New York City

The city that never sleeps! I know that’s a bit cliche, but it really is true.

There is life all over the city. Breathing. Growing. A massive ball of energy.

It’s everywhere you look and even more prominent where you don’t look. It all happens very quickly, though. Fleeting. In a blink of an eye.

I had the most wonderful opportunity to photograph the beautiful wedding of a beautiful bride in this beautiful city last week(more on that later – with some preview images to follow!). However, instead of just doing a shoot-and-run, I decided to make the most of the trip and made a little vacation out of it. After all, this is my first time to visit the Big Apple as an adult. As some of you know, I love to do candid street photography, and what better place to take advantage of that than NYC!?

Much to my chagrin, taking street photos in New York City is much more daunting and difficult that I previously manifested it to be in my head. It’s a bit overwhelming, to say the least. Every single one of your senses is being over-stimulated simultaneously from all different directions. It’s hard to pick and choose what to shoot. It was all a little shocking. My first hour on the streets was spent in observation and a few failed attempts to try and determine the speed at which the city moves. At this point, I didn’t even know if I was going to be able to take pictures at all. I was in shock. For a brief moment, the idea of taking pictures felt really, really foreign to me. I felt a little sad. What to do?

I had to snap out of it. I had to remove myself from that state of shock that had put me in a trance. I knew that I had to just start clicking away and that everything would just fall into place. I think that’s what happened. I just found my zone and started doing what I normally do – shoving my camera and lens into people’s spaces, their personal hoola-hoops, their lives. I think I got away with some cool pictures. Here’s what I saw…

(Sorry, there are A LOT of pictures in this set)