Brooklyn Bridge Centennial Celebration
May 23,1983
The city had spent a fortune to illuminate the landmark for the event. As twilight approached, the bridge looked magnificent. The many professional photographers that had assembled for the occasion took light readings off the towers to ensure proper film exposure. But just as the show began, the spotlights were inexplicably turned off. An unforgettable fireworks progam by the Gruccis lit the night, with the bridge in stark silhouette. The disappointed photographers kept shooting, making exposure compensations as they tried to get more detail on their dark subject.. I did the same, burning up one roll after another. After a half an hour I was running out of film. During the jaw-dropping finale, I saw I had one more shot. I released the shutter, and as the last two shells burst, the bridge's spotlights came back on. My colleagues had already begun packing their bags trying to get a jump on the masses exiting the show. This is the only photo I've seen of bridge that night with the spotlights on and the fireworks in the background.
