Anyone who has ever been to New York City remembers their first impression, amazement, and awe. Photographer Michael Shainblum credits this feeling as one of the main reasons he got into photography in the first place. You will be glad he did when you check out this amazing three-minute tribute to the city that never sleeps.

If you have never been to New York City, it is truly hard to imagine what it is like. I have vivid memories of visiting the city with my dad when I was very young. We visited the Statue of Liberty, the Twin Towers, and FAO Schwarz, the iconic toy store. I’ve only returned a few times as an adult and consider myself more of a small town type, so videos like this are a great way to take in the scenery without leaving my zip code.

Shainblum’s photography is impressive on its own, being both strong compositionally and extremely sharp and clean. I’m always blown away by what he can create with just about any subject. Needless to say, shooting something as picturesque as the Big Apple turned out very well. I also enjoyed the music, which was done by James Everingham.

The piece is called “Liberty” and is described as a visual journey through New York City, featuring both time-lapse and hyper-lapse photography. It has been Shainblum’s hope that he could someday convey the feeling he had that day in a short film. The final video contains about 15,000 still photographs captured in 2016 and 2018. You can see more stills from New York City on Shainblum’s website.

Is it the best New York City time-lapse you have seen too?