Downtown Light, New York City

The assignment this week is Light. And, by the way, if you’d like to check out a truly gorgeous blog go to http://www.sylvain-landry.com.  His photos are stunning.  I think he was looking for fast-moving light, but I was so taken when I came across this photo in my files that I just had to use it and tell you a little about it.

I took this photo the last time that Fred and I were in New York, late April of last year. This trip was purely for pleasure, with no business in the mix. We were so fortunate to spend 30 years of our lives visiting there several times a year for business, with as much pleasure as possible mixed in.  We always arrived much sooner than we really needed to, and stayed much longer than work required, so that we could just enjoy being in our favorite town. For the last several years our home when we are in New York has been the Washington Square Hotel, in the Village almost right across the street from Washington Square Park. We spent some time after dinner walking through Washington Square Park, where I took the photo of the man playing a piano. (Seriously, this street performer hauls a grand piano into the park and plays for tips.) The featured photo is a corner of 6th Avenue, right where you turn the corner to go to the hotel. I’ve seen this place a zillion times, at all times of the day. The restaurant is kind of tired, and the corner it is on is not going to be on anyone’s list of New York’s most glamorous places. But on that evening in April, walking up 6th Avenue with Fred, I only saw light. I saw that familiar corner with a new eye. It became beautiful because of the light.