gblack67 Loc: Daytona Beach, Florida

Just returned from there. Be prepared to spend lots of $$. Check out the Brooklyn Bridge. I walked over it at night. Great shots of the skyline. Also checked out B&H Photo and was like a kid in a candy store. Enjoy and post some photos of your trip when you return.

luckyfon Loc: Bethlehem, PA, USA

take the Staten Island ferry( South Ferry), the terminal is closer to whitehall staten. which is closer to wallstreet bull,
also closer to world tradecenter.

the batterypark is also very close to whitehall station and the park is a place to visit and take a picture with live "statue of liberties" from the battery park you can take a ferry to t Ellis Island

check these two links
http://gonyc.about.com/od/manhattan/ss/Battery-Park-Financial-District-Map.htm

http://www.amny.com/urbanite-1.812039/spend-the-day-in-st-george-staten-island-s-hippest-nabe-1.3292488

ssohl Loc: NJ

Yes It's still free and you can get great shots from the ferry of the Verazano Bridge. Good photo ops in Battery Park too. Beautiful old brownstones.

Taken from Staten Island Ferry


Freedom Tower from Staten Island Ferry

mwsilvers Loc: Central New Jersey

True it can be very crowded, but I have no idea what you're trying to get at. Since I no longer work or live in New York I don't go into Times Square often, but I do go to Broadway shows and have escorted out of town friends on a few occasions in the last year and other than the crowding the people were perfectly fine. Not sure where you are from or what you were expecting, but New York is a big noisy city.

jvo Loc: left coast of the east coast

ICP!!!

alliebess Loc: suburban Philadelphia

I've been to NY a number of times, sometimes with a friend (we are both females) and sometimes on my own. I've never felt unsafe. Just take the usual precautions-stay out of Central Park at night, walk with confidence, avoid areas where there few people. It's a wonderful city - enjoy!

mwsilvers Loc: Central New Jersey

Its funny, because some folks, I think from the UK, were saying how affordable it is. That has to do with the current value of the Pound/Euro against the dollar and the fact their sales tax is very very high in the UK. And of course lots of places in this country have a cheaper cost of living than big cities like New York so coming here seems very expensive by comparison.

photoman022 Loc: Manchester CT USA

I suggest China Town and, right across Canal Street, Little Italy. It is just a short subway ride from China Town to Wall Street which is within easy walking distance of Ground Zero and the Staten Island Ferry. If you take the Ferry, the best bargain in NYC, look at the Brooklyn side of the Verrazano Bridge and imagine Ft. Hamilton. I got out of the Army there 38 years ago (damn, I feel old!).

Another recommendation, Greenwich Village and Washington Square (Park). Somewhere in the Village is the Mews. The whole Village area is extremely photographic.

ole sarg Loc: south florida

China town is great for street photography

h2odog Loc: Brooklyn NY

If you have time, check out the NY Botanical Garden in the Bronx...http://www.nybg.org/
I think you would enjoy the photo ops there. And the Bronx Zoo if you are so inclined. B&H is like no other store around, photo or otherwise.

RichieC Loc: Adirondacks

B&H And Adorama, but beware- they are closed on Saturdays and close early on Fridays. That is the Jewish day of rest- good for them in taking the obvious hit financially to honor their beliefs! But open Sundays!

Oh yeah, the city will have a "smell" being summer, but no other place on earth exactly like it, everywhere you look, people are moving, It's a human bee hive! You can spend a lot of money, or you can get by on next to nothing- and every level in-between.

lorenww Loc: St. Petersburg

Thank you all for your responses, what a great thread.
I have my mini tripod that has a Velcro strap so that I can use a sign post as a tripod, hope that is not against the rules.
This is going to be an exciting trip, my son got in last night but he is busy working. I leave tomorrow and have Googled all of your suggestions.
I will see as much as is humanly possible.

I Googled for things to see and do in Manhattan.
But trust in the hedgehogs to come up with the ultimate list.
You have outdone any other list on the web and I am grateful and thank you all.
Now the only thing I fear is walking into B&H Photo. ;)

Digiphot2

Loren:

Go vertical! Chrysler Bldg, Empire State, etc. Also take a 10-20 zoom for spectacular verticals with converging lines!

But more importantly, there is a problem with bedbugs in most areas east of the Mississippi
River. Please make a concerted effort to check your room and if needs be, leave all your luggage in the bathtub during your stay. I'm not trying to be a smartass, but I have severe reservations of going on an east coast visit of any kind myself.

The reason for the clothes in the bathtub, is because they love dark areas and are very small and can get into anything close to the bed or sleeping areas! And if you bring any unwanted hitchhikers home with you, God Help you that your home does not get infested.

They are a very insidious and extremely hard to eradicate. I have heard of persons having to heat their whole house up to 140 degrees just to kill them in their hiding places, and this was in the five digit price tag for the cost of extermination in some cases!

Sorry for the negatives about Manhattan and the critters encountered there, but fore warned is for armed!
Go on line and see what kind of bombs you can use in case your motel has them. But the bathtub and checking the bedding and the room before setting anything down and setting up shop...is paramount, in the fore front of keeping your clothing and home safe.

bobmcculloch Loc: NYC, NY

Early mornings can get you some less crowded to deserted street scenes, The Irish hunger monument has not been mentioned yet, Grand Central Terminal itself is worth a few frames, the Flat iron building , oh I could keep on finding more things to shoot but you could just walk around, hmm Little Red Lighthouse, aka Jeffery's ledge under the GW Bridge, the Cloisters, ...
Bob

Brooklyn-Camera Loc: Brooklyn, New York City

Staten Island ferry, it's free. About a 40 min ride,lots of shots of lower Manhattan, Freedom Tower and Brooklyn Bridge.