Dubai: memories from the past

_MG_6048 [Dubai: memories from the past]

 

The boat in the picture is a boat-restaurant.

Tourists on board enjoy a night view of Dubai or they take advantage of an opportunity to try a selection of local and international specialties for their evening meals while the boat is on a cruise along Dubai creek.

 

The picture was taken from our boat-restaurant that happened to be moving the opposite direction at that moment.

 

Dubai memories from November 21, 2007

 

Please click on the picture for a better view.

Patroklos and the Milky Way

803_2235 [Patroklos]

 

I had just taken a series of photos of a lunar eclipse over the Temple of Apollo on Cape Sounio [You can see the eclipse here.] and was about to return home when the boats near the little island of Patroklos and their reflections on the water looked tempting to my sleepy eyes at 1:30 in the morning. I confess, I am not strong enough to resist photographic temptations, so I decided to take 1-2 more photos - the last ones - for the night. The stars above were not visible to the human eye but PhotoPills - my mobile photo-advising App - ensured me that part of the Milky Way was still over the little island of Patroklos at that time.

So, I turned my camera towards a new direction and once again yielded to the temptation.

The outcome on the computer screen on the following day reminded me of David’s Psalm that reads:

“The heavens declare the glory of God; The skies proclaim the work of his hands.”

 

Photographed at Sounio on July 27, 2018 

 

Please click on the picture for a better view

 

 

Ursa constellations

803_3342 [Ursa constellations]

Inspired by my High-School teacher of Physics some decades ago, I have developed the habit of looking at the stars at night whenever possible and enjoy finding constellations in the way he had shown us. On a short vacation in a small hotel on Mt. Vardousia and when everybody had left the roof garden opting for the warm bed around midnight, I was left alone to enjoy the starry sky. No lights anywhere. Only dark mountains around and the starry sky above. Shooting the stars seemed to me a good way to go.

Constellation stars were highlighted in processing to make Ursa Minor and Major prominent.
 
Please click on the pictures for a better view.

803_3351 [Milky way]

I was hardly done with shooting the constellations above when I turned South and noticed the Galaxy waiting patiently for me behind Mt. Vardousia. I moved my equipment for a few meters and took another shot. I love vacations on the mountains!
 
Both photographed on Mt. Vardousia on September 9, 2018

Full moon over Rafina port

_8029893 [Full moon over Rafina port]

A shot of a magic full moon night. It took me multiple shots and more time than I expected but eventual satisfaction proved a convincing reason why I could go home and leave behind the captivating night sight.
 
Photographed from a nearby hill on July 9, 2017
 
Please click on the picture for a better view.

The Cathedral of Athens

802_6445 [Athens cathedral]

The Cathedral of Athens is centrally located, very close to Syntagma Square, and constitutes a major landmark of the city. It is 40 m long, 20 m wide and 24 m high. It’s construction started on Christmas Day of 1842 and was completed 20 years later. On May 21, 1862 it was dedicated to the Annunciation of the Holy Virgin Mary at the presence of the King Otto and Queen Amalia who had laid the cornerstone 20 years earlier.
 
Throughout its history, it has been the venue of all sorts of official ceremonies ranging from coronations to royal weddings and to funerals of prominent figures of the Greek society.

Photographed in Athens on July 20, 2016



 

802_6597 [Athens Cathedral: Interior]

 The interior of the Cathedral seems to impress all visitors who have the opportunity to admire the plethora of Byzantine-style icons and frescoes, treasures like a part of the chain that Romans used to chain up Paul the Apostle in Rome, or the tombs of two saints: Agía Filothéi and Patriarch Gregory V to name a few.
 
While the night-shot of the exterior of the Cathedral was easy to take with the use of a tripod, photographing the interior proved problematic. Huge dimensions, dim light, and no tripod permitted were only some of the problems any photographer would face. The problem was partially solved with 18 pictures HDRed into 6 and then stitched into the above hand-held 2x3 panorama.
 
Photographed in Athens on August 18, 2016
 
Please click on both pictures for a better view.

Late evening traffic

802_6513 [Late evening traffic]

Watching the full moon from an overpass on a warm summer evening, I was tempted to experiment once again with capturing the light trails of cars rushing out of and into the city. Similar attempts had refused to yield acceptable results for me but “Nothing ventured, nothing gained” I thought. So I set the camera on the tripod.

A couple of days later the processed image on the screen of my computer reminded me of the old well-known saying “If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again!” I’m glad I did.

Please click on the picture for a better view.

Photographed at the outskirts of Athens on July 20, 2016

Full moon rolling down the hill

802_6637 [Full moon rolling down the hill]

The approach of an August full moon event always "activates an alarm" that reminds me to start photographic preparations to shoot the "romantic disc". This year was no exception. When time came, I entered coordinates to my GPS device and headed for my pre-selected "vantage point". Alas! I ended up 4 km away because I had carelessly entered the wrong coordinates! The moon was about to rise and I had no time for corrective action! The rest of the story was nothing but a frustrating situation that ended when I saw the moon rise behind the hill. Fortunately, I had already set up the camera on the tripod - in spite of the fact that I was at the wrong place - and had decided to wait and see where the moon would rise.

Outcome: two shots in my bag. [See the other one here.]
It seems that the saying "Every cloud has a silver lining" is true!

Photographed at Sounio on August 18, 2016

Full moon over The Temple of Poseidon

802_6659 F-2 [Full moon over the Temple of Poseidon]

 Photographed at Sounio on August 18, 2016

Night sky over Sounio

_8011124 [Night sky over Sounio]

Photographed at Sounio on August 16, 2015

Autumn is here!

802_1692 [lightning]

Capturing a lightning has always been at the back of my mind as a must-try at least once but I had never dared test my luck until two days ago when the magnitude and frequency of lightning almost all over the area provided the opportunity for a step forward. Quickly set up my camera on the balcony of my apartment and took about 30 pitch-dark, useless, photos before the storm faded away plus one more photo. The one above I am happily sharing with you. Eventually… "audaces fortuna iuvat"!!!

Photographed in Holargos on September 21, 2015

Sounio calling Galaxy

8010122 [Sounio calling Galaxy]

 The Temple of Poseidon on Cape Sounio seems to be light-signaling to the heart of our galaxy 
in an attempt to ... establish communication!


Photographed at Sounio on June 20, 2015

star trails

801_6265 [star trails]

This was an experimental attempt to record star trails by turning the camera to an unusual direction. Instead of shooting the Northern star (Polaris) and the stars seemingly moving around it - a fact that would lead to a recording of concentric trails - we turned the camera South aiming slightly over the horizon to see what happens.

The resulting photograph (a combination of 404 photographs stacked in StarTrails v.2) seems to be interesting. Curved trails in the upper right corner belong to stars that seem to be revolving around the Northern star, the ones in the lower left corner (having an opposite curvature) belong to stars that seem to be revolving around the Southern Cross (Crux), while in between one can notice star trails forming an almost straight line. Why a straight line is up to you to find out. My astronomy knowledge is too poor to explain something like that, as obvious as that might be. So any clarifying contribution to that point would be more than welcome!


Photographed on Cape Sounio on July 30, 2014

Souvala by night

_DDD3361 [Souvala by night]

 A late evening view of the Port of Souvala situated on the northern part of the island of Aigina.

Photographed on August 28, 2013

The "Park of Souls" under the whirling stars

801_5921 [The "Park of Souls" under the whirling stars]

 The "Park of Souls" is a composition of human figures sculpted on logs of burnt trees by the artist Spyros Dasiotis. 
It stands on Mt. Parnitha at a height of 1018 m opposite a deserted sanatorium which had been the artist's key source of inspiration for the park.
It was inaugurated on Oct. 20, 2012

Photographed on Mt. Parnitha on July 27, 2014

[See also here.]

Via della Conciliazione

BBB1542 [Via della Conciliazione]
 

Via della Conciliazione: a 500-meters-long street in Rome that extends 

from Castel Sant' Angelo [here] on the river Tiber to St. Peter's Basilica [here].

Absolutely crowded during the day, absolutely quiet during the night.

Photographed in Rome on August 20, 2009

A wedding

IMG0595 [Evoia wedding]

On June 21, 2014 I had the pleasure and honor to attend the wedding of two much-loved friends - Iro and Aris - which took place on the tiny island of St. Nicholas in Northern Evoia.

It was "Unforgettable"; to describe it in one word!

We wish them a happy life.


Here follow a few pictures of the venue:

St. Nicholas: a day view

8015535

St. Nicholas: a night view
 

8015589

St. Nicholas: a panoramic view

Stars dancing for "Aristarchos"

CCC_9095 [Stars dancing for "Aristarchos"]

 Aristarchos is the largest telescope in Greece with a diameter of 2.3 meters.
It is situated at the top of Mt. Helmos at a height of 2.224 meters.

Photographed on Mt. Helmos on August 24, 2014

Full moon rise in Attica

DDD3032 [Full moon rise in Attica]

Zouberi: 23/06/2013, photo by Tony Taglides

Castel Sant’ Angelo

BBB1547-2 [Castel Sant’ Angelo]

A late night shot of an ancient building that stands on the Tiber in the Vatican City for almost 2000 years.  Built in 130 AD by the Emperor Hadrian as a mausoleum for himself and his family, it has also been used as barracks, papal fortress, medieval prison and since 1933 as a museum. Originally, it was called “Hadrian’s Mausoleum”  but according to tradition at the end of the sixth century there was a procession led by the Pope Gregory (the Great) aiming to pray for the cease of an ongoing plague. When the procession arrived at the castle, people saw the Archangel Michael standing on the top of the castle and putting his sword into the scabbard. This gesture was interpreted as a sign that the plague would end soon which actually did end soon. Since then the castle is known as Castel Sant’ Angelo.

Rome 20/08/2009, photo © Tony Taglides

The Observatory of Athens

BBB8336 [The observatory of Athens]

Athens: 27/08/2010, photo © Tony Taglides