Bryant Park

The camera looks out over the lawn and paths of Bryant Park, a green space in the middle of Midtown Manhattan. Around the open grass stand tall trees, rows of chairs and tables, and the back of the New York Public Library. The park is easy to recognise by its formal layout and the buildings of the surrounding district rising behind the trees.

Mornings are usually quiet, with people passing through on their way to work and the lawn mostly open. Around midday the chairs fill up and office workers come out for lunch. In the warmer months the lawn is used for films, concerts and reading, while in winter a seasonal village of small shops and a skating rink takes over the central area. Light changes most in the late afternoon.

Bryant Park sits between Fifth and Sixth Avenues, behind the main branch of the New York Public Library. The library building and the park share a long history, and the area was reshaped over the years into the open public space seen today. Visitors come to sit, read, eat lunch, use the carousel and attend the many free events held through the year.