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Coney Island: In Color




Coney Island: In Color is a photographic and sensory time capsule of Coney Island from 2022 to 2025. Comprising color darkroom prints, typewritten prose, and visual notes, the work captures the texture, rhythm, and resilience of the place.

For generations, Coney Island has held a defining place in the American cultural landscape as a site of wonder, leisure, and escape — a seaside haven for immigrants, working-class families and New Yorkers. Known as “the people’s playground” and the birthplace of the American amusement park, its boardwalk is a stage for coming-of-age rituals, summer pilgrimages, and the everyday spectacle of public life. Coney Island: In Color (2022–2025) is my photographic and sensory time capsule of Coney, created through hand-made color darkroom prints and typewritten prose. Working across 35mm, 6×7, and the rare 6×17 format, I’ve built a visual language shaped by analog practice — deliberate and tactile. Over three years, I made weekly visits to Coney, building a record of its landscape and atmosphere.

In 2024, a casino redevelopment proposal threatened Coney Island. Though ultimately rejected in 2025 thanks to community activism and fierce local opposition, the proposal underscored how fragile this historic landscape remains. My project becomes a documentation of not only what was nearly lost, but more importantly, of what the community chose to protect. While Coney has been photographed for generations, few long-term projects have explored it in color — a surprising reality given its vibrancy and iconic visual language. With this work, I aim to expand that canon by bringing a queer and trans contemporary perspective to a history long dominated by male photographers. Through image and prose, the work invites viewers to experience not only what Coney Island looks like, but how it feels. The project is an act of devotion—to Coney Island and the people who fill it with life; to color, memory, and light.

I’m currently in the process of getting this project published as a book—a tactile, hand-made object that recreates the feeling of being there and honors Coney Island. Updates on the book to come. For now, this page has an exerpt of some of my favorites photographs from the project.


Wonder Wheel Alley, 2024

12x14in Chromogenic print 
Firework Through The Tunnel, 2024

12x18in Chromogenic print 
Friday Fireworks Under the Wonder Wheel, 2024

12x14in Chromogenic print
Rocket Riders, 4th of July, 2025
Wonder Wheel Park, 2024

12x14in Chromogenic print 
Coney Island At Dusk, 2023

12x14in Chromogenic print 
The Windstarz Ride, 2024

12x14in Chromogenic print 
Darkroom Notebook Spread, 2024
Empty Prize Booths, 2024 

12x36in Chromogenic print from a 6x17 negative.
The Coaster, 2022

10x12n Chromogenic print
Childhood Wonder, 4th of July, 2025

12x18in Chromogenic print
Long Day, 4th of July, 2025

12x18in Chromogenic print
Astroland Rocket, 2025

12x18in Chromogenic print 
Hanging On The ATM, 2025

12x18in Chromogenic print 
The Kids And Snake, 2025

6x17 color positive slide
DAD, 2025

12x18in Chromogenic print 
Winning Shot, 2025

12x18in Chromogenic print 
 4th of July, 2025

12x18in Chromogenic print
Darkroom Notebook Spread, 2024
The Snake Charmer’s Ice Cream Break, 2024

12x14in Chromogenic print 
4th of July, 2025

12x18in Chromogenic print
The Irish Girls and Snake, 2025

12x18in Chromogenic print 
4th of July, 2025

12x18in Chromogenic print
End of August, 2024

6x17 color positive slide
The Yellow Snake, 2025

6x17 color positive slide
The Cotton Candy Stand, 2023

 6x7cm Color positive slide
The Parachute Jump, 2024

6x7cm Color positive slide
The Ride Alley, 2024

12x14in Chromogenic print 
The Shore, 2024

12x14in Chromogenic print 
The Recycler, 2023

 6x7cm Color positive slide
Summer Beach Day, 2024

6x7cm Color positive slide
Fog Rolling In, 2024

6x7cm Color positive slide
Dancing On The Boardwalk, 2024

12x14n Chromogenic print
Bow and Arrow, 2025
Slushy Seller, 2025
Astroland Rocket Visitor, 2025

12x18in Chromogenic print 
Arcade UFOs, 2023

12x14in Chromogenic print 
Erica and The Puppet Stand, 2023

10x12in Chromogenic print 
The Puppet Stand, 2023

10x12in Chromogenic print 
The Walkways, 2024

6x17 color positive slide
Beginning of July, 2025
Paletta Seller, 2024

6x17 color positive slide
Sunset On The Pier, 2024

6x17 color positive slide
110 Snapshot Photographs, 2024
110 Exposure Test, 2024
The Go-Karts, 2025
The Archer, 2024

12x36in Chromogenic print from a 6x17 negative
Disco ATM, 2025
Running On The Beach, 2025
Beach Day, 2025
Paletta Cart, 2025
The Wheel, 2024

12x14in Chromogenic print 
Closed for Winter, 2024

6x7cm Color positive slide
The Henna Tattoo Stand, 2023

12x14in Chromogenic print
Corn Seller, 2022

10x12in Chromogenic print
Fish Game, 2023

10x12in Chromogenic print 
Win A Goldfish, 2023

10x12in Chromogenic print 
Ticket Booths, 2022

10x12in Chromogenic print
The Ice Crem Seller, 2024

12x14in Chromogenic print 
Empty Alley, 2024

12x18in Chromogenic print 
Red, White and Blue, 2025

24x36mm Color positive slide
Red Kite, 2025

24x36mm Color positive slide
Cotton Candy Seller, 2024

6x7cm Color positive slide
Slingshot Ride, 2024

24x36mm Color positive slide
Mother and Daughter, 2024

24x36mm Color positive slide
Snakes on The Boardwalk, 2024

6x7cm Color positive slide
The Girl and The Snake,2024

6x7cm Color positive slide
Nathan’s, 2024

24x36cm Color positive slide
Winter’s First Light, 2024

6x7cm Color positive slide
Summer’s Last Light, 2023

6x7cm Color positive slide
Coney’s Snowy Beach at Twilight

6x7cm Color positive slide
Summer’s Sunset, 2023

6x7cm Color positive slide
Toward The Horizon, 2024

6x7cm Color positive slide
Summer On The Beach, 2024

6x7cm Color positive slide
Front and Back, 2024

6x7cm Color positive slide
Il Dorado, 2024

6x7cm Color positive slide
Sweet Shoppe, 2024

6x7cm Color positive slide
Balloon Stand, 2022

10x12in Chromogenic print
Fading Light, 2023

10x12in Chromogenic print












              © Nat Segebre 2025

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