Help with Location In NY and surrounding areas

[Photofan#1]

Hi Guys
I have a business trip coming up in the Middle of Oct to New York and thought of taking my camera equipment to shoot there with the Fall colors.
Being a business trip my schedule is going to be really tight . I would appreciate any help with locations to shoot and any technical advise (lenses , etc) .I might drive down to DC for a day too .

Any help to save time in scouting so I can shoot more' would really be appreciated .

Thanks In Advance

Sam

My equpment :
Nikon D40X
Lenses: 18-55mm , 50mm fixed focal -manual focus ,70-300 mm AFS-VR
10-20 mm
Graduated ND Filters 2stp ,3STP AND 4STP.
COKIN p173 FILTER AND Polarising filters

[CaptainTom]

By NY I will assume you mean only New York City.

There are many parks in the city. Getting outside the city is a major deal because you are not likely to have a car. If you have the time, take the train up the Hudson River to Albany and back.
Since you say you are taking a one day trip to D.C. I wonder if you realize that travel in the Northeast is not like travel in Texas. Here, if you want to go 300 miles, you can figure 4 hrs travel. In the NYC area, it can take you that long just to get to New Jersey ( not usually , just now and then ).

If by chance you do have a car (parking will cost a fortune, even at a hotel )
I would recommend a trip up the Hudson River and visit the New Paltz area, West Point, etc.

[Duffy Pratt]

From NYC it makes much more sense to go to DC by the Metroliner. It takes about 3.5 hours, and you don't have to deal with traffic.

For wooded areas near NY, you will probably want to go up into Westchester, or Connecticut. You could also try going out to the Water Gap on the border between NJ and Pennsylvania. And there are some smaller areas that are very nice on the north shore of Long Island -- Old Westbury, Upper Brookville, Lloyd Harbor etc...

Duffy

[shifter48]

Go up 87 till you get to Kingston and take a left on 28...The Catskills are realy lovely ...can stop at Woodstock for lunch ...try goin back roads towards Fleischmanns..there's streams and lovely farms in the area....lived there for 5 yrs and shot all over the area all year around and it had a different look in the spring, fall, winter and summer...if you early in the morning you can catch the clouds in the valleys...

Gregg Jacob
D200
70-200 vr
24-70
Gitzo studex pro
4X5
lots of old nikon stuff

[PeteQ]

Lots of options....

Take AMTRAK from NY Penn Station to Albany and back. Ride right along the Hudson River.
Rent a car and hit the Hudson Valley and Shawangunk Mountain. 1.5 hours from the city and some great views. 15 minutes from my house....
Lots of things to see depending on when you are coming and what days you will have to hit the sights.
I go to NYC often but for foliage the Hudson Valley is tough to beat and you will be right in the prime time for the area. It's started to turn and the viewing tourists are starting to make the weekends busy...

[HotHolly]

My fav places are on Long Island. You have the urban looking thing going on at first, and then the farther east you drive, the more it starts to look country again. Plus its kind of compact - you can see beach, forest, urban, and farms within about 100 miles of the NYC airports. I was just told that the trees have all started turning there and the crisp air has come in. I'm so jealous! Take lots of photos no matter where you go and post some for us!

[RandySmith]

Sam -

I grew up in the finger lakes region which is about a 5-6 hour drive from the big city. And to revisit the infamous bumper sticker "I heart NY" does come to mind since there is so much natural beauty in that state. I personally would recommend the wonderful gorges and waterfalls in Watkins Glen and Ithaca area. With the leaves turning about now, you will see some sights that are virtually impossible to see in Texas. I often go to Connecticutt on business and drive up from LaGuardia airport up the Taconic parkway, depending on the time of year the parkways can provide you with nice fall colors along the Hudson river as well. Enjoy your trip.

[Photofan#1]

Thank You All for all your responses . Well I will be in around NY city (1 day in long island,A day In NJ (Union City )I am gonna stay with a friend in Edgewater NJ right across the Hudson river . And then on Sunday evening Drive to DC and spend a day there and then Back to Houston .
If you have taken pics in and around those places or know of any parks close by around there, Can you please let me know .I also want to shoot the Verrazona Bridge .Do you know of any spots around 'that will give me a clear view of the bridge

Someone suggest Harriman park .What about Central park?

[Duffy Pratt]

There is no place in Manhattan to get a good shot of the Verrazano. You will have to go to either Brooklyn or Staten Island for that. Probably Brooklyn. Another possiblity is to go up to Inwood and visit the Cloisters. Theres a good park, Fort Tryon, and some gardens that overlook the river and give great views of the GW Bridge. To get there you would take the A train up to the top of Manhattan or the 1 train to Dykeman Street. (The A train is better for the Cloisters themselves, but the Dykeman street area is a pretty cool neighborhood on its own. Also, if you are so inclined, you could walk over the GW bridge to get some shots, and then take some more from the Palisades side in NJ.

Duffy

[RandySmith]

Sam,

Although I totally am frustrated by this mentality I recommend you be careful "what" you photograph. Since 911 there have been numerous incidents around NYC and other big metro areas where the police, security guards etc., are overzealous in their behaviour to stop people from taking pictures. Last time I was at Grand Central Station I was prohibited to use a tripod without a permit. And I spent over an hour explaining to 10-15 different policemen in Bridgeport Ct for taking pictures of the Long Island ferry as it was approaching in the harbour. Just because you may have "legal" rights to be in a public place taking photo's, there is always the chance nowadays to be harassed, bullied, and possibly threatened ...

So to answer your question on equipment ... taking photo's with a P&S, a cell phone, etc.. may not bring too much attention to you, however, setting up a camera on a tripod with a 600mm lens probably will get some paranoid person to use their cell phone and call the authorities on you ..

[Photofan#1]

Originally Posted by RandySmith

Sam,

Although I totally am frustrated by this mentality I recommend you be careful "what" you photograph. Since 911 there have been numerous incidents around NYC and other big metro areas where the police, security guards etc., are overzealous in their behaviour to stop people from taking pictures. Last time I was at Grand Central Station I was prohibited to use a tripod without a permit. And I spent over an hour explaining to 10-15 different policemen in Bridgeport Ct for taking pictures of the Long Island ferry as it was approaching in the harbour. Just because you may have "legal" rights to be in a public place taking photo's, there is always the chance nowadays to be harassed, bullied, and possibly threatened ...

So to answer your question on equipment ... taking photo's with a P&S, a cell phone, etc.. may not bring too much attention to you, however, setting up a camera on a tripod with a 600mm lens probably will get some paranoid person to use their cell phone and call the authorities on you ..

Thanks for the headsup Randy

[HotHolly]

Originally Posted by Photofan#1

I also want to shoot the Verrazona Bridge .Do you know of any spots around 'that will give me a clear view of the bridge

You may already know the name of the park - I just know it from sight. There is a spot where you can pull off the Belt Pkwy right before the exit to go on the bridge (from Long Island - I think that's Queens if Im not brain dead tonight). It offers a really nice angle of the bridge and you wont get run over - unless someone is gunning for your camera.

[Steve O Chap]

Originally Posted by RandySmith

Sam -

I grew up in the finger lakes region which is about a 5-6 hour drive from the big city. And to revisit the infamous bumper sticker "I heart NY" does come to mind since there is so much natural beauty in that state. I personally would recommend the wonderful gorges and waterfalls in Watkins Glen and Ithaca area. With the leaves turning about now, you will see some sights that are virtually impossible to see in Texas. I often go to Connecticutt on business and drive up from LaGuardia airport up the Taconic parkway, depending on the time of year the parkways can provide you with nice fall colors along the Hudson river as well. Enjoy your trip.

I grew up in the finger lakes region too! I've only been gone for 5 years but it seems like an eternity, I miss the area greatly. Watkins Glen and Ithaca are beautiful. Tons of spectacular waterfalls and scenic areas.

I think my favorite slogan from the area is "Ithaca is Gorge-ous" obviously in reference to all natural gorges and falls...

[pico23]

Originally Posted by Photofan#1

Hi Guys
I have a business trip coming up in the Middle of Oct to New York

There is NYC and NY. Big difference. I grew up in the NYC metro area, and lived there 18 of the last 30 years but drive two hours north and you might as well be in another world. NY is a diverse state. As diverse as Texas. More than suburbs and cities.

13 million of the 18 million people in NY State live in the metro area so the state is quite a bit more rural than people imagine.

don't worry about 9/11 photography. Yes, a few cops might harass you, but more likely it will be private "rentacops" who have 0 authority unless you give it to them. I have family that are NYPD and cops do enjoy harassing people at times (kind of a stress reliever/power trip thing), but most cops also realize tourist pay a lot of the cities bills and thus give them job security. In theory they are wrong when they do give you a hard time for photographing as there is not a single photographic law in the Patriot Act, and the brief NYC ban on subway photography was repealed almost instantl, but as my cop siblings have told me, I have the shield and cuffs, I am getting paid to argue, if you want to argue go for it. Just be polite and pick your legal fights as you see fit.

Tripods!!! Technically you are supposed to apply for a free tripod permit in NYC. There is some debate as to whether that is for comercial shooters only but...JUST GET IT. It's free, easy to obtain and gives you legal city authority to use a tripod in public places. Remember subway tubes and train stations are not public. Grand central is not public, and only the station manager can give you a permit to use a tripod. If you think about it logically there is a safety hazard in putting a tripod up on a subway platform, or in GCT during rush hour.

Good luck, and a few shots from NY this summer and fall. BTW, it was a crappy fall. We had record low rain levels over the course of the year. So low the NYS Canal system is closing 2 weeks early. And as an avid paddler I've never seen the water levels this low in 8 years in the Daks.

[pico23]

Originally Posted by HotHolly

You may already know the name of the park - I just know it from sight. There is a spot where you can pull off the Belt Pkwy right before the exit to go on the bridge (from Long Island - I think that's Queens if Im not brain dead tonight). It offers a really nice angle of the bridge and you wont get run over - unless someone is gunning for your camera.

Missed this.

My parents live directly across the park from the bridge, great view from their living room window. It's in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn. No access issues.

It's Shore Road Park off, you guessed it, Shore Rd. The area is pretty wealthy, so just hop on an express bus from Wall St/Broadway and you're there. Or take the R train. It's about a 5-10 minute walk from the R train to Shore Road. If you're not used to public transit and walking on city streets you will be better off taking the express bus (sorry don't know the #) as it's all professionals (not as in prostitutes, as in stock brokers, dr's, engineers, etc). However, if you're OK with walking around it's about as nice an area as you could ask for. Lots of good restaurants too. For something a bit less expensive but good value/good food. Look up the "Salty Dog". it's about 1 mile from Erikson park. Has a FDNY flair to it. And there is an R train stop not too far away. http://www.saltydogbar.com/

Good luck and have fun if you aren't already gone...