I know that some photographers try to avoid well known and recognizable places when they travel as they are always in search of new and unique spots. I have a different approach when visiting iconic locations. I treat them as a personal challenge and, instead, work hard trying to make my photos unique. Sometimes it works, sometimes it does not; but, I always have fun trying.
That was the exact challenge I faced while visiting Rockefeller Center in New York. The view from the observation deck towards the downtown is one of the most recognizable in the world. There is so much going on in front of you: the Empire State Building, Lower Manhattan, Hudson and East rivers, Statue of Liberty, Jersey City, bridges, etc.
Thousands and thousands of photos are taken from exactly the same spot where I was standing. This is when I decided to do something different; I tilted my camera and took three bracketed shots. I broke my first rule of photography which states – always keep the horizon horizontal. I topped it with black and white treatment in post-processing and achieved quite an unconventional photo of an iconic location.
Loc: 40.75905, -73.97841
Deconstructing Featured Photo
- Camera: Canon 60D
- Lens: Sigma 17-70mm
- Focal Length: 36mm
- ISO: 100
- Aperture: F7.1
- Bracketing: 3 shots ( -1, 0, +1)
- Tripod: handheld
Processing
Lightroom: import, tagging, export to Photomatix
Photomatix: I used only 3 images to tone map image ( -1, 0, +1), 16-bit tiff image was exported to Lightroom. (check my tutorial Before & After – HDR With Photomatix)
Lightroom: cropping, export as PSD image
Photoshop: cleaning, black & white conversion, contrast.
Photoshop Plugins:
- Topaz DeNoise was used to reduce digital noise (sky, water )
- Topaz Clarity was used to enhance architectural details.
