Alphawolff Journal

A Photographer’s First Walk Through the Asbury Park St. Patrick’s Day Parade

I was also lucky enough to be invited to walk the parade route with members of Save Our Structures Asbury Park (SOS) and the Asbury Park Historical Society. Instead of watching from the sidelines, I found myself right in the middle of everything — marching along, camera in hand, surrounded by the music, the crowd, and the movement of the parade itself. For a photographer, it felt a bit like being a kid in a candy store. Everywhere I looked there was another face, another moment, another detail worth capturing.

The parade was a cornucopia of sights and sounds — bagpipes echoing down the street, flashes of green everywhere, laughter from the crowd, and the rhythm of marching bands passing through town. Between the architecture of Asbury Park and the energy of the people lining the sidewalks, it felt like the entire city had come together for the afternoon.

What struck me most wasn’t just the parade itself, but the small moments happening all around it — children waving flags, friends greeting each other in the crowd, musicians warming up before stepping into formation. These are the kinds of moments that remind me why photography matters. They disappear quickly, but a photograph can hold onto them a little longer.

By the time the last groups passed and the music faded down the street, the nervous energy I felt at the beginning of the day had disappeared. In its place was something much simpler — the feeling that I had just documented a small piece of community life that happens once a year and is gone by the afternoon.