Sony Asked Me to Take Photos of Long Beach, NY

Sony Asked Me to Take Photos of Long Beach, NY by Hilary JM Topper, MPA

I love everything tech. As soon as a new device becomes available (and if it's Apple related), I'm in the market to buy it.

Recently Sony reached out to me. I'm not quite sure how they found me, but I'm glad they did. They offered me a Sony NEX-5R camera in exchange for 50 photos of my hometown, Long Beach, NY.

"But, do you really want me to take photos of Long Beach?" I asked their representative. "We've all gone through so much and we're now trying to rebuild."

"Rebuilding after Hurricane Sandy is a perfect story to showcase in your local store," the rep told me.

A few days later, I found myself in the Sony Store in Roosevelt Field picking up my Sony NEX-5R camera. The sales person spent some time talking about the camera's features and off I went. I had less than seven days to shoot what I thought showed hope and recovery in Long Beach. I was one of many bloggers asked to participate in this project called, “The Unedited 516.”

Long Beach, for those of you not familiar with the area, is a beach community set on the south shore of Long Island. The city is actually situated on a barrier island, and we get thousands of visitors each summer who come from New York City to go to our sandy white beaches that span the shoreline. On October 29, 2012, our city was hit hard by Hurricane Sandy. Many people lost their homes and their cars as a result of the storm. Since then, our community has been rebuilding.

From the time I got the camera until the time I had to upload the photos, I spent every free moment driving around Long Beach in search of that perfect image that would show the world that we had devastation but that we will come back stronger and better than before. I drove around Lido, the east end, the center of town, and the west end seeking hope and, although I photographed some subjects that some may find sad and painful, there is an element of hope in every photo.

The Sony NEX-5R is an amazing camera. It took me a while to get the hang of it, and I'm still learning about it every day, but it takes the most amazing photos. It really does. And, I love that it integrates with Facebook so easily. I'm still trying to figure out how to send photos to my cell phone, but I'm sure once I figure it out, I'll be using that feature all the time!

I even showed the Sony NEX-5R to my dad who is a photography buff. He was truly impressed too. I love that it gives you the ability to do technical things with ease. With just a click of the mode settings, you can take dozens of action shots within seconds!

My 50 photos will be on display on March 28, 2013, in the Sony store in Roosevelt Field. Check out the hashtag #Sony516 or #SonyStore to see more photos and get more information.

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Hilary JM Topper, MPA is the President/CEO of HJMT Public Relations, Inc. in Melville, NY. Her blog HilaryTopper.com has more than 35,000 unique visitors and her radio show, Hilary Topper On Air has more than 5,000 listeners. You can hear her at www.blogtalkradio.com/hilarytopper.