Using Helicopters, Boats, and Exploring the Boroughs, Jason O’Rear Photographs Eagle + West From Every Perfect Angle
I love the way Jason O’Rear shoots infrastructure, civic structures, and skyscrapers. Abundant in context and shot from all the right perspectives, I find Jason’s work is just stellar. His photographs of Eagle + West are no exception. Each photo feels as big and meaningful as the structure it features, while he adds a bit of humanity and magic along the way. Let’s check out Eagle + West:
Eagle + West by OMA New York is perched on the waterfront of the Greenpoint neighborhood of New York and has a vast sweeping view of the Manhattan skyline. Jason demonstrates this perfectly in this first shot, where we see the Empire State Building perfectly framed between Eagle + West’s two towers. Pretty dang cool!
Jason tells a bit about the shoot by sharing “I really enjoyed photographing this project and being immersed in Brooklyn. The project is located directly next to the East River and is one of the tallest buildings in Brooklyn, so there were a lot of opportunities to explore views from various vantage points.
I spent several days documenting the project from the surrounding boroughs, on the water via boats, and in the air from a helicopter. Each effort revealed the project in different ways.”
I appreciate the way Jason positions himself thoughtfully to show off the Eagle + West’s interesting shape in each photograph, no matter which angle he is approaching it from. Here we see the staggered shape with bikers riding past and folks out in the grass, which gives us a feel for Eagle + West’s location and surrounding amenities.
Another few looks at that very cool building shape from a myriad of different perspectives – these more abstract vignettes contribute to the overall story of this structure and project
Jason’s photographs of Eagle + West inside are just as dreamy as they are outside. Chock full of bold lines and that good light, we get a real sense of this building’s grandeur.
As evening falls, Jason presents Eagle + West in a different light. These moodily lit scenes feel dramatic and compelling.
How cool and graphic is this next shot?
Check out the gorgeous interplay of colors here – there is a lovely blue/orange color balance that creates contrast and visual interest. We can feel the warmth of the sun on the facade against the cool blue sky.
Look at Jason’s attention to the little details, like the figure in the window in the photo to the left. The image on the right showcases the building’s shape in a playful manner which fits nicely with the sunset hues.
The next two images are a great representation of what Jason mentioned at the start of this Project of the Week. By approaching his subject from different vantage points, like by boat and helicopter, he is able to communicate its shape and structure in a variety of contexts, which is what really makes this series of photographs special!
“Capturing this photograph from Manhattan allowed me to layer in the urban context in the foreground and have Eagle + West in the background, reinforcing its contextual relationship to one another,” Jason explains about the next image.
“[This image] was captured from a helicopter at sunset,” Jason tells about one of his personal favorites from the shoot. “It was a very frantic afternoon and a long journey to get to the helicopter, but once in the air and seeing the project in the context of Manhattan and the surrounding neighborhoods of Brooklyn made the effort worth it. Eagle + West is one of the tallest projects in Brooklyn, so it’s one of the only buildings around that catches the last bit of light in the afternoon, which is special.”
Well said Jason!
A massive thanks to Jason O’Rear for sharing this shoot with us. See more of Jason’s epic work on his Instagram @jasonorear or his website jasonorear.com.
If you have a project you’d like to be considered for Project of the Week, you can submit it here.
