New York City Skyline
Photography & Prints
To purchase, please order in lightbox (or contact me directly).
“It’ll be a great place if they ever finish it.”
– O. Henry
On a clear winter afternoon the Manhattan skyline is three different cities in a single hour — flat gray steel, then gold, then a wall of lit windows against a blue that doesn’t last. These are New York City skyline prints from a 25-year obsessive archive — panoramic views, the bridges and waterfront, the towers at blue hour and after dark. For the broader street-level city — neighborhoods, architecture, details — see my New York cityscape & urban-landscape prints. Order in the lightbox, or reach out and I’ll help you find the right frame and size.
Archival Photographic Prints
After studying photography and printing at the International Center for Photography in the early ’00s, I’ve been obsessively photographing New York City ever since. And as a part-time historian and NYC guide, I can’t imagine there are many who have walked the city more in that timeframe.
My archive consists of both the unique, daily life in the city, as well as the classic and popular views, including the skyscrapers, skyline, Central Park, and architectural marvels, in all seasons. I work with major firms, art buyers, interior designers, and architects. I love the art of printing, getting to create, experience, and then share a little treasure.
All prints are made with museum-quality archival photography paper, are signed, and come with a certificate of authenticity. Prints are offered in a variety of sizes, I can handle or advise on framing, and I offer installation planning and services. Installing the finished products on walls is one of the most satisfying parts of the job.
In my spare time, I am also a documentary and street photographer, and I have captured a large variety of happenings around the city. I can also send customized selections of work for review based on your interests and needs.
The New York City Skyline, Day and Night
The Manhattan skyline never holds still. It’s sharp and graphic at midday, gold and pink at sunset, and electric after dark — three cities in a single evening if you stay for the whole light. This collection runs from wide panoramic New York City skyline prints to night skyline photography and long-exposure cityscapes that pull the moving city into streaks of light and color.
Manhattan Skyline Views from the Water & Boroughs
Some of the best skyline views aren’t in Manhattan at all — they’re across the water, looking back at it. New York is an island city, and you don’t fully understand its shape until you’ve watched it stand up out of the harbor. These frames come from the Brooklyn and Williamsburg waterfronts, the East and Hudson Rivers, and the long views from Sunset Park and Long Island City.
Bridges & Waterfront Cityscapes
Manhattan Bridge is my favorite place in the whole city to photograph the skyline — midway across, the Brooklyn Bridge lines up below you in the postcard angle everyone wants, usually with nobody there to share it. Come down into DUMBO and the bridge frames the Empire State Building squarely between its stone supports. See the full collection in my Brooklyn Bridge print gallery.
Downtown Manhattan & One World Trade Skyline
Lower Manhattan — where I give most of my NYC tours — stacks the towers of the Financial District with One World Trade rising over all of it, caught here at sunset and blue hour. Browse my One World Trade Center print gallery.
Midtown Skyline Icons: Empire State, Chrysler & Grand Central
Midtown is the skyline most people picture first, and each of its landmarks has its own gallery: Empire State Building, Chrysler Building, Rockefeller Center, and Grand Central.
The West Side Skyline: High Line & Hudson Yards
The West Side is the newest skyline in the city — the High Line and Hudson Yards rewrote it inside a decade, and I photographed the raw trainyards before the towers went up. See more in my High Line print gallery.
The NYC Skyline at Night & Long Exposures
Simply speaking, there is nothing cooler than New York City at night. I walk with a small camera and shoot by window light, set up long exposures on a tripod, and let the skyline dissolve into color and motion. Because I give night photography tours, I’ve had years to find the exact spots where the lit skyline is at its best.
The Changing Skyline — Supertalls & New Towers
The skyline I first photographed in 2005 isn’t the one out there now. In under two decades a row of impossibly thin supertalls has risen along Central Park South — Billionaires’ Row — and the Brooklyn skyline has grown its own tower to answer them. I’ve kept photographing the whole time, which means this archive is also a record of the city rewriting its own silhouette. These are prints of the skyline as it’s changing, caught mid-sentence.
View Popular Collections
New York City Skyline Photography — FAQ
Where is the best place to photograph the New York City skyline?
There's no single best spot — each vantage point gives you a different city. For a classic wide view, go to Top of the Rock at dusk or the Brooklyn waterfront in DUMBO (Main Street Park and Pier 1). For the skyline rising straight off green, stand in the middle of Sheep Meadow in Central Park. For the most iconic framed shot, find the Empire State Building set between the supports of the Manhattan Bridge at Washington and Front Street. And for the full sweep of the skyline, ride the Staten Island Ferry at sunset.
What's the best time of day to shoot the Manhattan skyline?
The two hours around sunset. Arrive with about 45 minutes of daylight left and keep shooting through the blue hour after sundown, when the buildings are lit but the sky still holds color. Winter afternoons are especially good — clear air, thin crowds, and an early sunset.
Where can you see the NYC skyline from Brooklyn?
The Brooklyn waterfront has some of the best skyline views in the city. In DUMBO, Main Street Park puts the Manhattan skyline right across the river at eye level, and Pier 1 in Brooklyn Bridge Park sets rows of old wooden pilings in front of Lower Manhattan. Farther south and east, the Williamsburg waterfront and Sunset Park look back at Midtown and downtown from a distance.
Can I buy prints of your New York skyline photos?
Yes. Most images here are available as signed fine-art prints in a range of sizes. Visit the prints page or contact me for a specific view or custom size.
Do I need a tripod to photograph the skyline?
For daytime, no. For dusk, blue hour, and night, a tripod helps a lot — especially at Sheep Meadow (where the fence runs tall) and on the Manhattan Bridge. Note that Top of the Rock and Grand Central don't allow tripods, so plan to steady your camera on a ledge instead.
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