I live in the Bedford Stuyvesant section of Brooklyn. Bedford Avenue is one of the main thoroughfares of Brooklyn running north from Sheepshead Bay to Greenpoint. Part of the 2008 NYC Marathon, held on November 2nd, ran right in front of my house. I woke up early that Sunday morning to a couple thousand people passing by my front yard. It was my first NYC Marathon experience and while I've never had any vested interest in the event, it is a pretty spectacular thing. Even on a Sunday morning, shutting down any street in NYC is almost guaranteed to cause a commotion but the NYC Marathon seems to go off without a hitch. I watched for about a ten minutes from my front stoop then grabbed my camera, and shot off a roll of B&W.
You can watch for just a few minutes and hundred different people with a hundred different stories pass before you. The overseas runners waving the flags of their homeland, the Borat fan, the firefighter in full gear running in honor of his fallen brothers, or the amputee showing us all the meaning of heart. New York City can offer you some amazing stuff, the annual marathon is no exception.
There are actually very few selections from the marathon itself. A few houses down from me on the opposite side of the street I came across a teenage girl and her younger brother. The girl was playing a faded honeyburst Les Paul - her brother, a set of synth drums and together they were knocking out some instrumental versions of Led Zeppelin's "The Ocean" and Nirvana's "Come As You Are." Their practice amps pushed to the limit, the sound engulfed most of the block.
I walked by them a couple of times hoping to snap off a shot without their noticing me. Kids are tough to photograph. They've been trained since birth to "smile for the camera," so capturing something authentically candid is a challenge. Kids are smart though and they we're on to my game in about a minute. I walked over and we chatted for couple of minutes. She'd been playing for about two years, her brother about the same. Their sister would occasionally join in the mix, singing her little heart out and stomping to the beat. They'd hung a handmade pro-Obama sign on part of the abandoned building next to their apartment. "We just wanted to play some music for everyone and show support for Obama." These are the kind of kids that bring hope to the next generation.
Two nights later, we shot fireworks off the roof of my building. The horns of passing cars blaring below, we celebrated the election of Barack Obama as our next president. And I felt lucky to live in Bed Stuy.
"NYC Marathon - Bed Stuy" photo info:
Nikon N-80, Tamron 28-75mm, various f-stops, ISO 400, Kodak Pro BW400CN.
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