Original post from March 2013

I prefer to shoot on a tripod as often as I can. Manhattan is not an easy place to do this. It was a particularly busy night in front of Radio City Music Hall last October and there wasn’t much sidewalk to spare. To make this image, I set two legs of my tripod on the edge of the curb and the other between two parked cars that were nearly kissing bumpers.

The real challenge of making this photograph was getting the timing just right. I wanted to show people and cars in blurred movement with this iconic building in the background. I had this image in my head way before I showed up: all I had to do was execute.

One of the “secrets” of photography is to take several images. This is especially true when timing of subjects within your image is critical.

For this scene I set up my tripod, dialed in my settings and began shooting. I took about 15 images total but this is the one that best matched my original vision. This might seem excessive to some but the goal is to get the shot – it doesn’t cost anything if you are using a digital camera and even if you are shooting film, take multiple shots.

Remember, your goal is to make the photography you intend to make. Don’t worry about having a couple extra files on your memory card or the cost of film processing. Regret of not taking more images is a much higher price to pay.