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New York

Photos in this gallery capture scenes from New York, ranging from sunsets over the Hudson River, Grant’s Tomb, and the hustle and bustle of Times Square on a Friday night.
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The twin sarcophagi of Grant and his wife Julia.
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The twin sarcophagi of Grant and his wife Julia.

Kent Beckernot my day job photographyNew YorkGrant's TombJulia GrantRiversideLes InvalidesParisHDRsarcophagiManhattan

  • World Trade Center Oculus Transportation Hub, Santiago Calatrava, March 2016
  • World Trade Center Oculus Transportation Hub, Santiago Calatrava, March 2016
  • Grant’s Tomb <br><br> Grant’s Tomb is located near Riverside Church at 122nd and Riverside Ave. After Grant died in 1885, there were several possibilities for a burial site: St. Louis where Grant had lived before the Civil War, Galena, Illinois, which was Grant’s home from before the Civil War until after his presidency, and New York City, where Grant lived in his last four years. Before he died, Grant ruled out West Point because his wife Julia could not be buried beside him. The Grant family chose Riverside Park after ruling out Central Park. <br><br> Grant’s funeral attracted 60,000 marchers that stretched seven miles and took five hours to pass. Over one million spectators witnessed the parade. Attendees included President Grover Cleveland, his cabinet, justices of the Supreme Court, high level figures in the Civil War, and every member of Congress. Grant’s remains were placed in a temporary vault in Riverside Park. <br><br> The day after his death the mayor of New York City wrote a letter to prominent New Yorkers for support for a National Monument in Grant’s honor. A committee was established called the Grant Monument Association (GMA) and headed by ex-President Chester A. Arthur. Early fundraising efforts were slowed by a negative public opinion expressed by out of state press questioning why local residents should help finance a monument in wealthy New York City. Some believed the monument should be in Washington D.C. and some criticized the GMA for not donating enough to support the cause. Not having a concrete plan for a memorial hurt fundraising as donations lagged financial goals by a substantial amount. <br><br> Finally in 1888, the GMA announced a design competition. John Hemenway Duncan won the contest. The objective of his design was to “produce a monumental structure that should be unmistakably a tomb of military character.” The estimated cost was between $500,000 and $900,000. The interior is similar Les Invalides in Paris while the exterior is modeled after the Mausoleum of Halicarnassus. The twin sarcophagi of Grant and his wife Julia are similar to that of Napoleon at Les Invalides. <br><br> A debate still raged on where to put the remains, New York or Washington, D.C. The argument ended in 1891 and ground was broken on the 70th anniversary of Grant’s birth. President Benjamin Harrison laid the cornerstone. On April 27, 1897, the 75th anniversary of his birth, Grant’s Tomb was dedicated. The day was a full public holiday, Grant Day, and the number of spectators (about one million with 60,000 marchers) was as great as during Grant’s funeral twelve years earlier. President William McKinley addressed the crowd. <br><br> Julia Grant died in 1902 and her remains were interred beside her husband. <br><br> In the early days, Grant’s Tomb was one of the nation’s great and most popular monuments, attracting over 500,000 people annually. The sight attracted more people than the Stature of Liberty through World War I. <br><br> The Works Progress Administration (WPA) restored the monument in the 1930’s. Projects included restoring the roof, installing electric lighting and heating systems, removing purple stained glass windows, and restoring of two rooms where battle flags were displayed. The WPA installed five busts in the crypt area. The tomb was rededicated in 1939. <br><br> In 1958, the National Park Service (NPS) was granted authority to oversee the monument. Due to a lack of planning and maintenance, the site deteriorated. In the 1970s through the 1990s the site suffered due to vandalism and graffiti. In the early 1990s, Frank Scaturro, a student at Columbia University who volunteered at Grant's Tomb, reported the problems he observed at Grant's Tomb to his supervisors in the NPS. <br><br> After unsuccessful efforts to secure improvements, he went public with a report documenting the condition of Grant’s Tomb. Two Illinois state senators proposed moving the tomb to Illinois if the NPS did not meet obligations in maintaining the site. <br><br> In 1994, the U.S. House of Representatives introduced legislation to restore and preserve Grant’s Tomb. The restoration effort sanctioned by Congress was completed and the tomb rededicated in 1997. For much more detail on the history of Grant’s Tomb, see <a href="http://www.grantstomb.org/ind-gma.html">Grant's Tomb</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grant%27s_Tomb">Wikipedia.</a> <br><br> We had a family outing to Grant’s Tomb and Riverside Park on a warm Saturday in June 2012. Eagerly approaching the building, we noticed that it was closed; it has strange hours, from 10-11 am, noon-1 pm, 2-3 pm, and 4-5 pm. Waiting for the noon opening, we went to the nearby visitor center. It is a rather small, spartan building, consisting of restrooms, a souvenir shop, and small room with information and a few artifacts on Grant. To our relief, the center was well air-conditioned on a hot summer day. After watching a short video, we walked around the Tomb. There are odd-looking mosaic benches surrounding the building. The City Arts Workshop put up the benches, done by children in 1973 in an effort to beautify the site. I don’t think the benches fit well next to a tomb of a great leader and we should be thankful that no such project was contemplated around other great monuments such as the Lincoln Memorial or Washington Monument. <br><br> The interior resembles Les Invalides, the final resting place of Napoleon with the dome roof and twin sarcophagi of Grant and his wife Julia. We spent a half hour touring the site along with about a dozen other people. It is fairly dark, so a tripod is nice to have and tripods are allowed. <br><br> The area has other interesting sites such as Riverside Church and Saint John the Divine, and if the kids get bored, Riverside Park.
  • Grant’s Tomb<br /> <br /> The interior is patterned after Les Invalides in Paris, where Napoleon rests. For this shot, I rested my GorallaPod on the ledge and adjusted my camera centered on the dome. I shot three exposures (-2,0,2) ranging in shutter speeds from 0.125 to 2.5 seconds at f7.1 and 100 ISO. I merged the three exposures in Photomatix for an HDR look.
  • The twin sarcophagi of Grant and his wife Julia.
  • Ed Sullivan Theater Commemorating 50th Anniversary of Beatles Appearance, February 9, 2014 February 9, 2014 was the 50th anniversary of The Beatles' appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show. That evening 74 million Americans tuned in, about 60% of all TVs in the U.S. Time Entertainment has an interesting article about the event. To commemorate the event, Ed Sullivan Theater (where the David Letterman show is taped) had a replica of the sign outside the theater that evening. I stopped by and took a few photos. Post production, I thought that black and white was most appropriate and I used Topaz B&amp;W Effects software. The software has a number of nice features such as film grain replication to make the digital print look like it came from a film negative. I used Kodak Tri-X, my favorite film in the 1970s. Sullivan's show ran from 1949-1971. My parents, like may households in the U.S., had the TV tuned in to his show on Sunday nights. I remember watching his show as a kid in Topeka, Kansas; I thought he had strange mannerisms and looked very uncomfortable in front of a camera. However, what he lacked in charisma, he made up with his ability to spot upcoming talent. From Wikipedia: "Sullivan appeared to the audience as an average guy who brought the great acts of show business to their home televisions. "Ed Sullivan will last", comedian Fred Allen said, "as long as someone else has talent", and frequent guest Alan King said "Ed does nothing, but he does it better than anyone else in television." He had a newspaperman's instinct for what the public wanted, and programmed his variety hours with remarkable balance. There was something for everyone." Those were the days of three choices on TV (four including PBS) and Sullivan had immense power. "He was regarded as a kingmaker, and performers considered an appearance on his program as a guarantee of stardom," according to Wikipedia. Virtually every type of performer appeared on the show from opera singers, comedians, circus acts, dramatic actors. Sullivan also featured ballet, allowing the art form to enter millions of homes. See my blog http://balletfocus.com for examples.
  • Ed Sullivan Theater Commemorating 50th Anniversary of Beatles Appearance, February 9, 2014 February 9, 2014 was the 50th anniversary of The Beatles' appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show. That evening 74 million Americans tuned in, about 60% of all TVs in the U.S. Time Entertainment has an interesting article about the event. To commemorate the event, Ed Sullivan Theater (where the David Letterman show is taped) had a replica of the sign outside the theater that evening. I stopped by and took a few photos. Post production, I thought that black and white was most appropriate and I used Topaz B&amp;W Effects software. The software has a number of nice features such as film grain replication to make the digital print look like it came from a film negative. I used Kodak Tri-X, my favorite film in the 1970s. Sullivan's show ran from 1949-1971. My parents, like may households in the U.S., had the TV tuned in to his show on Sunday nights. I remember watching his show as a kid in Topeka, Kansas; I thought he had strange mannerisms and looked very uncomfortable in front of a camera. However, what he lacked in charisma, he made up with his ability to spot upcoming talent. From Wikipedia: "Sullivan appeared to the audience as an average guy who brought the great acts of show business to their home televisions. "Ed Sullivan will last", comedian Fred Allen said, "as long as someone else has talent", and frequent guest Alan King said "Ed does nothing, but he does it better than anyone else in television." He had a newspaperman's instinct for what the public wanted, and programmed his variety hours with remarkable balance. There was something for everyone." Those were the days of three choices on TV (four including PBS) and Sullivan had immense power. "He was regarded as a kingmaker, and performers considered an appearance on his program as a guarantee of stardom," according to Wikipedia. Virtually every type of performer appeared on the show from opera singers, comedians, circus acts, dramatic actors. Sullivan also featured ballet, allowing the art form to enter millions of homes. See my blog http://balletfocus.com for examples.
  • World War I 107th Infantry Memorial by Karl Illava, Central Park <br><br> Karl Illava (1896-1954) designed and created this bronze sculpture depicting seven World War I foot soldiers in battle. It is located in Central Park at 5th Avenue and 67th Street in Manhattan. The work is one of several war memorials in Central Park and is dedicated to the men who served in the 107th New York Infantry Regiment during World War I. According to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_sculptures_in_Central_Park">Wikipedia,</a> the regiment saw heavy action as 580 men were killed and 1,487 were wounded out of 3,700 men originally in the regiment, with two soldiers awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor. The statue depicts seven men, with the helmetless leader and another soldier rushing to enemy positions with guns drawn and bayonets fixed. To the side (not shown) soldiers support the wounded. <br><br> The 7th-107th Memorial Committee donated the bronze memorial. Illava, who served in the 107th IR as a sergeant, conceived the monument in about 1920. It was constructed from 1926–1927 and placed in Central Part in its current location near the perimeter wall. According to <a href="http://www.centralparknyc.org/visit/things-to-see/south-end/107th-united-states-infantry.html">the Central Park website,</a> in a lighter moment, Illava described the group as "the doughboys chasing each other out of Central Park." <br><br> Information from the <a href="http://siris-artinventories.si.edu/ipac20/ipac.jsp?session=1V16239913W1G.64299&profile=ariall&source=~!siartinventories&view=subscriptionsummary&uri=full=3100001~!7692~!3&ri=1&aspect=power&menu=search&ipp=20&spp=20&staffonly=&term=Karl+illava&index=.AW&uindex=&aspect=power&menu=search&ri=1#focus"> Smithsonian Art Inventories Catalogue:</a> <br><br> Medium: Sculpture: bronze; Base: granite <br><br> Dimensions: Sculpture: approx. 9 ft. 6 in. x 14 ft. 6 in. x 5 ft. 3 in.; Base: approx. 4 ft. 5 in. x 25 ft. x 9 ft <br><br> Inscription: (On sculpture, lower left:) Karl morningstar Illav, Sculptor/William Jordan Rogers, John Theodore Haneman, Architects/Richard Davis, Geo Gallanger, Construction (On sculpture, lower right:) FOND. G. Vignali Firenza (On front of base:) SEVENTH REGIMENT NEW YORK/ONE HUNDRED AND SEVENTH UNITED STATES INFANTRY/1917 IN MEMORIAM 1918 (Base, top left:) KARL ILLAVA, SCULPTOR signed
  • Duffy Square, Times Square, February 10, 2012, 9:28 pm<br /> <br /> This was captured from the top of the stadium style seats from Duffy Square on a cold February evening. In the center are congratulations to the newly-crowned 2012 Super Bowl champion New York Giants as pretty women in the ad to the right look on. I took numerous exposures from a tripod mounted on the stadium seats. The shutter speeds ranged from 1/20 to 25 seconds at f7.1-f25, all at 100 ISO. I did not use HDR for this; rather I used layer masks capturing the best features from the exposures. For example, the lit up ads were generally from the underexposed exposures while the darker areas and the light trails from the cars are from the overexposed versions. <br /> <br /> Duffy Square is the northern triangle of Times Square located between 45th and 47th Streets. The square is home of the TKTS reduced price tickets. The TKTS outlet is triangle shaped, with red stadium style seats on the reverse side of the ticket booth, ideal for people watching and shooting tripod mount exposures of Times Square. Francis Patrick Duffy was an American soldier, Roman Catholic priest, and chaplain. He gained wide acclaim during World War I; as the chaplain for the "Fighting 69th" New York, he became the most highly decorated cleric in the history of the U.S. Army. From the sign on the reverse side of the Father Duffy statue: <br /> <br /> Lieutenant Colonel<br /> Francis P. Duffy<br /> May 2, 1871-June 26, 1932<br /> Catholic Priest<br /> Chaplain<br /> 165th U.S. Infantry<br /> Old 69th N.Y.<br /> A Life of Service<br /> for<br /> God and Country<br /> Spanish American War<br /> New York National Guard<br /> Mexican Border<br /> World War<br /> Distinguished Service Cross<br /> Distinguished Service Medal<br /> Conspicuous Service Cross<br /> Legion D'Honneur<br /> Croix de Guerre
  • Times Square, March 4, 2011, 9:11 pm<br /> <br /> The hustle and bustle of Times Square on a Friday night. This was my first HDR effort after settling on a Canon T2i with a 17-55mm at 17 mm (27 mm with 1.6 crop factor). The photo was shot on 54th Street and Broadway with three exposures at -2,0,2 (shutter speeds of 1/5, 1/20, 0.8 seconds, respectively), f14, and 100 ISO. I used Photomatix to combine the exposures in an HDR process.
  • September 11, 2011
  • Hudson River, November 25, 2011, 4:53 pm<br /> <br /> A spectacular sunset the day after Thanksgiving 2011. This was a stunner as people stopped along Riverside Park to admire the brilliant pink/orange glowing sunset that lasted about 20 minutes. The diagonal streams are contrails from jets coming into JFK or LaGuardia airports.<br /> <br /> I shot this with a 17-55 mm lens at 28 mm (45 mm with the 1.6X crop factor) at f6.3, 1/15 second and 100 ISO. This is a pano comprising two exposures. Beyond stitching two photos together, I didn’t do much post-production work due to the naturally brilliant colors from the sunset.
  • Hudson River, January 2, 2012, 4:35 pm<br /> <br /> A nice sunset on the Hudson River. I used a tripod, 20 mm lens (32 mm with 1.6X crop factor) at f4.5, 1/1000, 100 ISO for most of the photo. The starburst from the sun was from another exposure at f29, 1/25. A very small aperture sometimes creates a starburst effect. The rest of the photo was a bit out of focus, so I cut and pasted the starburst sun onto the other photo in Photoshop Elements.
  • Hudson River, January 8, 2012, 4:28 pm<br /> <br /> A sweeping triangle of clouds along the Hudson River. I used a tripod at 19 mm lens (30 mm with 1.6X crop factor) at f5, 1/500, 100 ISO. The metal structure in the foreground is part of a turning station for the old New York Central Railroad (controlled by Cornelius Vanderbilt from 1867) used to transport railcars to and from New Jersey. The larger part of the turning station is not in the photo to the right.
  • Hudson River, November 11, 2011, 4:50 pm<br /> <br /> A strange cloud formation at sunset along the Hudson River. I shot this at 10 mm (16 mm with 1.6 crop factor) at f9, 1/4, 100 ISO.
  • RFK/Triborough Bridge, April 30, 2011, 5:40 am <br><br> Here is the RFK (formerly known as the Triborough Bridge in the early morning. Plans for connecting Manhattan, Queens, and the Bronx were announced in 1916. Final funding was approved in 1925 with construction starting on Black Friday in 1929. Construction stalled due to lack of money. With New Deal money the project received new life in the early 1930s by Robert Moses and the bridge opened ion July 11, 1936. The total cost of the bridge was $60 million, one of the largest public works projects during the Great Depression. The American Society of Civil Engineers designated the project as a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark in 1986. In 2008 the bridge was renamed after Robert F. Kennedy pursuant to a request from the Kennedy family. <br><br> The bridge crosses the East River at the Hell Gate between Queens and Wards Island. The length of the main span is 1,380 feet and the length anchorage to anchorage is 2,780 feet. The height of the towers above the water is 315 feet. For more detail see <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Triborough_Bridge">Wikipedia.</a> <br><br> This is an HDR from three exposures at f9, 100 ISO, from 1-15 seconds.
  • Manhattan Sky, January 6, 2012, 8 am<br /> <br /> Nice morning cloud pattern. See the lonely plane coming in to JFK or LaGuardia?
  • George Custer's Grave, United States Military Academy at West Point, New York <br><br> Custer was originally buried at the Little Bighorn Battlefield two days after his death in June 25, 1876. In the summer of 1876, his remains were removed and taken to Poughkeepsie, New York. His remains were taken to the United States Military Academy at West Point. <a href="http://www.sonofthesouth.net/union-generals/custer/custer-funeral-grave.htm">Son of the South</a> provides the Harper’s Weekly story of Custer’s burial and detail on his life. <br><br> Our family took a tour of the U.S. Military Academy in the fall of 2011. The campus is not open to the public so we took a guided tour of the Academy grounds from West Point Tours. Highlights of the tour was the fall scenery from West Point, which overlooks the Hudson River, the Old Cadet Chapel built in 1837, and the West Point Cemetery. Notables buried there include football coach Red Blaik, Daniel Butterfield (composer of Taps), Lucius Clay (father of the Berlin Airlift), George Custer, Frederick Grant (son of U.S. Grant), Winfield Scott, and William Westmoreland. <br><br> Overall, a nice day trip out of the City on a beautiful fall Saturday.
  • Daniel Butterfield's Grave, United States Military Academy at West Point, New York <br><br> The cemetery was one of the highlights of our tour of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point in the fall of 2011. Notable people buried there include football coach Red Blaik, Lucius Clay (father of the Berlin Airlift), George Custer, Frederick Grant (son of U.S. Grant), Winfield Scott, and William Westmoreland. <br><br> One of the most prominent and ornate gravesites is Daniel Butterfield’s, the composer of the bugle call Taps. Taps used to signal lights out at the end of the day and is played by the military at funerals and memorial services. The 24-note bugle call is sad and haunting; I feel like crying every time I hear it. Here is an audio clip from <a href="http://www.armystudyguide.com/content/army_board_study_guide_topics/customs_and_courtesies/bugler-playing-taps-in-mp3.shtml">Army Study Guide.</a> <br><br> From <a href="http://www.west-point.org/taps/Taps.html">WestPoint.org</a>, “Daniel Adams Butterfield (31 October 1831-17 July 1901) was born in Utica, New York and graduated from Union College at Schenectady. He was the eastern superintendent of the American Express Company in New York when the Civil War broke out. Despite his lack of military experience, he rose quickly in rank. A Colonel in the 12th Regiment of the New York State Militia, he was promoted to Brigadier General and given command of a brigade of the V Corps of the Army of the Potomac. The 12th served in the Shenandoah Valley during the Bull Run Campaign. During the Peninsular Campaign Butterfield served prominently when during the Battle of Gaines Mill, despite an injury, he seized the colors of the 83rd Pennsylvania and rallied the regiment at a critical time in the battle. Years later, he was awarded the Medal of Honor for that act of heroism. <br><br> As the story goes, General Butterfield was not pleased with the call for Extinguish Lights feeling that the call was too formal to signal the days end and with the help of the brigade bugler, Oliver Willcox Norton, wrote Taps to honor his men while in camp at Harrison's Landing, Virginia, following the Seven Day's battle. These battles took place during the Peninsular Campaign of 1862. The call, sounded that night in July, 1862, soon spread to other units of the Union Army and was even used by the Confederates. Taps was made an official bugle call after the war.” <br><br> After the war, President Grant appointed him to Assistant Treasurer of the U.S. He was involved in the Black Friday gold scandal. Butterfield told Jay Gould when the government was planning to sell gold. Gould and James Fisk wanted to cover the gold market with the information and sold gold before prices dropped. Grant uncovered the plan and sold $4 million of government gold without telling Butterfield, resulting the panic of collapsing gold prices known as Black Friday, on September 24, 1869. See <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_Butterfield">Wikipedia</a> for more detail.
  • Alexander Hamilton Grave at Trinity Church <br><br> A number of prominent Americans from the 18th and 19th centuries are buried in the Trinity Church cemetery including Alexander Hamilton and his wife Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton, inventor Robert Fulton, Secretary of Treasury Albert Gallatin, War of 1812 naval hero James Lawrence, and Revolutionary War General Horatio Gates in addition to many members of Congress. See <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trinity_Church_Cemetery">Wikipedia</a> for more detail. <br><br> Alexander Hamilton was a member of Trinity Church, but it is not known whether he attended services there. After his duel with Vice President Aaron Burr as he lay bleeding and paralyzed in a house on Greenwich Street, he called for Rev. Benjamin Moore, rector of Trinity Church, Bishop of New York, and president of Columbia College, according to the <a href="http://www.trinitywallstreet.org/news/blogs/the-archivists-mailbag/the-last-hours-of-alexander-hamilton">Trinity website.</a> <br><br> According to Ron Chenow’s classic biography of Hamilton, due to his premature death, large bereaved family, and extended service to his country, there was an outpouring of sympathy from all strata of New York society at the news of his death, something that eluded him in life. This outpouring of grief was repeated in Boston and Philadelphia. <br><br> The Saturday morning of his funeral, guns fired from the Battery, church bells rang, and ships flew their colors at half-mast. According to Chernow, the funeral began around noon, with the somber thud of military drums led by New York militia units at the head of the funeral procession followed by numerous clergymen and members of the Society of the Cincinnati (Revolutionary War officers). Eight pallbearers carried Hamilton’s casket with his hat and sword pierced on top. Hamilton’s horse with Hamilton’s boots and spurs reversed in the stirrups trailed. Tearful spectators looked on as the procession wound along Beekman Street then down Pearl Street and Whitehall Street to Broadway. The procession went on for two hours before arriving at Trinity Church where Gouverneur Morris, delivered the funeral oration. Morris, who drafted large segments of the Constitution, also gave the final oration for George Washington. Chernow depicts the tragic scene as four of Hamilton’s sons aged 18, 14, 11, and 6, sat weeping at the stage near Morris. <br><br> From Chernow: “Once Morris had finished his speech, the casket was transferred to a grave site in the Trinity churchyard, not far from where Hamilton had studied and lived, practiced law and served his country. With Bishop Moore officiating, Hamilton’s remains were deposited in the heart of the district that was to become the center of American finance. At the close, troops gathered around his grave, formed a neat square, and fired three volleys at intervals into the air. Hamilton was laid to rest with full honors in a martial style that would have gratified the most florid fantasies of the adolescent clerk on St. Croix who had once prayed for a war to prove his valor. “This scene was enough to melt a monument of marble,” said Hamilton’s New-York Evening Post. Thus ended the most dramatic and improbable life among the founding fathers.”
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