Pre-dawn in Grand Place, Brussels
Before the day begins in Brussels, Belgium
When I travel, I always try and get up before sunrise to get out and shoot, if possible. It can be hard, but it is always rewarding, and I always return with images that I am happy with. Especially in a big city, those early morning hours are perfect for capturing scenes that would otherwise be completely full of people.
Today’s photo is a perfect example of this. I was up and out shooting at around 5:30am in Brussels some years back. I wandered into Grand Place, their amazing and beautiful city square, and had it essentially to myself.
Any other time of day, this place is swarming with tourists, but way before dawn it was quiet, empty and perfect!
Sunrise on Diamond Beach
Sunrise on Diamond Beach in Iceland, complete with flowing water and massive chunks of glacial ice. A dream come true for sure!
Diamond Beach is the famous beach in Iceland where all these chunks of ice lay about, and photographers like myself run around taking photos and screaming with excitement. Well, ok maybe I was the only one screaming, but still. It’s exciting.
We got up early one morning to make sure we were in place for sunrise, though thankfully sunrise was around 9:30am this time of year. Regardless, I was up around 6am to get dressed and fed, and we left by 7:30am or something like that. It was maybe a 30 minute drive, and when we arrived it was still relatively dark and of course we had the beach to ourselves. The exploring began.
I wandered around, taking stock of these ice chunks and trying to find a composition that I liked. While there were a lot of chunks of ice on the beach, based on the tide it was obvious that most of them would never get touched by a wave - and let’s face it, we were all going for those cool shots of water moving around these ice chunks.
So many of us ended up photographing this same huge chunk, albeit from slightly different angles. Regardless, I was very pleased to be standing there in the first place, capturing these two photos which I consider my best from that outing. Having seen so many shots from this place in the past, it was quite literally a dream come true to be standing there taking my own.
Skulking about in London
Lovely long exposure work from lovely London…
I love to just wander the streets of London. It’s my favorite city and I always find beautiful things to aim the camera towards. This was one of those evenings. I was all over the place and whenever I see a busy street (at every turn in London LOL), I like to set up the tripod for a long exposure and capture some passing cars.
The Pantheon
The Pantheon in Rome, an amazing structure and well worth visiting!
Rome is just lovely. I would be really happy to go spend a week or so there, wandering and shooting like mad. So much history, beautiful architecture…I think I would skip as much sleep as possible! Here’s one I captured there a few years ago, just as blue hour descended on the Pantheon. I really thought it was more powerful in monochrome.
Lovely Llanrwst
The teahouse in Llanrwst, in Snowdonia National Park, Wales. Such a gorgeous setting!
I just fell in love with this view while in Wales. I came by twice to shoot it, and would have come back a third time if my schedule had allowed it. It’s just a beautiful little spot, and even though my compositions are essentially the same from both visits, I didn’t care. I just wanted to stare at this gorgeous little teahouse, take its photo, and revel in the fact that I was there.
The light in Italy
I had to get up from our dinner to go shoot this, but who can focus on a meal when this is happening??
This was an amazing sunset (I guess that is pretty obvious though). We were dining in Praiano, Italy along the Amalfi Coast, and sat on a terrace overlooking this beautiful area. As the light began to change, I got more and more twitchy until I just had to get up, leave dinner, and take photos. I just couldn’t miss something this spectacular. This is definitely in the top 5 sunsets I have ever witnessed, maybe top 3. Just so gorgeous!
The stunning city of Prague
A gorgeous view over the equally stunning gorgeous city of Prague…
There are few cities more beautiful than Prague - perhaps none. Sure, Paris is gorgeous, but that’s probably the only other city that even comes close to matching Prague’s beauty. This is a famous view in Prague, looking over Tyn’s Church from the top of their city hall. It’s just such an amazing sight to behold!
Morning on the Charles Bridge
Sunrise in Prague and I was on the Charles Bridge, firing away happily…
This morning in Prague started EARLY. I got up about 4:30am in order to get out and walk to the Charles Bridge, with plans to be in place before sunrise. Luckily, that was plenty of time and I nearly had the bridge to myself, which was exactly what I wanted. There were a few people here and there - mostly those returning from an extended night out - but otherwise it was blissfully quiet and I had some fabulous light, too. All in all, a wonderful way to start a day in Prague!
Night in Heidelberg
A lovely night begins in Heidelberg, Germany…
I really love shooting cities as darkness descends on them. The lights come on and they just sparkle. Throw in a river running through it, and that is a recipe for a really happy Jim! I captured this one evening in Heidelberg, Germany. Such a gorgeous town, made more so in the fading light.
Borough Market
Evening at the Borough Market in London…
From my last visit to London - the interesting and beautiful Borough Market. I’m visiting London again soon, and hope to pop over here for some shopping and a few photographs as well.
A Venetian scene
A daily scene in Venice…so lovely there!
Just a quick snap from lovely Venice, Italy. I was passing over a bridge, and could see the front of this gondola coming around the bend. I only had to wait a moment for it to get into position, and I fired away. It doesn’t get much easier!
A great view in Prague
A stunning view over the equally stunning city of Prague…
Prague is just a gorgeous city - I think it rivals Paris as possibly the most beautiful city I have visited. So much amazing architecture, street scenes and more. This photo was taken from atop their City Hall building (also known for it’s astronomical clock). You buy a ticket, ride the elevator, and then walk out onto the area around the tower - giving you the ability to view the city from all sides. But this view is the most popular, and you can see why in the photograph. That gorgeous church sits there down below, just looking stunning and photo-ready. I went up there twice in the 5 days I spent in Prague. I would love to return and shoot it again, even though I have a lot of photos from this spot already. Such an excellent view!
Covent Garden at night
A night shot of a musician at work in Covent Garden, London…
From my last visit to lovely London…I captured this gentleman playing music in Covent Garden while wandering over there one evening. It’s a beautiful part of London and one well worth visiting. I will be returning to London soon and hope to pop over here for a little while to check it out again!
The Tower Bridge
A long exposure of the Tower Bridge in London…
I’m excited to return to London really soon! London has been my favorite city for a long time, and I will return soon and wander those beautiful streets once again. I captured this on my last visit. I put on my 10 stop filter and took a long exposure here of the Tower Bridge. That long exposure helped smooth out the choppy water of the River Thames and gave it a nice, peaceful look.
Underneath London
Underneath a couple of train stations in London, this tunnel is quite fun to see and shoot!
I love London, and am looking forward to visiting again in a few weeks. I plan to take some pictures. :-)
I took this on my last visit. It’s a walkway that runs underground between two train stations - Kings Cross and St Pancras. I had seen pics of it online before my trip, and just kept wandering around until I found it!