Picture This

Picture This!
Skyline—A City’s Face

Shutterbug Staff  |  May 1, 2008

Our Picture This! assignment this month was all about cityscapes and how we associate a city with the grandeur of its buildings and how the architecture defines its space. Yes, cities have millions of stories within them, but when you step back and view it from a distance it's about its profile and the face it presents to the world. Readers responded with mostly idealized visions, which we sought, as well as abstractions that emphasized the form and scale of the environments. We got to do some world travel with this assignment, and received many more images that we wanted to include than space allowed.

Rotterdam, Netherlands

Tom Atkins added an extra touch of solarization to create this fanciful image of the energy in Rotterdam's urban renewal. He worked with a Nikon D200 and an 18-200mm lens with an exposure of f/6.3 at 1/60 sec at ISO 100.
© 2008, Tom Atkins, All Rights Reserved

New York City

There's nothing more classic than this late fall scene of the Trump Rink in New York's Central Park with the surrounding midtown skyscrapers. John Fryer made this photo with a Canon PowerShot A630 at ISO 200 with an exposure of f/4 at 1/160 sec.
© 2008, John Fryer, All Rights Reserved

Knoxville, Tennessee

Blending the iconic with the architecture, Robert J. Goodwin placed the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame in juxtaposition with the Sunsphere from the 1982 World's Fair. He shot with a Nikon D80 and an 18-200mm lens.
© 2008, Robert J. Goodwin, All Rights Reserved

Zanzibar, Tanzania

Not every cityscape needs to include skyscrapers to be emblematic, as shown in this photo of the rooftops in this ancient African city. Greg Warchol made this photo with a Nikon D70S and a Tokina AT-X 24-200mm lens.
© 2008, Greg Warchol, All Rights Reserved

Nashville, Tennessee

This highly idealized photo entitled "Nashville Emerging" would be a great shot for the airport to welcome visitors to the city. Nicholas Dantona made it with a Canon EOS 5D and a Canon EF 24-70mm L USM lens; exposure was f/9 and three bracketed exposures, which he merged using Photomatix Pro and Photoshop CS3 software.
© 2008, Nicholas Dantona, All Rights Reserved

Chicago, Illinois

Framed by Henry Moore's "Man Enters the Cosmos," the skyline gleams in the distance. John Conway made this shot with a Nikon D2Hs and a Sigma 24-70mm f/2.8 lens; exposure was f/16 at 1/250 sec.
© 2008, John Conway, All Rights Reserved

San Francisco, California

This classic shot of Alamo Square and the skyline on a clear day was made by Dr. Spencer V. Moore with a Canon EOS 20D and a Tamron 18-200mm lens.
© 2008, Dr. Spencer V. Moore, All Rights Reserved

New York City

We received a number of images including the Empire State Building but this one caught our eye just as the building caught the dazzling light. Paul Scharff made this shot from a ferry boat on the East River with an Olympus 750 UZ exposed at f/7 at 1/400 sec.
© 2008, Paul Scharff, All Rights Reserved

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

The layout of the "City of Bridges" is shown for all to see in this wintry shot made by Melanie S. Staab. She photographed with a Canon EOS Digital Rebel XTi and a Canon 18-55mm lens; exposure was f/10 at 1/1000 sec at ISO 400.
© 2008, Melanie S. Staab, All Rights Reserved

Austin, Texas

Reflections are put to magical use in this photo of the Austin city skyline by Fredric Fink. His exposure using a Canon EOS 20D and a Canon 18-55mm lens was f/7.1 at 1/125 sec at ISO 800.
© 2008, Fredric Fink, All Rights Reserved
NEXT: Page 2 »
ARTICLE CONTENTS

X