tripleman photo feed

Turmoil in Istanbul

Mon, 03 Jun 2013 14:38 +0200

I should make it clear that this photo was taken in 2010, is of a normal motorcyclist on a small street, and has nothing to do with the recent events in Istanbul. That said, having been there in 2010, I watch what is going on there with a fair amount of interest. Since I'm generally interested in world politics I would most likely be paying attention to the protest even not having visited but seeing streets that I have walked down full of teargas, protestors and police puts it into a context that I would normally not have.

I have a friend who lives there now and am hoping that she stays safe in all of this.

Also, regarding the photo, it was taken just off of Istiklal Avenue – not so far from Gezi Park – and the dynamic combination of colours and motion reminded me of the chaotic scenes from there.

The Wrong Goat

Fri, 17 May 2013 13:00 +0200

Since the weather here in Freiburg is starting to look like we sacrificed the wrong goat – maybe we should have sacrificed two goats or a small child or something – and may never have another summer again, I thought I'd post a photograph from the balcony of my old apartment in Vancouver.

I do miss that view.

My other photographs of English Bay can be found in the gallery.

Like a Toy Village

Thu, 09 May 2013 20:29 +0200

While not necessarily the best use of a tilt shift lens – a higher angle is preferable – I still like the effect here. It feels more intimate. Smaller, closer. Like a toy village.

Swan, Lake

Wed, 08 May 2013 21:49 +0200

This was taken down at the Lake of Constance which is on the border of Germany and Switzerland.

Not much else to say, is there?

A Line in the Sand

Tue, 07 May 2013 20:59 +0200

Sometimes you have to draw them, sometimes they're already there.

My other photographs of Amrum can be found in the gallery.

With My Own Eyes

Mon, 06 May 2013 20:22 +0200

“I aspired to see with my own eyes
what I had heard of from so far away:
this revolution of the eye, this rotation of colours,
which spontaneously and astutely merge
with one another in a flow of conceived lines.
That could not be seen in my town.
The sun of Art then shone only on Paris.” – Marc Chagall

Happy birthday, Eiffel Tower.

My other photographs related to the Eiffel Tower can be found in the gallery.

Footprints

Mon, 06 May 2013 13:46 +0200

Footsteps in the sand. They never last long.

My other long exposure photographs can be found in the gallery.

The Golden Horn

Fri, 03 May 2013 14:42 +0200

I've always thought that the name Golden Horn referred to the shape of the land in this part of Istanbul. It actually refers to the waterway here.

This was the perfect place for the Byzantines to keep their navy. It is deep, protected from storms and has a defendable entrance. That entrance was defended with high walls and, more interestingly, a long chain stretched across the water.

It worked. Most of the time.

But, most of the time isn't really good enough when it comes to invasions, is it?

Well, it makes for a more fascinating history.

My other photographs of Istanbul can be found in the gallery.

Endless Subjects

Mon, 29 Apr 2013 19:42 +0200

Van Gogh may have thought there are “endless subjects to be found in olive trees”, but the convoluted shapes mean you really have to take time to find the right composition. Whether or not I have done so here, I will leave up to you.

The groves he painted were in Provence, France while he was institutionalized in a mental hospital. He had checked himself in.

These are on the Greek island of Corfu and, no, I wasn't staying in a mental hospital when I took this photo. Voluntarily, or otherwise.

My other photographs of Corfu can be found in the gallery.

Some Sunsets…

Sun, 28 Apr 2013 20:45 +0200

…are better than others.

My other photographs of sunsets can be found in the gallery.

What You Don't See

Sat, 27 Apr 2013 16:42 +0200

Even though The Louvre is huge, all of the works available are still not on display.Some sit in slightly undignified storage.

Eventually, they all get their chance to shine.

My other photographs of or in museums can be found in the gallery.

Unusual Lines

Fri, 26 Apr 2013 14:43 +0200

No time for a lengthy description, but here is a shot of the Gehry designed buildings in Düsseldorf.

My other photographs of Düsseldorf can be found in the gallery.

An Evening at the Fountain

Fri, 19 Apr 2013 20:02 +0200

Having spent a day running all over Rome, it was nice to get a chance to just sit, rest and people watch for a while at Trevi Fountain.

I didn't have a tripod with me so I sat my camera down on my backpack. The composition is clearly off but it works for me. The slanted lines work with the moving people to give the image a dynamic sense that it wouldn't have normally.

My other photographs of Rome can be found in the gallery.

Power

Thu, 18 Apr 2013 18:30 +0200

This lovely little item is one of two nuclear reactors that I can drive to in less that an hour. This one is swiss, the other french.

While Germany claims it will go nuclear energy free over the next few decades, the french and swiss have made no such promises.

A Village With a View

Tue, 16 Apr 2013 20:54 +0200

Those little italian seaside villages, they do have a charm.

My other photographs of Italy can be found in the gallery.

Two, In a Church

Mon, 15 Apr 2013 08:33 +0200

The same architect, Johannes Gmünd, that designed the Freiburg Münster also designed the Basel Münster.

These two are sharing a quiet moment in the large cloister.

The tilt-shift effect was made with an actual tilt-shift lens and not in Photoshop.

In the Green Hills

Mon, 08 Apr 2013 21:54 +0200

It helped that there was more rain than usual last summer, but the hills around Heidelberg are seriously lush and green.

The walkway that you see there is part of the castle grounds and has a great view of the old part of the city.

Coal Harbour Condos

Sat, 06 Apr 2013 11:56 +0200

Signs of spring in Vancouver. April, four years ago. The new convention centre has been finished for a while now, but here they were still working on the promenade.

Oh, and I guess this is Vancouver's birthday. Almost missed that. It's 127 years old.

Happy Birthday to my hometown.

My other photographs of Coal Harbour can be found in the gallery.

Like Luminescent Jellyfish

Wed, 03 Apr 2013 23:31 +0200

Sorry, no time to post so here is a nifty, impressionistic shot of fireworks at the Celebration of Light that happens in Vancouver every year.

My other photographs taken at night can be found in the gallery.

Fresh Bread

Mon, 01 Apr 2013 15:41 +0200

Some freshly backed bread at our traditional Thursday lunch. Danke Frau H.

My other still life photographs can be found in the gallery.

Why?

Fri, 29 Mar 2013 22:08 +0200

Why? I have no idea. They just are. If your yard is missing one, it could be that he's now chilling in France.

My other photographs of Alsace can be found in the gallery.

Like a Postcard

Thu, 28 Mar 2013 01:01 +0200

No time to do up a big description, so I chose to post something that doesn't need much of an explanation.

Saint-Tropez, just like a postcard.

My other photographs from the French Riviera can be found in the gallery.

Shoes on the Danube Promenade

Tue, 26 Mar 2013 21:34 +0200

They can barely be seen in this photograph, but those birds sitting at the edge of the promenade of the Danube aren't birds at all. They are shoes.

They are sixty pairs of bronze shoes placed as a reminder of the jews in World War II that were lined up along the edge of the river, ordered to take off their shoes, and shot.

The river would save the murderers any effort of having to dispose of the bodies. Fascism is nothing if not efficient.

The Tractor

Mon, 25 Mar 2013 23:40 +0200

This ain't your father's Porsche. But it could be your grandfather's.

In the background of that Police Porsche 356 cabriolet photo that I posted the other day, is a tractor. This is a better view of a similar one that I saw on Amrum a couple of summers ago.

My other photographs of Porsches can be found in the gallery.

Venetian Arcade

Sun, 24 Mar 2013 13:08 +0200

Like this photograph from the Rialto Bridge, this is a shot from Venice that must have been taken a million times. Since it is at the Doge's Palace in the Piazza san Marco, there is never a shortage of photographers and tourists photographing this arcade.

Be that as it may, I'm no different than anyone else so I snapped my own version.

My other architectural photos can be found in the gallery.

Friday

Fri, 22 Mar 2013 20:32 +0200

It's friday.

I'm out of here.

My other boating photographs can be found in the gallery.

A bicycle in Colmar

Thu, 21 Mar 2013 23:17 +0200

I took this photograph in 2011 in Colmar, France while on my way to the Unterlinden Museum.

And that's all I really have to say about that.

My other photographs of Colmar can be found in the gallery.

Haus Zur Roten Schär

Wed, 20 Mar 2013 18:05 +0200

Not a lot of time to post today so I'm putting up an image that doesn't need a lot of explanation.

This is an old building that sits on the edge of the Münsterplatz. It's old, from 1460 old.

It would be nice to know that Haus Zur Roten Schär really means because even the germans I have asked don't know. I know a little of the history of the building. It sits next to the historic market building and actually was connected to it internally, not just sitting next to it, but there isn't anything out there that explains the name. If you know, feel free to spread the knowledge.

My other photographs of Freiburg can be found in the gallery.

Six Thousand Six Hundred And Sixty-Six Men

Wed, 20 Mar 2013 00:12 +0200

Imperia is not a very large city but it has an unbelievably large church.

The church, the Parrocchia Di Santa Maurizio, is named after Saint Maurice who was the leader of the roman Theban Legion. They had converted to christianity and thus were martyred for their beliefs. All six thousand six hundred and sixty-six men.

They weren't actually martyred in Imperia but in Agaunum, which is a town in Switzerland since named Saint Maurice-en-Valais. It's a few hundred kilometres north of Imperia, close to the French-Swiss border.

The brutal part, you know, besides the wholesale slaughter of thousands of men, is that the legion was stationed in Egypt and were sent all the way across the Mediterranean to invade Gaul. In Wikipedia, it says “ordered to march to Gaul”. I'm seriously hoping there was a boat ride across the water because that's a hell of a long way around.

At some point, they converted and, because of that, they were killed. Sacrificed to the Emperor.

Now, about that church. It really is incredibly large considering the size of the city it is in but it is undeniably beautiful. You can get an idea of that from this photograph of the interior of the dome.

It kind of takes my breath away.

My other photographs of Liguria, Italy can be found in the gallery.

Off Into the Tuscan Hills

Mon, 18 Mar 2013 20:57 +0200

For someone from Florence, a city like Vancouver – especially the West End or Yaletown – would look crowded with its tall residential buildings but, as someone from Vancouver, Florence looks more crowded than Vancouver could ever be.

The most obvious answer lies in the width of the streets. Not all of Florence's streets are this thin but this is the historic part of town.

My other photographs of Florence can be found in the gallery.

Gold Peak

Mon, 18 Mar 2013 00:16 +0200

The tallest mountain here – or what looks the tallest to me – is called Gold Peak.

That sounds nice enough until you notice that the mountain to the left and down from it is called Gold S4.

Well, K2 isn't the most interesting name either, I guess.

My other photographs from the plane can be found in the gallery.

Carriages in Wait

Sat, 16 Mar 2013 23:11 +0200

Just your average italian intersection with a perfectly aged and weathered building on the corner, street cafés and carriages waiting for people to hitch a ride.

Except it's right across the street from the Piazza dei Miracoli and the leaning tower of Pisa is about thirty metres away.

Considering how hot it was that day, I'd park my carriage in the shade too.

My other photographs of Pisa can be found in the gallery.

Coming Down

Fri, 15 Mar 2013 21:27 +0200

If I remember correctly, these guys were just doing practice runs and the actual competition was going on later. It didn't matter to me as what they were doing just as practice was interesting enough. That is one crazy downhill track but, then again, I'm not an avid mountain biker.

My other photographs from Whistler can be found in the gallery.

The Precision Triptych

Thu, 14 Mar 2013 20:55 +0200

So this car, the 1934 Mercedes-Benz W25, was being tuned so that it could make the run up to the top of the Schauinsland – the same mountain that my last post was from.

These two mechanics worked for quite a while getting the car in precise working order. Everything about what they were doing was meticulous and even the bespoke, crafted toolbox looks shows the attention to detail that goes into maintaining this seventy year old race car. It can be that having this job can be as boring as any other job can be but, somehow, I doubt it. As a side note, the mechanic with the traditional hat absolutely looks the part of a Formula One race car mechanic from the 1930’s. You can get a better view of him in this photo I posted back in 2011.

Is this car one of the ones in this old photo from Monaco? I don't know and I kind of doubt it. I mean, what are the odds? Also, the cars here have the numbers two, four, and six painted on them. That's not to say they couldn't have changed the numbers at some point, but probably not. This one's number is 244. It's nice enough for me to think that it could be.

I'm just going to take a moment to remember the fact that I've actually driven on the track at Monaco. Well, ridden is more accurate. On a moped. OK, it's not a Silver Arrow or anything but still, it's the Formula 1 track at Monaco.

Because of some scheduling issue, there was no Schauinsland Klassik last year and I'm really hoping that it will return this year. Watching and listening to these classics really brings out the kid in me.

And getting photos of it all is like the cherry on the cake.

My other photographs of the Schauinsland Klassik can be found in the gallery.

At Least A Thousand Words

Tue, 12 Mar 2013 17:41 +0200

Sometimes, it's just easier to take a picture.

This mountain - what western canadians would call a hill but is no less beautiful - is The Schauinsland which means basically look at the countryside. I wonder why.

It sits at the southern end of Freiburg a gives a pretty nice view of the rolling hills that cover this part of Germany.

My other photographs of Germany can be found in the gallery.

Repairs

Mon, 11 Mar 2013 23:23 +0200

That is a big boat. It's sitting in an even larger floating dock.

They seem even more impressive when you look at the fact that this is a river and the North Sea is over a hundred kilometres away.

I guess the Elbe is a pretty big river too.

My other photographs with ships and boats can be found in the gallery.

Bicycle

Sun, 10 Mar 2013 23:20 +0200

Finally, a Berlin picture that has no historic baggage. There is nothing ominous about the giant pipe that is actually quite common around Berlin, it's just for evacuating groundwater as the city is sitting on marshy land. It's difficult for it to be ominous when it's painted pink and purple. The gate in front of the old industrial lot even has a happy, stylish bit of graffiti that is complemented by someone actually riding a bicycle. I rather like the fact that it just says “Bicycle” and nothing more.

Except, it's Berlin and there's always baggage. This spot was almost the centre of the Nazi power structure. The buildings you see must have been built after WWII by the East Germans because this area was heavily bombed. What should be there is the backside of a huge, jewish owned department store. It was no longer jewish owned at the start of the war. After the war, it was gone.

A hundred yards to the right, the area became a no man's land during the cold war, an obvious sign of a divided Berlin that would last forty years.

Behind me was the Reich Chancellery, the bureaucratic centre of Nazi Germany. Hitler's office was there as well as his personal apartment. From there he could flee to the Führerbunker, which is just north of here. In the end, he fled and eventually killed himself down there. Not so far from where he was originally appointed Chancellor.

If you had looked behind me in 1939, the image below from the Bundesarchiv shows you what you would have seen. I would have been standing at the far right, way down the street, where those vehicles are.

The entire street, converted into a giant, fearsome demonstration of power.

EDIT: There is a great set of photos and a really interesting article about an East German man who clandestinely made photographs of the bunkers and this exact area in the 1980's. Link: Der Spiegel Article.

My other photographs of Berlin can be found in the gallery.

Polizei Porsche

Sat, 09 Mar 2013 17:08 +0200

Can you imagine being a police officer in the late 1950‘s or early 1960‘s and getting to drive around in this car? What a dream job.

Now this beauty is in the Porsche Museum in Stuttgart next to a Porsche that you might not realize is a Porsche, the tractor in the background. I'm undecided which is cooler but I think I have to give the edge to the police car because there isn't much that can beat driving through the Black Forest in a classic Porsche cabriolet.

And the thought of an actual police chase in that car just makes me freak out like a little kid.

As for the photo, I've used Color Efex Pro to tint the image, giving it a little bit of a retro look. It's not something that I've done much of on this site but it seemed to fit the car.

My other photographs of cars can be found in the gallery.

Orange & Yellow

Sat, 09 Mar 2013 11:32 +0200

Because I missed posting a photo yesterday and also because today is such a nice, warm day, I'm posting these flowers as a bonus.

I'll post another shot later today.

Not A Space Odyssey

Thu, 07 Mar 2013 17:02 +0200

Yes, this is a giant, seemingly floating baby. It is a ten metre long sculpture by Marc Quinn called Planet and it was installed in front of the Oceanographic Museum of Monaco last summer.

The weight of this painted steel and bronze sculpture rests effortlessly on the baby's right hand and immediately brought to my mind the iconic baby from Kubrick's 2001 A Space Odyssey. A young child, floating in space. A theory for the movie is that the baby represents the first being that will follow what we are–what people are. The next evolutionary step that allows us to finally go beyond our infantile limitations as humans.

Marc Quinn says idea of the sculpture is that the baby, a likeness of the artist's new born son, is a play on weight and weightlessness. It clearly is massive and must weigh accordingly. The weightless effect is gained not only by making a singular point of contact with the base but through the utterly relaxed pose of the child and especially in that relaxed right arm. It's not nearly as ambitious a statement as what Kubrick and Clarke (may have) been making, but it suffices for me. Not for all: the explanation, and the work itself, have received mixed reviews.

Such is art.

My other photographs of sculpture can be found in the gallery.

Parisian Cyclists

Wed, 06 Mar 2013 23:07 +0200

Why is a police car leading these cyclists through Paris? I have no idea.

As an aside, that's exactly the kind of police car I was talking about in this photograph from Nice. Small, unmarked with a light stuck to the roof. Probably a Peugeot.

I took this from the top of the Eiffel Tower. In all seriousness, I could spend days up there looking around and taking a million photos of that stunning city.

My other photographs of street scenes can be found in the gallery.

Independence Avenue

Tue, 05 Mar 2013 21:23 +0200

Independence Avenue is the english translation of the Turkish name, Istiklal Avenue. From what I've read, up to three million people can come here a day on a weekend. I'm having a hard time picturing that but it's a fairly long street and it's right in a historic area of Istanbul. Then again, seemingly all of Istanbul is historic.

The 70's and 80's were a bad time for the avenue when it fell into disrepair but thankfully the city managed to turn it around, in part, by returning the avenue to pedestrian only. Well, pedestrian only except for the photogenic old trams.

My other photographs of Istanbul can be found in the gallery.

The Two Fortresses of Corfu

Mon, 04 Mar 2013 17:14 +0200

This is a little closer to the ground than most of my from the plane shots. That's because the airport on Corfu is quite close to the old town.

The are more than two fortresses on Corfu (the island) but only two in Corfu (the city). The newer one, built by the Venetians in the 16th century is in the foreground and the older one, built by the Byzantines is at the top, sticking out into the water. Added bonus, barely visible in the distance is Albania.

It doesn't seem like either fortress worked very well because everyone seems to have taken control of the island at some point. The Romans, Byzantines, Ottomans and Venetians you would expect but the Austrians, French, British, and especially the Goths and Normans, you would not.

It would seem that living on an idyllic island in the mediterranean isn't all fun and games. The constant invasions must have been a bit of a downer. There was even heavy bombing in WWII.

My other photographs of Corfu the city can be found in the gallery.

Delicate

Sat, 02 Mar 2013 00:15 +0200

There is not much to say about this photo of a tulip. I took it while testing some new flash gear and it interested me enough to post it. I hope you like it as well.

It also happens to be the 1000th post that I've put up on this photoblog. I know that the actual post number is 1016, but there were some early test posts that were deleted right away and the odd corrupted post or whatnot, so this is the actual 1000th image available to see online. It's a bit of a milestone, but there's no need to make too big a deal of it. For all those who visit regularly, thanks for your continued interest. For those visiting for the first time, I hope my photographs are interesting enough to keep you coming back.

As always, I love feedback, so feel free to fire me an email with suggestions or even random thoughts. There is a contact link below this image…

My other photographs of flowers can be found in the gallery.

Celebration

Thu, 28 Feb 2013 16:05 +0200

"Sidney Crosby, the golden goal!" Chris Cuthbert

With those words three years ago, seemingly all of Vancouver poured out onto Robson Street and celebrated Canada's overtime win over the U.S. in the gold medal, mens olympic hockey game.

It is, for sure, the best game of hockey that I have ever watched.

As soon as I finished crying, I grabbed my cameras and did what everyone else did, headed to Robson Street.

I've only posted two other photographs of the celebration but they are both in the gallery. One of them is easily my best candid street shot yet.

Resignation

Wed, 27 Feb 2013 14:00 +0200

I'm not religious so the pope's resignation isn't of particular importance to me but it's in the news and I don't get a lot of opportunities to post pope pictures.

I do find the process of choosing a new pope interesting but only because it seems so secretive and ritualized. Someone also mentioned that a canadian is one of the potential new popes, but I haven't checked that out. To me, a canadian pope is only minimally more interesting than a non-canadian one. There haven't been many non-italian popes in the last five hundred years - only the last two actually - so I suspect the next one will be italian. But, what do I know. If I had a preference, it wouldn't be about nationality, it would be to have a progressive pope but progressive is a relative term when talking about the Catholic church.

Other than that, it was a bit of luck that when I went to the Vatican in 2009, Benedict XVI made a little appearance that I was lucky enough to get a few photos of. And the conclave is done in the Sistine Chapel, which I have been in, not surprisingly, on the same day that I took this photo.

My other photographs taken in the Vatican City can be found in the gallery.

Hercules beating the Centaur Nessus

Tue, 26 Feb 2013 18:15 +0200

One would think that Heracles is getting the better of the situation here and, momentarily, he is. He kills the centaur Nessus but, as always in greek mythology, before he dies, Nessus finds a way to extract revenge. He tells Heracles' wife that if Heracles wears a shirt soaked in Nessus' blood, it will prevent him from being unfaithful. Needless to say, it doesn't work and ends up engulfing Heracles in flames which ultimately kills him. I say ultimately because, and how manly is this, Heracles has the time to build his own funeral pyre before he expires.

What a guy. Most people hate to even think about their own will. No wonder we're still talking about him, 3000 or so years later. Of course, when we do talk about him, we generally don't bring up that he killed quite a few of his own children, cheated incessantly on his wifes or that he had many (innumerable, it was said) male lovers.

It seems we mythologize even our mythology. In fact, this fight as we see it never took place - even in mythology. Heracles shot Nessus with a poisoned arrow.

Some facts that we can count on: The sculpture was carved, impressively, from a single block of marble by Giambologna and it sits in the Loggia dei Lanzi, in the Piazza della Signoria, in Florence.

My other photographs of things mythological can be found in the gallery.

The Three Countries Bridge

Mon, 25 Feb 2013 16:53 +0200

This bridge sits right at the corner of three countries: France, Germany and Switzerland. Yeah, the name kind of gives it away. It crosses the Rhine about 60 kilometres south of Freiburg, right at Basel, Switzerland and Huningue, France. The actual german city this is right here is Weil am Rein.

Architecturally, it's interesting in that it's the longest, single span bridge for pedestrians in the world but, politically, it's more interesting. The peace this area enjoys is quite young. This river has been a barrier to many an army for at least two thousand years. Now, one can walk back and forth, drifting between three countries without any sort of a border control. Refreshing.

What will happen with the Eurozone economically is up in the air at the moment and Switzerland isn't even part of the EU, but, for now, the bridge is open for anyone to cross, whenever they want.

My other photographs from Europe can be found in the gallery.

Inside a Tulip

Sun, 24 Feb 2013 14:13 +0200

It's been a long time since I've posted a straight flower shot. The last one was in 2008, actually. But recently I picked up some new lighting gear and have been testing it on different things in the office.

Those of you who follow me on twitter will have seen a few of the shots I've made in the last few days. Well, the ones that follow and actually click on the links. There's even a giant, 2560 x1440 desktop wallpaper for you to use if you wish.

I hit this poor tulip with three speedlights. One to render the background pure white, one to reflect off of a wall and the ceiling and one through an umbrella from above as the main. I didn't run the photo through Photoshop, only made some minor tweaks in Aperture. The missing petals that allow this view inside the flower fell off as this bunch of tulips is kind of on its last legs.

I think at the end of the day, they will end up as compost. So it goes.

My other photographs of flowers can be found in the gallery. But, I have to warn you, most are fairly old and and I kind of think some of them are crap.

Tiny Streets

Sat, 23 Feb 2013 17:37 +0200

This tiny little street, if you want to call it that, is in a little, hilltop village called Civezza. You can bring your moped right down to your front door but, if you have a car, there is a small parking area just outside of the village. These streets have been this wide since medieval times, why change them now? There are smaller streets, this one is actually kind of a main one if you can believe it.

The village is about four kilometres from the mediterranean so they used to (I only saw one) have five towers to be on the lookout for Saracen pirates. I've actually been to a former pirate den that is just down the coast from here. Being attacked by pirates was an actual danger. It's not often you get to say that earnestly.

It's quiet in Civezza. The views of the hillside vineyards, olive groves and the mediterranean are sweeping. The most activity going on seemed to be cooking judging by the great smells wafting through the air. It seems like the kind of village that you could write a book in.

My other photographs of Liguria can be found in the gallery.

Glittering Under the Bright Lights

Fri, 22 Feb 2013 17:07 +0200

This glittering dancer was part of a troop of Brazilian dancers performing at an event in 2010 during the Vancouver winter Olympics. Did Brazil actually participate in the winter olympics? Yes they did. There were two downhill skiers, two cross country skiers and a snowboarder. Unfortunately, they won no medals. Now you know.

Aside from cropping and a minor contrast nudge, the photo is posted as is. I let the dancer and club lighting do all the hard work. It's a one second exposure with a slow sync Speedlight flash. Pretty simple and lots of fun when it works out.

At this point though, I'm wondering how much of an effect that the flash had. Either way, it went off and I'm happy with the final result.

My other photographs from Vancouver's Olympics can be found in the gallery including a few shots of actual medal winners.

Picasso at Work

Thu, 21 Feb 2013 17:31 +0200

I'll be the first to admit that, photographically, there isn't much to this image. Of course, the subject of this photo is a Picasso painting and that alone makes it worthwhile.

The name is Le Peintre au Travail. I have to assume it's a self portrait but, honestly, I don't know. I do know that it was painted in 1964 though. It would be nice if there was some actual information about the painting online and not just crappy art print sellers clogging the search results.

The post is also timely because the museum that it's in, the Unterlinden Museum in Colmar, France is renovating. What that means is that this painting, and the other modern works in their collection, will be unavailable for viewing until mid 2014.

Their most famous work of art, the Isenheim Altarpiece, will be moved to a nearby Dominican church. From what I understand, you will still be able to view it and the other works that are being temporarily relocated. I'm not positive, but that's the information I have at the moment. There is some controversy about moving the massive altarpiece due to concern over its safety. Plans might change to accommodate the concerns. If you are thinking of going to Colmar, and you should because it's a beautiful old town that survived both world wars basically unscathed, you might want to take into this info into account.

So, the photo might not be that great but the painting is and you can consider this post as more like travel information. Here is the direct link to the museum itself where you can probably get the most accurate info about the renovations.

My other photographs from Colmar can be found in the gallery.

Holding Hands, Riomaggiore

Wed, 20 Feb 2013 17:35 +0200

Riomaggiore is colourful enough - the houses are all brightly painted - but when you add a couple like this to the picture, it almost becomes over the top. Almost.

Then again, how can you not snap off a shot of them? I'm not much of a street photographer, but even I know this is something to get a picture of.

Holding hands, casually strolling down Via Colombo, on a spring day in the Italian Riviera. Nice.

My other photographs of things bright and colourful can be found in the gallery.

Snow Cafe

Tue, 19 Feb 2013 16:15 +0200

Straight from yesterday's hot, sunny Saint-Tropez photo to today's cold, snowy Freiburg photo. That's how I roll, man.

In my eyes, this is the nicer side of cold winter though. The snow had fallen all night and was laying nicely over the city, not yet frozen solid into ice because it got to cold or a big melty mess because it warmed up.

Of course that moment lasts a day at best and, more realistically, only a morning. But, that was long enough to take this photo and that's enough for me.

My other photographs of winter can be found in the gallery.

A Little Beach

Mon, 18 Feb 2013 18:57 +0200

Even though today was a comparatively warm and sunny day, I'm still going to post a summer beach photo. Six degrees celsius does not a spring day make. Even if it is sunny.

For a place as famous as Saint-tropez and specifically famous as a summer sun place, there aren't a lot of beaches there. Or maybe more correctly, not a lot right there. Since seemingly everyone has a boat they probably go off to whatever nice spots they know of that I couldn't go to because I neither knew about them nor had a boat.

There is this beach tiny though and it's right on the east side of the old town. Also, on this day at least, not crowded at all. Since I found it right after hiking to the top and back of the hilltop fortress, it was a godsend. I didn't go swimming but I did wade out into the water for a bit. A true lifesaver.

August in the Riviera. Hot as hell and I think Saint-Tropez is actually more expensive.

My other summer photographs can be found in the gallery.

Outsiders

Sun, 17 Feb 2013 20:48 +0200

There is some evidence that this church, actually the minor basilica Santa Maria in Trastevere, was the first church in Rome to have openly been able to celebrate mass. The thought of Rome being an unfriendly place for Christianity is an entirely bizarre one to me but that's only because my mental timeline doesn't go far enough back. One only has to remember the Colosseum and the feeding christians to the lions story in order to jog the memory. An even easier example: didn't the Romans kill Jesus? Right, so Rome wasn't so friendly to that new, upstart religion. In my defense, it's an easy thing to forget when 80% of your time in the ancient city was spent wandering around giant Catholic churches.

I guess that's why Santa Maria is on the other side of the Tiber river from the centre of Rome. Trastevere was an area full of of outsiders, early christians included.

An odd side story, did you know there was something called The Holy Sponge? I did not. Dipped in vinegar or sour wine, it was then offered to Christ to drink while he was on the cross. I'm not sure if this was supposed to make him feel better or not. If I was nailed to a cross, I don't think vinegar would be what I was longing for. The reason I bring this up is because part of this most holy of sponges is stored at the Santa Maria in Trastevere. I guess it's not that strange. I mean, they also keep the head of a saint there. Not the whole body, just the head.

Not so weird is the tile mosaic on the facade, just above the balcony. It's from the 12th century as is the campanile. Just below the roofline of the basilica is a mural but that seems heavily damaged by time and weather and is barely visible. Unfortunate.

So this is the church I was going to when I passed by the Palazzo della Cancelleria.

My other photographs from Rome can be found in the gallery.

Fire in the Sky

Sat, 16 Feb 2013 17:52 +0200

Not a lot of time to post today but this doesn't need a long explanation. Perhaps I also got a bit of inspiration from that insane meteor that went over Russia yesterday. Especially in the title.

This is a long exposure shot of the Celebration of Light fireworks festival that they have in Vancouver every summer. I was always able to watch them from my balcony.

It was always a good show and the nice part is that I wouldn't have to be in the giant throng of people trying to escape downtown when it was over.

The colours in this photo just blow me away. That pink and purple, wow.

The blurred effect was simply me twisting the focus ring at the end of a four second exposure, when the firework was about to fade away. That blurred the buildings and the smoke but since the light streaks had already been captured, they remained crisp.

My other fireworks photographs can be found in the gallery.

And about that crowd, this video from Dave Delnea shows exactly what I'm talking about. At the end, when you see all of those people leaving, I'm fairly certain every single one of them walked past my apartment.

Vancouver: Fireworks Draw a Crowd from Dave Delnea Images on Vimeo.

Die Strandkörbe

Fri, 15 Feb 2013 18:56 +0200

The direct translation is beach baskets but, and it might be hard to tell from this photo, these are beach chairs. They are available for rent and a tractor spends its day driving up and down the beach placing, moving and removing them. As is obvious here, you can lock them up so they act like a beach side locker while you're off swimming in the frigid North Sea or wandering around in the dunes.

The beach itself runs the entire length of Amrum and can be five hundred metres wide at points. It is huge and actually has some of the nicest sand that I've ever dug my feet into. The island might never compete with the Riviera for beach going tourism, but it certainly wins the best sand competition. The photo, taken in June, doesn't exactly break any stereotypes about northern islands but the days were quite warm. Especially if you could find a spot out of the ever present wind. The nights however were a little chilly. Make that a lot chilly.

If you are into birdwatching, this is a really important area for sea birds and they are plentiful. Amrum sits in the middle of Germany's largest natural park and, together with two other nearby nature parks, make up a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

My other photographs of UNESCO World Heritage Sites can be found in the gallery.

A Castle in the Sky

Thu, 14 Feb 2013 21:22 +0200

In reality, it's not actually a castle but a bastion, the Fisherman's Bastion. It's also not in the sky but it is up a hill. Why it was up to the fisherman's guild to defend this most important hill in Buda, I'm not sure, but it was. There used to be a fish market here and perhaps the idea was that, if the fishermen would be hanging out here anyway, they could at least protect the place while they were at it.

Their watch was during the middle ages and during this time both the Tartars and the Turks occupied and destroyed both Buda and Pest. Whether the good fishermen didn't do their job or had nothing to do with these defensive failures is not known to me but the bastion wasn't built until around 1900. I'll let you decide if this is a case of a very belated thank you or a thanks for nothing.

Either way, the windows in the showy, castle-like facade give you unobstructed views of the Danube and the Pest half of the city. It's also more or less right across the river from the gigantic legislature. Both are worth the climb up the hill to get here not to mention the various other attractions available in the Castle District.

My other photographs from Budapest can be found in the gallery.

Ernst-Reuter-Platz

Wed, 13 Feb 2013 16:41 +0200

The main street in this photo, heading straight out from Ernst-Reuter-Platz is the Straße des 17. Juni or the 17th of June Street. The name honours 25,000 East Berliners that rose up in 1953 to protest a 10% increase in the work quota. Ultimately,they were protesting more than just increased work for the same pay but that was the flash point.

Soviet tanks were brought in as well as 20,000 Soviet troops. Against a force like that, they didn't stand a chance. It had started on the 16th, by the 17th, it was over. People were imprisoned, some shot, some killed. No one really knows how many. Officially, 25 people died. Estimates say perhaps more than 500 with another 100 or so political prisoners executed.

After surviving WWII and the bombing of Berlin, they were now being shot and imprisoned by their own puppet government and their Soviet masters.

It would be another 37 years before the people of East Berlin could feel freedom again.

My other photographs from Berlin can be found in the gallery.

Opening Rain

Tue, 12 Feb 2013 17:05 +0200

Three years ago, I debated whether or not to go out into the pouring rain and check out the opening of the 2010 Winter Olympics. I decided that I would go and, furthermore, that I was going to buy a new lens to capture the event. So I guess that I've had my trusty 10-24mm Nikkor for three years now as well. Cool. it's served me extremely well.

Its first day was a trial, for sure. I literally took it out of the box in the store, stuck it on my D90, put the box in my backpack and headed out into the rain. And man, was it raining. In no time my camera and new lens were soaked. Yeah, and in no time, I was even more soaked. I tried as best I could to keep the gear dry but it was just not possible.

Without making this sound like an ad for Nikon (but, oh, wouldn't a nice little Nikon ad look pretty on this site? Hmmmm, Nikon?), I trust the weatherproofing on their cameras - within reason. That night, it was getting really close to that edge of reason. In the end, there was no problem and I was able to run around for several hours and snap off about a hundred and fifty shots. I have to say none of them from that evening were spectacular but it does take some getting used to such a wide lens. No matter how close you are to the subject, you can and should get even closer. It's really wide.

But, by the end of the Olympics, I was able to use that lens to shoot gold medalist Charles Hamelin and silver medalist Marianne St-Gelais (genuinely pleasant people to talk to), silver medalist, Kalyna Roberge and the insane celebrations when Canada won hockey gold. The super wide angle was really perfect for that.

Not a bad start for that lens and it hasn't let me down since.

My other photographs taken with the 10-24mm Nikkor can be found in the gallery.

Landmarks in Venice

Mon, 11 Feb 2013 19:11 +0200

I can't tell you how many times I thought I knew the general direction I was going in when I was in Venice only to see St. Mark's Campanile - or another tower - through a crack in the buildings and realize that I had gotten completely twisted around.

That was better than finding out that you've arrived at the exact same piazza that you just left but from some bizarre angle which neither helps you get to your destination nor helps you figure out how to get back to where you started.

Then again, if you're in Venice, it's probably better if you're not in a hurry anyway.

My other photographs from Venice can be found in the gallery.

Chinese New Year

Sun, 10 Feb 2013 16:28 +0200

I wanted to put up a photo for Chinese New Year but I have remarkably little that fits.

Indeed, I'm not really sure if this photograph is relevant at all. I took it at LiveCity Yaletown when the Olympics were on in 2010. The musicians playing - you can't see them in the photo - are Silk Road and they do play Chinese instruments but, according to their website, they like to smash stereotypes about Chinese music. Who the dance troop is, I have no idea.

So, in the end, all I really want to do is say Happy New Year to those celebrating it today and May your happiness and longevity be complete.

Romantic Ruins

Sat, 09 Feb 2013 20:19 +0200

It is hard to resist the charms of a ruined castle like the one in Heidelberg. It has brought the romantic painters in droves over the years. William Turner created some especially interesting, if not accurate, depictions. Sitting high on the hill, over the Neckar river valley, shrouded in thick forest and overgrown in just the right places with bushes, grasses and wildflowers it fits the classic image. I think Mark Twain got is right when he wrote Misfortune has done for this old tower what it has done for the human character sometimes – improved it. He was talking about the castle's powder turret which was blown apart in a giant explosion but the description applies to the castle itself.

But the castle never seemed to have much luck doing what it was supposed to do, protect Heidelberg. Or, to protect royalty is probably more like it. Nearly every account I have read ends with either destruction for Heidelberg, the castle, or both. Worse, it was badly damaged and nearly destroyed twice by lightning. Not exactly an impressive resume. The only success I found was when Heidelberg held off the French only to have them return two years later and completely gut both the town and the castle.

When the Swedes came during the Thirty Years War, they simply climbed higher up the hill then proceeded to lob canon balls down on the castle from above. It didn't take long before Heidelberg capitulated. It renders that impressively deep and wide moat fairly useless now doesn't it?

One victory, if you can call it such, is that Heidelberg and its already ruined castle escaped bombing during WWII. This was actually the reason that I wanted to go there. The Altstadt might not have survived the attacks of the 17th and 18th centuries, but it escaped those of the 20th and therefor is well worth seeing.

My other photographs of castles - ruined or not - can be found in the gallery.

The Münster and Martinstor

Fri, 08 Feb 2013 12:30 +0200

I was lucky this morning to have had my camera at the office this morning because the subtle light of the morning sun was really beautiful. My only wish is that our office was a little taller so I could shoot over the buildings that are in the way. One day, hopefully, I'll get to see the spire of the Münster without scaffolding but I'm not holding my breath.

The smaller tower is the Martinstor, one of the two remaining old gates into Freiburg back when the city was surrounded by walls. It's named after Martin of Tours, the patron saint of soldiers. Not surprisingly he was a roman soldier but, surprisingly, he was jailed for being a conscientious objector after declaring that his faith prevented him from going into battle. He did offer to lead the troops unarmed, but their opponents, the Gauls, decided to make peace instead. Lucky him.

He had other talents like raising the dead and at one point he even confronted the devil himself. At least that what his biographer, Sulpicius Severus, wrote. That's quite a story all right.

Either way, he got a Freiburg city gate named after him.

Unfortunately, I haven't posted any photos of Martinstor yet, but my other photographs of the Münster can be found in the gallery.

Summer Silhouette

Thu, 07 Feb 2013 16:08 +0200

Today in Freiburg we've had the strangest weather. It snowed last night and has been snowing, at times, throughout the day. Mixed in with that, there have been moments of intense sunshine. Completely bizarre.

Here is a lazy summer afternoon sunset beach shot to counter that winter weirdness. I love snow, I really do, and today's weather was strange and interesting but not nasty. Be that as it may, it would sure be nice to sit in the sand on a summer evening and watch the sun go down.

My other sunset photographs can be found in the gallery.

Schnee Kamm

Wed, 06 Feb 2013 20:58 +0200

I said that I could fill this blog with photographs from my flight back from Vancouver. Well, I've waited a month so I think it's safe to put another one up.

Schnee Kamm is the name of one of the many peaks that you can see here. It's sort of in the middle right but is not really so distinct that I can easily point it out. I thought it was appropriate as a title for this photo even though it's not as bizarre as Tutankhamen Peak, Sinister Peak or Mount Luxor which are also in the shot. I guess when you have that many mountains to name you get a little creative.

This was taken a little before my Misty Icefield photo so you can see some of the same peaks here as well as the Misty Icefield itself.

Since in this shot I'm not pointing the camera down so much, you get to see the mountains stretching out as far as the eye can see. Beautiful. Unbelievably beautiful.

I could stare at that all day.

So, eleven minutes north of a view like this, you get a view like this. From a metropolis of two million people to a place you can't even imagine people could get to.

My other photographs of mountains can be found in the gallery.

Double Murder

Tue, 05 Feb 2013 15:40 +0200

One morning last May, I stepped onto the balcony of the place I used to live, turned to the right, and saw this man.

Oh, no, I thought, it's never a good thing when you see a guy in a white suit like that. Sure enough, just after that I saw several uniformed police walking around the area. When I went to the store, there were police vehicles everywhere. A helicopter flew in big circles overhead.

It turns out that there had been a double murder in that suite. From where I took this picture to that balcony is only about 60 metres.

You get a pretty cold and unsettling feeling knowing that, as you slept, something unspeakably horrible was happening so close nearby. Proximity shouldn't matter, a murder is a murder, but it does. Shouldn't I have heard something? Shouldn't I have been able to just feel that something like that was happening so close? Are we not somehow connected as humans? Couldn't I have done something?

No. We are not. We are completely unaware. No one really knows what happens on the other side of that wall. It could be two meters - or sixty, in this case - but it might as well have been on the other side of the world. If fact, somewhere, it's happening right now whether through war or criminal act or both.

A couple of days ago, the accused was found guilty and sentenced. According to the court, one of the victims was essentially a loan shark, the other his wife. The murderer borrowed €24,000 at an exorbitant interest rate to start a business. When he wanted to pay the loan off early, the victim refused, preferring instead to keep the terms as they were. No discount for early repayment. The victim and his wife were found stabbed to death.

The whole thing is sad and terrible. Everyone sounds dirty in this. Of course, it doesn't justify murder, but extortion and loan sharking doesn't exactly put you in the innocent category either.

Like I said, it's just sad and terrible.

Hamburger Hafen

Mon, 04 Feb 2013 14:55 +0200

Like the Artemis, the Cap San Diego doesn't really have an interesting history but, also like the Artemis, it is a nice looking ship. The San Diego is now a museum owned by the city of Hamburg itself and you can stay overnight on it, if you wish.

Behind the ship, on the docks, you can see some of the waterfront construction that was going on when I was there in June of 2011. It seemed there were construction cranes everywhere. That biggest building is really interesting because it has these windows with very irregular openings in them. It almost looks like the glass has melted and holes have opened up.

If you take a harbour boat tour, you can see all of that for yourself. It's worth it. Taking about an hour, you get to see the old port in the historic area as well as the giant new portions with the tremendous amount of cargo that goes through the port of Hamburg.

Actually, the whole city is really cool so I do suggest you go and check it out.

My other photographs from Hamburg - only some of other ships and photos from the Miniatur Wunderland so far - can be found in the gallery.

History of Loss

Sun, 03 Feb 2013 16:00 +0200

It is no longer there, but History of Loss by Sudarshan Shetty was a fairly popular part of the Vancouver Biennale. At least I think it was and, certainly, it was not as controversial as some of the other pieces. Unfortunately, it proved to be a little too popular with some because they decided to start stealing the small wrecked models of Volkswagen Beetles that were encased, tomblike in the sculpture. Because of that, it was removed.

I find that disappointing but not nearly as disappointing as those works that were removed due to complaints by people who are incapable of accepting anything more challenging than a Gap outlet store. The fantastic Device to Root Out Evil was one such victim of that type of ignorance.

Harsh? Perhaps, but I am very pro public art and have little patience for those who contribute nothing more than complaints whenever a new work dents one of their various fragile sensibilities.

My other photographs of works in the Vancouver Biennale can be found in the gallery. As of this posting, there aren't so many, but I have lots of photos, I just haven't posted them yet. I'll have to get on that.

Balloons in Stuttgart

Sat, 02 Feb 2013 16:25 +0200

Coming in to land at the airport in Stuttgart. Had to be quick with the camera to catch the launch of some hot air balloons in the late afternoon.

Those houses below probably have nice views of the lush rolling hills around Stuttgart but, man, they are not far from the flight path. That's got to be incredibly noisy. I mean, if you look at the EXIF, I had Nikon's 10-24mm zoomed to 24mm. Not exactly a telephoto shot and the houses still look this close.

My other photographs taken whilst I'm glued to the window during flight can be found in the gallery.

The Antidote

Fri, 01 Feb 2013 17:15 +0200

There is no doubt that February is the worst month on the calendar. Good thing it is the shortest. It's that last "screw you" from winter before March brings better days. Unless you live in Calgary, in which case May is the last screw you of winter. Possibly June. I kid, but I lived there for seven years so I can get away with it.

So this photo, taken in August two years back, is the sunny, seaside antidote to February's grey misery. The bay is called Agios Giorgios and it's on the island of Corfu. If you're looking for a quiet beautiful mediterranean getaway, seriously consider going there.

Any don't worry, Calgary, summer is only six months away.

My other photographs from Corfu can be found in the gallery.

Johann Wilhelm Rides a Horse

Thu, 31 Jan 2013 19:02 +0200

I didn't have much information about yesterday's photograph and I don't have a lot of information about today's subject either. So it goes.

This is a statue of Johann Wilhelm which sits in the old part, Altstadt, of Düsseldorf. He was born into Palatine royalty, married into Austrian royalty and then, when that wife died, he married into the Medici family. Sounds rough.

The city grew prosperous under his power and that seems to have been enough to put his statue on display next to the town hall. He had some nice buildings built and collected many Rubens paintings but, other than that, did nothing else of note. Those good times when he was ruling probably looked even better when compared to the crappy times that came after. The new guy moved the royal court to Bavaria and after that Napoleon treated the city fairly badly but Napoleon treated everyone fairly badly.

So, if you go there, you can sit in what some call the longest bar in the world - a street just around the corner from this statue - drinking some of the good Altbier that Düsseldorf is famous for, and contemplate what your statue would look like hundreds of years after your death.

If you had been born into royalty.

Carrousel Gourmand and the Eiffel Tower

Wed, 30 Jan 2013 18:25 +0200

I can't seem to find out any real information about this tiny little carrousel that sits almost at the base of the Eiffel Tower. Since it's so close to the tower, and the tower is one of the most popular tourist attractions in the entire world, there is no shortage of photos of the carrousel and the ice cream/crêpe stand next to it. That said, there is precious little information about either.

Having had neither the ice cream nor the crêpes - or ridden the carrousel for that matter - I can't tell you how good they are. For me, it was just a stop on the way to the Trocadéro.

My other photographs of or from the Eiffel Tower can be found in the gallery.

Quaint and Futuristic

Tue, 29 Jan 2013 18:55 +0200

I'm not sure when the little Granville Island Ferries started plying the rough waters of False Creek, but using them to motor my way across and around the waterfront was definitely something that I was looking forward to on my last trip back to Vancouver. It was a must.

That trip also allowed me to see, in person, the new retractable roof that has been added to BC Place Stadium. It's a big change but I have to say I like it. Especially at night when it is completely lit up. Impressive.

When I moved away, in 2010, they had the old roof off but the new one was still under construction. That was strange enough - not seeing the familiar dome at the end of Robson Street - but it was really weird seeing those spiky support structures for the first time. Especially so since my first sight of it was at the corner of Robson and Beatty, at night, alight. If you're not from Vancouver, I could describe that intersection as the front doorstep of the stadium.

I have a photograph from 2008 showing the old roof of the stadium.

Both the ferries and the stadium are part of my Vancouver. They're a part of my downtown.

A Sea of Blue and White Umbrellas

Mon, 28 Jan 2013 15:36 +0200

The Côte d'Azur is most definitely azure. These umbrellas and the people under them are on the beach in Nice, France.

I didn't stay long, only part of an afternoon for something to eat and a little wander, but it looks like a nice place - no pun intended. It's certainly touristy though. And hot.

Undoubtedly, the most interesting thing I saw there was an actual french police chase. A man on a little motorbike was making laps around a small block, constantly looking over his shoulder to see how far back the police were. They were not far behind despite being not as maneuverable through the traffic. It was straight out of a movie. The car had no markings and had the light slapped on the roof, wailing away and the passenger cop was holding onto the window frame yelling at the driver.

After a few laps, the pray zoomed down the street past us, then came back again and then was gone. Police car following the whole time.

About five minutes later, we saw a patrol car slowly drifting down a street, checking side alleys so I think the guy actually got away.

I often wonder what it was they were chasing him for.

None of that has anything to do with this photo and I never got a photo of the chase as we were sitting in the car heading out of town when the chase happened, but I figured I'd share the story.

My other beach photographs can be found in the gallery.

The Facade

Sun, 27 Jan 2013 15:44 +0200

Somehow, the Duomo in Florence - a fairly important building in the Catholic church - remained without a proper facade from 1588 to 1887. I'd love to see a painting of what it looked like before this facade was built but I haven't been able to find one. If you know of one, let me know.

While this neo-gothic design is certainly busy, it is certainly appropriate for the building and the site. The detail and craftsmanship is just amazing.

My other photographs of religious architecture can be found in the gallery.

The Microbus

Sat, 26 Jan 2013 11:52 +0200

See, now that's what I'm talking about, Deutschland. I want to see more beautiful, classic Volkswagens like this.

Now, get on it.

Palais Rohan

Fri, 25 Jan 2013 19:33 +0200

The French really have the impressive museum thing down. I guess it really helps to have a bunch of palaces just waiting to be filled with something other than a king. Speaking of kings, Louis XV stayed here in 1744 but I'm not sure for how long. The palace wasn't actually built for him it was built for the Bishop of Strasbourg. Looks like being a bishop was a pretty lucrative job.

The Palais Rohan isn't just home to one museum, it actually houses three: the archeological museum, the museum of fine arts and the museum of decorative arts.

I didn't get a chance to go in it which means I'll just have to make another trip there to check it out.

My other photographs of France can be found in the gallery.

These Billboards I like

Thu, 24 Jan 2013 20:47 +0200

Other than the two artists' names, I don't really have much info about these two paintings. The one on the left is Horizont, by Dominique Jehle, and the one on the right is by Martina Gmür. It is possible that the whole installation is called Kunstplattform or that just might be the swiss word for an art installation. I have no idea. It seems they are attached to Jacob Burckhardt Haus which has a fair amount of art in it so it's not much of a stretch to say that they'd have art outside of it.

No matter what, I like the space and the colour and love the fact that there is art there and not advertising.

I'd love to get more info about the works, so if you have any, send me an email. The link is below.

My other photographs of public art can be found in the gallery.

Inside the Blue Mosque

Wed, 23 Jan 2013 18:48 +0200

This is a busy photograph. Then again, that's the style of architecture.

The Blue Mosque gets it's name from the blue tiles on the inside - Edit: this photo was originally posted as a black & white image ~~which I've prevented you from seeing when I made the photo black and white, well done~~ - but the tiles are not so overwhelmingly blue that's it's the first thing you notice. I think the name comes more from the fact that, originally, the blue tiles were red and they gradually faded over time to blue.

The reason they faded is that the tile makers cheaped out on the tiles because the price was fixed up front and the general going price for tiles went up over time. What, was there a tile market where people traded futures on tiles or something? Well, to cut their losses or preserve their profits, the makers went cheap on the glaze, the glaze faded and we now have the Blue Mosque.

The real name of the Mosque is the Sultan Ahmed Mosque, by the way.

My other photographs from Istanbul can be found in the gallery.

Every Sunset

Tue, 22 Jan 2013 14:34 +0200

Every sunset is a chance to think about a better tomorrow.

Every sunrise, an opportunity to make it happen.

My other photographs of sunsets can be found in the gallery.

The Danube and the Parliament

Mon, 21 Jan 2013 18:32 +0200

If I travel 65 kilometres east of Freiburg, I can hop in a boat and start heading down the Danube River. On my way, I'd go through Vienna, the capital of Austria, and Bratislava, the capital of of Slovakia before eventually getting here, Budapest, the capital of Hungary. If I kept going, I'd also go through Belgrade, the capital of Serbia.

It's probably not as easy as that, but you get what I mean. From what I understand, if I want to make that little cruise without having to portage anywhere, I'd have to start my boat ride about 250 kilometres east of Freiburg. How did I actually get to Budapest? I flew.

This, this incredibly ornate building, is the Hungarian Parliament. It's huge - almost 270 metres long. It's moments like these where I really enjoy the fact that I have an ultra-wide lens. The rest of the description I'll leave up to the photograph itself.

My other photos of Budapest can be found in the gallery.

Colours of Vernazza

Sun, 20 Jan 2013 19:00 +0200

From what I understand, Vernazza has mostly recovered from last year's devastating floods and things are fairly normal now. Fairly normal for tourists I think, but not so much for the locals.

If they were only able to remake this piazza half as beautiful as it is here in this 2009 photo, it will still be one of the most beautiful piazzas in the world. And I'll bet they've done much better than just half.

No matter what, the Cinque Terre is a place you should visit if you haven't already. Every single person I know that has been there has instantly fallen in love with it.

It's almost impossible not to.

My other photographs from piazzas - and not just in Italy - can be found in the gallery.

Wilder Shores of Desire and the Temple of the Sea

Sat, 19 Jan 2013 19:32 +0200

The Oceanographic Museum of Monaco has been there for a little over 100 years. Jacques-Yves Cousteau was the director of the museum for a long time.

The sculpture, Wilder Shores of Desire by Marc Quinn, was only there for the summer of 2012. It was part of an exhibition called The Littoral Zone most of which we did not see because we didn't actually go into the museum.

My other photographs from Monaco can be found in the gallery.

Vancouver

Fri, 18 Jan 2013 19:53 +0200

Don't worry, Vancouver, I'll be back.

I'm just not finished here yet.

Freiburg

Thu, 17 Jan 2013 22:19 +0200

So, I guess I can stay.

Living with the idea that, at any moment, you could get notice that you have to leave the country fills one with a giant hollow feeling of insecurity. The thought of having to pick up and move your entire life at a moment's notice weighs on you. It's no small thing.

Unfortunately, or fortunately depending on how you want to look at it, it actually was one of the smaller concerns I have had to deal with over the last few months. One of which I touched on yesterday.

Even something as serious as that had become mere background noise. So it is.

Today, I got news that my visa extension has been approved. My general policy is to never celebrate until the fat lady sings. But, right now, I'm willing to celebrate the fact that I didn't get notice that I would have to fight the immigration office just to even be able to stay in Germany. I'll celebrate a little more when the card is in my hand. One thing at a time.

It's the little things in life, it always has been. Even when those little things aren't so little.

Explain it to Me Again

Wed, 16 Jan 2013 19:11 +0200

I have a friend. He has HIV. And cancer. A month ago, he was hospitalized, got pneumonia and came within a millimetre of dying.

Today I got an email from him. This is part of it:

If there is a god, take me now. I'd be fine with it.

Thankfully I've done what I wanted and lived my life with no regret. Through it all, I am comfortable in my own skin.

When I was in Vancouver and I went and saw him, he asked about my mother - she lives in an old folks home - and said that he wanted to bring her and the other people there some clothes.

Even in the state he was, he was thinking of others. What an absolute, golden human being.

So, explain to me again, what, exactly, is so hard in your life that you need to create all of this stress?

De-Icing

Tue, 15 Jan 2013 20:24 +0200

There was a slight delay when I flew from Frankfurt to Vancouver to de-ice the place. That's something that I've never actually seen before. It's a fairly interesting and dramatic looking process.

If I remember correctly, first they spray on a pink fluid and then remove it with a green one. I'm thinking the colors are there to see that they've covered all the areas that need covering.

Whatever it takes to make sure it's done right. I've got no problem waiting for that.

My other photos of things related to flying (including some birds and kites) can be found in the gallery.

Piazza del Duomo

Mon, 14 Jan 2013 22:59 +0200

The famous leaning tower in Pisa is nothing more than the bell tower for this building, the Cathedral. And as impressive as the tower is for not having fallen over, the Duomo is equally impressive for it's sheer scale.

This straight-on view gives a sense of the scale but shows nothing of its length. In fact, the distant end of it is far enough back that you can't even see the transept from this view. The facade dominates all. The transept and the apse can be seen in a photograph I posted a while ago.

It is said that Galileo first figured out his pendulum theory watch a lamp swing back and forth in the Duomo. True? No one really knows but, one thing is for sure: Galileo has been here.

Amazing.

My other photos from Pisa can be found in the gallery.

A Snow Covered Footbridge

Sun, 13 Jan 2013 16:04 +0200

As the first few flakes of snow fall today in Freiburg, here is a shot where more than a few have already fallen in Queen Elizabeth Park in Vancouver. If this bridge has a name, I don't know it but it sits overlooking the Quarry Gardens.

A totally different feel indeed from the photo I posted yesterday.

I was staying not far from the park and was able to get over there, trudge around and spend half a day taking pictures. Unsurprisingly, there were a few other photographers doing the same.

Queen Elizabeth Park is the highest spot in Vancouver proper so the snow actually stayed snow for a while. I went downtown after that and it was entirely different there - sleet and rain, no standing snow at all. It was more like a slurpy falling from the sky. Altogether an ugly scene.

Two days later, the snow had entirely melted away. That's the reality of winter in Vancouver. If it snows you'd better capture it quick because it's never usually enough to cover the ground and, even if it is, it'll be gone in a day or two.

I think this photo of a snow covered rose is a more accurate view of winter snows in Vancouver. In fact, I actually called that post Winter, Vancouver Style.

My other photos of snow(!) can be found in the gallery.

Waiting to Windsurf

Sat, 12 Jan 2013 23:06 +0200

The weather here lately has been pretty grey and rainy. Not much more than you can expect really since it's the middle of January.

So, as a bit of a lifter of spirits, here is a nice, blue sky beach shot from Corfu.

In the end, summer isn't nearly as far away as it seems.

My other shots from Greece can be found in the gallery.

The Bovine

Fri, 11 Jan 2013 20:23 +0200

Went hiking a couple of years ago in the Vosges mountains in Alsace, France just above Lac des Truites.

Apparently, the name of the lake is actually a mistake. Since this area has gone back and forth between the French and the Germans many times over the past centuries, when they translated the name from German they mistook the german word for pine with the word for trout. Understandable and fairly minor considering the land changed hands four times in seventy-five years.

Anyway, the cow is definitely french. For the record, I went around it.

My other photographs of Alsace can be found in the gallery.

Palazzo della Cancelleria

Thu, 10 Jan 2013 20:34 +0200

The Palazzo della Cancelleria, with its amazing courtyard, is not something I specifically went to but passed by it on the way to see one of the oldest churches in Rome. I saw the columns through the open doorway and had to stop and check it out. It turns out those columns actually came from the ruined Theatre of Pompey which is better known as the place where Julius Caesar was assassinated. Perhaps, as he struggled to get away from the crowd of men frantically stabbing him, he might have even rushed past and leaned against one of the columns you are looking at now before famously falling on the steps of the theatre and succumbing to his twenty-three stab wounds.

After that, the Roman Republic was doomed, eventually replaced by the Roman Empire.

That's quite a story. Discovered just from a glance through a doorway as I marched through the streets of Rome on the way to somewhere else.

Aside from that, the palazzo is considered the first renaissance palazzo constructed in Rome, is actually autonomous from Italy because it's an exclave of the Vatican City, and Michelangelo came by one day to disparage a mural that had only taken Giorgio Vasari one hundred days to paint.

My other photographs of Rome can be found in the gallery.

False Creek West

Wed, 09 Jan 2013 16:04 +0200

From one bridge to the next, shooting from the Granville Bridge to the Burrard Bridge and from yesterdays photograph of a very old bridge in Venice to a not so old bridge in Vancouver.

I didn't get a lot of days that looked like this when I was in Vancouver over Christmas so this is a shot from February of 2010. A friend of mine and I spent the entire day wandering all around False Creek. I think we basically did a complete loop. The weather was perfect for it but, at the time, everyone was sweating it because the winter Olympics were going to start in a few days.

This does not look like a city that is four days away from hosting the winter Olympics, but that's Vancouver for you.

Down on the right is Granville Island Market and I did manage to walk through there on my trip. I wandered past the fish sellers marveling at the huge selection of seafood and meandered through the surprising number of tourists that were there. Quite a few considering the uninspiring weather. I managed to get some interesting shots which I will post sooner or later. After that I grabbed one of the tiny ferries that cross False Creek and went down to Yaletown.

A Bridge and an Umbrella for the Sun

Tue, 08 Jan 2013 20:36 +0200

The view of the Rialto Bridge is almost as good as the view from it.

When I was in Venice, I actually spent very little time on the other side of this bridge. That was probably a mistake but Venice was more of a place to recharge than an all out, see-everything-you-can kind of a stop on my trip. It's definitely on my list of places I'd like to go to again but the list of places that I haven't been yet is still fairly long.

So many places, so little time.

Interestingly,here is a Michele Marieschi panting from the 1730's with a view that is not all that different than this photo. I took this photo roughly from where the man, standing on the dock, is pointing at the barrels.

My other photographs from Venice can be found in the gallery.

Misty Icefield

Mon, 07 Jan 2013 19:56 +0200

I know I posted an endless vista of mountains photograph just the other day but I couldn't resist posting another one. I shot about a hundred on the flight back to Frankfurt and I'll do my best to not to fill up this photoblog with only mountain photos. For me, these are some of the most beautiful landscapes you will ever see. More than just beautiful, they're dramatic, powerful, take your breath away kind of landscapes. Light blues, pinks and oranges play in the snow, wrapping around jagged peaks and steep slopes all the way to Alaska.

When you combine that fresh memory with the fact that I downloaded an amazing ski movie called All.I.Can yesterday, well, I just had to post another mountain image. And seriously, buy the movie, watch it. It's incredible.

I wasn't being creative with the name of this photo, that's actually what this formation is called. Looking at how the clouds are shrouding it, it seems about right. It certainly caught my eye. Such a huge, level area, so high up in the mountains. There is also a glacier up there but it's totally obscured by that cloud bank.

My other mountain photos can be found in the gallery.

Le Penseur

Sun, 06 Jan 2013 14:26 +0200

Seeing The Thinker in person is exactly like you'd expect it to be. Huge, imposing, iconic, beautiful.

There are more than twenty-five castings of it but I think that this is the original. That's actually a bit misleading, I should say that this might be the original at this size. The original statue of the contemplative man was only a small part of a larger work, giant cast doors called The Gates of Hell, themed on Dante's The Divine Comedy. He sat at the top looking down at the hellish scene below.

This casting sits in the garden at the incredible Musée Rodin in Paris and is just across the garden from those original cast iron doors. If you go to Paris, I would consider it a must to visit the museum and if you need to look up where it is, you can just use the "show this photo on a map ✈" link below. The museum itself used to be a hotel that was donated to the people of Paris and the surrounding gardens are impressive, surprisingly large and impeccably maintained.

Feb 14th, 2013: Here is some good info from Rick Steves regarding museums and whatnot in Paris for 2013 including a mention that the Rodin Museum will be renovating in 2014. They'll still be open, but there might be some inconveniences.

My other photographs of Paris can be found in the gallery.

Vespa, Saint-Tropez

Sat, 05 Jan 2013 20:58 +0200

There's not a lot that I can expand on with this photo other than to say that this Vespa was parked in a rather neat and tidy little alley in the old part of Saint-Tropez.

It's not a large town - certainly not compared to the reputation it has - but considering how hot it was that day, it would have been much easier to zip around and see everything on one of these. Like what we did in Monaco.

My other photos from the Rivieras are in the gallery.

959

Fri, 04 Jan 2013 14:35 +0200

Since this is post number 959, I thought the only thing that would be appropriate would be a photo of an actual Porsche 959.

This car is legendary and, since they were never really allowed to be sold in North America, I thought that I might never actually get to see one. Bill Gates bought one and it sat in US customs for thirteen years until he and Paul Allen, who had also purchased one, finally managed to get a law passed for special autos of interest. I'll bet both of those cars still have yet to see an actual road.

The 959 was the first of the true supercars. Twin turbo, four wheel drive, kevlar and aluminum body, adjustable suspension and crazy aerodynamics. It was like the future made manifest. It was also the fastest production car in the world for a while.

Unfortunately, my favorite, the Paris Dakar version was in the maintenance area when I was there. It was visible and I actually was able to stand there and drool over it but couldn't get any photos.

My other photos from the Porsche Museum can be found in the gallery.