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The Manhattan Bridge slotted between two red brick buildings at Washington and Water. Get there before 8am or you're photographing the backs of forty other people's phones.
Best shot at sunrise, and it isn't close. Come up from the Brooklyn side around dawn for near-empty gothic arches - the middle stretch is the least crowded and most photogenic.
The classic deck frame: the Empire State Building dead center with Central Park behind you. Book the last slot before sunset for daylight, golden hour, and the lights coming on in one ticket.
The tiled arcade under the terrace is one of the prettiest interiors in the park - and it's covered, which makes it the reliable rainy-day option. Bow Bridge is a short walk north.
Shoot the main concourse from the west balcony on a clear morning to catch the shafts of light through the tall windows - slow the shutter for classic rush-hour motion blur.
A narrow cobblestone lane in the Financial District that reads far older and more European than most of Manhattan. Pair it with the Flatiron for a street-and-architecture day.