For over three decades, Dan Martland has turned the New York City skyline into his personal stage. A veteran cinematographer and founder of DanTV Inc., Martland grew up in England, camera in hand since age ten, inspired by his father’s photography. Now based in New York, he applies the precision of broadcast cinematography to still images that catch the city in rare, electric moments.
Martland is best known for his viral lightning and moon-rise shots — photographs that blend technical mastery with sheer persistence. Using PhotoPills, Planit Pro, and RadarScope, he plots sun and moon alignments or tracks storm fronts in real time. Often shooting from 20 miles away with a 600 mm lens, he compresses the skyline until the moon looms monumental above Manhattan.
“Come rain or shine, there’s never a bad day to shoot New York City,” he says. The mantra suits his style — clean, crisp, and carefully plotted. His goal is simple: find the geometry within chaos. In 2024, patience paid off when he captured a triple lightning strike hitting the Empire State Building, One World Trade Center, and a crane on Park Avenue — all in a single exposure.
Whether framed through thunderclouds or dawn haze, Martland’s images remind us that even the most photographed city in the world still holds surprises — if you’re willing to chase them through the storm.
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