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East and west wing of the Château de Villandry, Loire Valley, France
Some background information:
The Château de Villandry is a large château located in the village of Villandry, in the French department of Indre-et-Loire. The palace sits in the Val de Loire in the former Touraine region, about 15 km (9.3 miles) to the southwest of the city of Tours. Both village and Château de Villandry are also situated on the Cher River Cher and Villandry is the last commune before the Cher River issues into the Loire River.
In medieval times, a stronghold named Colombier stood on the spot of today’s Château de Villandry. It was built in the 12th century and in 1189, it was that fortress, where the English King Henry II Plantagenet signed the Peace of Colombier after his defeat by King Philip II of France. In the early 16th century, the estate was acquired by the nobleman Jean Le Breton. He was the minister of finance of the then French King Francis I and also the Controller-General for War.
After having bought the lands, De Breton had the old Gothic castle torn down. Only the foundations and the former donjon from the 14th century remained. Around this keep the new palace and its gardens were built and finished in 1536. The Château de Villandry is one of the last châteaus in the Loire Valley that were constructed in the Renaissance style. Its architecture lacks both any Italian influence and decorative medival elements like turrets or murdering holes. Hence, the architectural style is very French, already foreshadowing the architecture of the châteaus d’Anet and Fontainebleau, which were built later during the reign of King Henry IV of France.
The mansion remained in possession of the family De Breton for more than two centuries, but in 1754, Michel-Ange, Marquis de Castellane, bought the estate. He had the palace rebuilt according to the standards of the 18th century and even the beautiful Renaissance gardens were converted into an English-style landscaped garden, which met the taste of the time.
As a consequence of the French Revolution, the Château de Villandry was confiscated. But at the beginning of the 19th century, the French Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte acquired it for his brother Joseph Bonaparte. In 1823, the estate was bought by the noble family Hainguerlot, who kept it for almost a century. In 1906, Joachim Carvallo purchased the property and poured an enormous amount of time, money and devotion into repairing it and creating what many consider to be the most beautiful gardens anywhere.
These formal Renaissance gardens, restored according to original plans, include a water garden, ornamental flower gardens, and also vegetable gardens. The gardens are laid out in formal patterns created with low box hedges. In 1920, both castle and gardens were opened to the public and in 1934, the estate was designated a national historic monument.
Today’s owner is Henri Carvallo, the great-grandson of Joachim Carvallo. Since 2000, the Château de Villandry and its gardens belong to the UNESCO Word Heritage Site "The Loire Valley between Sully-sur-Loire and Chalonnes" with its many breathtaking châteaux. Altogether there are more than 400 of them in the Loire region.
A Happy New Year 2023 to all of you!
Front light at Stadersand
Thx to all photographers spending the time during lunar eclipse there with me
Der Kochelsee liegt 70 km südlich von München am Randbereich der Bayerischen Alpen. Er gehört zu den Gemeinden Schlehdorf (rund 30 Prozent im Westen) und Kochel am See im Osten. Während der Südliche Bereich des Sees noch von Bergen begrenzt ist, liegt der nördliche Teil schon im hier flachen Voralpenland und wird von einem Hochmoor begrenzt.
Die Geschichte der Besiedelung Kochels begann (früher Quochcalun) auf der sog. Birg bei Altjoch, einem Felskegel direkt am Ufer des Kochelsees. Der Name Kochel ist abgeleitet aus dem lateinischen "Cocula", der Bezeichnung für Kopf, Kegel oder Gipfel. Die Loisach fließt bei Schlehdorf in den See und fließt bei Kochel am See wieder aus. Dabei fließt in etwa die selbe Wassermenge durch das Walchensee Wasserkraftwerk zu.
© 2015 Thousand Word Images by Dustin Abbott
Here's another shot from a recent wedding shoot I did in Tucson, Arizona. I had been shooting a series using the sun to frontlight the couple, but as the sun dropped low I reversed the situation to backlight them. I composed with the sun right between the bride and groom, and the finished result was a classically romantic shot.
Technical information Canon EOS 6D, Canon EF 70-300L, Processed in Adobe Lightroom 5, Adobe Photoshop CC, and Alien Skin Exposure 7 (use code "dustinabbott for a 10% discount)
Want to know more about me or make contact? Take a look at my website and find a lot of ways to connect and view my work.
Found this little old buggy on the streets of Bucharest. Actually it was a well preserved one that looks very good and shiny. Seems that the old cars (not old expensive ones) are still a choice for some.
feelingthecolor.wordpress.com/2013/07/24/day-85-the-new-o...
High-voltage transmission line near Gundremmingen ... .
Nikon D7200; Sigma 17-50mm f/2.8 EX DC OS HSM
50 mm; f/6,3; 1/640 s; ISO 100
Silhouettes of trees against the backdrop of the sun, Ooidonk - Belgium
toutouke.artistwebsites.com/featured/sunset-in-the-forest...
What a wonderful day today in the Big Maple Plain. / Ein wunderschöner Tag mit kräftigem Föhnwind auf dem Großen Ahornboden.
For me one of the most beautiful places in the Northern Limestone Alps. I love this combination of mountains, plain and wonderful trees. See my set about Karwendel Range and Big Maple Plain!
The Big Maple Plain (1216 m) is located in the middle of the Alpine Park Karwendel on the Eng Alp in Tyrol, Austria and can be reached by car only via Bavaria.
The Eng Alp is the biggest alpine pasture of Europe. Here everybody can see how farmers are important for taking care of the landscape. Thanks to their constant care and a regular use of the alpine pastures the big Ahornboden (Maple Plain) can be maintained in perfect conditions. In summer almost 500 cows graze on this alpine pasture.
Some of the maples are older than 500 years and during autumn their leaves show striking colors.
The Alpine Park Karwendel is:
• one of the biggest reserves of the East Alps with its approx. 920 km²
• the biggest nature reserve of Austria
• the biggest reserve in Tyrol (730 km²)
www.silberregion-karwendel.at/de/ferienregion/ort/34007/h...
www.karwendel-urlaub.de/angebot/wandern-im-karwendel/ahor...
Bored almost to death with the predictability of my DSLR and quite enchanted by color gone wild in lomokev's and ambientlight's photography, I already thought of buying a Lomo and taking a refreshing dip into noxious chemicals and crossprocessing adventures.
On second thought, I rather continue fiddling with switches, presets, and cigarettes.
View of the central chimneys and roof windows of the Château de Chambord, Chambord, Loire Valley, France
Some background information:
The Château de Chambord is a large palace, which is located in the Loire Valley in the village of Chambord. The palace is situated in the department of Loir-et-Cher between the cities of Tours to the west and Orléans to the east, just 15 km (9 miles) to the northeast of the town of Blois. It is one of the most recognisable châteaux in the world because of its very distinctive French Renaissance architecture which blends traditional French medieval forms with classical Renaissance structures. The building, which was never completed, was constructed by King Francis I of France.
Chambord is the largest château in the Loire Valley. It was built to serve as a hunting lodge for Francis I, who maintained his royal residences at the palaces of Blois and Amboise. The original design of the Château de Chambord is attributed, though with some doubt, to Domenico da Cortona, but there is some evidence that Leonardo da Vinci was also involved. Archeological findings have established that the lack of symmetry of some facades derives from an original design, abandoned shortly after the construction began, and which ground plan was organised around the central staircase following a central gyratory symmetry. Such a rotative design has no equivalent in architecture at this period of history, and appears reminiscent of Leonardo Da Vinci's works on the hydraulic turbine and the helicopter.
On 6th September 1519 Francis Pombriant was ordered to begin construction of the Château de Chambord, but work was interrupted by the Italian War that lasted from 1521 to 1526. Building resumed in 1526, at which point 1,800 men were employed to continue the construction works. In 1540, the main building was completed. The château was built to act as a hunting lodge for King Francis I. However, the king spent barely seven weeks there in total, that time consisting of short hunting visits. But the palace was not only a huge hunting château for Francis I, but also – more importantly – an enormous symbol of wealth and power and hence, a property to show off with. To this effect the king hosted his old archrival, Emperor Charles V, at Chambord in 1539, although the monumental mansion wasn’t even fully completed at that time.
As the palace had been constructed with the purpose of only short stays, it was not practical to live in on a longer-term basis. The massive rooms, open windows and high ceilings meant that heating was almost impossible. As a result, the château was completely unfurnished during this period. All furniture, wall coverings, eating implements and so forth were brought specifically for each hunting trip, which was a major logistical exercise. It is for this reason that much furniture from the era was built to be disassembled to facilitate transportation. After Francis had died of a heart attack in 1547, the Château de Chambord was not used for almost a century.
For more than 80 years after the death of King Francis I, French kings abandoned the château, allowing it to fall into decay. Finally, in 1639 King Louis XIII gave it to his brother, Gaston d'Orléans, who saved the château from ruin by carrying out much restoration work. King Louis XIV had the great keep restored and furnished the royal apartments. The king then added a 1,200-horse stable, enabling him to use the château as a hunting lodge and a place to entertain a few weeks each year. Nonetheless, Louis XIV abandoned the château in 1685. From 1725 to 1733, Stanislas Leszczyński (Stanislas I), the deposed King of Poland and father-in-law of King Louis XV, lived at Chambord. In 1745, as a reward for valour, the king gave the château to Maurice de Saxe, Marshal of France, who installed his military regiment there. Maurice de Saxe died in 1750 and once again the colossal château sat empty for many years.
In 1792, the revolutionary government ordered the sale of the furnishings. The wall panellings were removed and even floors were taken up and sold for the value of their timber. One more time the empty château was left abandoned until Napoleon Bonaparte gave it to his subordinate, Louis Alexandre Berthier. The château was subsequently purchased from his widow for the infant Duke of Bordeaux, Henri Charles Dieudonné, who took the title Comte de Chambord. A brief attempt at restoration and occupation was made by his grandfather King Charles X but in 1830 both were exiled. After the Comte de Chambord had died in 1883, the château was left to his sister's heirs, the titular Dukes of Parma. And since 1930, the Château and its surrounding areas, some 5,440 hectares (13,400 acres resp. 21.0 sqare miles) as vast as inner Paris, belong to the French state.
Some more words about the architecture:
Built in Renaissance style, the internal layout of the Château de Chambord is an early example of the French and Italian style of grouping rooms into self-contained suites, a departure from the medieval style of corridor rooms. The massive château is composed of a central keep with four immense bastion towers at the corners. The keep also forms part of the front wall of a larger compound with two more large towers. Bases for a possible further two towers are found at the rear, but these were never developed, and remain the same height as the wall. The château features 440 rooms, 282 fireplaces, 84 staircases and more than 200 chimneys. Four rectangular vaulted hallways on each floor form a cross-shape.
The château was never intended to provide any form of defence from enemies; consequently the walls, towers and partial moat are decorative, and even at the time were an anachronism. The roofscape of Chambord contrasts with the masses of its masonry and has often been compared with the skyline of a town. It shows eleven kinds of towers and three types of chimneys, without symmetry, framed at the corners by the massive towers. The design parallels are north Italian and Leonardesque. One of the architectural highlights is the spectacular open double-spiral staircase that is the centrepiece of the château. The two spirals ascend the three floors without ever meeting, illuminated from above by a sort of light house at the highest point of the château.
The château also features 128 metres of façade, more than 800 sculpted columns and an elaborately decorated roof. When Francis I commissioned the construction of Chambord, he wanted it to look like the skyline of Constantinople. The palace is surrounded by a 52.5-square-kilometre (13,000-acre) wooded park and game reserve maintained with red deer, enclosed by a 31-kilometre (19-mile) wall.
The design and architecture of the château inspired William Henry Crossland for his design of what is known as the Founder's building at Royal Holloway, University of London. But Château de Chambord’s architecture also influenced the architecture of other well-known buildings like Fettes College in Edinburgh, Scotland, Waddesdon Manor in Buckinghamshire, England, and Schwerin Palace in Schwerin, Germany. The Château de Chambord is a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1981 and belongs to the much larger UNESCO Word Heritage Site "The Loire Valley between Sully-sur-Loire and Chalonnes" with its many breathtaking châteaux since 2000.
In the misty winter dusk the front lights of a ÖBB "Taurus" class 1116 appear in the darkness of the Polleroswand Tunnel, before traversing the adjacent Krauselklause Viaduct at Breitenstein on the "Semmering" mountain railway ... Feb. 2013