“Street Photos” Showing What New York City Looks Like to a Bicycle

For his project titled “NYC By Bike,” photographer Tom Olesnevich attached his DSLR to the underside of his bicycle, and then snapped photographs while riding around in various areas of the city. The resulting photographs offer an interesting look at how the rear wheels of bikes see the Big Apple.

Here’s what Olesnevich tells us about the project and how he shot the photos:

I’m a sports photographer by trade. My close personal friends also know that I’m an avid cyclist. But when I tell people that I live in NYC and ride my bike here, I get all sorts of curious glances. I have photos of myself riding all over the country and in Europe, but none of NYC. So this spring I set out to show what riding in NYC looks and feels like, to me.

I’m the rider in all of the shots. They were taken with a Nikon D40 (gasp!), attached upside down to the bike with a GorillaPod, and triggered via infrared remote.

There are certainly risks with having your DSLR hanging in such a precarious location. He tells us of one “funny story”:

I’m riding west along 42nd street fairly quickly when I hear a clunk. I quickly stop and turn around just in time to see my camera go tumbling down the street, under a semi. Thankfully it kept right on tumbling under the truck and popped out the other side, only slightly worse for wear! That put an end to shooting that day, ha!

You can find more of these photographs over on Olesnevich’s website.


Image credits: Photographs by Tom Olesnevich and used with permission

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