Rooftops of Alice Bel Colle, Piedmont, Italy

 Europe, Italy, Travel  No Responses »
Mar 202013
 

This is one of the last photos that I took with my old set of camera gear, before some bastardos stole it out of our car near Genoa. This is a pretty little town on top of a hill called Alice Bel Colle. They’ve built a mound in the middle of the town with a viewing platform on top providing panoramic views of the surrounding vineyards draped over the rolling hills. I liked the way the the haphazard placement of buildings and roofs matched the haphazard distribution of vineyards in the surrounding area.

Tiled roofs in front of vineyards on rolling hills in Alice Bel Colle, Italy

Dinner in Acqui Terme

 Europe, Italy, Travel  2 Responses »
Nov 302012
 

Coordinating dinner and taking photos is often a pretty tricky task as dinner time so often coincides with the two hours either side of sunset. In this case, it wasn’t such a problem. If you look closely at the pizzeria to the right you can see my family and English relatives at the large table under the left awning.

Acqui Terme is named for this spring in a very interesting, pretty square. When I got there it was totally overcast, except for a small patch of blue sky a long way away. I decided to wait for it.

Time ticked away and I was thinking I may have to pack it in to go to dinner. Fortunately, everyone decided to eat in the pizzeria in the same square. I stayed with my camera, waiting for the blue sky to appear where I wanted it. I was very hungry and wanted to order but didn’t want to pack up my camera to do it. Just as I was about to give in to the hunger, and pack up, my very conscientious travel partner appeared with menu in hand. I ordered a pizza diavola and continued waiting. Once my window of blue sky arrived I moved quickly through three points I’d previously decided to take photos from. This was the last of them.

I arrived at the table just as my beer did… perfect!

The Roman Spring at Acqui Terme, in a typical Italian square under a blue sky in piedmont, italy

Dark Gates

 Europe, Italy, Travel  3 Responses »
Nov 122012
 

There was something kind of creepy about these run down unkempt gates in Piedmont. I tried to capture it here by setting the camera down low in the brambles across the road. I paid a price for this one as the thorny vines took hold of my leg causing me to jerk away. Probably the wost reaction as it just dug the thorns deeper in.

Erie unkempt gates surrounded by brambles and thorny vines with setting sun in Piedmont, Italy

 

The Golden Lane, Piedmont Italy

 Europe, Italy, Travel  No Responses »
Nov 102012
 

After taking the photo posted featured in “The Gates” I turned around to see the sun was bathing the lane and dried out crops behind me in the perfect golden light the Piedmont region is known for. My family were waiting for me to get back so we could go to dinner, but I decided to take a few more minutes to catch this shot.

Dirt road and dried out crops with golden light in Piedmont, Italy

The Gates, Piedmont, Italy

 Europe, Italy, Travel  1 Response »
Oct 092012
 

On our way to our hotel in Piedmont, Italy, we drive past these columns and knew that we’d be returning to photograph them at some point. As we rushed home from Lake Como, running late due to a lack of understanding how the ferries worked. My family was waiting for us to join them to go to dinner. Taking photos really wasn’t an option. Then, this sunset began to light the sky. Shortly after we realized we were coming up to these columns and decided we couldn’t pass up the opportunity. Our tardiness was punished, however, those vines are covered in thorns and once they wrapped around your leg or arm they didn’t want to let go!

Two pillars on a small road in Peidmont, Italy surrounded by brambles under a glorious golden sunset.

Acqui Terme Spring II

 Europe, Italy, Travel  No Responses »
Oct 012012
 

HDR Tutorial

If you’ve been wondering when I’m going to add the next installment of my HDR tutorial I’ve got good news for you! It’s online now: HDR Tutorial 2. In this section I go through the Photomatix portion of producing an HDR image, where the three exposures are combined into one image.

Today’s Photo: Acqui Terme Spring II

If you follow my site regularly you’ll probably recognize the spring in Acqui Terme. I spent a long time waiting for that patch of blue sky amongst the gloomy overcast sky to make it’s way into frame. Once it did I fired off a few shots from different angles. This one shows the detail of the cobbles in front of the spring.

Cobblestone decorated square in front of Roman water spring well in Acqui Terme, Piedmont, Italy

The old Villa, Piedmont, Italy

 Europe, Italy, Travel  2 Responses »
Sep 262012
 

At the end of a morning out, I was on my way back to the hotel when I spotted this rundown old villa tucked off the roads amongst the vineyards. I pulled over and discovered that the building and trees framed the remnants of sunrise perfectly. So, I set up for the shot.

Rundown old stone villa among the vineyards with trees framing the remnants of sunrise in Piedmont, Italy.

 

Acqui Terme Up Close

 Europe, Italy, Travel  No Responses »
Sep 112012
 

I’ve got all my new camera gear in! So tonight’s not a long post as I’m in the middle of playing with it all. It seems fitting that tonight’s photo be another of the few photos I took in Italy before having all of my stuff knicked!

Piazza Bollente with it's sulfuric scented 75° Centigrade fountain with light and dark cobblestone designs surrounded by attractive stone buildings with shops and restaurants in Acqui Terme, Piedmont, Italy

Duomo and Vines, Fontanile, Asti

 Europe, Italy, Travel  3 Responses »
Sep 092012
 

Gear Update

I’ve ordered all of my replacement gear and it should be arriving shortly. Buying most pieces used from BH PhotoVideo saved enough cash that I was able to add a macro lens into my kit. I’ve wanted one for years, so I’m looking forward to playing with it. Once it all gets here I’ll update my gear page with the new pieces and explain any changes I’ve made.

Today’s Photo: Duomo and Vines

On my first day in the Asti region of Piedmont, we took a drive to Acqui Terme. On the way there I spotted a vineyard and winery that I wanted to photograph but the sun was dropping and it was in the shade of the hills. So, after getting up at sunrise and taking in the views from Alice Bel Colle I decided to go back to this winery. I took a lot of photos there, and fell down a hill. This is the first of those photos I’ve processed. I saw the village in the distance, with the dome, from all over the place, but never actually made it there. Looking at Google Maps, I’ve realised that it’s called Fontanile.

Hillside with rows of grape vines with the village of Fontanile and its Duomo in the distance and mountains and hazy sky in the Asti region of Piedmont.

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