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Recreating a Classic Image

the NYC Skyline from Pier 1, Brooklyn Bridge Park

By Werner Vogels

September 1^st, 2014

When I was in NYC for the August I asked urban photographer Genevieve Pring of Gen’s Lens what would be a great classic shot to work on in terms of composition and framing. She suggested the image of the Manhattan skyline as seen from the old Pier 1 in Brooklyn Bridge Park as seen in the well known images below.

So I set out to Brooklyn on Friday August 29 to see if I could recreate some of that classic image. The conditions were less than ideal as the sun was super bright and coming at 10 o’clock. I shot the images with the Leica M9 and the 35mm f/1.4 ASPH Summilux-M. A 28mm lens would probably have been better as I couldn’t capture the completeness of the old images. There also was a lot of “noise”; big boats, ferries, etc., that forced me to be very patient.

I got a few reasonable shots but none of them are close to the classic ones. It was a great exercise to have to recreate something that is already so well known. Yet another good photographic educational growth opportunity :-)