Archive for the ‘Worth a Visit’ Category
Paris Street Photography
Life goes on as usual in the Paris Metro.
I’ve always loved street photography. Henri Cartier-Bresson is one of my all time favorite photographer and he is best known for his street photography of Paris. On a recent trip to Paris, inspired by old Henri, I made an effort to do some street photography myself.
London Town
Despite the weather, visa issues, expensive transport and even more expensive food and drinks, London is a must see destination. Even though I’ve lived in London for a year, I still often see it through tourist eyes, only now I’ve been here long enough to know what is worth seeing and what is better left to the uninformed crowds.
The Unexpected
What first struck me about London was the cultural diversity. At one stage, England dominated most of the known world and as a result, London now represents a large portion of it. I’ve met locals who time how long they can walk before they hear English spoken. Some have quite impressive records.
Worth a Visit – Bern City Center
A tramlink provides transport through the Bern city center
As travel photographers, we like to be well prepared for the sites we plan to see. This past summer, we were touring Switzerland and our plans fell apart after following our GPS 300 kilometers in the wrong direction. It turned out that Switzerland had two towns with the same name and we had arrived in the wrong town.
What is So Special about Paris?
Both Tina and I love traveling, but we don’t always share the same tastes. I tend to go for the colder, wilder spots (Iceland being my ideal) whilst Tina wants to visit hotter, busier spots (the Greek islands being her ideal). To solve this potential problem, we have turns picking our destinations.
I’ve learned to travel to Tina destinations with an open mind. I’ve always been pleasantly surprised by her choices.
Her latest choice proved to be a bit more of a challenge. Paris. Why would anyone living in London want to visit Paris. What is so special about Paris that so many people are mesmerized by it. I had seven days to find out.
The Eastern Cape – Wild Coast
This is part 2 in an in depth travel photography series on the Eastern Cape, South Africa. If you missed part 1, check out The Wildlife here.
Wild Coast
Head down to the beach in the Eastern Cape and an un-spoilt, wild coastline is what you will discover along almost the entire Eastern Cape coastline. It is not difficult to find a beach where you’ll be the only person for kilometers.
Worth a Visit – London Southbank
London is full of great spots to visit, but if you only have a day in London and want to get a “feel” for the city, spend some time at the South Bank.
Immediately recognisable by the London Eye, the South Bank stretches for about one kilometre along the river Thames. The South Bank is full of cafes, resturants and tourist attractions but perhaps the most interesting attraction is the people.
The South Bank is a hub of artists, musicians and performers many who are sublimely talented and others who seem to be facing up to a dare.
The character in the photo was actually acting for what appeared to be a student movie project. He spent the best part of an hour walking up and down the South Bank through the massive crowds, tailed by an indie film maker. Such things are common place at the South Bank. Grab a cup of coffee and enjoy the show.
Worth a Visit – The London Tattoo Convention
We spent last Saturday at the London Tattoo Convention. Proof that sometimes the best travel photo opportunities happen on your doorstep.
Instead of covering the event like a journalist, we concentrated on shooting portraits. Asking strangers to pose for photos is always difficult but the crowd who attended the convention were so down to earth and friendly, they actually made it easy.
For photographers interested in travel portraits of people, it is one of the best opportunities to take place in London. Hope to see you at next year’s event.
Worth a Visit – Collioure
Of all the French resorts along the Mediterranean coast, Collioure stood out as our favorite. It seems to have a bit of everything, perfect swimming beaches for relaxing, tanning and show boating (if thats your thing), fascinating old architecture and a colourful, vibrant maze of streets.
Collioure is quite close to the Spanish border, which means that Collioure has a good mix of French and Spanish cultures. These seem to blend perfectly to make a colourful, arty and relaxing village.
We found Collioure by chance. Whilst visiting a far less interesting resort, we saw a picture of Collioure on a postcard. I wrote the name down because it looked interesting, punched it into our GPS and one hour later, we were walking through Collioure streets.
If you are ever planning a trip to that side of France, be sure to check it out.