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The Grand Hotel
Built around 1904, set in the pretty Belgian country side, this hotel would have been a grand place in its time, but now it remains an empty shell, the floor in most places falling through.
This was a shot stop off on one of my road trip stop Belgium, it was also my first building where I fell though a floor, luckily it was only a couple of metres, but still a rather hair raising moment as I felt myself falling through the splintering wood, it was a huge relief to find my feet on something solid just underneath.
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Shot with Mamiya 645DF+ Body & Leaf Credo 80 Digital Back, Schneider Kreuznach 28mm f4.5 LS Lens.
Using 3LeggedThing Frank & Lowepro Protactic 450
Available as Limited Edition Signed Prints, Please message me for more information Available in small size in editions of 15, medium size in editions of 10 and large size in editions of 5, printed on art paper and all come with a hologram certificate of authenticity.
Shares, likes and especially comments are appreciated so much, I love to hear what you think of my artwork and sharing with the world, helps my page to grow, thank you so much.
...catches the worm. Early morning, just before sunrise close to the dunes of Maspalomas, Gran Canaria.
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Der frühe Vogel fängt den Wurm. Morgens vor Sonnenaufgang nahe der Sanddünen von Maspalomas, Gran Canaria.
Please darken your room, lay back, press z and enjoy this picture in maximum size
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . looks muuuch better. PROMISE !
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Thanks for your visit, 1000 thanks for FAVing, 1000000 thanks for commenting.
The early morning sun bathes the forests of The Trossachs, Scotland in a golden glow. Taken from The Dukes Pass.
The Sentinels
Three majestic eagles are in big numbers on the lookout for spawned salmon and an easy meal.
Chambord Castle - the largest of the castles in the Loire Valley.
In 1516, Franciszek I returned from Italy with Leonardo da Vinci, wishing to erect a great building in the style of the Italian Renaissance. In 1519 Chambord was chosen as a construction site for a hunting lodge.
It was built between 1519 and 1559 on a rectangular plan, in the corners of which there are towers with a diameter of 20 m each and surrounded by a moat. During 40 years of construction, it has undergone far-reaching changes.
For its outstanding landscape and cultural values in 1972, the Chambord castle was inscribed on the UNESCO list
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Zamek w Chambord – największy z zamków w dolinie Loary.
W 1516 Franciszek I powrócił z Włoch wraz z Leonardem da Vinci, pragnąc wznieść wielką budowlę w stylu włoskiego renesansu. W 1519 wybrano Chambord na plac budowy tej rezydencji myśliwskiej.
Został zbudowany między rokiem 1519 a 1559 na planie prostokąta, w rogach którego stoją wieże o średnicy 20 m każda i otoczony jest fosą. W ciągu 40 lat budowy uległ on daleko idącym zmianom.
Za swoje wybitne walory krajobrazowe i kulturalne w 1972 roku zamek Chambord został wpisany na listę UNESCO
The Murray river and Mannum in South Australia are very much in the news at the moment due to the rising floodwaters and huge volume of water flowing downstream. This older view from when levels were normal shows a lagoon that is to one side of the main river itself and also a bird sanctuary with a small jetty leading out to a bird hide. All of this jetty would be very much under water by now. The sunrise shown here from around six months ago was an amazing one with deep glows appearing all over the sky from east to west. The cabin deck that this was taken from would also be very close to going under. Many of the other cabins in the park have been temporarily moved to higher ground and I believe the main street is closed due to a huge levee being built up the middle of the road. Let's hope it all passes soon and their lives can get back to normal, and that they are all high and dry for Christmas.
Happy Nice Wonderful Clouds Tuesday!
The Kazan Monastery (Vyshny Volochеk, Tver region)
Camera: Nikon F80;
Lens: Sigma 24-105mm f/4 DG (OC)* HS I AF;
Film: Agfa CT Precisa 100;
Exposure: S- , F- ;
Scanned by Minolta Dimage ScanElite 5400 by VueScan
The Kazan Monastery is an Orthodox female monastery of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God in Vyshny Volochеk in the Red Town on the eastern outskirts of the city.
The monastery was founded in 1881.
The ensemble of the monastery includes:
- Cathedral of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God (1877–1882) - designed by the famous Moscow architect A. S. Kaminsky;
- Church of the Andronik Icon of the Mother of God (1897–1901);
- Church of Sirin and Neonila (1880s);
Chapel of Faith, Hope, Love and their mother Sophia over the grave of the blessed old woman Lyubushka Susaninskaya) (consecrated in 1999);
- nadkodesnaya chapel (1889);
- Church of the Bogolyubskaya Icon of the Mother of God (1873);
- farm buildings, cells, refectory.
On the recent trip to India we were lucky enough to get access to Pilibhit West Junction box - not as exciting or as complex as the 3-way junction of Pilibhit East, but characterful in its own right and of course now on borrowed time with the imminent gauge conversion programme.
Given an HDR tweak this shot finds the Bobby posing for us in a way that suggested it wasn't the first time he'd been asked. I regret not asking him his name now but thanks to him and his colleagues for being generous enough to allow us up there.
12th October 2015
The weather prospects were good for a beautiful photo at the Blue Hour at Lake Constance! So I set off for a beautiful motif near the small town of Wasserburg. At first I was a bit disappointed about the low water level of the lake, normally the footbridge to the cottage is much further in the water...
But the beautiful light mood I had for photographing quickly made me forget my initial disappointment...
Our LotR series finally brings us to Rohan, land of the Horse-Lords!
I love the wooden architecture in Rohan so I'm really glad I could build this chapter of The Two Towers. The Westfold is the first region to get attacked by Isengard, but stay tuned for more Rohan builds in coming vignettes.
The hay bundle technique comes from the mind of the always inspiring Ben Tritschler. Last week Ben tragically lost his fight against cancer. You may be gone, but your builds will never be forgotten!
We are building a LEGO Lord of the Rings vignette series:
◾Book 1: Xenomurphy
◾Book 2: Jonas Kramm
◾Book 3: Jonas Kramm
◾Book 4: Marcel V.
◾Book 5: ForlornEmpire
◾Book 6: Grant Davis
The Watcher of my dreams
He never sleeps, only waits
Waits until the moment when
Weighed down by pain without release
When even fear loses hold on me
Then, and only then,
He moves into my unconscious mind
And there torments my soul
Till I cannot bear to sleep any longer
And day and night become as one
His shadow, the only light
The Whitsun Festival Week in Bad Kötzting always takes place from Whitsun Saturday to the following weekend. A special highlight is the "Pfingstritt" on Whit Monday, which is one of the largest mounted petition processions in Europe and dates back to a vow made in 1412.
Another attraction is the pull performance competition of the "Kötztinger Rosserer". It always takes place on Whitsunday and has made a name for itself beyond Bavarian and even German borders. Real top performances are shown by the horses.
Rules:
The horses are divided into different weight classes.
- The pull distance is 40 meters, the time available for the horse is two minutes. If in the first round not at least one draw of ten meters is mastered within 30 sec. the team is eliminated.
- The weight is increased in each pass. The weight to be pulled will be determined by the jury, depending on the condition of the ground. The team that has not completed the 40 meters in two minutes is eliminated. The winner is the one who has covered the furthest distance in two minutes in the last round.
Die Pfingstfestwoche in Bad Kötzting findet immer vom Pfingstsamstag bis über das darauffolgende Wochenende statt. Ein besonderer Höhepunkt ist der Pfingstritt am Pfingstmontag, der zu den größten berittenen Bittprozessionen Europas zählt und auf ein Gelöbnis aus dem Jahre 1412 zurück geht.
Eine weitere Attraktion ist der Zugleistungswettbewerb der "Kötztinger Rosserer". Er findet immer am Pfingstsonntag statt und hat sich über die bayerischen und sogar über die deutschen Grenzen hinaus einen Namen gemacht. Dabei werden von den Pferden wirkliche Höchstleistungen gezeigt.
Regeln: Die Pferde werden in verschiedene Gewichtsklassen eingeteilt.
• Die Zugstrecke beträgt 40 Meter, die zur Verfügung stehende Zeit für den Zug beträgt zwei Minuten. Wird im ersten Durchgang innerhalb von 30sek. nicht mindestens eine Zugstrecke von zehn Metern bewältigt, scheidet das Gespann aus.
• Das Gewicht wird in jedem Durchgang erhöht. Das zu ziehende Gewicht wird, je nach Bodenbeschaffenheit, vom Schiedsgericht festgelegt. Wer die 40 Meter in zwei Minuten nicht durchzogen hat, scheidet aus. Sieger ist, wer im letzten Durchgang die weiteste Zugstrecke in zwei Minuten zurückgelegt hat.
Text from different sources, modified and tranlsated
Athlone, Co Westmeath.
Showing the bridge the weir and the ford.
The mighty Shannon is the longest river in the British Isles at 224 miles. { The Severn in England is next at 220 miles } its names is taken from the Celtic godess, "Sionann" who was the grandaughter of Lir. [ See the Children of Lir link ]
[www.google.ie/search?q=celtic+goddess+sionna&tbm=isch... }
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/River_Shannon
www.askaboutireland.ie/reading-room/history-heritage/folk...
discovertheshannon.com/listings/the-river-shannon/
It rises in the Cuilcagh mountains in Co. Cavan and travels southwards before entering the sea in Limerick. It divides the country roughly from east to west and it is steeped in History, mythology and folklore.
Athlone is the main crossing point of the river and is the centre of Ireland.
For a thousand year, this crossing has been fought over by every invader who came here and the worst came in 1690 when 10,000 protestant troops loyal to William 3rd, laid siege to the town and castle. They survived it but they returned again in 1691 with double the troops. The towns 9 arched bridge was unbreached but they successfully crossed the ford [ in my photo ] and it is said slaughtered 12000 catholic Jacobites.
Today the only invaders here are tourists. Its a wonderful town with its quaint narrow winding cobblestone streets with history around every corner, old worldy shops, tiny atmospheric pubs, music and friendly easy going people. Visit the castle which is a amazing or walk the Shannon or better still jump on a cruise ship to Lough Ree and back.
discovertheshannon.com/listings/lough-ree/
Do hope you enjoy the photo and the bit of history
We could all meet up there and do our own invading!
They wouldn know what hit them!
Pat.
Im just wondering how you all feel about the recent changes in Flickr regarding free accounts and the 1000 max uploads.
Love to know your thoughts. A very good friend of mine and yours has just left.
Larissa Datscha. An amazing wildlife photographer from Finland has left in protest. Her red squirrel photos got to me every time! Enchanting! A lovely lady and sadly missed. If anyone can contact her, do plead with her to come back to us!
Ive tried messaging but to no avail. Im hopeful as she has not removed her photos as yet. See link below.
Dont you all go leaving me either, now!!!
P..
A tale by the Brothers Grimm:
A king has three sons: the eldest and the middle one are brave and strong, but the youngest is gullible and naïve, so he is called Simpleton. One day, the king casts three feathers into the air, and when they land, each of his children should follow to see where it leads. Simpleton discovers the feather has landed in a lake or pond where a toad lives that speaks in rhyme.
The king asks for marvellous gifts - impossibly difficult to find, or make - for his sons to show him: a carpet, made by the finest craftsmanship and a ring of extraordinary splendour as a second gift. Simpleton manages to produce the items in front on his father, to the jealousy of his older brothers, who are against the idea that he should inherit the kingdom.
For a final task, the king asks for the princes to bring a woman or bride that can do acrobatics and pirouettes so fantastical that they can pass through a very small ring. Simpleton presents his case to the talking toad, who orders another frog of his pond to embark into a carriage pulled by mice and to present themselves in court. When the carriage arrives, out comes a beautiful princess, who performs the impossible feat and earns the hand of Simpleton and the kingdom.
[Summary: Wikipedia]
Yesterday I spent a few Hours in the BMW World in Munich, one of my favourite Places to take Photos. This is my most loved one I took yesterday. Dedicated to Stadt-Kind, one of my Flickr Followers, an Expert in Bokeh!
BMW Welt (English – BMW World), is a multi-functional customer experience and exhibition facility of the BMW AG, located in Munich, Germany. In direct proximity to the BMW Headquarters and the Olympiapark, it is designed to present the current products of BMW, be a distribution center for BMW cars, and offer an event forum and a conference center.
Design and Construction:
In 2001 an international architectural design competition was sponsored by BMW AG. Twenty-seven offices participated in the competition four of which were awarded prizes. The jury awarded two offices Sauerbruch Hutton and COOP HIMMELB(L)AU first prize and made the recommendation for the competitors to rework their design submissions in a third design phase in order for BMW to determine which office would be awarded the contract.
The contract was awarded to the Vienna-based architects COOP HIMMELB(L)AU and the facility was constructed from August 2003 through summer 2007 at a cost of US$200 million. Originally conceived to be open and ready for World Cup 2006, it eventually opened on October 17, 2007, and deliveries commenced on October 23, 2007. The first customer to take European delivery of a new BMW at the Welt was Jonathan Spira. There were 2,200,000 visitors during the first 12 months of operation. The number of visitors increased to 2,930,000 in 2013, of which 60% came from Germany.
Designed with an 800 kW solar plant on its roof, "the building does not have the boredom of a hall, it is not only a temple, but also a market place and a communication center and meeting place for knowledge transfer", said architect Prix at the opening ceremony.
Source: Wikipedia
The Edgcumbe is an old English tea house that can be found on the grounds of England's National Trust site: Cotehele House. This tea room was originally operated as a Victorian pub, but was converted into a tea room overlooking the River Tamar.
Today the tea room specializes in traditional and specialized Cornish cream teas – including unique teas such as: elderflower w/ lemon curd & passionfruit and coconut – and various baked goods as well. Btw… The scones w/ clotted cream were incredible! ;)
Cotehele House itself is a medieval manor located in the east of Cornwall, England. It’s made of granite and slate-stone, and is situated along the banks of the Tamar. The house dates back to approximately the 1300s, and is one of the least altered Tudor homes in the UK.
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“The Edgcumbe Tea Room" is a fused HDR image that was processed using a combination of Photomatix, ACR, Photoshop, and the following Topaz Labs plugins: Adjust, Clean, Denoise, Glow, Impression, LensFX and Texture Effects.
The female, after recatching the starling. She will land on a rock, do a quick cleaning, and then deliver to the chicks.
The big fish.
I watched this osprey at John Heinz NWR try to catch a fish that was at least two feet long quite a bit longer than the Osprey. The struggle went on a few minutes with the fish dragging the Osprey around in the water (see comment box). The fish was so heavy that the osprey could not totally lift it out of the water, so the osprey appeared to try and drag the fish to the shore, so it would drag the fish some distance then settle down in the water to rest, then it would drag the fish further. Eventually the osprey gave up and very wet and exhausted headed for the trees thinking about the one that got away.
The struggle attracted quite a lot of attention, two vultures started circling, three or four crows moved in and a couple of gulls were circling all hoping to grab some scraps when the osprey landed the fish. Even the swallows appeared to be interested as can be seen in a couple of the photos in the comment box
2016_04_06_EOS 7D_3101_V1
Explored - Feb. 10, 2009 - Thank you all so very much!
What:
The Black Market
Where:
Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
The Shot:
Took this one the day that I took the church shots and still had my buddy's fish-eye lens. What a blast these lenses are! I always wanted to take some photos of this store because of the great paint scheme and figured the fisheye would make it even funkier.
This store and sidewalk is completely straight and I was standing on the sidewalk! So much fun to mess around with! :-)
About the store:
Going to see if I can find a link to it on the 'net
Tech crap:
Yes this is an HDR to bring out the colours & textures.
Standard 3xp (0.+2.-2ev) tonemapped in Photomatix. I blended the people back into the shot as I rather liked the human factor in this one.
Please note that the colours here a very bright and vibrant and the light was good that day so I really didn't do very much in the saturation department.
Are we the only species in the universe who kiss… There is nothing sweeter then to kiss… The prelude to love…
TIO
Shooting Tips
I shot these flowers outside using a polarizer filter… I position an Iris for my background color… but I also used my LED light to achieve my high lights…
But what I try to do with these flowers were to give them personalities…
To make them not just flowers but objects with feeling… I hope I have made you think and smile...
TIO
VNV Nation - When is the Future
Stranger in a crowd
Treading fire after dark
Lost in a city
Pulsing to the sound
Of the spirit and soul
A city that is breathing
Living through the cables
Alive across the wires
Faces without names
Playing devils and angels
Lit up by the strobes
Moving hypnotized
I caught your reflection
In the neon on glass
An electric silhouette
Against the static sky
It's a beautiful dream
It's a beautiful life
It's just a reflection
A world I must survive
We're children of the past
Who look beyond today
Designing the present
So when is the future
We live in a dream
Keeping visions alive
It's just a reflection
A world that never dies
The image we create
Now image we designed
It's a beautiful life
So when is the future ...
"The Roaring Twenties"
This is an edition of a self-portrait with my friend Francesca taken at Lacoste (Vaucluse - France) in 1982.
It was part of some series titled "The Roaring Twenties".
At that time we were young Art students involved in a program which was connected to Cleveland Institute of Art (Ohio) and to Sarah Lawrence College (NY).
We had teachers who were amazing artists, we had the freedom to create, to discover things by our own.
We were having endless parties till dawn, trying many things, experimenting life, the world seemed to be ours...
We became a little group of friends and I kept in touch with a few of them in Paris and later in New York.
Some of us became painters, sculptors, teachers, actors, producers, some left the Art world, some vanished from our lives...
I lost contact with Francesca in the 80's, a few days ago she found me back through Facebook telling me that she has been searching for me for years and that India is the last place she would think to look for me.
Francesca was, is and will always be a great genuine artist, you can see some of her work there, www.fspille.com and on Flickr at www.flickr.com/photos/fspille
We have so much to catch up now...;)
Renée is the artist who gave the background laying,
You may visit her site, www.flickr.com/photos/playingwithpsp/
The Dunes of Sossusvlei are amazing and the beauty breathtaking. Our dream was to capture an Oryx on the Dunes and fortunately we were given one opportunity !!!!
Wishing you a beautiful and blessed evening .
The bears find it just as easy to walk along the fence as they do on the road, living in a neighbourhood of single level ranchers, they use the fence, hop onto garden sheds and then cross the roofs of the houses as they forage for food
Night, the beloved. Night, when words fade and things come alive. When the destructive analysis of day is done, and all that is truly important becomes whole and sound again. When man reassembles his fragmentary self and grows with the calm of a tree.. . . I longed for night and the rebirth in me of the being that merits love.
Antoine de Saint-Exupéry- Flight to Arras
My image , i used a texture of mine and one of
Lenabem- Anna J...... Thanks You Anna : )
moon and boy in public domain
Thanks for your recent visits, favorites, comments and invitations. I go slow, but everything is very much appreciated, as always....
All rights reserved. Image can not be inserted in blogs, websites or any other form, without my written permission.
the veiw from the Hatta dam in Hatta, Dubai and the rugged red mountains which dominant the landscape.
Todays catastrophic news is another mass murder in the US. I don't know what the answer or the motivation to this is.
I can't imagine the pain and heartache suffered by the relatives and friends of those involved. I don't even think that gun control will solve it. What has gone wrong in society these days, causing this to happen.
It will be a very sad Xmas for many people in Connecticut.
Today I didn't do any photos, so I pushed this very favourite shot of Rumblemumbles forward.
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Rumblemumbles knows how to dress for the occasion. I know you think she doesn't normally dress like this, and you are right, Her normal gloves are only wrist length.
I struggled to find something that was both wildly colourful and old or tatty, so this is the throw-back to the old days, when life was apparently wonderful.
No internet !
The roaring 20s was the euphoric period between WWI and the great depression.
Formal decorative frills were shed in favor of practicality, in architecture as well as in daily life. At the same time, amusement, fun and lightness were cultivated in jazz and dancing, in defiance of the horrors of World War I, which remained present in people's minds. The period is also often called "The Jazz Age".
by Wikipedia
View "Well Hello Mr President" On Black
Wildly Colourful Theme
Jim at Mere Mailbox
The Aqueduct of Segovia (or more precisely, the aqueduct bridge) is a Roman aqueduct and one of the most significant and best-preserved ancient monuments left on the Iberian Peninsula. It is located in Spain and is the foremost symbol of Segovia, as evidenced by its presence on the city's coat of arms.
The Golden Red - During this winter morning sunrise I was fortunate enough to capture this awesome Red Deer stag in the most beautiful golden light.
The wild man, wild man of the woods, or woodwose is a mythical figure and motif that appears in the art and literature of medieval Europe, comparable to the satyr or faun type in classical mythology and to Silvanus, the Roman god of the woodlands.
The defining characteristic of the figure is its "wildness"; from the 12th century, it was consistently depicted as being covered with hair. Images of wild men appear in the carved and painted roof bosses where intersecting ogee vaults meet in Canterbury Cathedral.
Wellington, Somerset, UK.
Yesterday, was 'The Light Saturday' of the Orthodox Churches. As I generally do, I went to the old city, to the evening ceremony of the Ethiopian Church. The ceremony was picturesque, with people in white veils, prayers, candles, drum music, singing, dancing (and tons of photographers); but all that is already well known to me, and though I walked back and forth, to and from the various focal points, all I could get were rather banal photos similar to those I already took in the past.
Rather disappointed I started to do my way back home.
Then I heard drum music from the entry court of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.
To my delight, I discovered that a few Ethiopian youngsters decided to continue their celebration there. The Ethiopian large-drum music is simple, repetitive, and sweeping. It was heart warming to see how all the people that were at the court (Palestinians, Russians, Greek, Israelis…) joined the singing and dancing with a large smile on their faces. Even your true servant clapped his hands (when he was not shooting).
I am doubt if I ever took so many photos at such a short time. I left the place only when my card was full…
Due to the bad conditions (people moving fast in a dark place), I knew most of the stuff would be 'non-edible', yet I hoped at least some would be of value.
I managed to take a lot of photos of sunset scenes on one spectacular evening in October 2016. The fishermen were out in full force to catch their quota of fish on that evening. It seems that is the fish are plentiful.
No editing on this photo either as I felt I could not improve on beautiful nature!
Back in March, we called into the National Botanic Garden of Wales on our way back from visiting my parents. This magnificent structure is the largest single-span great glasshouse in the world & houses some of the most endangered plants on the planet; these come from six areas of the world: California, Australia, the Canary Islands, Chile, South Africa, the Mediterranean basin. This photo was taken on the upper level HWW & HFF!
More information here botanicgarden.wales/garden-areas/the-great-glasshouse/
Photo 57/100 my 100 x photos this year will be of foliage: so woodland scenes, individual trees, wild/garden plants and fallen leaves 🍁🌿🍀🌳