still life. Plus the architecture in NYC is really cool, so I had a good time working with a different subject than I normally do.

These were all shot with my Panasonic GH2 (my favorite street/pocket camera), Panasonic 20mm pancake lens,  and processed in Lightroom 4.