Oh, these are amazing!
The photo you see above was taken by photographer Paul Seibert. He was so high up in the sky to take these gorgeous shots, that he was required to wear an oxygen mask to fly the aircraft legally. “This particular shot has never been taken before,” Seibert told PetaPixel. “I wanted to do the highest open-door helicopter flight over NYC.”
These awe-inspiring images were taken at 15,000 feet above New York City. He took the photos at dawn, showing the densely-populated areas of Manhattan Island, Brooklyn, Jersey City, Staten Island, Roosevelt Island, and the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge. “At these heights, there are not only atmospheric conditions to fight with but also physiological responses to a lack of oxygen in an unpressurized aircraft. The pilot was on oxygen to safely pilot the helicopter,” Seibert shared.
The photographer used a Canon R5 with a 15-35mm lens attached. He also shared that he had to use a different zoom lens (70-200mm) to take detailed shots of some of the skyscrapers in the city. He attributes the dream-like quality of his images thanks to being able to take some of the photos at dawn and after sunrise.
Image credit: Paul Seibert