Europe, Netherlands, Zuid Holland, Den Haag, New Babylon, Den Haag Centraal station, Cyclist (slightly cut from all sides)

The Den Haag Centraal station with the City Tower condo highrise, an element of the ‘New Babylon’ (re-)development project (MVSA architects, 2012). The project surroundings are partly blended in by their reflection.

The name can be taken at face value, the project entailed the redevelopment of the Babylon mall but is also an ironical (cynical) reference to the art installation with the same name (1974) of Constant – with it he proposed a new urbanity which would leave the bourgeois metropolis behind and would be populated by the free and creative Homo Ludens - man at play. A nice touch, ‘cause Constant was nicely ironic himself using the name Babylon with its negative (sinful) biblical connotation.

This is number 71 of the Den Haag album and 930 of Minimalism / explicit Graphism.

You are welcome to visit my Flickr photo stream for better resolution there most of my products are available with high resolution for view and purchase. for purchase plz Call me at +880 1711595036 . or e mail me at majhammim@gmail.com

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No usar esta imagen sin mi autorización. © Todos los derechos reservados. así como las fotografías de la presente pagina Web.

Please don't use this image without my explicit permission. © All rights reserved,

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visitar Facebook ranelagh:

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Web Ranelagh:

gust1764.wixsite.com/parque-eva-hajduk

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www.parqueevahajduk.com/

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quedan invitados a ver mi nuevo portfolios : Ranelagh

are invited to see my new portfolio: Ranelagh

www.fotorevista.com.ar/Portfolios/11/110108-DiazDeVivar/i...

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FUE ELEGIDA LA FOTO DEL DIA EN FOTOREVITA:COM

www.fotorevista.com.ar/SFotos/index.php?select=101101042516

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Cómo aceptar que la vida sea digna de ser vivida, a pesar de todo lo adverso que hay en ella, es el tema central del existencialismo. Víktor Frankl afirma que vivir es aceptar con dignidad el desafío que plantea la vida, con su carga de adversidad, y sobrevivir es hallar el sentido de ese sufrimiento.

From a slide. Reptiles are difficult to photograph well because they are so long and thin. Undoubtedly a head shot would have had more impact but that would have entailed going much closer ....

251109 006-2DN

The fourth image of the series commemorating the one year anniversary of "TumbleWorld", my mature and signature style.

While more recent reconnaissance missions have revealed that a lot of people may have stumbled across this exploitation of a misuse or abuse of the iPhone's panorama function, it seems that few have gone past the novelty and worked toward turning it into art.

Paul Ewing ( of TOTALITY OF REALITY and PANO-VISION groups ), who also discovered and deliberately launched into the use of this technique, and I have worked very hard to turn a novelty into another way of making creative imagery.

Over this past year, we've worked very closely together, carefully and extensively going over everything from metaphorical implications, aesthetics, politics and suggesting different techniques to each other. It's been a real collaboration, one which resulted in our creation of the "PANO-Vision" group, for images created in this fashion. Instructions on how to achieve these results are posted in the group's discussions.

******** THESE 4 IMAGES, this and the prior 3, ARE DEDICATED TO PAUL EWING WHO SIMULTANEOUSLY DISCOVERED PANO-SABOTAGE AT THE SAME TIME. ********

______________________________________________

Again, as in the previous image, this is a look at the notion of unlimited growth and progress ... critically. Scientist, Philosopher, Ervin Laszlo, in his book "Dawn of the Akashic Age" frankly points out that the 150 year spree that we've had creating a technically advanced world ... based on oil ... and the destructive myth of endless growth and progress that entails, is about to end. The oil is running out.

This, he says, will cause a severe and traumatic impact that will require an entirely new paradigm of the world and the meaning of our existence itself. Whole new technologies, new social structures with radical changes in business, politics, education, energy, ecology, economics and science will be absolutely necessary. Those changes will be hard won but successful. A lot will be lost but an awful lot more is to be gained.

This image is a look BACK at our time in a metaphor that sees this time as the last great age of the all-devouring consumerist and exploitative paradigm that saw the world as an endless source for the satisfaction for our collective greed. It suggests the collapse Laszlo predicts through the metaphor of distorted tall buildings - a symbol of our age.

Click on Image to Enlarge !

© Richard S Warner ( Visionheart ) - 2015. All Rights Reserved. This image is not for use in any form without explicit, express, written permission.

more info behind this shoot and the inspiration is on my last upload. :P

specifically though, this photo i really just wanted to look like a perfect but slightly tattered ballerina who was running away from something. i wasnt exactly sure what kind of a "ballet pose" that would entail, but when i told laura what i wanted, she totally nailed it.

on another note, in all my "spare" time ive been working really hard on getting a new website and place to contact me all organized. applied a bit larger, i kind of let everything fall apart, so im trying to do it all over again. and this time its all gunna be so much better. after 3 years of learning a ton, and making lots of mistakes, im almost ready to do this right. never gunna give up on this dream of mine. also - big thanks to everyone here on flickr who has supported me from the very beginning. its always made it so much easier to keep trying harder.

more photos from this shoot on facebook.

model: laura hess.

The Santa Monica Pier is a large double-jointed pier at the foot of Colorado Avenue in Santa Monica, California. With an iconic entrance, the pier is popular with residents and visitors as a landmark that is over 100 years old.

Santa Monica has had several piers; however, the Santa Monica Pier is two adjoining piers that long had separate owners. The long, narrow Municipal Pier opened September 9, 1909, primarily to carry sewer pipes beyond the breakers, and had no amenities. The short, wide adjoining Pleasure Pier to the south, a.k.a. Newcomb Pier, was built in 1916 by Charles I. D. Looff and his son Arthur, amusement park pioneers. Attractions on the Pleasure Pier eventually included the Santa Monica Looff Hippodrome building (which now houses the current carousel and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places), the Blue Streak Racer wooden roller coaster (which was purchased from the defunct Wonderland amusement park in San Diego), the Whip, merry-go-rounds, Wurlitzer organs, and a funhouse.

The Carousel was built in 1922 on what was often referred to as a Pleasure Pier and features 44 hand-carved horses. It was rebuilt in 1990 inside the Hippodrome. A calliope provides musical accompaniment.

The La Monica Ballroom opened on July 23, 1924. Designed by T.H. Eslick with a Spanish façade and French Renaissance interior, it was the largest dance hall on the west coast, accommodating 5,000 dancers on its 15,000-square-foot (1,400 m2) hard maple floor. Country music star Spade Cooley began broadcasting his weekly television show from the ballroom in 1948, where the enormously popular program remained until 1954. In the summer of 1955, the Hollywood Autocade opened at the La Monica with one-hundred famous and unusual cars, including Jack Benny’s Maxwell and a Rumpler Drop Car. From 1958 until 1962, the ballroom served as a roller skating rink; first as Skater's Ballroom, and later as the Santa Monica Roller Rink, where the speed skating club won many state and regional championships. The La Monica Ballroom was demolished in 1963.

The Pleasure Pier thrived during the 1920s but faded during the Great Depression. During the 1930s, the pier was mainly used as a ferry landing, while most of the amusement park facilities were closed down and its attractions sold off.[8]

The bridge and entry gate to Santa Monica Pier were built in 1938 by the federal Works Project Administration, and replaced the former grade connection.

The Newcomb Pier was privately owned until it was acquired by the city in 1974.During the 1960s and 1970s various plans were proposed that would entail removal of the pier. The strangest one called for the construction of an artificial island with a 1500-room hotel. It was approved by the City Council, but citizens formed "Save Santa Monica Bay" to preserve the pier.[11] The outstanding order to raze the pier was revoked by the city council in 1973. Within that same year, the Carousel and Hippodrome were memorable sets featured in the film The Sting, although the story was set in Chicago.

In the 1950s, Enid Newcomb suggested to family friend Morris "Pops" Gordon that his two sons, George and Eugene, purchase and operate the Pier’s arcade. It didn’t take much persuasion, for the Gordons instantly took to the Pier and ultimately made Playland Arcade into the Pier’s longest running enterprise offering the day’s contemporary games alongside those of yesterday, providing inexpensive entertainment to a diverse crowd. George’s daughters Marlene and Joanie have kept the business within the family, and the next generation of Gordons is already in training to maintain the family tradition.

In 1983, the Santa Monica Pier experienced a significant loss. On January 27, there were reported swells of 10-feet during this winter storm. When the storm was over, the lower deck of the pier was destroyed. The City of Santa Monica began repairs on March 1, 1983, when another storm rolled in. A crane which was being used to repair the west end was dragged into the water and acted as a battering ram against the pilings. Over one-third of the Pier was completely destroyed.

The City of Santa Monica created a non-profit in response to the damage and called it Santa Monica Pier Restoration Corporation (SMPRC). SMPRC conducted the daily operations of the Santa Monica Pier, such as managing events, filming, promotions, tenants, and street performers. To date, SMPRC has produced the Santa Monica Pier Paddle Board Race and the Twilight Summer Concert Series. Also, in 2011, SMPRC changed the company name to the Santa Monica Pier Corporation (SMPC).

(1/5) The myth believed by millions of us that we can leave the matters to the state, the state knows how to take care of us is broken. Virus has eaten up the cover that hid how we relied on status quo which was not only unattainable but mostly imaginary.

The imaginary quality of the deceit is more deterimental to our demise than its unattainability. We are not only unprepared we have no blue print. We have no unity, no agreement, and we have no mercy. Human bore his teeth long ago. Jaws are tired of chewing and the sound of teeth clattering terrifies us. Tongues are chewed up. Bleeding pieces of it are hanging from our mouths.

We chewed up our security, our safety. We chewed up expansion. We chewed up growth, our gums, our norms, and inside of our cheeks.

We are yet to conjure up a new norm when we don't even know what should our new norm entail, what to include.

.....in the evening, customers in the teahouse peering out to admire the autumn colors while enjoying some refreshing tea with wagashi (和菓子; traditional Japanese confectionary).

The potential of this scene was clear, it was just a matter of getting the best possible handheld effort in low light out of a camera notorious for terrible mirror slap and shutter shock. Having shot with Olympus OMD bodies with 5-axis IBIS and EFC even before the advent of the D800E, I knew what proper acuity looks like.

Resorted to shooting this flawed Nikon D800E handheld in Live-view to minimize resolution robbing effects from its ridiculously violent mirror slap at 1/FL (Focal Length) SS (Shutter Speed) with ISO already at 2,500. A safe shutter speed would be at least 1/2x FL but I dislike ISO5,000, as it is ISO2,500 is what I deemed bordeline acceptable. Perhaps I should have shot at ISO1,600 or lower and left it under-exposed to boost exposure in post processing. I shoot in Manual mode hence SS will not change due to a lower ISO being selected.

Even better if MUP (mirror-up mode) is engaged in Live-view but this entailed 2 pumps of the shutter button. It’s good to be aware of such issues and adopt the necessary workarounds to mitigate it.

The next step was to post process to bring out the true potential of the scene, took less than 5 mins. Getting things right in shot is the most critical 1st step.

Mirror and shutter shock is a real problem for Nikon high resolution DSLRs especially when shooting handheld. DpReview had a comprehensive article on this; m.dpreview.com/reviews/nikon-d810/17, note that this article was written 4 years after the D800E was released. This flaw persisted in the subsequent D810 even though fanbois marketeers claimed that it was resolved in their D810 reviews having avoided any mention of it when the D800E was reviewed in depth at launch.

Never bothered to upgrade to D850 either because by then I was already shooting with the Sony A7R2 which had none of these problems that fundamentally affect image quality. DSLR fanbois attacked the A7R2 back then for the so called poor ergonomics, bad menus, poor battery life, single card slot....ultimately none of these affect image quality in any way.

Lesson learnt, never buy any new camera within 6 months from launch, wait for honest and competent hobbyist field use impressions not tainted by vested interests and treat most initial “professional” reviews with skepticism. Beware of “confirmation bias” of early adopters as well. Ultimately as they say; “the proof of the pudding is in the eating”, discount reviews/impressions from people who are unable to produce quality photos to back up their “hot air”.

Burg Forchtenstein

In 1622, Nicholas Esterházy received the castle and overlordship of Forchtenstein from Emperor Ferdinand II as compensation for ceding the Munkacs domain in north-eastern Hungary to the Prince of Transylvania Gabor Bethlen. After only four years, it became entailed with inheritance rights, along with the title of hereditary count. Palatine Nicholas Count Esterházy then began reconstructing the dilapidated castle into a mighty fortress. A strongly fortified bastion course was built, then, starting in 1632, the castle chapel, and from 1642 on the treasure chamber, also new residential wings.

(esterhazy.at)

Durga slaying Mahishasura is a prominent theme which was sculpted in various caves and temples across India.

Durga (Sanskrit: दुर्गा, Durgā), identified a principal and popular form of the Hindu Goddess Parvati. She is a goddess of war, the warrior form of Parvati, whose mythology centres around combating evils and demonic forces that threaten peace, prosperity, and Dharma the power of good over evil. Durga is also a fierce form of the protective mother goddess, who unleashes her divine wrath against the wicked for the liberation of the oppressed, and entails destruction to empower creation.

The word Durga (दुर्गा) literally means "impassable","invincible, unassailable" It is related to the word Durg (दुर्ग) which means "fortress, something difficult to defeat or pass". Durga is derived from the roots dur (difficult) and gam (pass, go through). Durga means "beyond defeat".

'Durga': "Durge durgati nashini", meaning Durga is the one who destroys all distress.

Horseshoes nailed to the Door of the Church of Saint Martin of Vilallonga in square of Països Catalans, Vilallonga de Ter, Ripollès, Girona, Catalonia.

CATALÀ

(Com sóc un martinenc nascut al barceloní barri de Sant Martí de Provençals, tinc una certa feblesa per allò esotèric relacional amb la bona sort que dóna tenir una o més ferradures a la porta de casa, que és resultat del costum dels cavallers de clavar a manera d'exvot les ferradures dels seus cavalls a la portes de les església dedicades a Sant Martí, per tant aquí poso un text de l’erudit Joan Amades).

[...] La virtut que posseeix sant Martí per a esquivar el diable es va estendre a les ferradures del bestiar que ell protegia. D'ací que hom pengi ferradures al darrera de les portes, per tal d'esquivar el diable i els endimoniaments. Aquest costum i la creença que comporta són universals dins del món cristià. Cal dir, tanmateix, que la valor màgica i protectora que hom atribueix a la ferradura és antiguíssima, indubtablement molt anterior al cristianisme. Respon a un acte de selenolatria, puix que el poble estableix una influència lunar damunt de la ferradura per raó de la semblança d'aquest ferro amb la mitja lluna. Es tracta, doncs, d'un cas de màgia imitativa o simpàtica de tipus corrent. Sant Martí havia estat el patró de la cavalleria catalana abans d'ésser-ho sant Jordi. També era patró del bestiar de ferradura. Els genets antics havien reclamat el favor d'aquest sant perquè els protegís i els salvés les cavalcadures quan estaven malaltes, i li oferien les ferradures a tall d'ex-vot o de presentada. Les esglésies antigues dedicades a sant Martí solien tenir la porta adornada amb ferradures rebudes com a presentades. Nosaltres, de nois, encara n’ havíem vist de clavades a la porta de l'església de Sant Martí de Provençals, avui ja dins la ciutat de Barcelona. Antigament, el patronatge de sant Martí damunt del bestiar de peu rodó havia estat comú a tots els pobles cristians. Fa de mal determinar si el patronatge del sant va passar dels cavallers a llurs cavalleries o si, al contrari, d'advocat del bestiar el seu tutelatge es va estendre fins als genets. […]

ENGLISH

(As I am a native of Martinenc born in the Barcelona district of Sant Martí de Provençals, I have a certain weakness for the esoteric relationship with the good luck of having one or more horseshoes on the door, which is the result of the custom of knights to nail way of votive offering the horseshoes of his horses at the doors of the church dedicated to St. Martin, so here I put a scholarly text written by Joan Amades).

[...] The virtue possessed by St. Martin to dodge the devil spread to the horseshoes of the cattle he protected. Hence one hangs horseshoes behind the doors, in order to dodge the devil and demons. This custom and the belief it entails are universal within the Christian world. It must be said, however, that the magical and protective value attributed to the horseshoe is very old, undoubtedly much earlier than Christianity. It responds to an act of selenolatry, since the town establishes a lunar influence on the horseshoe due to the similarity of this iron with the crescent. It is, therefore, a case of imitative or sympathetic magic of the current type. Sant Martí had been the patron saint of Catalan cavalry before Sant Jordi. He was also a pattern of horseshoe cattle. The ancient riders had demanded the favor of this saint to protect them and save their horses when they were sick, and offered him horseshoes as an ex-vow or as a presentation. The old churches dedicated to St. Martin used to have the door adorned with horseshoes received as presented. We, as boys, had still seen them nailed to the door of the church of Sant Martí de Provençals, today in the city of Barcelona. In the past, the patronage of St. Martin on round-footed cattle had been common to all Christian peoples. It is difficult to determine whether the patronage of the saint passed from the knights to their cavalries or whether, on the contrary, from the lawyer of the cattle his tutelage extended to the horsemen. […]

Took a different approach to my version of Makuta than I initially wanted. What I envisioned in my mind was a massive overlord with a bandoleer of the golden masks of unity fixed to it among some other ideas that got scrapped. However, due to some unforseen circumstances (siblings "cleaning up" my collection which entailed dumping everything in a bin until it was full. Including my Halo stuff.), that idea got scrapped because I haven't MOCed in a long time and need to play around with the medium and re-obtain my feel for it before I took on any large projects.

Instead of the massive brute of a Makuta, I went for a sleeker, more elegant design resembling that of a king. I wanted to create a Makuta that looked like it could be marketed as its own set alongside Ekimu for kind of a "final battle" setup where both have similar equipment and similar statures.

That being said, I'm extremely pleased with how this came out. I don't know if I'll place in the competition, but I can rest easy knowing that I'm happy with what I entered.

This is my entry for Week IV of the “Style it Up” Contest by InnovaLUG. For this week, the contest entailed building a MOC that has no studs visible.

Also an entry for the Iron Forge.

Nothing sophisticated about this - just a pair of HST Power Cars doing their best to exploit the almost 4,500 hp at the driver's disposal as they race around the curve through Bedford Station with East Midlands Trains' 9.32am Nottingham - London St Pancras service (1B28).

Power car 43055 is pushing with 43083 on the front. This wasn't the shot I had carefully framed for the approach which entailed featuring an elegant brick bridge - but as so often happens the swift, and unplanned, turn-around to get the going-away frame was the one that proved more impactful.

10.41am, 25th April 2018

This afternoon AC and I went to the mall . . . as we were getting ready to leave, we passed by this one section of the mall where we saw several men "bored" as ever and some were even sleeping. I'm sure if the hubs went with us, he would have joined them or either that, he would have waited near the piano area inside Nordstrom. ;-) I think the reason most men hate to shop because it entails hours of browsing and trying on clothes and/or shoes along with never ending discussion about each item.

RIP My Beloved Winslow July 10, 2008 - October 24, 2015

Victory

By Kristen Abbott

Last night I dreamt, my precious dog, who passed a day ago

Had come to see me one last time before he went where good dogs go.

I said, as I looked into his eyes, remembering all his days entailed

“I’m so sorry I couldn’t save you. I’m so sorry that I failed.”

My dog immediately shook his head and said “Mom, don’t you see?

You have not let me down or failed. In fact, you won, victoriously.”

“But how?” I asked my sweet, sweet dog, “can you say that I have won?”

“I tried so hard to make you well, and in the end, you’re gone?”

My dog gave me a beaming smile and said “I do recall,

That you gave me the one thing that I wanted most of all.

The only thing I ever really hoped for endlessly

Was to get the chance to live as part of a loving family.

I’ve met so many dogs here with no opportunity

To start each day with knowing that love was a guarantee.

But I was given that great gift and cherished it while I lived

I just wish the other dogs here could have had the life I did.

And all your work to fight my illness , that was not in vain

For each day you fought to give me was another day I gained

The chance to have my belly rubbed, to snuggle and to feel

The joy of seeing all the wonders the treat jar would reveal.

You fought to keep me healthy and by doing so gave to me

The best life I could ask for. Will you claim that victory?”

I hugged my dog and said “But I didn’t get much time with you.

Perhaps I could have tried something else, there’s more that I could do.”

My dog said, “Mom, you did all you could so please don’t hold this guilt.

I don’t mourn the years we’ll never have. I cherish the love we built.

One day of pats and treats and kisses and playing with Chelsea,

Is more than I could wish for and I got 7 years of that!”

I raised my head and began to feel what my sweet boy was trying to say

“I know you’ll be okay, Mom,” he said, “You always find a way.

So please release your heart from guilt and don’t live in regret.

And use that love to help other dogs. You’ve never failed us yet.”

I began to understand what he wanted me to know

I had fought his illness bravely, and it was okay to let him go.

I wrapped my arms around him, hugged him one more time and then

I said goodbye as he prepared to leave me once again.

But before he trotted away and headed off into the sun,

He turned his head to smile at me and said “Thanks, Mom. I love you, job well done.”

I will miss my Winslow so very, very much.

I like shooting wide open on the macros to take a break from all this hyperfocal garbage that landscape photography usually entails. =)

I picked this cause my stream needed some pop.

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Prints Available: Contact Me www.paulmarcellini.com/PaulMarcellini.com/About.html

Taken from the Old Man of Storr last february.

I was looking through some files and this one seemed worth sharing :)

Oh and because I get this alot; this is NOT HDR.

This is one normal photo, just one exposure, no merging or whatever else HDR entails!

The contast in the photo is developed by using the levels tool in Photoshop

Thankyou for your feedback, i really appreciate it xxx

The $50 note has David Unaipon a mechanical design genius that designed the shearing handpiece that allowed other machines to be developed using his invention that we take for granted today. He was too poor to fully patent his 19 inventions and thus received no income from his inventions. David designed a helicopter before World War 1 . He is considered to be the first Australian equivalent of Leonardo da Vinci for his mechanical genius.

The $10 note has Banjo Patterson a lawyer who became a famous in Australia as a poet.

During WW 1 "Banjo" was the soldier in charge of the Australian Light Horse brigade horse training.

His responsibilities entailed taking delivery and educating the horses for wartime activities and management of the horses for 6000 mounted horseman.

He also unofficially organized some horse races during the war:)

At the end of WW1 it is believed Banjo secretly organized for some of the Australian Light horse brigades most beloved horses to be sent back to the Gallipoli region in Turkey where the Australian soldiers had befriended some of the local Turkish soldiers.

A close bond with Australia and Turkey survives in this region despite all the politics.

Banjo Patterson was remembered particularly for the poem "The man from Snowy river".

After WW1 Banjo became a respected journalist and ceased writing poetry.

Yashinon 35mm f2.8 at f2.8 P1302432

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

So many repeated shapes and pattern variants - A celebration of the elongated rectangle... And then theres the demise of the corner shop and small local businesses and everything that entails...

You are welcome to visit my Flickr photo stream for better resolution there most of my products are available with high resolution for view and purchase. for purchase plz Call me at +880 1711595036 . or e mail me at majhammim@gmail.com

View my Getty IMAGE Light Box here

www.gettyimages.com/Search/Search.aspx?assettype=image&am...

and for my Flicker Photo stream here

www.flickr.com/photos/hamim-chowdhury/

remember,

This photo is copy right to HamimCHOWDHURY ,hence any unauthorised download can cause violation of copy right law and may penalty you minimum 7000 USD and entail hassle of court. be aware of this issue and stay away form downloading my photo,

I would like to take this moment, to raise my glass and toast to all the most wonderful and caring girls that have encouraged me to be the best I can. I can not name you all, for that would entail that one name comes last and none of friends or family come last.

You are all equal and I love each and every one of you.

Thank you all so much for making this girl happy and accepted.

Ruby

"The Fearless Vampire Killers or Pardon Me, But Your Teeth Are in My Neck"

(Is a 1967 movie directed by Roman Polanski and written by Gérard Brach. It has been produced as a musical, named Dance of the Vampires)

In his autobiography, Roman Polanski discusses some of the difficulties in filming The Fearless Vampire Killers: "

Our first month's outdoor filming became a series of ingenious improvisations, mainly because the last-minute switch from one location (Austria)

to another (Ortisei, an Italian ski resort in the Dolomites)

had left us so little time to revise our shooting schedules. The fact that we were filming in Italy entailed the employment of a certain number of Italian technicians, and that, in turn, bred some international friction.

Gene Gutowski (the film's European producer) rightly suspected that the Italians were robbing us blind."

Despite numerous production headaches, Polanski is said to have enjoyed making the film.

His cinematographer, Douglas Slocombe, was quoted by Ivan Butler in his book, The Cinema of Roman Polanski, as saying,

"I think he (Roman Polanski) put more of himself into Dance of the Vampires than into another film. It brought to light the fairy-tale interest that he has. One was conscious all along when making the picture of a Central European background to the story.

Very few of the crew could see anything in it - they thought it old-fashioned nonsense. But I could see this background....I have a French background myself, and could sense the Central European atmosphere that surrounds it.

The figure of Alfred is very much like Roman himself - a slight figure, young and a little defenseless - a touch of Kafka. It is very much a personal statement of his own humour.

"Roman Polanski used to chuckle all the way through."

Castle Fischburg - one of the locations of the movie in the Dolomites (others, like the Alpe Siusi / Seiser Alm, will follow)

Toad refers to a number of species of amphibians. A distinction is often made between frogs and toads by their appearance, prompted by the convergent adaptation among so-called toads to dry environments, which often entails a brown skin for camouflage which is also dry and leathery for better water retention. My kids saw this little toad of almost 1cm during our walk at the dunes in Meijendel

De gewone pad (Bufo bufo) is een amfibie uit de familie echte padden of Bufonidae. In veel gebieden waar de gewone pad voorkomt is het tevens de meest algemene soort amfibie, onder andere in Nederland en België. Vanwege de grotendeels verborgen levenswijze komt men ze echter niet vaak tegen; de pad houdt zich overdag vooral schuil onder stenen om pas in de schemering actief te worden.

De eieren worden in lange doorzichtige snoeren in het water gelegd en aan ondergedoken waterplanten vastgemaakt. Uit de eieren komen donderkopjes die het water verlaten als de voorpootjes zich hebben ontwikkeld en de staart is verdwenen, net als bij kikkers. De jonge padjes zijn dan nog erg klein en bevinden zich in enorme aantallen vlak langs het voortplantingswater. Na enige tijd trekken ze allemaal naar hoger gelegen gebieden. Mijn kinderen zagen deze baby pad van 1cm in het duinengebied Meijendel

.

Questa fotografia mi ritrae con mia sorella Daniela davanti alla casa dove abbiamo vissuto con i genitori e la nonna paterna dal 1963 al 1968. Recentemente ho ripensando a quegli anni, ai nostri genitori, alle famiglie i cui componenti più vecchi erano vissuti negli anni della guerra, prendendo parte attiva o alla Resistenza o combattendo nei fronti cui eravamo coinvolti o dopo il '43, scontando la detenzione nei campi di concentramento tedeschi.

Vivere in quegli anni avrebbe comportato in futuro tutta una serie di ripercussioni psicologiche, dovute alle eredità invisibili delle guerre e solo oggi riconosciute: le sofferenze psicologiche, i disturbi nervosi e gli stress post-traumatici, le insicurezze ed il bisogno di consolazioni.

Capisco adesso il ritrovarsi dopo cena in questa o quell'altra famiglia per il gioco delle carte, per guardare la televisione, per il semplice discorrere senza tempo.

Daniela Rado ed il fratello Giancarlo, Villaggio coordinato san Liberale, febbraio 2022

This photograph shows me with my sister Daniela in front of the house where we lived with our parents and paternal grandmother from 1963 to 1968. I have recently been thinking back to those years, to our parents, to the families whose oldest members had lived in the war years, taking an active part either in the Resistance or fighting on the fronts in which we were involved, or after '43, serving time in German concentration camps.

Living in those years would have entailed a whole series of psychological repercussions in the future, due to the invisible legacies of the wars and only now recognised: the psychological suffering, the nervous disorders and post-traumatic stress, the insecurities and the need for consolation.

I now understand the gathering after dinner in this or that family for a game of cards, to watch television, for simple timeless talk.

The Tricolored heron, a small brightly colored heron found throughout Florida and along the southern and eastern coastlines of America, uses a technique known as canopy feeding to elude their prey. The strategy behind canopy feeding entails shading the water with their outstretched wings hoping small fish will seek refuge from the sun and swim into the shade they provide. The heron will hide the reflection of his neck and beak by tucking his head up under one wing and when a fish is in sight he strikes!

"Have a Great day"

SULLIVAN BALLOU'S LETTER

Love of country is not unique to Americans, but in a democracy, sending citizens to war requires far more than a dictator's fiat. In 1861, men on both sides of the conflict were willing to lay down their lives for what they believed to be right. Southerners fought for states' rights and a society built upon human slavery, which many considered the natural order of the universe. When the war started, few volunteers in the northern army marched off to end slavery, but many were ready to fight and die to preserve the Union.

One such soldier was Major Sullivan Ballou of the Second Regiment, Rhode Island Volunteers. Then thirty-two years old, Ballou had overcome his family's poverty to start a promising career as a lawyer. He and his wife Sarah wanted to build a better life for their two boys, Edgar and Willie. An ardent Republican and a devoted supporter of Abraham Lincoln, Ballou had volunteered in the spring of 1861, and on June 19 he and his men had left Providence for Washington, D.C.

This photo represents an excerpt from the letter to his wife from a camp just outside the nation's capital, and it is at once a passionate love letter as well as a profound meditation on the meaning of the Union. It caught national importance 129 years after he wrote it, when it was read on the widely watched television series, "The Civil War," produced by Ken Burns. The beauty of the language as well as the passion of the sentiments touched the popular imagination, and brought home to Americans once again what defense of democracy entailed.

Ballou wrote the letter July 14, while awaiting orders that would take him to Manassas, where he and twenty-seven of his men would die one week later at the Battle of Bull Run.

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Another shot from the Rotterdam photowalk last year. I wasn't entirely sure about whether to upload it, but seemed to be a break from the India shots...a bit of a palate cleanser ;)

The reason why I'm reluctant is that it was quite dark and I didn't have my tripod. So this was taken handheld with a relatively high ISO. The processing entailed a huge amount of noise reduction ultimately culminating in the lower sharpness and details.

This is a part of the Rotterdam skyline.

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As always, comments/notes/crituques and favourites (just hit F ) will be very much appreciated!

For the best view, hit L .

Some people who's work I admire are tagged in this picture. Please visit their stream!

Click here to see the rest of my HDRs (High Dynamic Range Photos)!

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Shot details:

3 subsequent bracketed handheld shots using: Canon 7D; Canon 10-22mm f/3.5-4.5,

Post processing:

1. Lightroom for initial fixups,

2. Merged in Photomatix

3. Post processed (colors, sharpness and so forth) in Lightroom and Photoshop CS6

4. Finally did a little more processing (vignetting and temp and so forth again in Lightroom)

5. A HUGE AMOUNT OF NOISE REDUCTION to top it off

Milan Cathedral, is the cathedral church of Milan, Lombardy, Italy. Dedicated to the Nativity of St Mary (Santa Maria Nascente), it is the seat of the Archbishop of Milan, currently Archbishop Mario Delpini.

The cathedral took nearly six centuries to complete: construction began in 1386, and the final details were completed in 1965. It is the largest church in the Italian Republic—the larger St. Peter's Basilica is in the State of Vatican City, a sovereign state—and possibly the second largest in Europe and the third largest in the world (its size and position remains a matter of debate).

Milan's layout, with streets either radiating from the Duomo or circling it, reveals that the Duomo occupies what was the most central site in Roman Mediolanum, that of the public basilica facing the forum. The first cathedral, the "new basilica" (basilica nova) dedicated to St Thecla, was completed by 355. It seems to share, on a slightly smaller scale, the plan of the contemporaneous church recently rediscovered beneath Tower Hill in London. An adjoining basilica was erected in 836. The old octagonal baptistery, the Battistero Paleocristiano, dates to 335 and still can be visited under the Cathedral. When a fire damaged the cathedral and basilica in 1075, they were rebuilt as the Duomo.

In 1386, Archbishop Antonio da Saluzzo began construction of the cathedral. Start of the construction coincided with the ascension to power in Milan of the archbishop's cousin Gian Galeazzo Visconti, and was meant as a reward to the noble and working classes, who had suffered under his tyrannical Visconti predecessor Barnabò. Before actual work began, three main buildings were demolished: the palace of the Archbishop, the Ordinari Palace and the Baptistry of St. Stephen at the Spring, while the old church of Sta. Maria Maggiore was exploited as a stone quarry. Enthusiasm for the immense new building soon spread among the population, and the shrewd Gian Galeazzo, together with his cousin the archbishop, collected large donations for the work-in-progress. The construction program was strictly regulated under the "Fabbrica del Duomo", which had 300 employees led by first chief engineer Simone da Orsenigo. Orsenigo initially planned to build the cathedral from brick in Lombard Gothic style.

Visconti had ambitions to follow the newest trends in European architecture. In 1389, a French chief engineer, Nicolas de Bonaventure, was appointed, adding to the church its Rayonnant Gothic. Galeazzo gave the Fabbrica del Duomo exclusive use of the marble from the Candoglia quarry and exempted it from taxes. Ten years later another French architect, Jean Mignot, was called from Paris to judge and improve upon the work done, as the masons needed new technical aid to lift stones to an unprecedented height.[8] Mignot declared all the work done up till then as in pericolo di ruina ("peril of ruin"), as it had been done sine scienzia ("without science"). In the following years Mignot's forecasts proved untrue, but they spurred Galeazzo's engineers to improve their instruments and techniques. Work proceeded quickly, and at the death of Gian Galeazzo in 1402, almost half the cathedral was complete. Construction, however, stalled almost totally until 1480, for lack of money and ideas: the most notable works of this period were the tombs of Marco Carelli and Pope Martin V (1424) and the windows of the apse (1470s), of which those extant portray St. John the Evangelist, by Cristoforo de' Mottis, and Saint Eligius and San John of Damascus, both by Niccolò da Varallo. In 1452, under Francesco Sforza, the nave and the aisles were completed up to the sixth bay.

In 1488, both Leonardo da Vinci and Donato Bramante created models in a competition to design the central cupola; Leonardo later withdrew his submission. In 1500 to 1510, under Ludovico Sforza, the octagonal cupola was completed, and decorated in the interior with four series of 15 statues each, portraying saints, prophets, sibyls and other Figures from the Bible. The exterior long remained without any decoration, except for the Guglietto dell'Amadeo ("Amadeo's Little Spire"), constructed 1507–1510. This is a Renaissance masterwork which nevertheless harmonized well with the general Gothic appearance of the church.

During the subsequent Spanish domination, the new church proved usable, even though the interior remained largely unfinished, and some bays of the nave and the transepts were still missing. In 1552 Giacomo Antegnati was commissioned to build a large organ for the north side of the choir, and Giuseppe Meda provided four of the sixteen reliefs which were to decorate the altar area (the program was completed by Federico Borromeo). In 1562, Marco d' Agrate's St. Bartholomew and the famous Trivulzio candelabrum (12th century) were added.

After the accession of Carlo Borromeo to the archbishop's throne, all lay monuments were removed from the Duomo. These included the tombs of Giovanni, and Filippo Maria Visconti, Francesco I and his wife Bianca, Galeazzo Maria, which were brought to unknown destinations. However, Borromeo's main intervention was the appointment, in 1571, of Pellegrino Pellegrini as chief engineer— a contentious move, since to appoint Pellegrino, who was not a lay brother of the duomo, required a revision of the Fabbrica's statutes.

Borromeo and Pellegrini strove for a new, Renaissance appearance for the cathedral, that would emphasise its Roman / Italian nature, and subdue the Gothic style, which was now seen as foreign. As the façade still was largely incomplete, Pellegrini designed a "Roman" style one, with columns, obelisks and a large tympanum. When Pellegrini's design was revealed, a competition for the design of the façade was announced, and this elicited nearly a dozen entries, including one by Antonio Barca

This design was never carried out, but the interior decoration continued: in 1575-1585 the presbytery was rebuilt, while new altars and the baptistry were added. The wooden choir stalls were constructed by 1614 for the main altar by Francesco Brambilla. In 1577 Borromeo finally consecrated the whole edifice as a new church, distinct from the old Santa Maria Maggiore and Santa Tecla (which had been unified in 1549 after heavy disputes).

At the beginning of the 17th century Federico Borromeo had the foundations of the new façade laid by Francesco Maria Richini and Fabio Mangone. Work continued until 1638 with the construction of five portals and two middle windows. In 1649, however, the new chief architect Carlo Buzzi introduced a striking revolution: the façade was to revert to original Gothic style, including the already finished details within big Gothic pilasters and two giant belfries. Other designs were provided by, among others, Filippo Juvarra (1733) and Luigi Vanvitelli (1745), but all remained unapplied. In 1682 the façade of Santa Maria Maggiore was demolished and the cathedral's roof covering completed.

In 1762 one of the main features of the cathedral, the Madonnina's spire, was erected at the dizzying height of 108.5 m. The spire was designed by Carlo Pellicani and sports at the top a famous polychrome Madonnina statue, designed by Giuseppe Perego that befits the stature of the cathedral. Given Milan's notoriously damp and foggy climate, the Milanese consider it a fair-weather day when the Madonnina is visible from a distance, as it is so often covered by mist.

On 20 May 1805, Napoleon Bonaparte, about to be crowned King of Italy, ordered the façade to be finished by Pellicani. In his enthusiasm, he assured that all expenses would fall to the French treasurer, who would reimburse the Fabbrica for the real estate it had to sell. Even though this reimbursement was never paid, it still meant that finally, within only seven years, the Cathedral's façade was completed. Pellicani largely followed Buzzi's project, adding some neo-Gothic details to the upper windows. As a form of thanksgiving, a statue of Napoleon was placed at the top of one of the spires. Napoleon was crowned King of Italy at the Duomo.

In the following years, most of the missing arches and spires were constructed. The statues on the southern wall were also finished, while in 1829–1858, new stained glass windows replaced the old ones, though with less aesthetically significant results. The last details of the cathedral were finished only in the 20th century: the last portal was inaugurated on 6 January 1965. This date is considered the very end of a process which had proceeded for generations, although even now, some uncarved blocks remain to be completed as statues. The Allied bombing of Milan in World War II further delayed construction. Like many other cathedrals in cities bombed by the Allied forces, the Duomo suffered some damage, although to a lesser degree compared to other major buildings in the vicinity such as the La Scala Theatre. It was quickly repaired and became a place of solace and gathering for displaced local residents.

The Duomo's main façade went under renovation from 2003 to early 2009: as of February 2009, it has been completely uncovered, showing again the colours of the Candoglia marble.

In November 2012 officials announced a campaign to raise funds for the cathedral's preservation by asking patrons to adopt the building's spires. The effects of pollution on the 14th-century building entail regular maintenance, and recent austerity cuts to Italy's culture budget has left less money for upkeep of cultural institutions, including the cathedral. To help make up funds, Duomo management launched a campaign offering its 135 spires up for "adoption." Donors who contribute €100,000 (about $110,505) or more will have a plaque with their name engraved on it placed on the spire.

The tour entails climbing this 10-meter ladder into the level you see above.

Horseshoe nailed to the Door of the Church of Saint Martin of Vilallonga in square of Països Catalans, Vilallonga de Ter, Ripollès, Girona, Catalonia.

CATALÀ

(Com sóc un martinenc nascut al barceloní barri de Sant Martí de Provençals, tinc una certa feblesa per allò esotèric relacional amb la bona sort que dóna tenir una o més ferradures a la porta de casa, que és resultat del costum dels cavallers de clavar a manera d'exvot les ferradures dels seus cavalls a la portes de les església dedicades a Sant Martí, per tant aquí poso un text de l’erudit Joan Amades).

[...] La virtut que posseeix sant Martí per a esquivar el diable es va estendre a les ferradures del bestiar que ell protegia. D'ací que hom pengi ferradures al darrera de les portes, per tal d'esquivar el diable i els endimoniaments. Aquest costum i la creença que comporta són universals dins del món cristià. Cal dir, tanmateix, que la valor màgica i protectora que hom atribueix a la ferradura és antiguíssima, indubtablement molt anterior al cristianisme. Respon a un acte de selenolatria, puix que el poble estableix una influència lunar damunt de la ferradura per raó de la semblança d'aquest ferro amb la mitja lluna. Es tracta, doncs, d'un cas de màgia imitativa o simpàtica de tipus corrent. Sant Martí havia estat el patró de la cavalleria catalana abans d'ésser-ho sant Jordi. També era patró del bestiar de ferradura. Els genets antics havien reclamat el favor d'aquest sant perquè els protegís i els salvés les cavalcadures quan estaven malaltes, i li oferien les ferradures a tall d'ex-vot o de presentada. Les esglésies antigues dedicades a sant Martí solien tenir la porta adornada amb ferradures rebudes com a presentades. Nosaltres, de nois, encara n’ havíem vist de clavades a la porta de l'església de Sant Martí de Provençals, avui ja dins la ciutat de Barcelona. Antigament, el patronatge de sant Martí damunt del bestiar de peu rodó havia estat comú a tots els pobles cristians. Fa de mal determinar si el patronatge del sant va passar dels cavallers a llurs cavalleries o si, al contrari, d'advocat del bestiar el seu tutelatge es va estendre fins als genets. […]

ENGLISH

(As I am a native of Martinenc born in the Barcelona district of Sant Martí de Provençals, I have a certain weakness for the esoteric relationship with the good luck of having one or more horseshoes on the door, which is the result of the custom of knights to nail way of votive offering the horseshoes of his horses at the doors of the church dedicated to St. Martin, so here I put a scholarly text written by Joan Amades).

[...] The virtue possessed by St. Martin to dodge the devil spread to the horseshoes of the cattle he protected. Hence one hangs horseshoes behind the doors, in order to dodge the devil and demons. This custom and the belief it entails are universal within the Christian world. It must be said, however, that the magical and protective value attributed to the horseshoe is very old, undoubtedly much earlier than Christianity. It responds to an act of selenolatry, since the town establishes a lunar influence on the horseshoe due to the similarity of this iron with the crescent. It is, therefore, a case of imitative or sympathetic magic of the current type. Sant Martí had been the patron saint of Catalan cavalry before Sant Jordi. He was also a pattern of horseshoe cattle. The ancient riders had demanded the favor of this saint to protect them and save their horses when they were sick, and offered him horseshoes as an ex-vow or as a presentation. The old churches dedicated to St. Martin used to have the door adorned with horseshoes received as presented. We, as boys, had still seen them nailed to the door of the church of Sant Martí de Provençals, today in the city of Barcelona. In the past, the patronage of St. Martin on round-footed cattle had been common to all Christian peoples. It is difficult to determine whether the patronage of the saint passed from the knights to their cavalries or whether, on the contrary, from the lawyer of the cattle his tutelage extended to the horsemen. […]

“I’m hungry,” she chimed, seemingly out of nowhere, idly twisting a hair lock around her finger. Her companion wasn’t quite reading as much as using an old volume as armor against conversation, she suspected. At least a legitimate concern wasn’t likely to be brushed off.

As if to mock the thought, her words were met with a flat “Mhmm.” The sort that suggested she might as well have stated she was seeing God for a speed date or was intent on reinventing the sun into something less bothersome for all that he’d been listening. Which he wasn’t, nor did he truly intend to start now, engrossed as he was in-…he turned the book over to glance at the title. Familiar Garden Flowers – how perfectly asinine. He suppressed an irritated sigh and resumed reading. Or tried. He could only re-read paragraphs without paying attention for so long before something slithered uninvited into his consciousness, after all, so it couldn’t be an absolute loss.

Not a win, but not an absolute loss.

“I said. I’m hungry,” she repeated impatiently, the glare fixed in his direction turning baleful now. Letting go of the overworked hair lock, she shifted in her seat, the movement pointedly jerky, so she could cross arms. Also, pointedly.

“I heard you the first time,” came the idle response while he made a veritable production of turning a page, from licking his fingertip to flipping the leaf with a flourish. Because really, with disregard to the fact that he had more interest in the book’s leather binding than its content, it was rude to interrupt a reader. He could hear her rustling movement and could even see it in his peripheral vision – if she could make a point, so could he.

“Did you, now. I couldn’t quite tell,” the snide response came readily, accompanied by more rustling and more movement. Next thing he knew, the book was effectively plucked from his hand, and the pages were replaced with a very distinct glare. “Do you know how long we’ve been sitting here? It’s been hours. Hours!”

Splendid. She was…angry. Just what he needed.

Option one – diffuse the situation. In favor of Familiar Garden Flowers. Pass.

Option two it was, then.

“Try reading,” he responded, still idly draped over the sofa, head leaning back to regard her with his habitual feigned indifference. And as he’d hoped, the book was used to deliver a firm smack to his nearest limb before it was thrown across the room. A hand rubbed the spot she’d smacked in reflex while he volunteered a glib “I take it that’s a no.”

Leaning back, she straightened up and took a breath. A deep breath. The sort, he suspected, one takes when they’re preparing to give a big speech.

No. No, no.

She flicked her hair over one shoulder before crossing her arms over her chest once again. “I see how it is,” she finally stated, her voice a lot calmer than he’d expected.

Oh, well.

“You’re pretending to read that book, which I don’t suppose you could even name-…”

“Familiar Garden Flowers,” he interjected, not bothering to keep the smugness out of his voice.

She waved a dismissive hand before continuing. “You’re pretending to read a book you can just about name, so we wouldn’t have do anything so unpleasant as, say, converse. Heavens forbid you should so much as show an interest in anything that isn’t your reflection!”

As if on cue, he rose from his seat, hands already reaching for his tie. It was time to preen – for effect.

Turning on her heel to track his movement, she continued, undeterred. “Very well, I accept it, all of it. But as it is, I am in fact hungry.” The last words were delivered emphatically while she glared at his preening form.

“Well, that’s mighty inconvenient,” he commented. Having found a mirror, he continued adjusting the knot on his tie, pushing it this way and that as though it had been askew. For all intents and purposes, she’d taken the fun out of needling her, and now he was intent on finding the most useless responses he could think of.

Not for the first time this evening, he’d miscalculated though.

It started with that familiar intake of breath – that sharp inhale, impatient and infuriated. The exhale that followed, nothing but a loud huff. But whereas he’d expected a few footsteps and the final sound to be that of her body slumping down on the dainty chair she’d been begrudgingly occupying all evening, there were footsteps. In the wrong direction.

“Just where do you think you’re going?!” He asked irritably, turning to watch her departing form.

“To eat.”

“Have you lost your mind?!” he asked, his irritation finally turning to something closer to the fury she was fueled by, covering the distance quickly to reach for her arm. No hesitation, no concern – a grab and a forceful pull. “You’d get us exposed. Or worse, killed!”

“I don’t care. I would rather die than endure another hour wiling away here with you. I can’t even decide if I’m going to die of hunger or of actual boredom.”

“You step outside, and you’re going to lose control and die of an actual stake, so do reconsider not-so-secret option three more carefully, if you would” he retorted snidely, the irritation and anger joined by a heavy dose of sarcasm. “And I’ve got news for you. This is what you signed up for. Forever is a long, long time. What did you think it entailed half the time?!”

And truly, he would have gone on had there not been a knock on the door.

The argument stopped, suspended and forgotten, both gazes turned to the door as though they were willing it to show them through.

“Please. I promise it wouldn’t be much. I’m dreadfully hungry.”

He considered it for a beat. But then, whether here or out in the city, his duty was the same. He…was effectively the nanny. It was only fitting that he was reading Familiar Garden Flowers, he reflected with remnants of his snideness before shrugging.

Letting go of her, he smoothed his palms over his coat and gave her a meaningful look. A look that exchanged her hopeful stare with an eyeroll.

“Coming,” he responded, his voice taking an unnaturally pleasant quality as he turned to open the door.

Reprocessed image

Ok, while uploaded 5 years ago this one has been around a bit. On the merit side however it was taken 38 years ago today in the early hours of a very cold and wet morning at Crewe station.

For its birthday it's been given a bit of a clean up and some brightening - the orange caste from the then sodium floodlights, for me part of the appeal, has been left unchanged. The shot entailed another drenching as it happened, this time with a tripod in tow, but in retrospect well worth it - besides what else would a callow 22 year-old get up to? (no answers needed there thanks).

For the record it's class 47 no. 47539 awaiting signals at Crewe North. I almost didn't bother thinking the loco would pause briefly before reversing but in fact I ended up having time to set up the tripod and a fairly long exposure before it moved off. This was just one of many loco movements through a typical Crewe night in the 70s.

Taken on Agfa CT18, 23 secs, f8-5.6

Nikkormat FT2, plus 105 / F2.5 lens

21st January 1978

not my usual work, but I thought I'd show you a little sample of my shoot with two Ford models, Emily and Lucy. Ford had me shoot some pictures to broaden their portfolios. Shooting for pleasure and shooting for work entails such different mindsets.

THANKS FOR YOUR VISIT AND FAVES

ON THE REACTIONS I WILL TRY TO RESPOND BACK

De Noorderhaven is een deel van de Diepenring van Groningen. Het is gelegen waar de Aa overgaat in het Reitdiep.

De Noorderhaven is de laatste vrijhaven van Nederland, wat inhoudt dat schepen er vrij kunnen afmeren zolang er plek is. Voor langdurige woonbootbewoners betekent dit echter dat de terugkerende 5-jaarlijkse verfbeurt op de werf het risico inhoudt dat ze daarna hun plek kwijt zijn. Vanwege aanhoudende verpaupering besloot de gemeente Groningen in 2010 dat de haven in de toekomst alleen nog zal worden opengesteld voor goed onderhouden historische schepen

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The Noorderhaven is part of the Diepenring of Groningen. It is located where the Aa turns into the Reitdiep.

The Noorderhaven is the last free port in the Netherlands, which means that ships can moor there as long as there is space. For long-term houseboat residents, however, this means that the recurring 5-yearly paint job on the construction site entails the risk that they have subsequently lost their place. Due to continued impoverishment, the municipality of Groningen decided in 2010 that the port will in the future only be opened to well-maintained historic ships.

This series was taken within 13:30 to 14:30 on 11/9/12 in the vicinity of my office, Kowloon, Hong Kong.

All photos were taken with Ricoh GRD4. Pp entailed only cropping and a little enhancing on Picasa3.

Please also view my other pictures at www.flickr.com/photos/82814163@N04/

It is the evening of Saturday 30th July 1983 and day trippers returning from Aberystwyth are enjoying a longer day out than planned.

In the summer of 1983, two trains a day were hauled by a pair of class 25s from Birmingham New Street to Aberystwyth. By 1983, the regular appearance of class 25s on passenger trains was unusual,so many enthusiasts visited the Cambrian line to experience their evocative Sulzer engine sound and their erratic timekeeping.

On this day, the 1715 departure from Aberystwyth for Euston was hauled by 25229 and 25181. The challenge of the 1:52 gradient at Talerdigg was too much for the locomotives and both were declared as failures at Caerswrs.

A 90 minute wait entailed while a fitter travelled by road from Crewe. The fitter managed to revive the locomotives and left, only for the pair to fail again at Newtown.

This time 47226 was dispatched from Shrewsbury to rescue the train, and is seen here coupling up to the class 25s prior to heading east. The train arrived at Shrewsbury four hours late and was promptly terminated, leaving passengers to find their own way home.

Photograph by an unknown photographer, now part of my collection.

Jan Hendrik van Kinsbergen (1 May 1735 – 24 May 1819), or Count of Doggersbank, was a Dutch naval officer. Having had a good scientific education, Van Kinsbergen was a proponent of fleet modernization and wrote many books about naval organization, discipline and tactics.

In 1773, he twice defeated an Ottoman fleet while in Russian service. Returning to the Dutch Republic in 1775, he became a Dutch naval hero in 1781, fighting the Royal Navy, and gradually attained the position of commander-in-chief as a lieutenant-admiral. When France conquered the Republic in 1795 he was fired by the new revolutionary regime and prevented from becoming Danish commander-in-chief, but the Kingdom of Holland reinstated him in 1806, in the rank of fleet marshal, and made him a count. He was again degraded by the French Empire in 1810; after the liberation the United Kingdom of the Netherlands in 1814 honoured him with his old rank of lieutenant-admiral.

Van Kinsbergen, in his later life a very wealthy man, was also noted for his philanthropy, supporting poor relief, naval education, the arts and the sciences.

Early career

Van Kinsbergen was born in Doesburg as the eldest son of the non-commissioned officer Johann Henrich van Kinsbergen, who had been born in Netphen, Germany, in 1706, started his military career in Austrian service, and originally spelled his family name as "Ginsberg". When he was six, he moved with his parents in 1741 to Elburg. Three years later he left with his father for the Southern Netherlands and at the age of nine enlisted as a soldier of the Dutch field army during the War of the Austrian Succession, returning in 1748. Reading the biography of Gerard Brandt about the life of Admiral Michiel de Ruyter, he decided to become a naval hero as well and went to the naval academy of Groningen, where he was trained as an engineer between 1751 and 1755.

Russian service

In the late 1760s, due to severe financial difficulties, few Dutch ships were active and Van Kinsbergen used his free time to write a large series of publications about naval modernization. He was seen as a typical example of the new generation of Dutch naval officers of the era. They no longer owed their position to either a merchant fleet career or a noble background (the old "tar - tarpaulin" distinction) but to a thorough scientific education. He had already established a minor international reputation as a naval thinker because he enthusiastically corresponded with many influential foreign contacts.

In 1769, Van Kinsbergen was disappointed by his failure to secure a promotion in the Dutch navy and therefore he obtained leave to enter the service of the Dutch East India Company (VOC) and depart for the Dutch Indies for four years.

He was informed by Prince Henry of Prussia that due to the Russo-Turkish War (1768–1774) the Russian navy was in search of naval experts and would offer him a position there. On 15 August 1770, Van Kinsbergen got permission from the Dutch admiral-general, stadholder William V, Prince of Orange, to depart for Russia.

In the summer of 1771, Jan Hendrik travelled via Berlin, where he visited Prince Henry, to Saint Petersburg where he on 29 September was appointed acting captain in the Imperial Russian Navy, on 2 October he was promoted to captain second class. He immediately left for the Black Sea; on arrival he was charged with commanding a troop of cossacks and fought, meanwhile learning Russian, on land during the winter campaign. In a fight he was shot through the knee and saved from under a heap of corpses by a cossack, whom he would later get an appointment at the Amsterdam naval wharf.

From 9 February 1772 at Iaşi he repaired river vessels captured from the Turkish Danube fleet. On 12 June he got his first naval command in Russian service, bringing dispatches on a galiot to Azov. From 13 November he brought dispatches from the southern army to Saint Petersburg. He was on that occasion introduced to the empress and made a favourable impression on her with his enthusiastic plans for the Black Sea fleet.

Accordingly, on 23 April 1773 he became flotilla-commander in the Black Sea. His force was rather insignificant consisting of just two ketches of twelve cannon each and two yachts. Van Kinsbergen decided nevertheless that the moment had arrived to make a name for himself and acted as aggressively as his limited powers allowed. He entered the Sea of Marmara through the Bosporus, charted it as the first Western European ever, then entered the Dardanelles and finally returned to the Black Sea after duelling with a coastal fortress of Istanbul.

Twice that year he defeated a Turkish fleet and won the title 'Hero of the Black Sea'. On 23 June, he encountered a Turkish flotilla of three frigates of 52 cannon and a ship-of-the-line of 75 and despite the disparity in firepower at once attacked it and wiped it out, the first major "Christian" naval victory in the Black Sea in four centuries.

...

Kingdom of Holland

In the summer of 1806, on orders of Emperor Napoleon I the Kingdom of Holland was created and his brother, the new King Louis Bonaparte, on 16 July appointed Van Kinsbergen member of the Dutch Council of State and First Chamberlain — and these were only the first of a long list of honours bestowed on the old admiral: e.g. on 26 December he was made marshall, on 15 May 1808 Marshal of the Hollandic Naval Forces and on 4 February 1810, when on French orders all Dutch marshals had to be degraded, he was appointed full admiral. On 4 May 1810 he was made Count of the Dogger Bank. On 11 October 1808 Alexander I of Russia had awarded him the star of the Order of St. Andrew which entailed the Order of St. Alexander Nevsky, the Order of the White Eagle, the Order of St. Anne, first degree, and the Order of St. Stanislaus.

In 1810 though, the Kingdom of Holland was annexed by the French Empire and Van Kinsbergen degraded to a French vice-admiral. However, on 18 December 1810 he was made a French count and on 2 January 1811 appointed French senator. Van Kinsbergen wrote to Napoleon on 11 January that he was too old to move to Paris — knowing quite well the emperor had not intended him to — and asked that his salary might be redirected to the navy, causing an annoyed Napoleon to react: "Does this proud Holland sailor think he can use me to dole out his alms?". Meanwhile, Van Kinsbergen continued his charitable works: e.g. in 1811 he donated a fire engine to the municipality of Elburg.

Continued appreciation from the Kingdom of the Netherlands

Late 1813 cossacks liberated the territory of the Northern Netherlands; Van Kinsbergen used his knowledge of Russian to negotiate an armistice between the French forces occupying Het Loo and the Russian troops, preventing that this later royal palace was plundered. Also he raised two regiments of Dutch volunteers to besiege the French garrison holding out in Deventer. On 28 March 1814 he was appointed one of the six hundred electors to approve the new Dutch Constitution. On 12 June 1814, he was appointed by the new sovereign prince, William VI of Orange, titular lieutenant-admiral and on 11 July a full lieutenant-admiral: in the new United Kingdom of the Netherlands this was to be a purely honorary rank, bestowed for great merit, in the case of Van Kinsbergen for his "excellent merits and constant Patriotism". In 1815 he became, on 8 July, Knight Grand Cross of the Order of William.

...

On 20 November 1816 van Kinsbergen received the royal writ by the new King William I of the Netherlands that he was promoted to jonkheer. He died three years later shortly after his 84th birthday at Apeldoorn, from a chronic lung disease, where he was buried on 27 May. In 1821 a marble grave monument was finished by Gabriël in the Nieuwe Kerk in Amsterdam, but this is a cenotaph.

Namesakes

The Dutch Navy has named a training vessel (launched in 2000) after him, as well as a 1980s Kortenaer class frigate and an artillery-instruction ship that served from 1939 until 1952. A street has been named after him in every town to which he was related: Amsterdam, Apeldoorn, Elburg and The Hague.

ter herinnering aan

luitenant admiraal jan hendrik van kinsbergen

1735-1819

zeeheld en apeldoorns weldoener

met steun van kinsbergenfonds,

stadscafe van kinsbergen, centraal beheer achmea

en vele ingezetenen

onthuld op 12 september 2008 door

burgemeester mr. g.j. de graaf

en commandant zeestrijdkrachten

luitenant-generaal der mariniers d.l. zuiderwijk

initiatief: ignaat simons, gemeente apeldoorn

en stichting apeldoornse monumenten

_________________

_________________

vanderkrogt.net/standbeelden/object.php?record=GL02by :

Beschrijving

Half figuur oprijzend uit de golven. Aan zijn verleden als zeeheld herinneren attributen uit de admiraliteit zoals kanonskogels, maar ook het kostuum met op de sjerp het motto eximiae virtutis praemium (beloning voor uitnemende dapperheid), het motto van het grafelijk wapen dat Van Kinsbergen in 1810 door koning Lodewijk Napoleon kreeg. De uitgestrekte handen staan symbool voor zijn vrijgevigheid, een uitnodigend gebaar.

Het beeld is onthuld door commandant der zeestrijdkrachten Zuiderwijk en burgemeester De Graaf van Apeldoorn. Honderd jaar geleden werd er al gesproken over een monument, maar toen is er niets van gekomen. Het huidige staat bij stadscafé Van Kinsbergen, gevestigd in een voormalige school die gebouwd is van het geld dat indertijd voor een monument voor Van Kinsbergen opzij was gezet. Baerveldt maakte een eigenzinnig portret waarin zij de twee kanten van de admiraal laat zien. Baerveldt modelleerde het beeld naar aanleiding van tekeningen en geschriften over Van Kinsbergen.

Kunstenaar:

Erzsébet (Sharon) Baerveldt (Nijmegen 1968), schilder, tekenaar, beeldhouwer

At kilometre post 25.0, the distance measured from the junction of the Schwarzbach Valley main line at Meckesheim, DB V200 033 heads through Babstadt station working RE4839 14:34 from Mannheim Hbf on 29th September 2007. This was during the "Über'n Buckel" ("Over the Hump") Plandampf and heritage traction event, shortly before the electrification of this route via the Elsenz Valley. This entailed a mad dash from the car to 'grab' this shot with no time to spare, hence the railway distance post so close to the locomotive, but it leaves now doubt in the mind exactly where it was taken!

© Gordon Edgar - All rights reserved. Please do not use my images without my explicit permission

The first half of day 2 entailed hiking through a lot of birch and birch-aspen forests, with some balsam fir and white spruces thrown in.

Mid to late afternoon was mostly soggy wetlands, beaver dams, and overflowing creeks. We overcame the challenges and dried out the boots in camp.

La Gran Vía de Colón es la principal arteria del centro de Granada.

Su construcción a finales del siglo XIX conllevó la demolición del 20 % de la superficie de entonces de la ciudad. Fue urbanizada entre 1895 y 1934. Incorpora a lo largo de su recorrido una destacada serie de ejemplos de arquitectura ecléctica. En 1961 el edificio de Correos en la cabecera de la calle fue demolido y sustituido por la plaza de Isabel la Católica. En las siguientes décadas de 1970 y 1980 diversas construcciones historicistas fueron reemplazadas por bloques de viviendas descontextualizados.

es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gran_V%C3%ADa_de_Col%C3%B3n

The Gran Vía de Colón is the main artery in the centre of Granada.

Its construction at the end of the 19th century entailed the demolition of 20% of the city's surface area at that time. It was urbanised between 1895 and 1934. Along its route it incorporates an outstanding series of examples of eclectic architecture. In 1961 the Post Office building at the head of the street was demolished and replaced by the Plaza de Isabel la Católica. In the following 1970s and 1980s various historicist buildings were replaced by decontextualised blocks of flats.

Capturing the fishermen throwing their nets at sunset was an unforgettable photo op. The process entailed meticulous attention to detail, which rendered the experience both fascinating and enriching.

Prints & Downloads are available on my 👉 H O M E P A G E

This Moonshot was taken with a AZ4 mounted Skywatcher ED100 Refractor with a Canon 60D at prime focus ( 900mm ). This image was merely cropped and enlarged from the original full disk image posted earlier. I will get much better results if I use the Canon 60D's video crop mode at 640x480 pixels at 60fps next time, but that would entail mounting on my HEQ5 or NEQ6 mounts for tracking, which is usually time consuming and sometimes causes missed opportunities due to changeable weather :-)

And so the sun sets on autumn and the autumn leaves..... I still have a few autumn photos to upload, but tomorrow I start thinking about how to capture winter light in all its glory. I still don't know what that entails, but it's going to be fun (and cold) finding out! Happy weekend to all :-)

One of the standard gauge shunters on duty for the day at Záhony Port, M40 201 throttling up in the morning, with some nasty clouds covering the horizon.

Záhony Port serves as the link connecting Ukraine's broad-gauge railway network with Hungary's standard gauge system.

The area spans over several ten-thousand square kilometres and entails multiple shunting and hump yards, transloading stations for mineral oils and grain, an ore slide and a dedicated service area for switching broad/standard gauge axles on freight wagons.

Title is the second studio album of Ukrainian metal band, Jinjer.

This is probably the finest walk in the Glen Coe area that does not entail climbing a summit.This is where the walk starts just of the A82 at a large car park opposite a cairn.

*Honfleur is a harbour commune in the Norman département of Calvados, in France, It is especially known for its old picturesque port, characterized by its houses with slate-covered frontages, painted many times by artists, including in particular Gustave Courbet, Claude Monet and Johan Jongkind, forming the école de Honfleur which contributed to the appearance of the Impressionist movement .

Honfleur Harbour, France.

PixQuote:

I have often thought that if photography were difficult in the true sense of the term -meaning that the creation of a simple photograph would entail as much time and effort as the production of a good watercolor or etching - there would be a vast improvement in total output. The sheer ease with which we can produce a superficial image often leads to creative disaster.

-Ansel Adams

Each of us has events in our lives that entail global changes. The most significant ones are birth, death, relocation. It is after such turning points that many things immediately fall into place. It becomes clear what is important in this life and what is not, what has value, and what is not worth wasting time and effort on...

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Dear friends, write 🙏 in the comments, have you ever had moments in your life after which you seemed to wake up❓After that, you began to perceive reality in a completely different way❓What has radically changed your life❓Share your experience

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#darkness #entertainment #event #fictionalcharacter #flashphotography #fun #mask #masque #performingarts #smile #NikonD850 #safronoviv_photo

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There are several routes by which to reach Kibo, or Uhuru Peak, the highest summit of Mount Kilimanjaro, namely, Marangu, Rongai, Lemosho, Shira, Umbwe and Machame.

Annually, approximately 15,000 people attempt to reach the summit of the mountain, of whom 40% do so.

Of all the routes, Machame is by far the most scenic albeit steeper route up the mountain. The Rongai is the easiest camping route and the Marangu is also easy, but accommodation is in huts. As a result, this route tends to be very busy and ascent and descent routes are the same. Although the Rongai route is a flatter walk it offers less opportunities for acclimatisation. The Machame and Lemosho routes both allow better opportunities to "walk high and sleep low" which is critical to avoiding altitude sickness.

The summit is usually attempted on the very early morning of the 6th day (around midnight). Barafu is also used as a summit campsite for the Umbwe route. Trekkers typically take somewhere between five and seven hours to ascend, using headlamps and cold weather gear. Making the ascent on a full moon or shortly thereafter can make the headtorch unnecessary and the night ascent a beautiful experience. The first milestone, generally reached shortly after dawn, is Stella Point (18,652 ft/5,685 m), which is on the crater rim. Following Stella Point, the trail continues for another 30 mins to the summit - Uhuru Peak.

The descent back to Barafu takes roughly four hours. Some trekkers 'scree slide' down the slope, which entails skidding/running down the loose gravel at medium speed. From Barafu, trekkers typically take a short break, and continue downwards through the alpine desert and ensuing moorlands to Mweka Camp.