Rainy Stroll Through Central Park
I decided to take a stroll through a drizzly Central Park armed only with my 35-mm lens.
I wanted to capture the gray emptiness of the park, and recognoze that the park’s beauty is timeless and independent of the conditions. Rain always lends itself to black and white, but I also want to celebrate the greenness of spring’s new growth.
The old elms in Central Park shelter its mall walkers.
I fiddled with the color in this photo, obviously, leaving only the hue of the umbrella. I will never tire of seeing the sinuous elm trees here.
The Bow Bridge
Rainy days and freezing days are the only time the Bow Bridge is relatively empty—I prefer the former.
I thought this was one of my best from this day. The Bow Bridge is always a favorable subect, but with the shinyness and reflections and the lone person walking away, this shot made me happy. I did a lot of developing work on the bridge planks to bring out some of their texture.
Ramble Path
Capturing the Ramble and its hidden spots is challenging—it truly is a forest in Manhattan, albeit a small one. I love the detail of these tiny bridges, and grascale photos really highlight the texture. The street light is on, so it’s getting dark. If anything, this suffers from an overload of texture—the stone is lost in all the leaves.
A path in Central Park's woodsy maze, The Ramble.
Bethesda Fountain
OK, I’ll admit it, I cheated a bit on this one. The shot is real, from just inside the arcade. I wanted the angel to stand out, even at this distance, so I endeavored to prune some of the background trees. You can see the original if you hover over the image.
Central Park's Bethesda Terrace, where the angel awaits.
Hover over image
to see original
The Elm-lined Mall
The Mall in Central Park. Lined with American Elm trees, it's a delightful place to walk all year round.
I know I’m not alone in feeling immense satisfation for a tree-lined drive, and the Mall’s wide path for pedestrians is majestic for me. The newly appeared, spring leaves is an added delight.
The Pond
Gapstow Bridge over the Pond in Central Park. One of the most glorious juxtopositions of urban and nature.
Central Park's Pond and the hovering cityscape. The Plaza overlooks the water.
Two shots from The Pond, tucked into the corner of the park it superbly frames a busy part of the city. The reflections from The Plaza were an unexpected surprise—that hotel is better lit than the eye perceives.