Venice a Photographic World Apart

The last stop on our Italian tour was Venice.  By that time, the kids had all spun off to various locations of their own choosing, Abby and Grayson to the Dolomites, and Jeremy and Gina to Gina’s Italian relatives in Naples.  After a short stay at Lake Como, we took the train from Milan to the floating City and it was an entirely unique experience.

A World Apart

From Venice’s’ modern train station, we took a brief boat ride across the Grand Canal to our hotel, and to a different world.  Of course, I knew about the canals, but I didn’t appreciate how completely Venice is frozen in time.  The narrow winding streets reminded me of the Boston’s meandering “cow path” roads and, except for the antennas, the city’s buildings have changed very little since the Renaissance.  Despite the crowds this is a place that seems to run at a slower, more relaxed, pace.  Venice’s streets feel much more like paths, especially since no vehicles are allowed, not even bicycles. 

A Photographer's Paradise

You Must Have a Gondola

Italy was a wonderful place for photography, but Venice provided, by far, the most beautiful and varied photographic opportunities.  As I have reviewed my images, it seemed clear that Venice is a city that can best be understood visually – the majestic Grand Canal, the many interconnecting narrower canals, the variety of boats and gondolas, busy Saint Mark’s Square and the quiet narrow streets that invited getting happily lost – thank God for my GPS.  It seemed that every turn provided a new vista.  The canals provided lines of view on the classic architecture and the changing light continually altered the feel of the scenery.  The opportunities for interesting compositions were endless. My greatest frustration was that we only had a couple of days to explore.

Church of  San Giorgio Maggiore

Waterfront Sunset

We chose to schedule our visit a little after the busiest season.  Many of the back streets were quiet but the main streets were still crowded with mid-day shoppers.  On the first evening we found our way to the waterfront for a simple diner and a spectacular sunset, only interrupted by the passage of one of the monstrous cruise ships. 

Quiet Morning Streets

No One on the Bridge

The next morning, I got out just after dawn and, for about an hour, I had the streets and canals mostly to myself.  The bridges were clear of gawkers and the canals were navigated only by delivery barges.  For a moment, it was dream-like and then the people arrived, first the natives heading for work or school and then the tourist signaling that it was time to find my back to my hotel and breakfast on the Grande Canal.  

Saint Mark's Square

The morning brought more wandering eventually leading to a tour of St. Mark’s Square, the Basilica and the Doge’s Palace.   Our evening stroll included lingering with the crowds on the Rialto Bridge, which arches over the Grand Canal.  I had to work my way to the edge, but the views down the Canal, especially at sunset were spectacular. 

Rialto Bridge Evening

Water Bus to Diner

 For diner we took a water bus to meet friends in another quarter of the city.  Once you figure out the routes the buses are a lovely and inexpensive way to get around.

Doge's Palace

Murano Glass

Blowing Murano Glass

The first half of our final full day in Venice was spent at the glass works on nearby Murano Island.  Murano glass is known the world over for its quality and artistic expression.  It was fascinating to watch the glass blowing and, of course we had to come away with a couple of lovely little pieces of art.  

Not the Murano Glass we Bought!

Rialto Taxi Dock

Back Street Cafes

The afternoon was spent with more walking, and of course, more eating at yet another picturesque café.  The evening was spent on a food tour of best restaurants off the beaten track. We were reluctant to head back to our hotel since we knew that early in the morning we would be taking a water taxi to the airport and our flight home.

Foggy Morning Trip the the Airport

Festival Masks Everywhere

Did I mention that Venice was a photographer’s dream?  It was the ideal way to finish an amazing three weeks exploring beautiful Italy.  Given all the cold damp early New England spring weather, working my way through the glorious Venice pictures this week has been a perfect escape.  Now back to reality - But there will always be Italy :

•  Italy 2017 Gallery 
• Italy Part Uno, Rome to Tuscany
• Italy Part Duo, ( Tuscany )
• Italy Part Tre, (Florence)
• ItalyPart Quatro Bologna and Lake Como

 Jeff Newcomer
www.partridgebrookreflections.com

603-363-8338

2017 Retrospective Part 3

Bunelleschi's Dome, Duomo, Florence

In this third edition of my 2017 retrospective, I am picking up a few less dramatic loose ends of the year’s activities.   Loose, but nevertheless important parts of my photographic year.  Finally, I will touch on the most exciting part of 2017, both personally and photographically, our family trip to Italy.

Fenway Park

On a good year we will get to Fenway to see the Red Sox several times.  This year it was only once, but we had good seats and a chance to join our daughter Abigail and her boyfriend, now fiancée!!, Grayson.   Before the game, we enjoyed seeing all the team’s kids frolicing on the grass.  It still takes my breath away when I first glimpse the brilliant Fenway green

We had beautiful July weather and, although the sox were not victorious, it was a great time. Photographically I had a chance to use my little Canon SX50HS with its ridiculous 1200mm zoom. At sporting events, I am never sure that my monster DSLR will be allowed into the venue, but my little SX50HS is unobtrusive, and still has that great reach.  Also, its tiny sensor provides a wider depth of field for the action shots.

• I Get My Dose of Fenway

Full Moon Rising

Full Moons provide great opportunities for exposing for the detail in the cratered surface while there is still light in the evening sky.  It is the one time when the bright moon and dark sky do not create impossibly stark contrast.  This year I only got out for one full moonrise.  I planned to catch the early December super moon rising behind the holiday decorated Nubble Lighthouse in York Maine.

Using Photographer’s Ephemeris, I was in the perfect position along the beach south of the light.  Unfortunately, the clouds did not cooperate.  I was only able to see a momentary sliver of moon as it first peaked above the horizon.  It was not yet in the perfect location over the lighthouse, but, zooming in, the reflected sunset light made the moon appear like a golden sunrise.

It was not the perfect result for which I had hoped, but it was still a dramatic shot and a nice trip to the coast, and Susan actually came along for the shoot!

• Making the Most of a Not So Super Moon

Learning Lightroom

The last couple of years has been all about Adobe’s Lightroom.  Lightroom is an amazingly powerful program for managing editing and sharing digital images.  Its database image management system makes it a choice for many professional.  Although Its editing tools are not as robust as those in Photoshop, it is capable enough to meet the needs of most amateurs, and its intuitive workflow makes it much less intimidating to master.

I am now finishing up the fourth offering of my Introduction to Lightroom Course.  The course has been a lot of work, but it is also great fun to share my understanding with so many enthusiastic participants.  Each session has been an opportunity for me to discover more about Lightroom, especially since the program keeps evolving.  Part of the my learning, has been to write blog articles about special aspects of the program, and this year, I have published eight blogs, from the mysteries of the Lightroom Catalog to what’s new in Lightroom CC Classic.

• Sharpening
• Noise Reduction
• Slide Shows
• Lightroom Catalog
• Lightroom Reference Tool
• What’s New in Lightroom CC Classic
• Lightroom to Photoshop, When to Jump
• Ten Favorite Lightroom Shortcuts

Photographic Editing Index

Check out more links to image editing articles in my Blog Index.

Our Villa in Tuscany

Adventures in Italy

Piazza del Campo, Siena

Last autumn, Susan and I explored Italy for a three-week celebration of her birthday.  We traveled to Rome, Florence, Bologna, Lake Como and Venice, but the most magical part was nearly a week sharing a villa with our children and their significant others in the Tuscan countryside.  Beautiful landscapes, great food and even better wine. It was amazing.  After Tuscany the kids followed their own itineraries but still joined us for parts of our explorations of Florence and Bologna.

Gina and Jeremy Florence

Best Family Lunch, Montalcino

Of course, I did bring my camera along and I am only beginning to wade through the 4,000 images.  You can see some in the blog articles and the Italian gallery, but there will be more to see and to write about whenever I can get to it.

Lake Como

• Italy Part Uno, Rome to Tuscany

• Italy Part Duo, Tuscany
• Italy Part Tre, Florence
• Italian Gallery
  
  
  

Bologna Market

Grande Canal Venice

January 2018 Storm

That should be sufficient looking back for now.  When it comes time to review, I am always surprised by how much we have done in a year.  I still have thousands of pictures calling for my attention, but now we must look forward to 2018.  The winter is beautiful and pristine, and Spring is coming!

Jeffrey Newcomer

partridgebrookreflections.com

Image Backup for a Long Journey

       

Out of the Fog, Venice

Tiber Steps, Rome

I have been running about trying to catch whatever is left of this year’s disappointing fall foliage.  I’ve found glimpses of nice late color, but I missed the first half of the season.  I have no right to complain since, while everyone was wondering whether the color would ever come, I was enjoying a perfect three weeks exploring the beauty and history of Italy.  As I struggle to decide whether I should spend my time editing images from our trip or from my increasing pile of foliage pictures, I thought I would take a break and share a little about the challenges of backing up my precious images while on a long trip away from the comforts of my trusty home desktop.

One Dome, St. Peter's, Vatican City

On trips such as our Italian tour, it is my pictures that are my primary souvenirs of the experience.  I also routinely try to collect one coffee mug, a baseball cap.  From Italy, I brought home the mug, but I couldn’t find an appropriate cap.  I observed that Italians don’t generally wear hats, and definitely not baseball caps.  This put extra importance on the pictures.  I’d like to share some of the steps I take to protect (i.e. Back-up) my images, and some of the lessons I continue to learn. It all starts with the camera(s)

Saint Peter's Vatican City

Backup the Camera

Susan on the Wall, San Gimignano

You will have no pictures to backup if you can’t capture the images in the first place. One of my firsts step in preparing for a photography trip (ok, every trip is a photography trip), is to decide how I will back-up my cameras.  I don’t want to be left shooting the coliseum with my iPhone, although many do.  For this trip I backed up my Canon 5D Mark IV with my Mark II body.  This seemed to be a good plan. If my Mark IV suffered a sudden mechanical failure.  All my lenses would work just fine and I would still be shooting full frame.  Time for my first lesson.

Grayson and Cuyler, Cupano Vineyard, Tuscany

Lesson One : Theives don’t just steal camera bodies.

Sunset Together, Tuscany

At some point while walking the dark narrow streets of Florence, it occurred to that my camera might get stolen, and I thought it unlikely that the thief would remove my workhorse 24-105 lens and place it next to my unconscious, bleeding body.  On this trip, I brought my 16-35mm and my old 70-300mm, but neither would be best for the majority of the pictures that I captured.  Throughout Italy, 91% of my images were taken with my 24-105mm.  In case of theft. I would still have my Mark II, and although it is always an interesting challenge to shoot with limited lenses, for many situations, the camera would still be severely crippled. I wouldn’t be totally lost since my second backup was my little Canon G11.  I usually bring the G11 to use in situations where the my massive DSLR might be too clumsy or conspicuous to carry.  The image quality doesn’t come close to my Mark IV or II, but in a pinch, it would serve.

New Light, Tuscan Villa

Asinelli Tower, Bologna

My lesson from this revelation was to plan to equip my backup camera with a capable backup lens.  As it turns out, I am lucky to have a second 24-105 lens.  It’s the one that I drop into a stream a few years back.  Canon did not judge the lens to be repairable, but over time the water has dried leaving only a few imperceptible stains, and happily no mold.  It works well and from now on I will attach it to my 5D Mark II before I throw it into my bag.  Obviously, not everyone will have the good fortune of dropping their camera into a brook, but there are plenty of used and off-brand lenses out there that might be worth considering.  Alternatively, small carry around camera is a good solution.

Street Produce, Bologna

Oh,  and I keep the Mark II in my suitcase away from my other gear.

Am I paranoid?  ABSOLUTELY, but the point is that you should anticipate the possible disasters and plan for their inevitable occurrence.   Of course, if you are ok with recording your once-in-a-lifetime journey with pictures on your smart phone, then you have nothing to worry about.

Image Backup,

No Image Exists Unless It is in Three Places

The old “Three Place” rule is especially important on “Once in a Lifetime Trips”.  For Italy, I backed up twice to memory cards, and then both to a laptop and an external hard drive.  It just occurred to me that five thousand images in four places means I actually came home with twenty thousand images!  It’s all good.

 Memory Cards

Lesson Two : Bring Enough

Lake Como Chop, Como

Memory cards have become increasingly cheap and reliable.  I’m happy that Canon has finally placed two card slots in their newer 5D models and on the trip I saved each image simultaneously to two cards in the camera.  I had enough CF and SD cards to continue this redundancy until I finally had to go to a single card for the last couple of days. The lesson here is that, although memory cards have become extremely reliable, they still could fail, and, if possible, dual recording is a great safety measure.  My personal lesson, is to bring enough cards to get through the entire trip.

Lake Como, Brunate

Laptop

Lesson 3 : Organize your trip images in a separate Lightroom Catalog

Santa Maria della Salute, Venice

I love to review my pictures as I go along on the trip, but the main reason to lug a laptop is to manage the backup to the computer and an external hard drive.  Now that I am a devote Lightroom user, I have learned that my task of moving my images to my desktop at home is made much easier by creating a separate Lightroom Catalog on the trip to organize the images.  At home all I need to do is merge the trip catalog with my main catalog and then, from within Lightroom, move the images over to my desktop storage.  Of course, if you are not using Lightroom, you should structure your backup to work best with you own image management program.

Grand canal Sunset, Venice

External Hard Drive

Lesson 4: Store the Catalog and the Images on the External Hard Drive

Floor Mosaic, Vatican Museum

Over several trips, my daily image upload routine has been to store my special catalog and images to my laptop, but I forgot the rule that Lightroom images should be stored on an external drive and not be allowed to clog the computer.  Since when I get home, I will be moving everything to my desktop, that process is made much easier by keeping both the catalog and the image files on the external drive. On the trip they can still be accessed on the laptop and I will use the laptop as my backup drive while uploading to Lightroom

Getting Home

Towers of San Gimignano, Tuscany

My fiendish plan is complete.  Cards, cards, laptop and external drive, everything is in, not three, but FOUR places.  I can sleep, but there is one final challenge.  All those pixels need to make it home.

While on a trip I usual split my treasures to avoid the chance that a single disaster; lost luggage, stolen camera bag or pick-pocket, could take everything. I typically store my external drive sandwiched among the soft clothing in my suitcase.  The memory cards are in my camera bag and Susan guards the laptop in her backpack.  

One of Many Porticos of Bologna

The flight back is a different matter.  My rule is that I never check my camera gear and I keep at least a couple of copies of my images with me, at all times.  I still carefully pad the hard drive in my luggage, but the laptop and the memory cards stay at my side.  

By now you are certain that I am certifiably paranoid, but think about what you bring back from that once in a lifetime trip.  Besides wonderful memories and that pesky yeast infection, the most important tangible souvenirs will likely be your photographs.  Bring them home safely so that your only physical remembrance won’t be that lonely little coffee mug.

Jeffrey Newcomer
www.partridgebrookreflections.com