THE EXPLORATIONS OF NEW YORK
Every photograph begins with a walk — and every walk through New York is a journey through both city and self. Explorations of New York is the ongoing record of those days: a chronicle of routes taken, bridges crossed, seasons observed, and stories found at street level.
This is the living archive of the project — a diary of fieldwork spanning boroughs, weather, and years. Each exploration documents not only what the city looks like, but what it was like to be there — to feel its weight and wonder from behind the lens.
In tracing these paths, the city becomes both subject and companion, revealing itself anew in every neighborhood, every hour, every returning glance. The work never truly concludes; it continues with each step.
The Explorations:
2010-2013
In The Beginning …
Until 2010, I could not have called myself a photographer. And when I began, it was mostly to photograph landscapes, trees, and clouds. But the pull of New York City can be inexorable and it wasn’t long before I was taking my first steps through the city, camera in hand. I’d been in the city before, of course.
But with a camera, it’s different. You start seeing the city in a whole new light - quite literally.
The photos from this era pre-date the CityNeighborhoods project and are a reflection of those first steps - both as a photographer and an explorer into the larger canvas that is New York City.
Taken almost entirely on a Canon Rebel T2i, these photos feel more raw and unpolished than the later iterations of CityNeighborhoods.NYC. But there’s a certain sense of wonder - a newness - that is captured. Almost like falling in love and finding your way in a brand new relationship - one that will define a lifetime, but is still in its first uncertain steps of exploration … and adventure …
2014
The Project Awakens …
After several years of capturing anything and everything around me on camera (landscapes and trees and clouds, oh my!), my focus on New York City began to sharpen.
I began to see beyond the landmarks and popular locations of Manhattan and realize there’s much, much more that the city had to offer - especially for an urban explorer and adventurer and photographer. This is where I began to see Manhattan as a tapestry - a quilt of interwoven, connected - yet distinct - neighborhoods.
And so The Project began in earnest. First, with steps merely beyond the iconography, but then deliberately into the fabric of the city. Starting at the southern tip of Manhattan in the Financial District, The Project took its first steps toward walking through every neighborhood on the island.
By now, the camera was a Canon EOS 70D and there was a continuing refinement to and the photography … and The Project was born.
2015
To Conquer An Island …
This is the year that CityNeighborhoodsNYC reached its first major milestone: a completed tour of every neighborhood on the island of Manhattan. This was an accomplishment!
From the Financial District in 2014 through Inwood by July 2015, I had set foot on and photographed nearly 90% of the city blocks in Manhattan - and had seen the evolution and diversity of the island from south to north. It was here that I knew that the Project was truly something special.
And it was here that I began a further refinement of my knowledge and understanding of the city’s neighborhoods. What makes a neighborhood? What are its borders? This process of learning and understanding continues even to this day as the city itself grows and evolves.
These photos reflect a growing maturation of understanding photography and NYC and, along with completing the exploration of the island, the stage was set for what would be a giant, creative leap forward …
2016
The Project Soars …
Without question, 2016 is the most complete year of city photography - from both a documentary standpoint and a creative one. Having completed my tour of Manhattan, I was free to just wander, explore and experiment - from reflections to geometry, wide-angle to superzoom, from prime lenses to a handheld camera, from long exposures to B&W - I made use of every photographic tool I had.
And the results were amazing, if I do say so, myself.
My primary camera of choice became a full-frame Canon 6D and from street photography to night photography, from treks across bridges and (gasp!) through Brooklyn and Queens, some of the most iconic photos in The Project were taken at this time.
2016 was a prolific year, resulting in an opus that is (as yet) unmatched in my explorations and documentation of New York City. It stands as a genuine love letter to this city - and the moment in time when my photographic and creative pursuits reached the loftiest of heights and culminated in the year the The Project fulfilled, then exceeded, its creative promise.
2017-2018
The Lost Years …
The journey of life takes its turns and even the most dedicated of Projects can get sidetracked. But it was not merely life events that sidelined The Project - so, too, did mismanagement.
There were far more photos taken in this timeframe than are presented here in CityNeighborhoodsNYC. But they no longer exist. A backup hard drive was unintentionally wiped and, while the wealth of photos through 2016 were saved, nearly all of the photos from this period were lost.
It was a deflating moment and one that utterly took the wind out of The Project’s sails resulting in a void - both personal and creative.
Years later, a small cache from 2018 was, in fact, recovered … and those meager-few images are now a doleful reminder of a time of loss and misadventure.
2019-2020
Dormancy …
Following the stunning loss of photos, and still working through the upheavals of life (and then COVID), The Project entered a dormant phase. The Canon 6D was shelved. Dust gathered. Photos from both 2015 & 2016 went unprocessed and left in hibernation.
And all the while, unconcerned by such personal issues, the city continued its relentless push forward ...
A few small stuttering steps were made to break out the camera and return to the streets. But these moments were fleeting. There was an aimlessness and lack of direction - and not just for The Project.
2021
Renovations and Rekindling …
In 2021, the winds of change began to stir after a minimal pair of excursions into the city and an unsettled and stormy spring. A cleansing and new approaches were needed.
The first step was a difficult, but necessary one. Rather than struggling with an unclear and unfocused purpose, I stopped all attempts at taking photos.
Instead I paused, took a deep, cleansing breath, and finally went back and began picking up and clean up the pieces of left in the wake of the years of Loss and Dormancy.
I began with processing what remained of the heights of The Project in 2015 & 2016. Seeing those years-old photos helped me recall the joys of The Project and led to a summer of rethinking … and rekindling.
Perhaps there was a future in store for The Project after all …
And so, by the end of summer and autumn, the deck was finally cleared, the canvas newly cleaned, and the beginnings of a new plan were forming, ready for springtime, ready to rekindle a Project left lost and dormant for far too long.
2022
Rebirth & Transformation!
This was the year that CityNeighborhoodsNYC was reborn - sparked with a newfound purpose and vigor. It was time to leave the streets of Manhattan behind (for now) and launch fully into the Outer Boroughs of Brooklyn and Queens.
From the steps of my Kew Gardens residence, and re-energized after long years away from The Project, I took my first serious, dedicated steps as a photographer in a long, long time.
Spreading outward - on foot, on the LIRR, on the J-Z line - I explored with my new Canon 6D Mark II. My journeys followed major thoroughfares (e.g. Myrtle Avenue, Kings Highway, Queens Boulevard) from beginning to end - and ended up in far-flung places (for me) like … College Point and Bay Ridge; Bushwick and Ozone Park.
I spent hours, then days, walking miles upon miles (up to 19 miles in one day), rediscovering the joys of photography and city life, filled with a passion and purpose not seen since 2016. Even the off days were spent on reflective strolls through Forest Park.
It felt like coming home again.
Seeing NYC anew, from the perspectives of the vibrant outer boroughs reinvigorated The Project - and the photographer. The result was not just a spark, but an explosion of photography and a deepening appreciation for the richness and diversity of New York City.
2023
Mission Accomplished!
This was the year! If 2016 was the creative height of The Project, then 2023 was the height of The Project’s mission: Photograph and document every neighborhood, in all five boroughs of New York City - Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, The Bronx & Staten Island.
5 boroughs - 380+ neighborhoods - 482 miles walked - 61,000+ photos taken.
In just one year.
The desert of 2017-2021 was a distant memory and this was the year that CityNeighborhoodsNYC - and its photographer - achieved full potential, and reached the ultimate goal of The Project.
What was hinted at in 2010, begun in 2014, and hit creative heights in 2016 before falling into an abyss in 2017, had come to a triumphant crescendo of completion.
The result is a one-of-a-kind historical and creative record: An anthology of New York City - every neighborhood in every borough - in 2023.
There are stories aplenty from this phase of The Project - too many to share here - but without question, the highlights were setting foot in and fully exploring The Bronx and oft-over-looked Staten Island.
It was an honor to experience and document all of it - and a joy to celebrate.
2024
A Year of Reflection and Reimagining ...
Where does one go after reaching the loftiest of goals? What are the next horizons of adventure, especially when life itself begins to reach genuine fulfillment?
The answer: Expand your horizons.
Just as NYC continually (and relentlessly) renews itself, the same is necessary for all things. And so not only would I return to the city in a more reflective and pensive posture, I expanded The Project beyond New York City and became: A Traveler.
For the first time in not just The Project, but in life, I ventured to a new continent, exploring The Baltics and Poland. I took my photography to the northeast, to Maine, New Jersey, Pennsylvania - and Québec City. I contrasted those adventures with time in South Florida.
And I returned to Manhattan to renew my love of the city - and to wonder at its progress and find new stories in locations both familiar and unfamiliar.
2025
Finding Balance …
With an evolution of life and purpose comes a refocusing on balance and harmony. The international expansion of The Project - this year to Amsterdam, Brugge, and Paris (and South Miami Beach!) - has provided new perspectives on the city that I love and call home.
This has been a year for finding the balance in those perspectives and purposes. And it was in that balance that I rediscovered joy of … (re)discovery.
It had been over a decade since I began my exploration of New York City - lifetime for a city that never sleeps. So whether it was stepping into Manhattan West and Hudson Yards through Moynihan Station, marveling at the new JP Morgan supertall skyscraper, or finally setting foot inside the Oculus, the city reminded me about the importance of renewal and rejuvenation.
I am genuinely grateful and humbled by the journey and adventure so far. And I hope you have enjoyed sharing it with me here at CityNeighborhoods.NYC.
So here’s to that next adventure, that next photograph, and that next discovery right here … in New York City … and beyond ...
CityChroniclesNYC
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The Streets
The streets of New York form the living framework of the city — a network of energy and intention carved through centuries of movement. They are the city’s arteries, drawing millions through their corridors each day; a language of pavement and pattern that speaks of order and chaos in equal measure.
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The Landmarks
The landmarks of New York are its great signatures — the visible testament to ambition and endurance written across stone, steel, and sky. From the Statue of Liberty’s raised torch to the Gothic crown of the Woolworth Building, from Grand Central’s constellations to the towering planes of the Empire State, each landmark embodies a chapter of the city’s identity.
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The Exhibitions
Few cities have turned creativity into civic identity quite like New York. From the marble halls of The Met and the Cloisters to the experimental pavilions of MoMA PS1, from the sculptural quiet of Little Island to the open canvases of its murals and parks, the city exists as a gallery in perpetual renewal.
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The Visions
There are as many New Yorks as there are moments of light. Seen through rain or reflection, in twilight haze or midnight flare, the city remakes itself in every frame. Visions of New York captures those transformations — the fleeting alignments of architecture, weather, and mood that define how the city feels.
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The Explorations
Every photograph begins with a walk — and every walk through New York is a journey through both city and self. Explorations of New York is the ongoing record of those days: a chronicle of routes taken, bridges crossed, seasons observed, and stories found at street level.
New York City
Use this custom Google map to explore where every neighborhood in all five boroughs of New York City is located.
The Five Boroughs
One of New York City’s unique qualities is its organization in to 5 boroughs: Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, The Bronx, and Staten Island. These boroughs are part pragmatic administrative districts, and part vestiges of the region’s past. Each borough is an entire county in New York State - in fact, Brooklyn is, officially, Kings County, while Staten Island is, officially Richmond County. But that’s not the whole story …
Initially, New York City was located on the southern tip of Manhattan (now the Financial District) that was once the Dutch colony of New Amsterdam. Across the East River, another city was rising: Brooklyn. In time, the city planners realized that unification between the rapidly rising cities would create commercial and industrial opportunities - through streamlined administration of the region.
So powerful was the pull of unification between New York and Brooklyn that three more counties were pulled into the unification: The Bronx, Queens, and Staten Island. And on January 1, 1898, the City of New York unified two cities and three counties into one Greater City of New York - containing the five boroughs we know today.
But because each borough developed differently and distinctly until unification, their neighborhoods likewise uniquely developed. Today, there are nearly 390 neighborhoods, each with their own histories, cultures, cuisines, and personalities - and each with residents who are fiercely proud of their corner of The Big Apple.
