NYC from street level

[lord xeon]

A couple weeks ago was the Manhattanhenge, the twice annual event when the setting sun lines up perfectly with the cross streets of Manhattan. My friend and myself walked around the city for the day and looked for the perfect spot to take some pictures. We ended up 2 avenues too far east, but I think I got some good shots here is my favorite one:

Taxi Street

info:
1/8s | f/9 | 16mm | 200 ISO

Taken with my Nikon D60 and Tokina 11-16mm ultra-wide lens.
The full size (3872 X 2592) version is viewable here

The part that bothers me the most is the over exposure of the sky, but even that doesn't bother me alot.

I haven't touched this at all in post processing, and I tend not to do any post processing work on my shots to begin with, so the basics of what I'm asking is how could I fix the sky a bit?

[KansaiGreenie]

Hi lord xeon,

You've got a pretty interesting nickname and avatar.

This is a very captivating image. I'm quite drawn to it. I love the unique angle and the blurred action. It's a very well done photograph.

The part that bothers me the most is the over exposure of the sky, but even that doesn't bother me alot.

I'm not bothered by the overexposed sky at all. In fact, I think it is one of the reasons why the image works as well as it does. I think detail in the sky will detract from the rest of the image. I would leave it as it is.

how could I fix the sky a bit?

That's a pretty big question and depends a lot on how you shot the image and what kind of software that you have. There are dozens of things you can do. If you shot a RAW image... and if you have Photoshop... here are a couple of suggestions.

First, you could use the recovery feature of Adobe Camera RAW. Basically it's a slider that brings back detail in overexposed areas. (Please note that this only works with RAW files.) Second, you could reduce the overall exposure of the image to bring in detail in the sky, then layer it with the image as it is now and mask out the sky to bring in the detail. This will work best with a RAW file, but you should be able to do it with a JPEG as well.

Those are just a couple of suggestions, but I wouldn't change anything. I really like this image just as it is.

KG

[lord xeon]

Originally Posted by KansaiGreenie

Hi lord xeon,

You've got a pretty interesting nickname and avatar.

been using that name for close to 10 years now, it's pronounced like the gas station - exxon. And my avatar is Cobra Commander from G.I. Joe, my favorite show from when I was a kid.

This is a very captivating image. I'm quite drawn to it. I love the unique angle and the blurred action. It's a very well done photograph.

Thankyou, I played around with places in the street to put the camera, trying to get some attention to draw into the shot and the double yellow lines were the best bet I think. The white lines of the crosswalk were too far appart.
I try to work in creativity with the huge field of view offered with an ultra wide lens, and I think that that Tokina was the best $700 I ever spent.

I'm not bothered by the overexposed sky at all. In fact, I think it is one of the reasons why the image works as well as it does. I think detail in the sky will detract from the rest of the image. I would leave it as it is.

The more I look at it and use it as a desktop, the more i start to not mind the way the sky is too much.

As for the photo itself, I shoot in jpeg. I rarely do any post processing that would warrant using raw. I know all the advantages of using raw, I just choose not to, I'm stubborn.

[terri33inne]

I love this shot, and am impressed to think about what you had to do to get it. I like the motion mixed w/ stillness of the cabs & the pop of color they bring. I also love the street lines.

Personally I would rather see some sky/clouds @ the end of the street, or a subject. The street lines are naturally drawing the eye to that area of the photo, and when the eye arrives it's white space. That's just my opinion, and I do love the shot.

[B/rayn]

I love this shot, really want to know how u managed to get it? (As in not run over while in the centre of the road)

[lord xeon]

Originally Posted by terri33inne

Personally I would rather see some sky/clouds @ the end of the street, or a subject. The street lines are naturally drawing the eye to that area of the photo, and when the eye arrives it's white space. That's just my opinion, and I do love the shot.

The sky was pretty bland actually. There were a few clouds, but because there was only a sliver of the sky they wouldn't have been in the frame regardless of the exposure.

really want to know how u managed to get it? (As in not run over while in the centre of the road)

I was at 34th and 3rd, and it was a Sunday night, so it wasn't exactly bumper to bumper. This intersection had a "dead zone" in the middle of the street where we able to stand and that's where I was. I didn't actually look through the viewfinder to take this shot, I just placed the camera on the ground and pressed the shutter a few times.

I did that for about 3 red light cycles, looking over each picture to see what to change on the camera - shutter speed, f stop, focus, and placement.

This was one of the last shots I got that night, and it really was all to chance. I wasn't timing it right for the taxi to turn into me, I was just making sure I wasn't gonna get run over.