The first autumn storm 2014

 

For a full size photo please click on the image.

A story behind: The end of the rainy afternoon at the Gaia beach, a couple of kilometres south of Porto. A 2 seconds long exposure.
 

Location:  Vila Nova de Gaia, Portugal.

 

Gear: Nikon D 610, Nikkor 16-35mm 4G ED AF-S, tripod,

 

Focal Length: 16 mm

Aperture: 22

Exposure: 2 sec.

Date: Outober 14th, 2014. 17.44 p.m.

The Bodiam Castle, Sussex.

 

The Bodiam Castle erected in 1385. For a full size photo please click on the image.

A story behind: Shooting long exposure photos in full daylight with a sun shining brightly can be a challenge.

First wait for the sun to hide over any cloud to catch less light. Find a spot where your camera is standing in a shady place and is not being directly hit be the sun light. Put the darkest filter you have.

The exposition times of this photo is 56 seconds.

 

Location:  East Sussex, England.

 

Gear: Nikon D 610, Nikkor 16-35mm 4G ED AF-S, tipod, 10x filter

 

Focal Length: 16 mm

Aperture: 22

Exposure: 56 sec.

Date: September 21st, 2014. 12:58 a.m.

Just seconds before a storm arrived

The  Arrábida bridge as seen from my window over the Douro river. For a full size photo please click on the image.

A story behind: Early Sunday. I was woken up by a roar of the distant thunderstorm. Got up and rushed to my window. For the first time in my life I saw so beautiful clouds speeding over the bridge. All the storm and rain fallowed. The hole spectacle lasted no more than 10 minutes.
 

 

Location:  From my window, Porto, Portugal.

 

Gear: Nikon D 610, Nikkor 16-35mm 4G ED AF-S, handheld

 

Focal Length: 16 mm

Aperture: 8

Exposure: 1/640 sec.

Date: September 14th, 2014. 8:58 a.m.
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Vila Nova de Gaia, Portugal, Douro river. For a full size photo please click on the image.

A story behind: Before all the tourist come, a few minutes before the sunrise, a dense fog covering the river od Douro. A mistical time of the day. The houses on the other side of the river and a steel bridge are shrouded in the fog.

 

Location:  Vila Nova de Gaia, Portugal.

 

Gear: Nikon D 610, Nikkor 16-35mm 4G ED AF-S, tripod.

 

Focal Length: 27 mm

Aperture: 22

Exposure: 3 sec.

Date: August 29th, 2014. 6:58 a.m.

A Moselle river valley

 

Moselle (Mosel) river valley, Germany. For a full size photo please click on the image.

A story behind: a view from the hilltop overlooking the meanders of the Moselle river surrounded by Riesling vineyards and a small town of Bremm.

 

Location:  Bremm, Germany. GPS: 50.106674, 7.115432

 

Gear: Nikon D 610, Nikkor 16-35mm 4G ED AF-S, a panorama made of 8 vertical shots.

 

Focal Length: 16 mm

Date: August 1st, 2014. 17.17 p.m.

Just one more photo from the sunrise at the Kirchberg plateaux. For a full size photo please click on the image.

 

Location:  Kirchberg plateau, Luxembourg. Just after the sunrise.  

 

Gear: Nikon D 610, Nikkor 70-300 mm, handheld.

 

Date: August 3rd, 2014. 7.30 a.m.

A simple and pure photography compositions

Sunrise at tKirchberg plateuax.. For a full size photo please click on the image.

A story behind: As you probably know I am a big fan of simple and pure compositions in photography.

My today´s work is all about lines. Vertical and horizontal lines suggest order and stability; vertical lines convey strength and horizontal lines are lazy and rather relaxing.
A slightly curved line of the part of the opera´s roof adds a natural beauty and will softly guide your eye through the lateral part of the image rather than from one corner or edge to another.
The same is true for diagonal lines, which can also make an image appear more dramatic and can even convey a sense of motion.

Today´s architecture is extremely modern, almost entirely made of black, white or grey blocks, thus very inhuman and industrialist.
To bring some life to the image I decided to add green trees that look almost the same: symmetrical, almost identical and in that sense they do nor disturb much the geometry of the image.

Balancing your image is an another difficult task. My image is composed of five different geometrical pieces. Bear in mind that black parts "weight" more than whites ones so you must balance them carefully separating (and not putting together) dark and bright parts of the composition.
Balance is almost obligatory in most of the some photos, but if you want to make your images a little more interesting, you can unbalance a composition to attract the viewers attention (my four green trees are unbalanced).

 
Location:  Kirchberg plateau, Luxembourg. Just after the sunrise.  

 

Gear: Nikon D 610, Nikkor 70-300 mm, handheld.

Aperture: f/10, 1/320 sec.

Exposure bias: -0,3 EV

ISO: 640

Focal Length: 230 mm

Date: August 3rd, 2014. 7.10 a.m.

 

Algarvian summer.

Sunrise at the Algarvian coast, Portugal. For a full size photo please click on the image.

A story behind: 30 minutes before the sunrise.  


Location:  Luseta, Portugal.

 

Gear: Nikon D 610, Nikkor 16-35mm 4G ED AF-S, rubber boots, tripod.

Aperture: f/20, 20 sec.

Exposure bias: -0,3 EV

ISO: 50

Focal Length: 16 mm

Date: 28th of July, 2014. 6.10 a.m.

A spine

The Arrábida bridge  spanning the Douro River.

For a full size photo please click on the image.

A story behind: Saturday evening, just a few steps from our house. The warm rays of the dying sun was lighting up the "spine-like" middle structure of the Arrábida bridge.

To make the image not so boring I added 2 traffic lights.


Location:  Porto, Portugal.

 

Gear: Nikon D 700, Nikkor 16-35mm 4G ED AF-S.

Aperture: f/11, 1/125 sec.

Exposure bias: +0,3 EV

ISO: 320 EV

Focal Length: 19 mm

Date: 5th of July, 2014.

The evening of Saint Peter at Afurada.

 

Fireworks over the Douro river, Afurada, Vila Nova de Gaia, Portugal.

For a full size photo please click on the image.

A story behind: Just one week after the street feast of St John we have another fireworks over the river of Douro, just on the other side of the Arrábida bridge.

I positioned the camera just above the water level to get the fireworks and their reflection in the river simultaneously. The water was calm allowing a nice colourful mirror image.


Location:  Porto, Portugal.

 

Gear: Nikon D 700, Nikkor 16-35mm 4G ED AF-S.

Aperture: f/8, 3 sec.

Exposure bias: +0,3 EV

ISO: 320 EV

Focal Length: 16 mm

Date: 29th of June, 2014.

St John's Eve, Porto, Portugal.

A reddish river with a fireworks over the Douro river, Porto, Portugal.

A story behind: The Feast of St John coincides with the June solstice also referred to as Midsummer. The St John aslso hapens to be a patron of the city of Porto, Portugal.
Every year there is a big party going one all over the city with a fireworks over the river of Douro being the high point. St John's night in Porto (Noite de São João) is considered by several guides as one of the best street parties in the world.

Location:  Porto, Portugal.

 

Gear: Nikon D 610, Nikkor 50 mm, handheld

Aperture: f/3,2, 1/100 sec.

Exposure bias: -0,3 EV

ISO: 1600 EV

Focal Length: 50mm

Date: 23rd of June, 2014.

A few days in Douro Valley, Portugal

A late afternoon  in the vineyards of the Douro River region.

A story behind: We stayed the at beautiful rural hotel Quinta da Pacheca.  Located at the bank of the Douro River with a serene surroundings the hotel is a place to stay when you are visiting the region.

An evening at the gardens of the hotel with a glass of Reserva Tinto wine, a dinner at the excellent Gato Preto restaurant and the sunset over the vineyards.

Location:  Regua, Portugal.

 

Gear: Nikon D 610, Nikkor 70-300 mm.

Aperture: f/5,6

Exposure bias: -0,3 EV

Focal Length: 270mm

Date: 1st of May, 2014.

Quinta da Pacheca hotel at night. 

The Tokyo nightlife

Click on the image for a full size.

A late evening street photo with a traditional rickshaw, Tokyo, Japan.

A story behind: On the streets of Tokyo one can frequently spot a characteristic Japanese rickshaw (or ricksha / Ginrikisha  / 人力車) pulled by a person on foot.

The price is around $50 for scenic ride around town.

Japanese rickshaws were invented in 1869 in Tokyo and soon there were over 40,000 rickshaws in Tokyo. The popularity of these ginriksha (human powered car) spread like wildfire.

 

Location:  Tokyo, Japan.

 

Gear: Nikon D 610, Nikkor 70-300 mm.

Aperture: f/5,6

Exposure bias: -0,3 EV

Focal Length: 180mm

Date: 31st of April, 2014.

ISO: 3200

 
Maciek.

Sunrise at the Lake Chuzenji

Sunrise at the Lake Chuzenji, Japan. Click at the image for a full size.

 

A story behind: This is a scenic lake in the mountains above the town of Nikko, Japan. It is located at the foot of Mount Nantai, Nikko's sacred volcano, whose eruption blocked the valley below, thereby creating Lake Chuzenji about 20,000 years ago. Now it is a famous spa regions with a couple of nice hotels.
We spent there two wonderful days.
 

Location:  Above the town of Nikko, Japan.
 

Gear: Nikon D610, Nikkor 16-32 mm, tripod, ND 0,6.

Aperture: f/20


Shutter:  15 sec.
 
Exposure bias: -0,33 EV

Focal Length: 24 mm

ISO: 50

Date: Saturday, 12th of April 2014, 06.45 a.m.

Maciek.

 

 

A floating Torii on the Biwa Lake

 

 

 

A floating Torii gate on the Biwa Lake, Japan.

Click in the image for a full size.

 

A story behind: Very early morning, 30 minutes before the sunrise at the bank of the Biwa Lake (Japan´s largest lake), central Japan.  The Torii gate of the Shirahige-jinja Shrine. A wonderfully calm morning. A moment to remember forever.
 

Location:  Lake Biwa, Japan.
 

Gear: Nikon D610, Nikkor 16-32 mm, tripod, ND 0,6.

Aperture: f/16


Shutter: 6 sec.
 
Exposure bias: -0,67 EV

Focal Length: 16 mm

ISO: 50

Date: Friday, 11th of April 2014, 04.45 a.m.

Maciek.

 

Geisha and blooming Sakura tree

 

 

Date: 7th of April, 2014.

Place: Kyoto, Japan.

 
Maciek.

The mount Fuji sunrise

Click on the image for a full size.

An early morning at the lake Shoji, Japan.

A story behind: 4.45 in the morning. Temperature: - 2ºC.
Mount Fuji, 3,770 meters, the highest mountain in Japan. Almost a perfect volcanic cone. A large part of the mountain is still buried under the snow ( April 2014). According to recent data, the pressure in the main lava camber of the volcano recently overpassed the limit of 1.6 megapascals. Professor Masaki Kimura believes that until 2015 we will see a significant increase in the activity of the volcano with the possible eruption of a small degree.

Location:  Lake Shoji, Japan.

 

Gear: Nikon D 610, Nikkor 16-33 mm.

Aperture: f/14

Exposure bias: -0,3 EV

Focal Length: 16 mm

Date: 1st of April, 2014. 4.45 a.m.

 
Maciek.

Hanami or cherry blossom time in Japan

Click on the image for a full size.
A late evening photo of the Hanami festival in Ueno Park, Tokyo, Japan.

A story behind: Hanami is an important Japanese custom and is held all over Japan in spring. When we booked our trip to Japan we were hoping to see cherry tree blossom. Every year it happens at a slightly different time. Usually it begins in late March or early April and depending on the weather conditions it can last from a couple of days to three weeks. Hanami literally means viewing flowers, but it generally indicates cherry blossom viewing. It's said that the origin of hanami dates back to more than one thousand years ago when aristocrats enjoyed looking at beautiful cherry blossoms and wrote poems.
Nowadays, especially young people in Japan have fun viewing cherry blossoms, drinking and eating. It is like a picnic under the trees.

Location:  Ueno Park, Tokyo, Japan.

 

Gear: Nikon D 610, Nikkor 70-300 mm.

Aperture: f/5,6

Exposure bias: -0,3 EV

Focal Length: 100mm

Date: 1st of April, 2014.

 
Maciek.

Shibuya at night

Click on the image for a full size.
A normal night at the famous Shibuya Crossing.

A story behind: Shibuya is a sakariba (party town) for the Japanese youth.

This is a huge and loud intersection decorated by a sea of neons.
When the lights turn red and traffic stops completely, pedestrians from all sides surge into the crossing. This is a moment of incredible chaos when everybody moves into a different direction but after a minute when the traffic lights change again all this madness and scramble stops.

Location:  Tokyo, Japan.

 

Gear: Nikon D610, Nikkor 16-32 mm.

Aperture: f/8

 ISO: 3200Exposure bias: -0,3 EV

Focal Length: 16mm

Date: 1st of April, 2014.

 
Maciek.

Cherry blossom time!

 

Resende, a small city located on the bank of the Douro river, is a center of the cherry growing industry.

As we were driving along the curvy roads near Resende, we were passing thousands of white cherry blossom trees.
 

Maciek

Date: 21st of March, 2014.

Long exposure

 

Click in the image for a full size.

A story behind: This modern art monument called "The triumph Arch" was created in 2003. I used a 10x photo stop filter to get 72 seconds long expose.  The spotted clouds were moving very fast and there were recorded as long white streaks.

Remember that the longer exposition, the most "creamy" sky you get.
 

Location:  City of Maia, Portugal.
 

Gear: Nikon D700, Nikkor 16-32 mm,

Aperture: f/22


Shutter: 73 sec.
 
Exposure bias: +0,3 EV

Focal Length: 29 mm

ISO: 50

Date: Monday, 23rd of February 2014, 09.08 a.m.

Maciek.

A rainy weekend in Lisbon

 

Click in the image for a full size.

The last moments of the day. Vasco da Gama bridge on the Tagus river. Lisbon. Portugal.

A story behind: Last days of January 2014. A rainy end of the day at the bank of the Tagus river with a view over the Vasco da Gama bridge.

Location:  Lisbon, Portugal.
 

Gear: Nikon D610, Nikkor 16-32 mm, umbrella.

Aperture: f/22


Shutter: 13 sec.
 
Exposure bias: +0,3 EV

Focal Length: 24 mm

ISO: 50

Date: Sunday, 31st of January 2014, 17.38 p.m.

Maciek.

Madeira Island seascapes

Click on the image for a full size.
A strange shape of the lava formation near the coast of the Madeira island, Portugal.

A story behind: End of January 2014. A couple of days spent with friends on the Madeira Island, Portugal.
This is a piece of the rocky Northern Coast of the Island.
My very first experiences with a shiny new Nikon D610.

Location:  Madeira, Portugal.
 

Gear: Nikon D610, Nikkor 16-32 mm.

Aperture: f/22


Shutter: 26 sec.
 
Exposure bias: -0,3 EV

Focal Length: 316mm

ISO: 50

Date: Monday, 27th of January 2014.

Maciek.