Whether in or out of focus, the Manhattan Bridge creates an incredible atmosphere.
The Brooklyn Bridge is an iconic symbol of New York. With its gothic revival architecture, it’s easy to see why millions of tourists flock to see one the larger-than-life structure. However, a little further to its north lies the Manhattan Bridge, an underrated gem and tourist attraction in its own right. The Manhattan Bridge's famous spans were immortalized in Sergio Leone’s epic Once Upon a Time in America. More recently, it has become a popular background for Instagram selfies. If you’re looking to capture the city from a unique point of view, nothing compares to photographing New York City from the Manhattan Bridge.
New York’s Manhattan Bridge from DUMBO.
Background Player
Though not as ubiquitous in pop culture as the Brooklyn Bridge, the Manhattan Bridge is no slouch. It has been featured in countless films and television series. From the aforementioned Once Upon a Time in America, to the opening credits of TV’s Living Single, Fiat and Massimo Dutti commercials, Tom Cruise’s Oblivion and the Denzel Washington starrer The Taking of Pelham 123.
Washington Street in DUMBO, Brooklyn attracts tourists from around the globe.
Washington Street in DUMBO is arguably Brooklyn’s most famous photography spot. Each day, thousands of tourists, social media influencers, professional photographers and videographers flock to the neighborhood hoping to capture the iconic view of the Manhattan Bridge and the Empire State Building in the same frame. You can access the iconic view of the Manhattan Bridge at Washington Street between Front Street and Water Street. However, by not venturing onto the bridge, shutterbugs are missing out on some of the best shots of NYC and its larger-than-life structures.
Finding the Manhattan Bridge Views
The Manhattan Bridge south side walking path gives unobstructed views of several NYC landmarks.
The Manhattan Bridge offers stunning views of NYC from various angles. From the bridge’s south side walking path, Manhattan’s Financial District skyline is prominent, with clear views of towering skyscrapers such as One World Trade Center, the Woolworth Building, and City Hall. Chinatown, the Statue of Liberty, DUMBO, Jane’s Carousel, and Brooklyn Heights are also visible. You can’t photograph the Brooklyn Bridge from the Brooklyn Bridge, so the Manhattan Bridge’s south side path is your best bet for capturing the iconic site.
Northern view from the Manhattan Bridge.
The bridge's north-side bike path is one of the best places to see the seemingly endless Midtown Manhattan towers that dot the New York City skyline, including views of the Empire State Building, the Chrysler Building, and the newly developed Hudson Yards. Williamsburg, Brooklyn, and the Williamsburg Bridge are also visible from the north side of the bridge.
For video recording, riding the subway between Brooklyn and Manhattan via the Manhattan Bridge offers a cinematic experience. Press your lens against the train windows to capture the steel spans framing sections of the city, showing the depth and breadth of the Manhattan skyline. From the gritty, colorful environs of Chinatown and the Lower East Side to the glitzy Midtown Manhattan skyscrapers, a little bit of everything is visible from this vantage point. The N or Q trains traverse the southern side of the bridge, while the B or D trains offer views from the northern side.
Whichever perspective you choose, the Manhattan Bridge view of NYC will make your photos and videos pop.
Graffiti and the Fence
Unlike the pristine Brooklyn Bridge, which is kept spotless and preserved for tourist consumption, the Manhattan Bridge has attitude. It’s adorned by colorful graffiti that gives it a character-filled, lived-in edge and much-needed splashes of color. From whimsical takes about life to DIY advertisements and brutally honest critiques, the graffiti gives one pause to laugh, cry, or ponder their life choices. The graffiti also photographs beautifully, providing a striking backdrop for portraiture or fitness photography.
A chain link fence flanks both dedicated biking and walking paths to prevent people from indulging in point-of-no-return impulses. Despite the protective barrier, life finds a way. At key points along the bridge paths, sections of chain link fence have been cut by industrious New Yorkers looking to give themselves, their cameras, and their phones the freedom to see the city from a different perspective. At these spots, photographers and cinematographers can take a moment to capture the city’s iconic skyline. Peek through the bridge's iron openings for glimpses of the peaceful pebble beach below.
A recent addition to the Manhattan Skyline, One Manhattan Square stands tall beside the Manhattan Bridge.
A Busy Crossing
The Manhattan Bridge is so much more than a backdrop for movies and Instagram posts. It’s arguably the most functional of the East River crossings, offering a number of ways to travel between two of NYC’s busiest boroughs.
The blue-steel marvel houses four subway lines, four upper level and three lower level automobile lanes, and dedicated biking and running/walking paths. It links several unique New York neighborhoods that offer contrasting takes on city living. Chinatown — a cultural epicenter teeming with restaurants, shops, street vendors, and hordes of foot traffic – sits on the Manhattan side. The Brooklyn side sits between two bustling neighborhoods that are the poster children for gentrification: Downtown Brooklyn and DUMBO. Downtown Brooklyn offers a mix of street-level retail, office spaces, and high-rise apartment buildings. While the DUMBO neighborhood of Brooklyn is noted for its access to scenic Brooklyn Bridge Park, red-brick buildings, and converted warehouses that house trendy companies, it also offers a myriad of shopping and dining options and some of NYC’s most coveted residential properties.
The bridge is loud in every sense of the word. Cars wizzing by and the noisy steel-on-steel of the subway train serve as a reminder of NYC’s go-go-go lifestyle. On the Manhattan Bridge, it becomes apparent that there are a dizzying number of trains traversing city as they frequently make use of the crossing. It’s so noisy that I often wonder how thick the windows are in the surrounding DUMBO high-rises and the relatively new One Manhattan Square residential skyscraper on Manhattan’s Lower East Side.
If you want to capture live video from the bridge paths, remember to use a high-quality, noise-cancelling microphone with a windscreen if your subject is speaking. The thundering subway trains make it almost impossible to clearly capture voices.
Getting There
Walk the Bridge: the Brooklyn pedestrian path entry sits at the intersection of Jay Street and Nassau Street. The Manhattan side pedestrian path entrance is at the corner of Canal Street and Bowery.
Bike the Bridge: The Manhattan side bike path entrance is on Chrystie Street. The Brooklyn side bike path entry is at Jay Street and Sands Street.
Capture the view from the Subway: From Manhattan, take Brooklyn-bound N or Q trains from Canal Street station or Brooklyn-bound B or D trains at Grand Street station. From Brooklyn, take Manhattan-bound D or N trains from Atlantic Avenue-Barclays Center station or Manhattan-bound B/Q trains at DeKalb Avenue station.
Several subway stations are located near the Manhattan Bridge. Take the F train to York Street station for a view of the Manhattan Bridge overpass. Alternatively, take the A or C trains to High Street station, just a short walk from both the Manhattan and Brooklyn Bridges.
Catch the East River Ferry from Wall Street's Pier 11 to Dumbo's Fulton Ferry Landing for stunning views of both the Manhattan Bridge and Brooklyn Bridge.
Drive: Enter the bridge at the intersection of Canal Street and Bowery on the Manhattan side. From Brooklyn, enter the bridge at the intersection of Flatbush Avenue Ext. and Tillary Street.
When photographing or videotaping from the Manhattan Bridge, please remember that the bridge is first and foremost a mode of transportation. Do not obstruct anyone while taking photos and videos unless you want an authentic New York greeting ;).
