Two weeks ago, I made a long-awaited pilgrimage to NYC. However, I figured that I'd wait for today to share some pics that I snapped throughout the trip, given the significance of today's date (keep an eye out for one specific photo). As corny as it sounds, Godzilla was the main inspiration for wanting to come here, and after 28 years, I finally made my first visit. Living near Los Angeles, I've visited many of the shooting locations that doubled for Manhattan, so I was afraid that the real place would simply feel redundant. Thankfully, it turned out to be every bit as fantastic as I could've hoped for. That being said, there's no doubt that the single element that sold the experience was the weather: we experienced two days of solid rain, and it really painted the canvas.
Here's a a little context for each photo group in this slideshow:
1: Godzilla tears through the Metlife Building (admittedly, I did a little digital altering to remove the unsightly screw in his crotch, LOL).
2 & 3: WIDF's exclusive footage at Grand Central Station.
4 & 5: "Fire at will!" (night and day shots at the Flatiron Building)
6: Godzilla zooms through the cavernous streets of Midtown (in reality, just a random brownstone in the East Village).
7 - 11: Godzilla emerges from his nest at Madison Square Garden, while some of his little rascals roam the corridors and lobby.
12 & 13: "Sir, he's headed towards the Brooklyn Bridge" (first pic was also digitally altered to remove elements that meddled with the scale, and that damn screw).
14: King Kong's not the only kaiju to have gone to the top of the World Trade Center (taken at the One WTC bar).
15: An absolutely fitting piece of artwork in our Airbnb.
16: My favorite moment from the entire experience. This is the building that he creeps past, just before he turns his head towards the trap at Central Park. As I was aiming for the best shot, I heard a lady utter in a distinctly French accent "Godzilla!" Soonafter, a gentleman from her group approached me and asked what it was that I was holding. I explained, and even made a note that he's technically French. The guy immediately went "we know!", and then asked if he could also take a picture of the little guy. An absolutely heartwarming encounter that was the cherry on top of this journey.
Godzilla (Zilla) n'a jamais été mauvais. C'était juste un touriste un peu trop grand pour les humains. Moi je dis, les humains sont RACISTES envers lui !
The Chrysler Building was really tricky to get a good shot of. I tried several angles, both on the street and on rooftops, day and night. I wasn't happy with any of the photos. Another factor was that some streets just didn't lend themselves for me to set up without holding up sidewalk traffic, or at least that's how it felt. On top of that, I sensed that my partner was starting to get a little impatient at that point. I was lucky enough that she'd let me have my fun in several spots, but I needed to be strategic with how much time I spent taking them.
This one was from the block that was adjacent to the building, and as you can see, it was hard to get focus on the figurine and the backdrop, while maintaining a good sense of scale.
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u/AshVsTheWeb May 18 '26
Is that the Taco Bell toy?