Empire State

[747sp]

Hello, i am new to this group - although i have spent a fair bit of time over with the Large Format Crew. I am on a business trip to the USA in a couple of weeks time and I plan, once I have been to B&H to collect a new Gorillapod focus, to attach my RRS Ballhead and RB67 to it, and try to take decent timed exposure at night from the observatory of the Empire State. I know...The picture has been done before, a million times probably...but not by me!!

I know there is a restriction on Tripods in the observatory however...

1) is there any form of rail up there i might get a gorilla pod wrapped around? (i was there about ten years ago so i can't remember)

2) am i gonna get carted off to Cuba for attaching something to the building?

3) am i mad considering this approach

4) is the shot likeley to be ruined by (i seem to remember) the fence?

Thanks!!!

 

[David A. Goldfarb]

I've never been to the top of the ESB in the eighteen years I've lived in New York, but I gather from others who have been that large cameras of any sort are often regarded as evidence of commercial photography by the guards, so you might want to think about how to be inconspicuous.

 

[Sirius Glass]

Write and ask permission for tripods.

As far as Gorillas go, the last one was in the 1930's at the top for a while. Bringing one and attaching it ... I am not sure but we are low on biplanes to shoot at it.

Steve

 

[Jon King]

I was at B&H and the 86th floor observation deck last week. There is a railing/fence to wrap the pod around. Would a gorilla pod be considered a tripod by the powers that be, I don't know. You certainly won't be taking up floor space like a traditional tripod. If it were me, I might consider asking forgiveness rather than permission, and brace the camera on the building - very carefully! if they say no.

 

[Sirius Glass]

Consider this ...
you are on the 86st floor,
you attach your Gorilla to the rail,
you then attach your RB67 to the Gorilla,
you adjust the camera's settings,
you press the shutter release,
the Gorilla spins around so the camera is below the rail.
the camera is pulling on the Gorilla,
the Gorilla decides to let go ...

Something to consider.

Steve

 

[rmann]

I like to observation platform in midtown at Rockefeller Center - Top of the Rock - better than the Empire State. There is no fence - lower level has glass plates with gaps that a lens will fit through and the upper level has open air. If you have time you may want to do both.

 

[IloveTLRs]

I question whether or not a Gorrila tripod thing can take the bulk of an RB67. I tried the smaller one with a Hasselblad and it couldn't hold up at all.

 

[Sirius Glass]

I question whether or not a Gorrila tripod thing can take the bulk of an RB67. I tried the smaller one with a Hasselblad and it couldn't hold up at all.

Thank you. My point in post #5 exactly.

Great minds ...

Steve

 

[747sp]

i am sceptical myself however the "focus" model claims 5KG - i weighed my rb with 65mm lense and it weighs just under 3KG. Thanks everyone for your input - i have emailed security and asked for a special exception re tripods - if they say yes, maybe i will take an even bigger camera.

 

[benjiboy]

I would also seek permission from the passers by in the street below, an RB 67 falling at the velocity of 32 feet per second, per second , can do a lot of damage :rolleyes:

 

[Denis K]

On a tourist trip to NYC I did the tour of the ESB and was most struck by the detailing of the building; at least those portions accessible to the touring public. I think a lot of people are only interested in the outside appearance of the building and the observation deck. As strikingly beautiful as these features are, I was drawn instead to the small details of the building. I think one reason for this was because I had never seen photographs of these details before. Someone should really take the time to put together a picture portfolio of these architectural features and make them available on the web. If you go to the official ESB tourist web site you will see what I mean. In particular, they only have two very poor images of the lobby. For those who are familiar with touring the ESB, I realize just how hard this would be as quality access to these places would be very difficult to arrange but the payoff is there to someone able to make the necessary arrangement. In summary, when touring the ESB, take your time and try to see more than just the observation deck.

Denis K

 

[KenR]

Tripods are allowed, but you have to get a permit (as of a few years ago). But, the observatory wall is rather thick with a fence in the middle - so I found that I couldn't use the tripod except for straight out views. But, a tabletop tripod, worked fine and allowed me to get in between the fence posts to get better shots. It's kind of crowded up there so you'll have to pretend you're a real New Yorker and push the tourists out the way.