My photographing windows and doors didn’t stop at Venice.
I continued to be fascinated and to photograph them. What interested me most were those of an age perhaps equal to that of the building they were mounted upon.
Over the years think of all those who passed by or through them. Our lifetimes are so fleeting. Yet…
“Big doors swing on little hinges.” ~ W. Clement Stone
I could see why you made the windows and doors into a little portfolio. It’s hard to pass these up without photographing them. Not only are they beautiful on their own, but the lighting on some is amazing, particularly the third from the end.
Ken, I certainly didn’t go to Italy with any plan for photographing in this fashion “windows and doors” but there was such a variety with so much rich character and appeal it soon became an obsession.
The lighting and shadows were by chance. Since I was traveling with others I didn’t have much say on when or how I photographed them — I just tried to take advantage and make the most of what I found.
Thanks.
I admire this series Earl. I think you have to be pretty fast and observant to capture so many. It is one thing if someone is just going for quantity, but these show a distinct photographer’s eye for quality in each an every one. One thing I have noticed about my approach to photography is I tend to not move around as much, and end up missing a lot of details like this.
Mark, thanks, I appreciate that.
An advantage and disadvantage as a photographer of taking a trip such as this with friends is you must adapt to shooting on the move, learn to quickly scan and identify potential and try and make the most of what existed in the moment. There was no returning to a spot to try a second shot. I’d move about taking a couple of different angles and then it’s off to chase my wife and friends while finding my next shot. At first I felt a little stressed working this way but by the end of the 10 days it seemed “normal.”
Again, some very good work, Earl. And like Ken, it’s the third to last image that really caught my eye. The door is so nicely framed by the sunlight.
I’m also still amazed by the EM5. Were the colors that good coming out of the camera, or did you have to make some adjustments? I just received my EM5 in the mail yesterday. Not thrilled by the charger – why’d they have to include that big long cord? Why couldn’t the charger itself just plug into the wall (like my Canon chargers do)?
The menu system is just a tad complex, too. I’m still trying to figure all that stuff out. It took me a little while to figure out how to make it take RAW images.
One question for you: Did you get a longer lens for it? Something roughly equivalent to 300 mm or so? So far I like the 12 -50 that came with it, but I’d like a longer one as well.
Anyway, I hope my images come out as well as yours!
Paul, thanks, and yes in that third to last image the light and shadows were definitely in my favor.
Congrats on receiving your E-M5! The menu system seemed at first a bit convoluted compared to Nikons as well, but I hardly notice it now.
I made only small adjustments to these photos in Lightroom 4. I shot all in RAW and only did a modest +10 to +15 on the Vibrance slider. I didn’t adjust the saturation slider on any of them, or do any adjustments to the hue’s or luminance. There were some where I adjusted the WB temperature a little warmer to bring out the wood door tones.
I have a Panasonic Lumix m4/3 45-200mm f/4-5.6 (90-400mm 35mm equivalent) I use when needing to go longer. It’s certainly not fast but it is fairly sharp throughout it’s range and with the decent higher ISO performance of the E-M5 is “workable” for most daylight conditions.
I’m looking forward to seeing your results and your impressions of the E-M5.
Totally agree with Mark, these are definitely the work of a good photographer. No snap shots here. Number 2 and 8 are the ones that stood out for me. Good use or lines and light. This is a great series of images. Out here in Colorado we do not see the older architecture like there is east of the Mississippi or Europe. The images I see of Europe architecture shows so much craftsmanship. Well done Earl!
Monte, thank-you. We don’t see much architecture of this nature here either. Most of this in Europe was built in the days of master craftsmen. Thanks again!