In May 2006 I spent some time in the northern areas of Romania, as well as Istanbul. I’m absolutely in love with the city, and would move there if money wasn’t an issue. The history, the food, the people, the architecture, the way the city vibrates with life… You can see a selection of photographs from the trip in this gallery.
It’s taken me quite a while, but I’ve uploaded some photographs from a trip I took to Romania in December 2004-January 2005. They’re mostly mementos, so there’s hardly anything there to hang on a wall – still those interested in gothic architecture can probably consider it castle porn. I’ll be adding some more details on the photos as I go.
Coincidentally, it seems that Bran Castle is now up for sale for the paltry amount of $77 million. It’s a beautiful place located in a quaint little town, so I wouldn’t hesitate to go for it if I had that kind of money to spare. As it turns out I am, alas, a little short.
As Wikipedia mentions, it has little to no relationship with Vlad Tepes. To get that you have to visit the significantly less touristy but immensely more historically impressive ruins at Poienari de Arges. There’s a mindblowing view up there from which you can literally peer back in time and see advancing armies approaching, waiting to be dismayed by the almost unassailable fortification – just be ready to climb up almost 1500 steps.
Yes, I’ve been seriously slacking on my photography – other projects have gotten my attention, and things have a way of falling on the side when you’re not looking.
Enough procrastinating. I’ve decided to have at least a couple shoots a month – good or bad, it’ll keep the skills active. Here’s a selection of photos from a recent session with Vero and Angi – enjoy.
There are a few recent pictures of Vero, for those of you that don’t know her personally. Click the photo below to go to the album:
Actually, there is. But I should start from the top.
Esteban Brenes, a friend known for his bizarre sense of humor, unsatiable appetite, mind-bending addiction to computer games and death-metal singer looks, just got a hair cut. A regular-length went-to-boarding-school haircut. I took a few “before” photographs, will upload the “after” when we get them.
There are a few new photographs up, from a test session with Liana Nicola. This one is my favorite, maybe because it looks like she forgot there was a camera and immersed herself in the scene (the same reason why I like this one, in spite of the much more mundane set up).
Enough bludgeoning you with my opinion, go in and judge for yourselves.
Yes, I’ve said it before. I’ve come in all gleeful, heart filled with joy, proclaiming I’m finally back on track with my photography. Unfortunately, there was something unsatisfying even in my efforts with Marcela and Kelly, some missing ingredient that ended up having the effect that while the end result was OK overall, it still felt like it lacked something vital, some spark to make them feel alive.
I think I’ve hit it.
Read more…
The GIMP, that wonderful open-source freely-available easy-to-use Photoshop clone, has been finally released on version 2.0. New features include a more polished user interface, much improved text tools, handling of EXIF tags, channel mixing and other great features.
And whomever told you that the GIMP was for Linux freaks only, lied like politicians promising not to raise taxes.
If you need some help getting started using The GIMP, you can always consult the tutorials, Sams’ Teach Yourself GIMP in 24 Hours or Grokking The GIMP (which are available online here and there respectively). For more advanced users, there’s always GIMP for Photographers.
Why bother pirating Photoshop when you can get something better legally and for free?
I’ve just upgraded Gallery, the image management software I use on the site. If you notice any weirdness, please let me know.
I’ve also uploaded two older images to the gallery: one from San Francisco taken at a distance in the early morning, and another one a portrait of Horus my siamese cat.
Enjoy.
Photo.net has been undergoing some technical problems, plus, I feel that I should archive my own photographs instead of relying on an outside service to do so. I’ve created a gallery for my images, mostly of recent images, and I’ll add some of the older ones as I go.
Comments on the photos are, as usual, welcome.
