This week I practically ran out onto the streets of New York, camera in hand, ready to capture something amazing. New York was the hub of the US election over the last couple of weeks and I was so excited to be in the middle of it. On election night Ed and I wandered into midtown to be amongst the frivolities of election night; we wanted to be there when history was made. 5th Avenue was teaming with security as we passed Trump Tower and The Peninsula Hotel, the midtown bases for the candidates (can you guess which was which?), there was a mariachi band, and Rockefeller Plaza had been reinvented as the epicentre of the election coverage going temporarily under the moniker “Democracy Plaza”. US flags rippled above us, replacing, for one night only, the other nations of the world that usually adorn the plaza. You could see stars and stripes everywhere. It was incredible.
I had a blog post ready to go, arrogantly thinking that “I would have been there when history was made” and the US elected its first female president. But no, history was made in a very different way, and the US was polarised.
You have, most probably, seen the footage of New Yorkers protesting Trump and you might think that I might have got some incredible pictures... but I didn't.
And with the Super Moon over the last couple of days, you might also think I could come up with some cracking night time shots. But no, it appears my photographic skills decided to take the last couple of weeks off. I didn't like any of my images, nothing was quite the way I wanted and the Leading Lines you challenged me to find just weren't making an appearance when the pictures transitioned from the camera to the computer.
So, having nothing to show for my efforts over the last couple of weeks, I decided to dig into my back catalogue and see if anything caught my eye. It turns out, that I'm not particularly adept at using leading lines in my photography, which is something I'll be remedying as I continue to improve. I did, however, find one shot that leads me to believe that there is hope yet for my ability to use leading lines to get that cracking image we're always after.
This is Atlas. He has been condemned to carry the world on his shoulders whilst gazing onto St Patrick's Cathedral. Not a bad view, huh? He is widely photographed, but people rarely stop to hang out with him as there is nowhere to sit and take the massive sculpture in... unless you want to grab a pew on the steps of St Patrick's. I've walked past him so many times and this is the first time I took him in before taking some pictures (of which, I took many).
Now, this is not a revolutionary picture, and if you searched, you'd definitely find images along the same vein, BUT I’m proud of it because the edit was such a pain. I worked for ages trying to dull the lights at the top so they didn't distract from Atlas and then trying to correct the colours. Although I have a really long way to go when it comes to editing colour, I'm pretty pleased with how it came out.
For your theme this week I'd like you to find the Greek Mythology in London town.
Happy Snapping!
New York x