NEW YORK CITY (WABC) – Every Thanksgiving morning, millions of people tune in to the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade to experience larger-than-life balloons, amazing floats and the grand entrance of Santa Claus.

But for a woman looking out at Central Park West from her third-floor window, the view is more personal.

Elizabeth Kahane has been capturing the parade on camera for 25 years, and now her new book, Come Join The Parade, tells the magic and perspective of an American tradition.

“I think the parade is a perfect example,” Kahane said. “When I walk by, I have to write it down somewhere. You know, some people have bagpipes and everything. I want the Macy’s band to be everywhere, but this year I want them to come to my memorial service, my funeral. I I want the Macy’s marching band.

Kahane’s book also brings to life the new characters, memories and traditions that have become the fabric of the parade. And for them, the day itself is full of energy.

“It’s very New York,” she said. “So the parade is going there and the parade is here, but mostly I’m photographing it. I’m just trying to put it into words. And I think that’s what I managed to do. Someone told me the book wouldn’t go that far, but I really tried to capture the crowds, bands, dancers, cheerleaders, balloons and of course floats.”

Kahane admitted that she loves the “spontaneity of it all” when photographing the parade.

But she’s also a fan at heart.

“Well, probably Kermit,” she said when asked about her favorite balloon in the parade.

The book is timeless and is enhanced by how the parade is seen through Kahane’s lens.

“I’m also talking about the crowd because you hear them cheering, and when you know their favorites or celebrities are coming, they start cheering,” she admitted. “And then they even start yelling at things, you know, like they like a unison, like a like, they start cheering together anyway. So I love the crowd. One of the things this is is a new perspective for me.” That’s not actually in the book. I leaned in and understood what was happening on the sidelines because often the clowns or some of these smaller characters come to the crowd and it’s so funny that they do that. Everyone wants a selfie. That really made me bring up my parade images because you couldn’t have a parade, you know, the physicality of a cheek. And I started to appreciate it even more. And I said, “Oh my God, there are parades all over the world. It’s so nice that they’re free for everyone, big and small.” It’s an eternity, and it’s just fun, when else can you get something like this?

Every page of the book is a reminder that even when life moves fast, moments like these are worth pausing and capturing, especially when the view is so spectacular.

ALSO READ: Everything you need to know about the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade 2024

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