As readers of this blog may be able to discern, one of my avocations is photography. I was a teenager when I got my first "serious" camera, a 35mm rangefinder film camera with totally manual controls--no auto focus, no auto exposure, not even an in-the-camera lightmeter. I had to use a handheld Gossen lightmeter. Nobody in those days had any inkling about what was to come: digital cameras and Photoshop.
Though the technology of photography is far different today, the aesthetics are pretty much the same. Photography is an art form, and art depends on a combination of interesting subject matter, good composition, and (most importantly) the light falling on the subject. Great photographs are not taken at high noon when the shadows are short and the colors are washed out. Great photography results when the sun is low in the sky.
When I travel, I like to get up an hour before dawn, take my camera and tripod, and watch the sunrise. (My travel companions have never shared this enthusiasm of mine!) There is something special about watching a new day dawn, seeing the color of the sky gradually change, and glimpsing the first rays of the sun as they peek above the horizon. The scene pictured above was taken in Naples, Italy across the street from my hotel. The mountain in the distance is Mt. Vesuvius.
One of my future projects is a Photographic Hiking Tour of Provence, probably happening in September, 2008. If you'd like to hear about the plans as they are developed, or if you'd be interested in a hiking tour in a scenic destination, send me an email!
TAGS:
photography,
travel,
Naples,
Italy
No comments:
Post a Comment