There are plenty of roundups of the year's best photography, but we want to gather 2012's best photos -- that are sitting on your cell phone. James Estrin, New York Times Lens blogger, will look at your photographs a announce his favorites on Wednesday, December 26th.
Note: The slideshow below only displays the most recent submissions. Look below for the full archive of photos.
Charles Maraia
Pilings in the Hudson River on the west side as the flooding from Sandy.
Brian LaRossa
Taken in Park Slope the day Sandy hit; before she had done any damage.
Irene Gallo
Times Square
Casey
Month or so ago, I was in my parents' backyard as the family cat, Bandit, napped. I placed my phone on a table and zoomed in. He woke up and crept toward me. Very friendly cat that unfortunately had a stroke, so he's much sweeter than he looks these days. I know it's a pet photo, breaks the rules, but I was just impressed that this was not touched-up, looks terrifying.
Sarah Pachelli
...because summer sunsets in NYC are pretty much the most magical thing ever.
(taken on the Staten Island ferry)
Kevin Kehler
What is left of the board walk in far Rockawy
Brandon Emerick
This was indicative of what my entire 25 year record collection looked like after my apartment was submerged by Sandy.
Margaret DeVico
I took this photo on Thursday, November 1st, which was the first day I was able to leave my Hoboken apartment after Sandy. It's inside Saint Peter and Paul's Church on Hudson Street at about 9:00AM. I charged my phone and my laptop for the first time since the storm hit, and while I was there I was given hot coffee and a breakfast sandwich by a random stranger. I left around 10:00AM, and by then there was a large group of people waiting for an open outlet.
Kaylah pantaleon
Gas shortage in Yonkers, NY! 2012.
Brandon Emerick
This is what it looked like in Red Hook during the Sandy blackout snowstorm.
Michael Davidson
Took while in the PATH to Newark NJ. Love to shoot people sleeping on train. I love that this young man is dressed for success head to toe :)
martin bretzin
Taken off the coast of ft lauderdale, florida. Just graduated college and started my career in the yachting industry. Not necessarily a journalistic topic but proud to show that even in my demographic (age under 25) I can find a great job in todays economy.
Blaze Nowara
A few days after Sandy I took this photo in Long Branch, NJ (Monmouth County). I like the composition and the simplicity of the photograph regardless of the devastating story it tells.
Kevin kehler
Taking a subway ride with a Pigeon. Sometimes pigeons don't fly everywhere
Allegra
When/Where: Immediately post-Sandy on Riverside Drive.
Why: Using my 11 month old puppy Tango for scale, I wanted to show my friends how Sandy impacted my neighborhood, the Upper West Side: wind more than water.
I like it because the photo tells that story AND more personally, I was pretty psyched about this sit-stay - he would usually come and lick the camera. And the photo also speaks to my puppy's love of sticks, but that's not so universally newsworthy!
Dennis Lee
This photo was taken in Columbus, OH where I was visiting an old friend this summer. We spotted a praying mantis on a bush in front of his apartment and as I tried to take a picture of it, it leaped onto my iPhone. The actual photo was taken by my friend at that moment. It came out really well, I believe it didn't even need cropping. We'd joked that Apple would would buy this image. Thanks!
Jo-Ellen Trilling
This photo was taken at home of Christmas tree ornaments ( repainted) with an added caption. The monkeys were purchased at the Union Square Christmas Market. I took it because I am an editorial artist. The objects are a gift for my son-in-law Jeremiah Goulka who writes political commentary. I like it because it's funny but a necessary sentiment.
Kevin Turner
I took this photo at New York Road Runners' official kick off to the doomed 2012 ING NYC Marathon. I was registered to run the race for the first time and on that day, I remember feeling so much excitement.
Paul Brozo
This is a shot of Hoboken looking down from the Heights of Jersey City the morning after Hurricane Sandy hit. The water came all the way up to the hill we live on, about a mile from the Hudson's western banks. Notice the two semi trucks trying to drive through, water reaching halfway up their sides. We also found out that by zooming in, you can see a man trapped inside the black SUV. We were shocked at the depth of the water so far inland against the eerie backdrop of a dark Freedom Tower. (Pic #2 in subsequent post.)
Taylor Roig
This is a non edited picture from my terrace in east Harlem, my view from the 30th floor. I love the contrast of the snow with the sunset... I just get a feeling of warmth and comfort from the picture. I can't explain it...
Matthew Yanchuk
It's a haunting shot taken from Smith St in Brooklyn.
Rachael Zur
Homeless man in Midtown
susan w
D.C. just before the election. Commodifying man of the year!
George
This is a photo of my favorite bridge in NY and the one that has the least exposure. I guess cause its a train bridge. Its even got a great name. Hell Gate Bridge. It was taken from Astoria Park during sunset. 2 bridges, one ship one river and a sunset.
Matt L
Zucotti Park, 10/14. 'Nuff said.
Dorian
I took this in Greenwich Village, on W. 10th St., a few days after power was restored there. It with a touch of ironic humor and a (likely) knowing reference to a horror show of yore, talked of Sandy.
susan w.
Sandy, inland. Anthropomorphism among killer trees run rampant: this one just lay down for 20 winks.
Carol Davis
After losing power for 10 days after Sandy, I took this photo of my husband just seconds after the lights came on. He found a way to keep warm. Count the cats!
Kevin Turner
This is a screenshot that I took as the announcements from the Supreme Court regarding the Affordable Care Act came rolling in. There was a lot of confusion that morning as news outlets scrambled to analyze the ruling.
Gary Eckstein
My wife and I rode our bikes to Red Hook the day after Sandy. I took this shot of the still flooded Beard Street on my iPhone. The high water mark is still visible on the warehouse where receding water from inside the Fairway apparently damaged the bottom of the security gate.
Kayan Lam
We had to throw away my sister's piano had to thrown out post storm sandy.
Yolande
This is one of the window displays at the 2012 Macy's Flower Show taken from the sidewalk. All the displays were beautiful, made up of bright flowers, plants and Brazilian samba costumes. This was my first time seeing the Macy's flower showed. Loved it.
Edward E. Crouse
Monroe St between Wabash Ave and Michigan Ave, Chicago, Ill. May 21, 2012. I was marching with National Lawyers' Guild legal observers to get their view of things. The faces, however blurry, render the shapes of the municipal (and in this case international) control of protests and first amendment rights.
Paul Brozo
This is a shot of Hoboken the morning after Hurricane Sandy hit. You can see the City of Hoboken sign in the center along with other badly damaged and immersed signs. This is at the innermost edge of the city, about a mile from the Hudson. Prior to this shot being taken, a man was trapped inside the black SUV. We were shocked at the depth of the water so far inland. More pictures upon request.
Jeff Pappas
Album release " A Viberatto B ". Jimmy Goodman plays Kingston NY
Conor McDonough
Super storm Sandy overflows the Gowanus Canal at 2nd Street in Brooklyn.
Jeff Pappas
Holiday Decorations and old brick , Albany NY
Edward E. Crouse
130 E Randolph St, Chicago, Ill., September 4, 2012. Near the close of a muddled election season in which America's wars were scarcely mentioned, groups such as Veterans for Peace, the Gay Liberation Front, and Occupy Chicago reminded citizens of the stakes of drone strikes and other military actions. After a march through downtown, these coffins were left in front of the president's campaign headquarters. The crowd scattered slowly without publicly announcing that the coffins would stay until the police or building security took them away. Not nearly as packed as the NATO protests, but important nonetheless.
I took this photo of Serena Williams on September 1, 2012 at the Billie Jean King Tennis Center at the 2012 US Open. Serena won this year. I took this photo because she is the best female tennis player that ever lived. I like this photo because it shows not only her classic form, but the power and strength of her serve which is the best in women's tennis today.
I took this picture in November 2012. It shows the bruises I sustained after falling when I finished boxing training. I started boxing after I had brain surgery in 2005. I'm proud to be an amateur boxer. Boxing prevented me from falling every month to every 2 years. I learned hand/eye coordination, strength training, stamina and how to stand and feel confident. I walk to my part time job to and fro 3 times a week now. The bruises are nothing compared to what I gained. I love boxing!
Staten Island, 2weeks after Hurricane Sandy. I ran out with the New York Runners in Support of Staten Island crew and spent the day ripping out drywall & cleaning up. Photo showing a "one way" sign demonstrates how much work is still left to do.
The south Jersey pine barrens as seen from the Apple Pie Hill fire tower near Chatsworth, NJ, in September 2012. Other than the tiny, far-off skylines of Atlantic City and Philadelphia in the distance, views in all 4 directions look exactly the same. I had to sit down to snap this photo because the surrealness of the view literally took my breath away. Taken on an i-phone 4.
I took this photo the night of Obama 's win. My husband and I chose to picture of Fox News calling the election because it just felt so good to have Fox News have to say it. Of course right after this photo was shot, Fox pundits began questioning the call, and embarrassing itself .
The Belmar, NJ, boardwalk at dusk, early September 2012. The boardwalk, dunes and some of these buildings were totally wiped out by hurricane Sandy. This serene place may never look the same again. Taken on an i-phone 4.
I love to photograph reflections. Back in March, I was riding north on the A train when I noticed this amazing graffiti scrawled on the tunnel wall. It read "Fed up with working too much <3 CW." It worked perfectly with the reflection of the subway car. I managed to snap the pic within seconds of moving on. It seems to capture the ethos of both the subway and the occupy wall street movement.
Picture from the inside of Fresh Salt, a bar down by the South Street Seaport. I'm a bit obsessed with the idea of reflections and when I noticed the neon Eat sign reflecting back into the restaurant, I felt compelled to capture the image. Fresh Salt flooded as a result of Sandy. I don't know if it re-opened yet.
This was taken with an iPhone 4S out the window of a moving car on the BQE. It was a glorious day, we were headed to see Peter Gabrielle at Jones Beach. I like the way it catches a sunny fall day in stop-motion.
This photo was taken on 12.10.12. It was shot 30 miles outside of Port au Prince, Haiti in a very rural mountain side community. We were searching for a boy whose arms were amputated from falling debris during the 2010 earthquake that killed his sister. We not only found the boy but found other children living in small enclosures near a riverbed. When we arrived a little girl holding a bowl of food appeared in a doorway. I grabbed my phone and snapped her puzzled expression as we, strangers in her little village, climbed the hillside near her home. I like the angle of the girl and her questioning eyes.
This photo was taken on Halloween, just two days after Hurricane Sandy. I had gone out for a quick jaunt to the post office not realizing that it was at the exact time the kids would be filling the streets, costumed and in search of treats. It was a truly moving moment for me: after the beating the city took the Monday before, it seemed like NYC was rising up to defy yet another NYC-tragedy, to say, yet again: we will survive this storm, our kids WILL enjoy the Halloween fun due them, they will have their treats and eat them too. I was moved, and so I just started taking pictures. This one, my favorite, is of the child of the owners of a great Sushi restaurant on 5th Ave near 18th St in the South Slope. She had dressed up as an angel -- and so, the photo is called "Waving Angel." I love her happy smile!
This photo was taken just last week, 12.11.12, on a visit to one of the remaining tent camps set-up for Haitians who lost their homes in the 2010 earthquake. The light streaming into this tent city glistens in comparison to the plight of the people who are being forced to live in, what many claim are, intolerable conditions. The children and the extreme light flooding the camp caught my eye when I snapped this photo. I like the position of the children against the falling sun in the background as their faces present joy to a dark situation.
Before 9.11 I mostly thought of gasoline as just a commodity, but since then, world events and everyday behaviors have thrown everything about "dinosaur juice" into sharp relief, as they say. On line for two hours after Hurricane Sandy at a northern NJ gas station, I had plenty of time to reflect upon the meaning of the name of this gas station, "Liberty."
From our perch on eastern slope of the Watchung Mountains, along with the eagles and hawks, we don't miss much. In addition to stellar sunrises, incoming storms, and the NYC skyline, we also bear witness to an alarming and often putrid display of smokestacks and fires.
Here is the Edison (NJ) PSE&G substation fire, Feb. 28, 2012.
This photo's caption was: 'After Sandy, this is exactly what we needed!' referring to the first winter storm that came just few days after Sandy. Taken in Butler, NJ.
Leave a Comment
Email addresses are required but never displayed.