Speaking of curiosity (see last week’s entry), I had been trying to get to the annual Coney Island Mermaid Parade for the last five years or so, but something always seemed to get in the way. This year I was determined to get there no matter what and last Saturday I did!

The Mermaid Parade is billed as the nation’s largest art parade and I have no reason to doubt that. There were a ton of participants and the parade route was packed! It turned out to be everything I had hoped for! Following my recent success on Memorial Day I got up bright and early so I could drive to Hamilton station, take the NJ transit train to Penn Station and then walk to the 34^th Street/Herald Square Station to hop on the subway to Coney Island. The gameplan was to get there by 10am … long before the parade started at 1pm. Considering I’d never done this before things worked out quite nicely.

By the time I walked about ten or fifteen minutes to where the staging area was, marchers and floats were starting to arrive and the police had just about finished placing metal barriers along both sides of Surf Avenue to keep the crowds a safe distance from the action.  This gave me more than enough time to meet some very interesting people, schmooze and even make some pictures before things got totally crazy. And while I got kicked out of the staging area several times because I didn’t have press credentials I was happy with the pictures I made. I knew I didn’t get everything, but I felt more than satisfied.

But there was one thing that was really annoying. I told a particularly obnoxious person that the rule in photography when being out there is not to step in front of someone else who is trying to make a picture. And the worst thing is when someone does that so they can take YOUR picture %%#$^&*??  The press photographer next to me agreed and said so! Ok, I get it; I was in New York, but come on!  Anyway, while that happened several times I still had a blast at the Mermaid Parade and maybe even made some serious keepers!

By the time I had gone through two rolls of Tri-X using my Leica M2 and M3 the parade was just about to start and I felt I got everything I needed.  I walked back down Surf Avenue alongside those marching in the parade, passed Nathan’s, then reached Stillwell Avenue and turned into the subway station. As I left the 34^th Street/Herald Square Station to walk back to Penn Station it began to rain. A beautiful and cooling sun shower that made me forget about the approaching gathering storm we could be soon facing. While I hung out for three hours during the worst heat in the East this year, it was well worth the sweat, and this was a wonderful way to end what was truly a great day in New York!

This weekend, on National Camera Day I developed my negatives, along with eight other rolls that were beginning to form a line on my enlarging bench. I can’t wait to see the proof sheets!

Stay well,

Michael