“Cathedral Dome, Dubrovnik” — The dome of the Dubrovnik Cathedral, as seen from Gundulic Square.
We spent a few days in Dubrovnik, Croatia near the end of the summer of 2023, between time in Kosovo and a week near Trogir, further north in Croatia. The weather conditions were fascinating and a little challenging on this day. There were high clouds, some of which were thick enough to darken the sky, and the direct sun was blocked, leaving this soft light on the buildings.
I made the photograph in a small square that is largely hemmed in by buildings like those in the photograph. The only part of the cathedral that is visible beyond them is is rounded dome, a major landmark in Dubrovnik.
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“Shadows, Ponte Dei Carmini” — Light and shadows on buildings at the Ponte Dei Carmini, Venice.
This photograph from Venice embodies many of the features that I expect to see in that part of the world. The Southern European light? Yes. Wrought iron work? Check. Earth tone colors on the buildings? Indeed. Narrow walkways? For sure. Of course, the venetian-style canals — not visible in this photo — are not quite so ubiquitous.
I’ll share a little technical note about this photograph. Cameras cannot really produce a native image that shows us details in both the very bright highlights (direct sunlight) and deep shadows. (Our eyes deal with this by quickly adapting to the brightness at the center of our attention.) So with digital photography our first priority is to protect those bright highlights — let them get out of control and you’ll lose highlight details completely. The subsequent post-processing task is then to brighten details in the shadows to restore what we think we saw when we looked at the scene. The trick is to do that in a manner that doesn’t give it away, one that doesn’t make the technique too obvious
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“Narrow Street, Santiago de Compostela” — A narrow, deserted street winds through Santiago de Compostela, Spain.
Not all of Santiago de Compostela, Spain looks like this scene, but if you visit and wander around the historic old part of town you will find such places. The primary streets, although also narrow, can be quite busy at times. But off to the side are little streets and passageways that are far less crowded, especially at the right times of day.
This is an exceptionally narrow street. You are not going to drive a car here — a scooter perhaps. The buildings are old enough that they have acquired some off-kilter qualities, with walls leaning slightly.
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“Lisbon Rooflines” — A succession of rising rooftops against a cloudy sky, Lisbon.
On one level this photograph is about the forms and colors of the buildings in this Lisbon neighborhood. The color palette is more typical of Southern Europe — from here to Italy and beyond — with the earth tones and the red tile roofs. The angle relationships are compressed, in part because the buildings are so close to one another.
It is also about the “atmosphere” of the place — the light of this region seems to me to have a particular quality. On one hand it can be sharp edged, I suppose due to the southern location and the high position of the sun. But there can also be a softness to the atmosphere that isn’t like the harsh quality often seen in, for example, the American Southwest.
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Photographer and visual opportunist. Daily photos since 2005, plus articles, reviews, news, and ideas.
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