South Side by Sarah VanTassel

South Side

Across P.J Mcardle and behind our house, which is about two blocks up from East Carson Street on Selby Way, there run two rail road lines. Across these tracks in several places the city of Pittsburgh built walking bridges to offer people who live on the slopes a quicker way to get down the hill. On one of these bridges I took this gigapan. The view from these little bridges is beautiful. I wanted to capture that perspective of looking down on my neighborhood. This gigapan actually makes me want to go up on the other walking bridges along those tracks and try to get more of the community. I think it would be really neat to be able to just look down on an entire neighborhood and be able to get close and really be able to get more of a full idea of what life there is like. I believe it would be a great resource to people who are interested in moving to Pittsburgh for the first time or even those who are thinking of moving within the city, if someone were to use the gigapan to photograph all of Pittsburgh’s neighborhoods and have these interactive pictures available to the public. I am aware that there are already similar types of services being offered to the public, but I feel like gigapan could be a more organized and precise means of getting out the same or comparable information. People would be able to get an idea of the condition of homes and streets. They would be able to see all the different types of businesses as well. If someone’s needs are not met in a certain neighborhood, they should be fully aware of that fact before they make the decision to move there. Plus the snapshots of popular spots and areas of high interest in a particular community could be pointed out to the viewing audience. It would be a good resource to also have certain categories all with snapshots, like for example all of the local churches could be in snapshots and then listed individually in a list. That way with these lists people can get even more familiar with a closer area. And you could of course do that for schools, restaurants, and gyms, book stores and other specific business types. Having this available to the general public will be extremely helpful in providing people an easier time of looking for just what they want. Also, if you were to take several gigapans from different perspectives of one neighborhood, the public would also be able to get more insight on just what part of that community appealed best to their living needs. Often times people will more to an area but not really have the full picture of just where it is and what it will be like to reside there. Having these gigapans could be a great way of helping people to make the best moving decision for them and for their families.