The pier

The modern pier where the Douro river meets the Atlantic ocean.

A story behind:  Long shutter speed.  167 seconds. A windy end of the day in a place where the Douro river meets the Atlantic ocean. Not too many tourists. Some people fishing. The time well spent.

Gear: Nikon D700. Nikkor 70-300 mm. Tripod. 

Aperture: f/14

Shutter speed: 167 sec

Exposure bias: +0,3 EV

Focal Length: 85 mm

ISO: 200

Place taken:  Porto, Portugal.
 

Date taken: Wednesday, January 16th, 2013, 17:06

Maciek.

Transformers

Vodafone building, Avenida da Boavista, the city of Porto, Portugal.

A story behind:  Modern architecture is my second great photo passion. When I look at the building form the different angles I try to recognize interesting curve lines or patterns of different rectangles. Experimenting with wide angles to produce distortion and extreme perspective is another great idea. Since there is always a big number of details you can crop in tightly on the building without making the photo feel unnatural. Desaturation is another fantastic tool you can use to captivate one´s eye. Black and white ( B&W ) photos with all shades of gray can increase a tonal range and make a picture even more appealing.

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

Aperture: f/20

Shutter speed: 82 sec

Exposure bias: +0,3 EV

Focal Length: 16 mm

ISO: 50

Place taken:  Porto, Portugal.
 

Date taken: Sunday, January 13th, 2013, 16:40

Maciek.

The misty river

 Early winter morning fog over the city of Porto, Portugal.

A story behind:  The image was on the second day of the 2013 year from the bank of the Douro river looking at the old town of Porto.  During the weekends this is such a popular spot that I decided to arrive quite early ( the sunrise was set at 8.10 a.m. ) and in the middle of the week. As the first cold light of the morning began to paint the landscape, I adjusted my filter and shot some riverscapes.

Gear: Nikon D700. Nikkor 16-35 mm. Tripod. ND Reverse

Aperture: f/18

Shutter speed: 1 sec

Exposure bias: +0,3 EV

Focal Length: 22 mm

ISO: 250

Place taken:  Vila Nova de Gaia, Portugal.
 

Date taken: Wednesday, January 2nd, 2013, 08:06

Maciek.

Fishing is not a relaxing hobby

A winter storm attacking the lighthouse and the pier at the mouth of the Douro river and three brave people.
Please click on the image for a full 1100 pixels photo.

A story behind:  There is no doubt that fishing is one of the most popular outdoor hobbies. When you are holding the end of a fishing rod its like it takes all your problems away for a while. Many people dont know that fishing has even been used for therapy even in children with some sociological problems. 

But today at the Douro river pier the fishing seemed more like high-adrenaline sport. The pier lighthouse is 15 meters high which means that the foam war spraying close to 25 meters into the air, propelled upward by the raging winter ocean. 

Gear: Nikon D700. Nikkor 75-300 mm.

Aperture: f/7,1

Shutter speed: 1/2000 sec


Exposure bias: +0.3 EV
Focal Length: 250 mm

ISO: 600

Place taken: Porto-Foz, Portugal.

Date Taken: Thursday, January 10th, 2013, 11: 14

Maciek.

The Moledo beach

Moledo beach and a Saint Tecla mountain on the horizon,  Portugal.

A story behind:  The image was shot at the Moledo beach, a few kilometers from the Spanish border. 
Next day we crossed the border and spent a nice Monday wandering about Spanish Galiza.

Gear: Nikon D700. Nikkor 16-35 mm. Tripod. ND Reverse

Aperture: f/18

Shutter speed: 1 sec

Exposure bias: -0,3 EV

Focal Length: 16 mm

ISO: 100

Place taken:  Beach of Moledo, Portugal.
 

Date taken: Sunday, January 6th, 2013, 17:02

Maciek.

The modern version of the Titanic

Modern architecture, city of Matosinhos,  Portugal.

A story behind:  I am a huge modern architecture fan. When you cut a piece of a building ( that may look boring at the first sight ) and spice it up a little by adding dynamic flow of the clouds, the result can be impressive.

The image was taken during the first day of a new year two thousand and thirteen so happy new year everybody!

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

Aperture: f/18

Shutter speed: 130 sec

Exposure bias: +0,3 EV

Focal Length: 16 mm

ISO: 100

Place taken: Close to the beach area of the city of Matosinhos, Portugal.
 

Date taken: Tuesday, January 1ts 2013, 16:23

Maciek.

The cloud and me

Selfportrait on the rocky beach of Granja, south of Porto, Portugal.

A story behind:  It was almost the sunset. I set a 30 seconds dalay and the camera shot a series of photos  with a one to three-seconds exposure.

Lack of polarizer didn´t allow me to remove the glare from the rocks while creating this dreamy long exposure photograph.

There was a thunderstorm on the horizon and the cloud went interestingly iluminated by the dying sun.

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

Aperture: f/18

Shutter speed: 3 sec

Exposure bias: 0 EV

Focal Length: 16 mm

ISO: 200

Place taken: Granja, Portugal.
 

Date taken: Tuesday, December 25th 2012, 17:06

Maciek.

Rise like a morning sun

Selfportrait on the rocky beach of Povoaçao, Portugal.

A story behind:  It is always dificult to get up early in the morning. Sometimes you get a nice photo but most frequently you don´t. But the real reward is the unique oportunity to observe the nature with such a tranquility that no other part of the day can deliver. Researchers from the University of Bradford using funcional MRI recently discovered that people who experience tranquility have much greater effective brain connectivity.

That Thursday morning cold clouds were illuminated by the rising pink sun over the beach of Povoaçao - southern coast if the São Miguel island. Agua Retorta high cliffs can be seen on the left.


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

Aperture: f/9

Shutter speed: 1 sec

Exposure bias: 0 EV

Focal Length: 16 mm

ISO: 200

Place taken: Povoação, Portugal.
 

Date taken: Thursday, December 6th 2012, 08:02

Maciek.

Monday in the Bussaco palace

The Bussaco palace columnade in Manueline style.

A story behind: The Palace of Busaco was a haunting palace for the kings of Portugal. Now it is a luxury hotel located in the mountain range of Serra do Busaco, in the municipality of Mealhada, in central Portugal.
The area around the Palace was ones a part of a Carmelite convent established in 1628. The monks not only built a convent but also created a luxurious garden with many species of trees from all over the world.


Gear: Nikon D700. Nikkor 70-300 mm.

Aperture: f/8

Shutter speed: 1/100 sec

Exposure bias: 0 EV

Focal Length: 140 mm

ISO: 640

Place taken: Busaco, Portugal.

Date taken: Monday, Dezember 3rd, 2012. 12:07

 Maciek.

Early morning on the Eiffel bridge

The  Dom Luis bridge erected in 1886. The architect was Teóphile Seyrig under the supervion of  Gustaf Eiffel.

A story behind:  Since cold air is denser than the warm air, it sinks to the lowest point of the ground which is usually the valley of the river. There is a sufficient moisture in the air from the water ( the water temperature is always higher than the air ) and the fog begins to form in layers as the air temperature approaches the dew point. The fog develops over night and it usually persists until sun rises. 

Early cold morning on the Dom Luis bridge.

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

Aperture: f/10

Shutter speed: 1/30 sec

Exposure bias: 0 EV

Focal Length: 35 mm

ISO: 400

Place taken: Porto, Portugal.
 

Date taken: Thursday, November 27th 2012, 08:34

Maciek.