In the net

Click on the image for a full size.

A story behind: Tuesday morning. The huge, 42 meters wide multilayer net floats over the Cidade Salvador Plaza close to the beach  of the city of Matosinhos. This is a great example of modern architecture. Created by the famous architect Janet Echelman. Ranked no1 in Oprah´s magazine Wow).
The net is made of the red material that invoke the memory of the site’s history as a fishing center is made of entirely soft and flexible set of membranes moving fluidly in wind. 

Location:  Matosinhos, Portugal.

Gear: Nikon D700, Nikkor 16-32 mm.

Aperture: f/7,1


Shutter: 1/250 sec.
 
Exposure bias: -0,3 EV

Focal Length: 32 mm

ISO: 800

Date: Tuesday, 31st of December 2013.

Maciek.

The winter storm

The pier of Foz do Douro, Portugal. Click on the image for a full size.

A story behind: Wednesday morning.

Location:  Porto, Portugal.

Gear: Nikon D700, Nikkor 70-300 mm, handheld.

ISO: 640

Date: 25rd of December 2013.

Maciek.

High waves hammering the Porto coastline.

The pier of Foz do Douro, Portugal. Click on the image for a full size.

A story behind: Monday evening. Large waves have been hammering the Porto pier for the last week. Coastline officials are warning all to stay out of the dangerous zone. But some curious tourists unfortunately put their life at risk.

Location:  Porto, Portugal.

Gear: Nikon D700, Nikkor 70-300 mm, handheld.

Aperture: f/5.6


Shutter: 1/100 sec.
 
Exposure bias: 0 EV

Focal Length: 125 mm

ISO: 800

Date: Monday, 23rd of December 2013.

Maciek.

A dreamchaser

A fisherman on the beach of Leca de Palmeira. Click on the image for a full size.

A story behind: Friday night. This is the beach of Leça de Palmeira, just a few kilometers north of Porto, Portugal.

Location:  Leça da Palmeira, Portugal.

Gear: Nikon D700, Nikkor 16-32 mm, tripod.

Aperture: f/10


Shutter: 0,7 sec.
 
Exposure bias: -0,3 EV

Focal Length: 16 mm

ISO: 250

Date: Friday, 15th of November 2013.

Maciek.

Do not take pictures, make pictures.

 

Sunset over the basilica Di San Giorgio Maggiore church.

Please click for the full size image.

A story behind: I think there is a difference between taking a travel picture and making one. Taking a picture means simply point and shoot. 
But while making a picture, you must think about all the elements in a scene and build your own composition. 

When I approached the scene the photo conditions were adverse: strong contrasts, almost no clouds in the sky, low line of horizon and fast moving typical venetian boats in the foreground. Placing the horizon line near the low bottom of the frame was a must.

I decided  to use wide-angle lenses. The lenses made a little barrel  distortion at the lower edges of the composition, just enough to create an ilusion that all boats "look" at the center of the scene where I put the church.

But that wasn´t enough. The upper two-thirds of the composition were empty. I moved a camera and consequently a view point a little down to include an old lamp. I placed the lamp at the strong point of the composiotion.

Location:  Venice old town, Italy.

Gear: Nikon D700, Nikkor 16-32 mm, hand-held.

Aperture: f/11


Shutter: 1/250 sec.
 
Exposure bias: -0,3 EV

Focal Length: 16 mm

ISO: 400

Date: Saturday, 19th of October 2013.

Maciek.

Venice

photographer’s paradise, Venice can at times be a hard place to photograph. It is one of the most visited cities in the world and yet you can have a frustrating time trying to capture its beauty - See more at: http://www.travelforrookies.com/venice-2/a-quick-venice-guide-for-travel-photography/#sthash.WkJTZyBf.dpuf

photographer’s paradise, Venice can at times be a hard place to photograph. It is one of the most visited cities in the world and yet you can have a frustrating time trying to capture its beauty - See more at: http://www.travelforrookies.com/venice-2/a-quick-venice-guide-for-travel-photography/#sthash.WkJTZyBf.dpuf

A view of San Giorgio island with a tall tower of Basilica Di San Giorgio Maggiore church.

Please click for the full size image.

A story behind: Venice is over-photographed and over-crowded. It is a photographers paradise yet one can have a frustrating time capturing its beauty.  There are thousand of tourists who take zillions of photos every second. To be original in such a beautiful and yet strongly competitive environment is a real challenge.


This is an very early morning shot from the San Marco square to the San Giorgio island. 

Location:  Venice old town, Italy.

Gear: Nikon D700, Nikkor 16-32 mm, tripod.

Aperture: f/22


Shutter: 6 sec.
 
Exposure bias: +0,3 EV

Focal Length: 30 mm

ISO: 50

Date: Sunday, 20th of October 2013.

Maciek.

photographer’s paradise, Venice can at times be a hard place to photograph. It is one of the most visited cities in the world and yet you can have a frustrating time trying to capture its beauty - See more at: http://www.travelforrookies.com/venice-2/a-quick-venice-guide-for-travel-photography/#sthash.WkJTZyBf.dpuf

photographer’s paradise, Venice can at times be a hard place to photograph. It is one of the most visited cities in the world and yet you can have a frustrating time trying to capture its beauty - See more at: http://www.travelforrookies.com/venice-2/a-quick-venice-guide-for-travel-photography/#sthash.WkJTZyBf.dpuf

The green mosque

The unknown mosque in the middle of the densly populated suburb do Izmir, Turkey.

Please click for the full size image.

A story behind: As we were leaving the town of Izmir, Turkey, I spotted this green mosque situated in the middle of the poor suburbs.

Location:                Near Izmir, west Turkey.

Date	Oct 15, 2013, 17:31:45 PM
Width	843
Height	800
File Size	365543
Camera	NIKON, NIKKOR 70-300 MM.
Model	NIKON D700
ISO	250
Exposure	1/1000 sec
Aperture	10.0
Focal Length	300mm
Exposure Bias	-1.0

Maciek.

Rio-Antirio bridge

The view across the gulf of Corinth near the city of Patras, Greece. 
Please click for the full size image.

A story behind: As we were approaching the city of Patras from the south the sky clouded over. Dark low clouds started filling up the skies. Really fast winds had begun to pick up. 
Some sounds of thunder could be heard. 
It was only time until some rain came. This storm just came out of completely nowhere.
We stopped the car and started to shoot photos before the rain came over us. 

The Rio-Antirio bridge appearing from the left margin of the photo added a nice perspective to the scene.

Location:  Patras, Greece.

Gear: Nikon D80, Nikkor 16-32 mm, handheld.

Aperture: f/11


Shutter: 1/800 sec.
 
Exposure bias: -0,3 EV

Focal Length: 16 mm

ISO: 400

Date: Tuesaday,1st of October 2013. Hour: 11.21 a.m.

Maciek.

The Methoni Beach

A lonely windsurf. Beach of Methoni. Close to the Venetian fortress.

A story behind: A small village of Methoni is located at the south end of Peloponnese peninsula. A photo was taken few moments before the rain.

Location:  Beach of Methoni, Greece.

Gear: Nikon D80, Nikkor 16-32 mm,2 stop ND filter, tripod.

Aperture: f/22


Shutter: 3 sec.
 
Exposure bias: -1,3 EV

Focal Length: 16 mm

ISO: 200

Date: Mondday, 30th of September, 2013. Hour: 16.21 p.m.

Maciek.

The shipwreck

A shipwreck at the beach of Greek Peloponesse peninsula near Gythio.

A story behind: This is a shipwreck ones called Dimitrios.  Rumors say it was probably smuggling cigarettes when it fell into a storm and was abandoned.

Location:  Beach of Valtaki, about 3 miles northeast of Gythio, Greece.

Gear: Nikon D80, Nikkor 16-32 mm,10 stop filter.

Aperture: f/16


Shutter: 240 sec.
 
Exposure bias: +0,3 EV

Focal Length: 16 mm

ISO:250

Date: Saturday, 28th of September, 2013. Hour: 18.58 p.m.

Maciek.

Barcelona Magic Fountain of Montjuïc and Barcelona night life.

 

Lost in Barcelona´s night life.

Barcelona Magic Fountain of Montjuïc

During the summertime on selected evenings, when the fountain is activated, it attracts hundreds of visitors who watch the spectacular display of light, water and music.

The Font Màgica or Magic fountain is a large fountain built in 1929. When the fountain is active, it constantly changes color and shape.

The fountain was part of a project built for the 1929 Universal Exhibition. The exhibition took place on Montjuïc ( it takes a nice 20 minutes long stroll from the city center ), a hill just southwest of Barcelona's city center.

Due to the excellent quality of D700 full frame even with  3200 of ISO the images look amazing.
 

Location: Barcelona, Spain.

Gear: Nikon D700

Aperture: f/4

Exposure bias: -0,3 EV

Focal Length: 16 mm

ISO: 3200

Date: Thursday, 05th of September, 2013. Hour: 23.58 a.m.

Maciek.

A street in Barcelona

A small street in the old part od Barcelona. Early morning. 

A story behind: I an not a big fan of Barcelona but when you do a very early morning walk the things are different. (Almost) empty streets, no tourists, just some local people rushing up to work.

Location: Barcelona Old City, Spain.

Gear: Nikon D80, Nikkor 16-32 mm,

Aperture: f/4

Exposure bias: -0,3 EV

Focal Length: 16 mm

ISO: 640

Date: Thursday, 05th of September, 2013. Hour: 06.58 a.m.

Maciek.

A view from the Mallorca pier

A story behind: All the three sunrises on the Mallorca (Spain) Eastern coast  were spectacular. The one above was taken during a drizzle. Protecting your camera and filters while taking a photo on the not-so stable wooden pier was a real challenge.

The picture was taken early in the morning and half an hour before sunrise. These unique moments of calm and solitude can be rewarding.


Location: Alcudia, Mallorca, Spain.

Gear: Nikon D700, tripod. ND Reverse filter.

Aperture: f/11

Exposure bias: -0,3 EV

Focal Length: 16 mm

ISO:50

Date Taken: Sunday, September 9th, 2013, 5:25

Maciek.

The ecorkhotel

A fragment of newly opened ecorkhotel near Evora, Alentejo, Portugal.

A story behind: Last weekend we drove to the heart of Portuguese interior regon - Alentejo. We spent the night at the Ecorkhotel and Spa is a freshly opened new eco-hotel locolated not-so-far from the city of Evora.

As always my camera and me were atractted by the curvy modern architecture of the hotel.

Earlier that day we had a great time wine and olive oil tasting in Esporão winery.

Location: near Evora, Portugal, 

Gear: Nikon D700, Nikon 16-32 mm,

Aperture: f/7

Exposure bias: -0,7 EV

Focal Length: 16 mm

ISO: 400

Date: Suturday, 24th of August, 2013. 16.30.

Maciek.

And yet another Monday traveling into Spain. This week: Spanish Galiza.

Triple staircase in the Santiago de Compostela museum.

A story behind: We can definitely call August a Spanish month. In the beginning of this month we took two trips to our neighboring Spain: first we have been to Toledo and Salamanca. Next week we traveled to Andalusia. Last couple of days we spent in Spanish northern province of Galiza: oyster fiesta in Sanxenxo then sight-seeing the old Celtic ruins (from the 2nd century BC) near Nola. But the highlight of the day was (as always) the tapas bars hopping. The tradition goes back to the times of Spanish King Alfonso X who used to take small portions of food between glasses of wine. A lively, and often loud, crowded, well-loved institution offering reasonably priced tapas, sandwiches and pizzas in every bar on every corner makes parts of the Spanish living.

In the morning we went to the Pobo Galego Museum in Santiago to take pictures of the fantastic triple staircase. 

And we still have a lot of Spain to come. At the end of August we fly to Barcelona to meet friends and family. And finally we take a few days off on the Majorca island.

Location: Santiago de Compostela, Northern Spain, 

Gear: Nikon D700, Nikon 16-32 mm,

Aperture: f/11

Exposure bias: -0,3 EV

Focal Length: 16 mm

ISO: 200

Date: Sunday, 11th of August, 2013.

Maciek.

4 days in Spanish Andalusia

Olvera is one of the "White cities" of Andalusia.

Location: Olvera, Southern Spain, 

Gear: Nikon D700, Nikon 70-300 mm,

Aperture: f/8

Exposure bias: -0,3 EV

Focal Length: 82 mm

ISO: 200

Date: Monday, 5th of August, 2013.

Maciek.

The sunset over city of Toledo, Spain.

A story behind: One can call our weekends large: they almost always start Thursday evening and end on Monday morning.
This "weekend" we travelled to Salamaca and Toledo. The sunset over the city of Toledo observed just across the Tajo river ( which finally flows into the Atlantic ocean in Lisbon, Portugal ) ends was outstanding.

Watch out for our next weekend trip to Jerez, Spain.



Location: Tajo River, Toledo, Spain.

Gear: Nikon D700, tripod.

Aperture: f/14

Exposure bias: -0,3 EV

Focal Length: 16 mm

ISO:200

Date Taken: Saturday night, July 28th, 2013, 19:33

Maciek.

The Cies Island beach

(right click for the full image)

A story behind: In February 2007 the British newspaper The Guardian chose the beach of the Island of Cies as one of "the best beach in the world" (link). This is a wonderful place, kind of the Caribbean - style beach, with turquoise water an lovely white sand.

These are two images from our Early morning Monday trip to these Spanish islands. We walked, had some beach-time and really enjoyed our stay.

That was also a nice opportunity to play with my old Sigma wide-lenses.


Location: Cies islands, Galiza, Spain

Gear: Nikon D700, Sigma 10-20 mm.

ISO: 200

Date Taken:  Monday, July 8th, 2013, 09:35

Maciek.

The best shot I had in Tuscany (so far !)

(right click for the full 1000px image)

A story behind: Early morning at the foot of the Tuscan hills. Still some fog in the valleys. A deserted Italian villa somewhere in the Crete Siense.

Location: Between Asciano and Siena.

Gear: Nikon D700, Nikkor 70-300 mm, handheld.

ISO: 400

Exposure bias: -0,7 EV

Focal Length: 220 mm

Aperture: 7.1

Date Taken:  June 9th, 2013, 06:23

Maciek.

Madonna del Parto

A story behind: Having been able to see on our own eyes this masterpiece was one of the highlights of out recent trip to Tuscany. Housed in the small Museo della Madonna del Parto of Monterchi ( a small village in Eastern Tuscany ) this is a 260 cm huge fresco made around year 1455.
The museum is very small and always uncrowded so you have this wonderful painting made by the Italian Renaissance master Piero della Francesca, all for yourself.

Gear: Nikon D700, handheld.

ISO: 2000

Exposure bias: -0,7 EV

Focal Length: 27 mm

Date Taken:  June 8th, 2013, 08:21

Maciek.

São Pedro fireworks

Fireworks of Saint Pedro holidays with the Arrábida bridge being a part of a scenery.

A story behind: São Pedro da Afurada (or simply Afurada) is a small locality in the city of Vila Nova de Gaia in Portugal. It has 3,442 inhabitants. São Pedro ( Saint Peter ) is a local holiday with processions, a lot of music and ... the best fireworks sound and light show in the Northern Portugal.



Location: Douro River, Porto, Portugal.

Gear: Nikon D700, tripod.

Aperture: f/11

Exposure bias: +0,7 EV

Focal Length: 22 mm

ISO:400

Date Taken: Saturday, June 29th, 2013, 00:09

Maciek.

Annual Barco Rabelo boat race

Annual Barco Rabelo boat race on the Douro river. Click to enlarge.

A story behind: Early afternoon. A strong harsh light shining along the Douro River. The barco rabelos, now only a tourist attraction, are old wooden boats which once carried the port wine from the upper Douro river to city of Porto. Each Port wine producer still owns such a boat. 
Each year on the 25th of June they sail and race from the mouth of the Douro river up 5 kilometers to the center of the old town.

Location: Porto, Arrábida Bridge, Portugal.

Gear: Nikon D700, Nikon 70-300 mm,

Aperture: f/8

Exposure bias: -0,3 EV

Focal Length: 82 mm

ISO: 200

Date Taken: Monday, June 24th, 2013, 15:26

Maciek.

A late afternoon at the Tuscan hills

Rolling Tuscan hills near Pienza, Italy. Click to enlarge.

A story behind: Late afternoon. A fading light has given the Tuscan rolling hills a third dimension.

Location: near Pienza, Tuscany, Italy.

Gear: Nikon D700, Nikon 70-300 mm,

Aperture: f/5,3

Exposure bias: -0,3 EV

Focal Length: 200 mm

ISO: 320

Date Taken: Saturday, June 8rd, 2013, 17:53

Maciek.

Chefchaouen - a blue city.

A story behind: Chefchaouen is blue. All the houses and stores are blue-rinsed. This is one of the prettiest sites in Morocco.

As I was wondering the narrow streets of the old town early in the morning I spotted this woman wearing a traditional red jelaba. I quickly took the shot. The moment lasted 2 seconds and she was gone.

Location: Northern Morocco.

Gear: Nikon D700, Nikon 16-35 mm.

ISO: 2000

Exposure bias: -0,3 EV

Focal Length: 16 mm

Date Taken: May 5rd, 2013, 07:10

Maciek.

The white mosque

A story behind: A late afternoon. Sunset over the small town of Merzouga, Morocco, as seen from the desert. A white mosque. On the horizon the anti-atlas mountains.

Location: Erg Chebbi, Merzouga, Morocco.

Gear: Nikon D700, Nikon 70-300 mm,

Aperture: f/10

Exposure bias: -0,3 EV

Focal Length: 300 mm

ISO: 320

Date Taken: Thursday, May 2rd, 2013, 20:00

Maciek.

Merzouga

A story behind: Very early morning. Just a few minutes after the sunrise. Cold wind blowing west from the Algerian border. 

A camel caravan passing the dunes of the Erg Chebbi.

I used the F-stop of 10 just to gain maximum sharpness. I shoot against the light to maximize the contrasts on the dunes. 
Plese click on the image to get a full screen preview.
Photo on the front page of : http://www.fotocommunity.com/

Location: Merzouga, Morocco.

Gear: Nikon D700, Nikon 70-300 mm,

Aperture: f/10

Exposure bias: -0,3 EV

Focal Length: 300 mm

ISO: 320

Date Taken: Friday, May 3rd, 2013, 06:31

Maciek.

Early April in our garden

Last days of Gardenia flowers. Wild strawberry.

A choice

A story behind: Those who choose to succeed always do better than those who never choose at all.
Early morning Monday picture of the Sado River fishing port in Carrasqueira, near Alcácer do Sal, Alentejo, Portugal.

Location: Sado river, Alentejo, 80 kilometers south of Lisbon, Portugal.

Gear: Nikon D700, ND hard 10 stops, tripod.

Aperture: f/20

Exposure bias: +0,3 EV

Focal Length: 16 mm

ISO: 50

Date Taken: Monday, March 25th, 2013, 12:09

Maciek.

Flores Island. The interior.

Near Caldeira Seca, Flores Island, Portugal.

A story behind:  This is how the interior of the Flores island looks like: a huge caldera that hosts 7 lagoons. Averaging 500 meters above the ocean level, the plateau is bounded by the rim of the not-so-old volcano walls. The volcanic island is relatively young. It appeared only 20 000 years ago. That is why it has a landscape filled with deep valleys and high peaks, lagoons bordered by steep cliffs carved by grottoes.  
Flores (Flowers) takes is names due to a great profusion of wild flowers.
In 2009, Flores was included on UNESCO's list of World Network of Biosphere Reserves at the Man and the Biosphere.

Gear: Nikon D700. Nikkor 16-35 mm. Handheld.

Aperture: f/8

Shutter speed: 1/250 sec

Exposure bias:-0,3 EV

Focal Length: 16 mm

ISO:500

Place taken:  Island of Flores, Portugal.
 

Date taken: Monday, March 4th, 2013, 13:15

Maciek.

Walking early in the morning. The westernmost part of Europe.

  Walking early in the morning. Near Cerdos, Flores Island, Portugal.

A story behind:  Another perfect morning. The first rays of sunlight after heavy night raining. Looking north toward the small village of Cerdos with the Corvo island on the horizon.
Flores island is the westernmost part of Europe.
Walking gives you instant energy and relaxes your mind. You feel a physical and spiritual upliftment with the morning walk. The chirping of birds, fresh air and a calm environment changes your perception and you reach from the everyday conscious mind to your highest level of mind. 
Even with the little light the full frame D700 with a 1250 iso speed produces a perfect image with no grain.

Gear: Nikon D700. Nikkor 16-35 mm. Handheld.

Aperture: f/5,6

Shutter speed: 1/250 sec

Exposure bias: 0 EV

Focal Length: 20 mm

ISO:1250

Place taken:  Near Cerdos, Island of Flores, Portugal.
 

Date taken: Sunday, March 3rd, 2013, 07:33

Maciek.

Rocky coast of Sao Pedro de Moel.

Impressive rocks in the coastal town of São Pedro de Moel,  Portugal.

A story behind:  Another perfect Monday: full of magic light coming from the Atlantic ocean, full of sun and open spaces. We wondered around Portuguese silver cost the whole day.  

In the mid morning we arrived at the small coastal town of São Pedro de Moel.

I took a few test shots and found that the morning sun was overpowering the scene making it nearly impossible to hold back the sky while bringing rocks out of deep shadow. So I waited a while until the sun was blocked behind the clouds. The decision to wait paid off. For a brief time, I was able to get much softer light. The details of the rocks were now clearly visible and the background light was soft, warm, and inviting. 

Gear: Nikon D700. Nikkor 16-35 mm. Handheld.

Aperture: f/8

Shutter speed: 1/500 sec

Exposure bias: 0 EV

Focal Length: 16 mm

ISO:500

Place taken:  São Pedro de Moel, Portugal.
 

Date taken: Monday, January 28th, 2013, 11:17

Maciek.

La rivière des rêves perdus

A beach strip somewhere south of the city of Porto, Portugal. Click for the bigger image.

Update: The photo was admitted do 1x.com gallery. I was asked to write this photo tutorial in the next paper edition of the famous 1x.com tutorial album

A story behind:  Welcome to my River of the Lost Dreams. After heavy winter raining many small rivers with no-names has appeared on the beach. They may last a couple of weeks and then they are usually gone.
Last Tuesday the afternoon was dark and rainy. I captured this image about 25-minutes prior to sunset as many clouds began to disappear what had been a solid dark sky. 
My camera was positioned on a rather unstable sandy beach. I was able to program a 3-minute long exposure. Shooting these kinds of scenes requires managing a number of variables. We need to choose an exposure that properly exposes the background, and -- at the same time -- be short enough not to make a sky too blurry and allow enough time to emphasize these elegant curves lines of water in the river. The rest was as easy as catching fish in a barrel. Long shutter and B&W transformation did the rest of the job.

Gear: Nikon D700. Nikkor 16-35 mm. Tripod. A heavy bag to stabilize the tripod on the unstable ground.

Aperture: f/18

Shutter speed: 177 sec

Exposure bias: +0,3 EV

Focal Length: 16 mm

ISO:200

Place taken:  Vila Nova de Gaia, Portugal.
 

Date taken: Tuesday, January 15th, 2013, 17:08

Maciek.