By: Thorsten Overgaard. June 9, 2023.

Today, a little photo essay from New York in May 2023. My favorite cities for photography are the ones where walking takes precedence over driving. In terms of steps, New York surpasses them all, with Paris in second place.

1st Avenue in New York. Leica M10-R with 50mm ELCAN f/2.0 by Light Lens Lab. © Thorsten Overgaard.

 

In New York, time can be measured in streets, as it takes approximately 90 seconds per street. Walking from 29th Street to 53rd Street, for instance, simply takes 21 minutes. However, the phrase "A New York Minute" is a humorous exaggeration, as it only takes half a second before a car honks behind you, and 10 seconds before someone utters something unpleasant. In other words, everything moves swiftly in New York, allowing for extensive walks in a single day.

As photographers, the scene changes with every corner turned. Harsh sunlight gives way to shadows and reflections. For example, walking on E 9th Street from 3rd Avenue to 2nd Avenue, then to 1st Avenue, Avenue A, and finally Avenue B - a 10-minute walk without photography - the neighborhoods transition from Japanese restaurants to modern hipster spots, to pierced and tattooed youngsters with their dogs, and finally to an area inhabited by old hippies holding onto their apartments and vintage cars. All within a stretch of 600-700 meters. With a camera, the same route could easily take an hour.

 

Who would have known? In the middle of Manhattan, on 2nd Street, suddenly there is this closed-to-the-public graveyard, The New York City Marble Cemetery, where the birds and squirrels enjoy the early sun in May. Leica M10-R with Leica 50mm Noctilux-M ASPH f/0.95. © Thorsten Overgaard.

 

Marco Diaz experimenting with light and shade on the Upper East Side. I tend to alternate the workshop days between two or three neighborhoods in New York. Leica M10-R with 50mm ELCAN f/2.0 by Light Lens Lab. © Thorsten Overgaard.

I am proud that Denmark is my home country, where you are never more than a 45-minute drive from the ocean. It showcases the compactness of the country or, alternatively, the abundance of water. Similarly, no matter where you are in New York, you are never more than a 3-minute walk away from a photo opportunity.

The next New York workshop can be found here: Overgaard Workshop New York.

 

New York has small pockets where time has been standing still. Here the Lexington Candy Shop diner on the corner of Lexington and E 83th Street that has been run by the same family for three generations. Leica M10-R with 50mm ELCAN f/2.0 by Light Lens Lab. © Thorsten Overgaard.

 

Street portrait in New York. Leica M10-R with Leica 50mm Noctilux-M ASPH f/0.95. © Thorsten Overgaard.

Down in a basement, a class in making Japanese jewelry, attended by eight New Yorkers of all ages. Leica M10-R with Leica 50mm Noctilux-M ASPH f/0.95. © Thorsten Overgaard.

Taking quiet moment with a book in a coffee bar. Leica M10-R with Leica 50mm Noctilux-M ASPH f/0.95. © Thorsten Overgaard.

 

1st Avenue in New York. Leica M10-R with Leica 50mm Noctilux-M ASPH f/0.95. © Thorsten Overgaard.

Colors of New York. Leica M10-R with 50mm ELCAN f/2.0 by Light Lens Lab. © Thorsten Overgaard.

 

Layla taking a break from photography in monochrome. Leica M10-R with Leica 50mm Noctilux-M ASPH f/0.95. © Thorsten Overgaard.

 

Hotel at Lower East Side. Leica M10-R with 50mm ELCAN f/2.0 by Light Lens Lab. © Thorsten Overgaard.

 

A classic car on 11th Street, displaying with glory and rust, and then this "Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas!" metal plate. Leica M10-R with Leica 50mm Noctilux-M ASPH f/0.95. © Thorsten Overgaard.

 

A view over New York from the rooftop of The Ludlow Hotel. Leica M10-R with 50mm ELCAN f/2.0 by Light Lens Lab. © Thorsten Overgaard.

 

Katz's Delicatessen on Ludlow Street pretty much is full like this all day, and likely like this since they opened in 1888. I haven't tried their food. Leica M10-R with 50mm ELCAN f/2.0 by Light Lens Lab. © Thorsten Overgaard.

 

Sisters having lunch in a diner. Leica M10-R with 50mm ELCAN f/2.0 by Light Lens Lab. © Thorsten Overgaard.

 

Reading a letter aloud from a distant releative. At least, that's the story I decided I was photographing. Leica M10-R with Leica 50mm Noctilux-M ASPH f/0.95. © Thorsten Overgaard.

 

While, at the next table, a girl is taking a 35mm film photo of a firned. Leica M10-R with Leica 50mm Noctilux-M ASPH f/0.95. © Thorsten Overgaard.

 

Leica M10-R with 50mm ELCAN f/2.0 by Light Lens Lab. © Thorsten Overgaard.

 

Love on 9th Street. Leica M10-R with Leica 50mm Noctilux-M ASPH f/0.95. © Thorsten Overgaard.

 

New York. Leica M10-R with 50mm ELCAN f/2.0 by Light Lens Lab. © Thorsten Overgaard.

 

Brad is a respected lawyer, which you rally can't tell from this scene of him capturing a photo in the workshop. Leica M10-R with 50mm ELCAN f/2.0 by Light Lens Lab. © Thorsten Overgaard.

 

Doing portraits in the workshop. Leica M10-R with Leica 50mm Noctilux-M ASPH f/0.95. © Thorsten Overgaard.

 

A couple waiting for their car. Leica M10-R with Leica 50mm Noctilux-M ASPH f/0.95. © Thorsten Overgaard.

Upper East Side. Leica M10-R with 50mm ELCAN f/2.0 by Light Lens Lab. © Thorsten Overgaard.

 

Aneil Batra making a composition with the threes and reflective surfaces in front of The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Leica M10-R with 50mm ELCAN f/2.0 by Light Lens Lab. © Thorsten Overgaard.

 

Tompkins Square Park. Many of the parks in New York have "square park" in their names, which I find unnecessary since square parks are more common than oval parks. However, it does have a good ring to it. In this photo the park looks less quare. Leica M10-R with Leica 50mm Noctilux-M ASPH f/0.95. © Thorsten Overgaard.

 

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A bit of rain can bei a good thing, it gives reflections and different scenes. Some times rain is a great excuse for staying home and reading a book, but occasionally it is worth facing the music and make ohotos. Leica M10-R with 50mm ELCAN f/2.0 by Light Lens Lab. © Thorsten Overgaard.

 

Inside the library at J P Morgan Library & Museum (on 225 Madison Avenue), which was the private library of a collector. I didn't read through all the titles, but from what I noticed, it looked more like a book collector library than library of an avid book reader. A fascinating room, and you cannot help imagining yourself spending a life inside those walls. Leica M10-R with Leica 50mm Noctilux-M ASPH f/0.95. © Thorsten Overgaard.

 

Men at work at 9th Street. Leica M10-R with Leica 50mm Noctilux-M ASPH f/0.95. © Thorsten Overgaard.

 

 

Dinner with my step daughter Mia in the Diner NYC on Brooklyn. Leica M10-R with 50mm ELCAN f/2.0 by Light Lens Lab. © Thorsten Overgaard.

A park in New York. Leica M10-R with Leica 50mm Noctilux-M ASPH f/0.95. © Thorsten Overgaard.

 

New York. Leica M10-R with Leica 50mm Noctilux-M ASPH f/0.95. © Thorsten Overgaard.

 

When you are out photographing, you start to appreciate small things, as if it was the first time you noticed they exists. Leica M10-R with Leica 50mm Noctilux-M ASPH f/0.95. © Thorsten Overgaard.

The corner of New York Library seen from above. Leica M10-R with Leica 50mm Noctilux-M ASPH f/0.95. © Thorsten Overgaard.

I sometimes think that I have grown tired of people in the last few years when notice how often I am perfectly content taking photos without people in them. However, when I look through the photos form New York, I see it is not the case. There is still lots of people.

 

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A stair in New York Public Library waiting for a person to walk into the frame. I wasn't patient enough to wait for the right one, but I know the stair will be there next time. Leica M10-R with Leica 50mm Noctilux-M ASPH f/0.95. © Thorsten Overgaard.

 

Understanding art. Leica M10-R with Leica 50mm Noctilux-M ASPH f/0.95. © Thorsten Overgaard.

 

See you soon in a workshop

The next New York workshop can be found here: Overgaard Workshop New York. If New York is not your thing, then check the other workshop locations here: workshops.thorsten-overgaard.com

More to come

Bon voyage with it all. Sign up for the newsletter to stay in the know. As always, feel free to email me with suggestions, questions and ideas.

/Thorsten Overgaard

 

 

 

Review of Overgaard Workshops: The Workshop Video 2014

Filmed in Paris, London and Berlin, September 2013, with Leica M 240 and Leica 50mm Noctilux-M ASPH f/0.95 and Leica 21mm Summilux-M ASPH f/1.4. Sennheiser wireless microphones. Music by Beyonce: "Credits"

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