Brooklyn Bridge

Where: New York, NY

When: July 2008

With: Danny & Matt; PwC crew

In 2008, one of New York's oldest and most iconic bridges became part of a temporary art installation that made it an impending must-do for the summer. Despite my three years in New York, I'd never crossed on foot along the Brooklyn Bridge so this would be the time to finally get this one done. On top of it, I had just gotten my beautiful bebecito of a digital SLR camera, but was unsure how to go about utilizing it to its fullest extent. So one of my kickball friends who was very much into photography offered to give me a crash course lesson using the Bridge as our subject. 

Spanning the East River and connecting the boroughs of Manhattan and Brooklyn, the Brooklyn Bridge was completed in 1883. It was the first bridge over the East River, the first to use steel-wire suspension, and remains one of the oldest roadways in the US (that's a lot of superlatives). The view of this bridge is a staple for lower Manhattan and Dumbo in Brooklyn. 

We started our photographic journey at sunset on foot crossing the bridge from the Lower East Side. 

It conveniently keeps cars and subways on the lower levels, while pedestrians and cyclists are on the top level out of harm's way. While technically, pedestrians and cyclists are also separated by these painted lanes, it is part of the experience to have cyclists whiz by shouting obscenities to oblivious tourists blocking their commute home. 

When I think about the bridge, I just picture it being made completely of bricks. It's funny to walk it though and appreciate all those steel cables that suspend the bridge over the river. They disappear from view so easily when seeing it from afar. 

Views back on lower Manhattan from the bridge. 

Views of Midtown Manhattan. 

You can even see Lady Liberty in the distance from here (and of course, NJ <3). 

As the sun went down, we made our way back to Manhattan to really begin our photography lesson while also appreciating the waterfall art exhibit. New York City Waterfalls by artist Olafur Eliasson was the installation of four waterfalls along the East River between June and October that year. At night, they were illuminated. From the South Street Seaport in Manhattan, we had a clear view of two of them: at the East River Esplanade, and obviously, at the Brooklyn Bridge.

As the night came in and the falls illuminated, I learned how to adjust my beautiful camera for night photography. 

With a couple of great tips on timers, tripods and long exposure, I got some epic photos pretty quickly. 

Back to that East River waterfall at night. 

I even got some amazing shots back at Manhattan, the South Street Seaport, and the moon. 

But hands down, it was my shots of the Brooklyn Bridge that night that remain some of the best photos I feel like I've ever taken in my life.

The rest of that summer, any time there was an event, corporate or social, a boat cruise on the East River was the hot thing to do for the sake of viewing the waterfalls. I had two cruises that year. The first was a a sunset cruise with kickball friends. While the bouncing boat didn't allow me to take the same epic night shots, I got some new angles as we cruised up the river and under the bridge. 

We also got to see some of the waterfalls further up the River in the fading light, particularly under the Manhattan Bridge. 

A few weeks later, I had my summer corporate outing with work...and of course, we had a cruise up the East River to appreciate the waterfalls. But again, some more great shots of the Brooklyn Bridge ensued. 

And this time, with new lighting: broad daylight!

Apparently one of the biggest complaints of this installation was that on windy days, the salt water was blowing into local parks and killing plant life. In fact, some Brooklyn authorities ask that it be taken down sooner than the October end date (this was not acknowledged or acquiesced). 

But for that summer, we got some pretty fun and unique views of the Brooklyn Bridge. 

While this epic landmark of New York is amazing in and of itself, I'm very happy I got to experience it in such a unique way that summer. It's amazing it has stood as long as it has, and I hope it continues to stand for many years more.