This is what I said when I left Rochester at seventeen. I didn't look back for many years. I never appreciated the place I was born and raised… But I was wrong about my hometown.
Moving back to Rochester as an adult, after traveling the world and visiting many cities, I see this city with fresh eyes. It's beautiful!
With a new perspective, I set myself on a mission to create images of Rochester that reflect its beauty.
To do so, I searched for a viewpoint where I could see downtown ROC, the Freddy Sue Bridge, and the Genesee River together - Three of the most noteworthy icons of the city.
I kept looking, but whenever I found a great spot to see one of the icons, I couldn't see the others. Then, a friend told me about Rochester Riverway Trail behind Tony D's.
So I went one evening, just as the sun was setting, with my camera and tripod.
I remember the feeling as I stepped onto Riverway Trail. Exhilaration. This was it! This was the viewpoint I had imagined. All three icons were lined-up in front of me.
I couldn't believe it!
But the sun was already set, and I still had to unpack the camera and tripod.
Luckily, I wanted to shoot during the blue hour, just after sunset, but I only had about 15 more minutes to get the shot.
I set up as quickly as possible and prepared my camera for several exposures of about 30 seconds each, which requires absolute stillness of the camera.
There was wind, so I hung my backpack from the tripod to add weight. I took off my jacket and hung it on my backpack for the extra pound it would contribute. My MacGyver trick worked.
Ultimately, I created the image I saw in my mind's eye - This image of Freddy Sue.
