These doormen guard the residences of New York's wealthiest residents

• New York City doormen guard the entrances to some of the city's most expensive residences.
• Their jobs are notoriously private, and some are under strict NDAs that keep them quiet about the residents they guard.
• Photographer Sam Golanski photographed the doormen of Manhattan's Upper East Side.

Many of New York's wealthiest people reside in multimillion-dollar condos on Park Avenue on the Upper East Side. There's 740 Park Avenue, where John D. Rockefeller, Blackstone founder Steve Schwarzman, and business tycoon David Koch have all lived. Just down the street at 730 Park Avenue, "billionaire bidding wars" have led to some sky-high home sales, including a penthouse that reportedly sold to hedge funder Daniel Benton for $39 million in 2012.

Guarding the entrance to these and other tony buildings along Park Avenue are the doormen who often live vastly different lives than those inside. A doorman's tasks can vary greatly, as they assist residents with everything from running errands, to loading up their cars, to calling cabs, and most importantly, providing security. As of 2014, unionized doormen in New York City made an average of $49,402 a year. 

It was the unusual job of the doorman that photographer Sam Golanski was most interested in when he visited New York in 2015. He convinced them to pose briefly for his camera. "These guys are real people who need more attention. [They're] not pampered celebs wearing their Gucci bags and expensive watches," Golanski told Business Insider.

Ahead, see 11 doormen pose outside their posts.  

SEE ALSO: Women are dropping $2,350 and waiting on an 8,000-person list to join an exclusive, no-men-allowed club based in New York City

Golanski noted that many of the doormen he spoke with have been working in the industry for years.

"In many cases it's a job for life," Golanski said. "One gentleman said he had been working as a doorman at the same building since [the] late '70s."

An important part of the job of a doorman is to keep residents' personal lives private. "They do witness a lot about resident life, but there is a secret agreement between them and the people they serve not to talk about it to outsiders," Golanski said.