It’s often been said that half the battle is won by simply showing up, and in photography, that’s no different.  Half the battle of making a photograph is simply showing up and putting yourself in the position to be able to take the shot.  Sometimes that means getting up at some miserable hour of the night to drive several hours to get to a site before sunrise and the golden hour.  Sometimes it means hiking a distance  you’d rather you didn’t have to.  Sometimes it means just putting in the hard work to make sure all the elements of a shoot at home are in place and ready to go.

I’m not going to tell you that great shots can’t be had by happenstance and without preparation.  We all have an example of a “lucky shot” that we got simply by accident.  But those are few and far between, and you cannot count on chance to provide you with great shot opportunities on a regular basis.  To rise above, to be able to take better shots on a consistent basis, you have to put in the work and plan towards those shots.

As for my beach shoot — well, I worked towards it, planned it and did what I had to do to get the best shots possible.  How’d it turn out?  Well… you tell me.  Here’s what I shot that cold, January morning at Brighton Beach:

In the end, I narrowed my choices down to two pictures.

The first, titled “Freedom’s Arrow” is a shot taken from the base of the new One World Trade Center in downtown Manhattan.  I stood at the base of the tower and simply pointed my camera up.  This was the result:

The other shot that I liked was one that I took from the Brooklyn Bridge.  There are lots of things to focus on while on the bridge, but I was out looking for patterns and found something that appealed to me:

I like this shot because of the repeating patterns and the leading lines that lead you straight to the center portion of the arches and the flag.

In the end, I chose the tower picture.  I like the simplicity of it and the blue of the sky and the tower windows.

What do you think?  Did I make the right choice?  Or should I have gone with the bridge shot?

Zev

One of my favorite parts of the park is The Lake.  The Lake is located (mostly) on the west side of the park from 72nd to 77th street.  One of the most-photographed places in Central Park is Bethesda Fountain, which is right by The Lake.

There is a path that goes around The Lake, which includes many of the iconic spots of the park, including the Bow Bridge and the Boathouse.   After spending some time around the fountain, we walked the path around The Lake.  This shot was taken from that path.

As always, feel free to comment on the picture.  In addition, please feel free to like my Facebook page and share my pictures.

As always, comments, critiques and criticisms are welcome, encouraged and appreciated.

Zev

I knew his advice was spot on because this little piece of advice worked out for me a few years back.  Lisa and I took a vacation to a little spot in Vermont called Quechee.  I’m a sucker for waterfall shots, so I went to photograph a local waterfall and covered bridge.  The shots I got from there were okay, but nothing spectacular.  However, as I was packing up to leave, I turned around and beheld a portion of the Outtaquechee River.

This vision was far prettier than the waterfall and the bridge.  I was so focused on the waterfall, however, that I nearly missed this vista.  This episode taught me to not get locked into “tunnel vision” and make sure to not only photograph my primary subject, but also to take a few minutes to look around and see what else there is to shoot.  You might be very pleasantly surprised.

Zev

I took some nice shots, but the shot I’m proudest of is this panorama of the New York City skyline.  I took this at sunset from Brooklyn Bridge Park.  This is a panorama of eight shots stitched together.

NYC Skyline From Brooklyn Bridge Park