OTHER CITIES: VANCOUVER MONTREAL

Anything for a View of the Pride Parade

Posted by Ryan C
Filed in City
June 26, 2007

my spot was in the middle, this was just after I jumped off and nearly broke my 70-300mm lens
My original plan was the same plan most everyone else who was at the parade had on Sunday; watch and take pictures of the people and floats walking down the street.

And I did just that, for the first 20 minutes or so while sitting on top of a bus shelter at Bloor and Yonge. But then I noticed about 20 billion other people, all doing the same thing. Not only that, but they had way better vantage points than I had.

I got jealous.

But then I figured, hey, I'm going to see all sorts of pictures from all sorts of angles of the Pride Parade in the BlogTO Flickr pool, so how about I take pictures of the people climbing the walls, literally, to get a decent view of the parade. Hopefully they were getting the shots I couldn't get anyways.

So that's what I did.

--
Having been the first time I've attended Toronto's Pride Parade, I can say it wasn't disappointing. I thoroughly enjoyed the floats as well as all the naked people. Below are pictures of people enjoying the same things I did, and doing their best to make sure they get an unobstructed view of the event. More shots of people standing on things can be found in this Flickr set. Be sure to upload your shots of any and everything Pride and Toronto related to the blogTO Flickr pool!

Hover over the pictures to see some not-so informative alt-text.
All in line
ooo, triptych!
no one needed an ambulance anyways
if you couldn't see who was spraying you, it was him
Dude was dancing like a madman
How the hell did that guy in the middle climb up there?
so at least one other person took these pictures, sue me

Reader Reviews and Comments

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Great idea, showing other perspectives. You are right: we have seen a million shots of the parade itself, thanks for showing us the scene surrounding it, and the excitement it inspires.

Nice thinking.

Posted by: Unkie Herb at June 26, 2007 1:45 PM

Seconded.

Posted by: Gloria at June 26, 2007 5:26 PM

One tradition that's gone: no more peering at the parade from the garage holes at 2 Carlton--apparently they've clamped down on Pride spectators there...

Posted by: Adam Sobolak at June 26, 2007 7:26 PM

I loved seeing the rich amateurs at the pride parade with their 70-200s interspersed in to the crowd every few hundred meters--sometimes in pairs.

It's surely the way to ensure those cookie-cutter shots with identical backgrounds and angles. Same thing goes for shots from fixed vantage points above.

The only way to shoot the parade is by putting on a pair of good walking shoes, and walking the entire length of the gauntlet.

Posted by: Joe_Shooter at June 29, 2007 4:57 PM