Locations · Manhattan
2-hour photo shoot
The most famous deli in New York, tenement fire escapes, a Beaux-Arts bank on the Bowery, Chinatown's stacked shop signs and one of Manhattan's only curved streets, all on one walk from Houston Street to Chinatown. Here is exactly how we spend your two hours.
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Why LES & Chinatown
For more than a century, the Lower East Side and Chinatown were where newcomers to New York arrived first. The streets still show it: brick tenements with iron fire escapes, family shops under layers of painted and neon signs, and Katz's Delicatessen, serving pastrami on the corner of Houston and Ludlow since 1888.
That history makes this a Lower East Side and Chinatown photo shoot unlike anything uptown. In two hours we go from the deli sign everyone knows from When Harry Met Sally and the fire escapes of Orchard Street to a marble bank by Stanford White, the color of Mott and Pell and the sharp bend of Doyers Street. No two frames look alike.
Meeting point
Exit at Houston St & 1st Ave.
Session
5 locations, 1–2 outfits.
On foot
Easy pace, flat sidewalks.
Best light
Start time set when you book.
From a recent session on this route
The route
The five stops
Houston St & Ludlow St · 3 min walk from the F
“The most famous deli sign in New York.”
Katz's has been serving pastrami on this corner since 1888, and its neon and painted signs are a backdrop people recognize from When Harry Met Sally. We start here while the sidewalk is still quiet, and you can come back for a sandwich after your session.
20 min.
Orchard St, from Houston St south to Grand St · 1 block west
“Red brick, iron fire escapes and real downtown energy.”
This is the Lower East Side of old photographs, still standing: rows of 19th-century tenements with zigzag fire escapes, shop awnings and street trees, with new downtown towers rising behind them. We shoot as we walk south along Orchard, stopping wherever the light and the block look best, then turn right on Grand Street toward the Bowery.
20 min.
130 Bowery, near Grand St · 10 min walk west on Grand
“A Beaux-Arts temple in the middle of the Bowery.”
Stanford White designed the Bowery Savings Bank, finished in 1895, with Corinthian columns and an entrance framed like a triumphal arch. For years it was the event hall Capitale. Its pale stone and deep doorway give us clean, elegant portraits on one of downtown's grittiest streets. Quick outfit change after this stop.
15 min.
Mott St & Pell St · 10 min walk south on the Bowery
“Stacked signs, red and gold, and constant motion.”
Pell and Mott are Chinatown at full volume: vertical shop signs in Chinese and English, bakeries, herbal shops and fruit stands. I use a longer lens here so the street turns into a wall of color behind you.
20 min.
Around the corner from Pell · 2 min walk
“One of the only curved streets in Manhattan.”
Old gangland lore gave this sharp bend the nickname "Bloody Angle." Today it is a pedestrian street lined with small restaurants, including Nom Wah Tea Parlor, serving dim sum since 1920. The curve hides the end of the street, so every frame feels like its own little world. We finish here, a short walk from the Canal St subway.
15 min.
Placeholder photos from Unsplash: Jason Leung, Michał Kubiak, Wes Hicks, Magnus Andersson. Real session photos coming soon.
Pro tips
Clothing
We walk about a mile and a half on flat sidewalks. Wear comfortable shoes, and bring one outfit in a strong color: red, yellow or cobalt stands out against the Lower East Side's brick and Chinatown's signs.
Timing
Chinatown sidewalks get crowded by late morning, especially on weekends. An early start gives us quiet streets while the shops open, and golden hour warms up the brick and the Katz's sign.
Permits
Photos with a handheld camera on city sidewalks don't need a permit, as long as we don't block the way. I never photograph shopkeepers or their stalls without asking first.
Two hours, five classic spots, from Houston Street to Chinatown. Pick your date and I'll send your start time.
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