Albany, New York, is the capital of New York State. The city has a rich 300-year history of government, arts, and commerce. The Central Avenue neighborhood is an area of traditional early-20th century town homes, shops, and small apartments. According to the Central Avenue web page,
"This isn’t your typical main street and that’s exactly the point. Central Avenue is where authenticity thrives and Albany’s creative pulse beats strongest. It’s home to rising artists, bold thinkers, small business pioneers, and innovators shaping what’s next."
This was all new to me because I had only once before been to Albany (after I completed the Erie Canal bike tour).
My bicycling friend and I had just completed the Cycle the Hudson Valley ride. We joined family member for lunch at a restaurant on Central Avenue. While they lingered after lunch, I wandered around and took photos of the houses and stores.
Central Avenue
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| 198 Central Avenue |
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| Fresh Bites Deli, 199 Central Avenue |
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| Bob's Appliances, 224 Central Avenue |
Robin Street and Sherman Streets
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| Standing alone, 217 Sherman Street |
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| 200 block of Sherman Street |
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| 201 Sherman Street |
Note the asphalt shingles on the side of the house on the left. Decades ago, many of these buildings may have been re-shingled this way.
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| Robin Street |
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| Memorial, Robin Street |
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| Apartment, 351 Elk Stree |
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| Houses, 421 Sheridan Avenue |
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| 201 Sherman Street |
Lark Street
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| Row townhouses, 105 Lark Street |
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| Townhouses, Lark Street |
These handsome townhouses date from the 1880s and 1890s and form part of Albany's historic core. The area has been revitalized and gentrified over the last 20+ years. Lark Street has evolved into a prominent center for Albany's LGBTQ+ community.
This ends our short walk around historic Central Avenue. I took these photos in August 2025 on Kodak Tri-X film using my Canon Canonet GIII QL17 camera with its 40mm ƒ/1.4 lens. The negatives were very contrasty, and I had to reduce the contrast with the curve tool using Photoshop CS6. For some frames, I corrected converging vertical lines with Photoshop. This would be the place to use a shift lens on an interchangeable lens camera. Unfortunately, I did not have any yellow or orange filters with me to add some tone to the featureless sky.
