Category: 1 Photography

Travel Photography – Istanbul Series 4:- Chora Church

A visit to Istanbul

This is the fourth blog derived from a three-day visit to Istanbul in February 2012.  We flew from Gatwick in England to Istanbul on Turkish Airways and it was great.  Spanking new planes, good food, pleasant crew.  Much better than the bucket airlines and not too expensive.  No extras such as checked in luggage costs etc.

The Chora Church

The Chora Church was initially constructed very early – The original church on this site was built in the early 5th century, and stood outside of the 4th century walls. The majority of the fabric of the current building dates from 1077–1081.  It is a smaller building than many of the other examples of Byzantine architecture in Istanbul.  Around fifty years after the fall of the city to the Ottomans in 1453, the church was converted into a mosque and the art work was plastered over.  In 1948 the building ceased to be a mosque and in 1958 it opened as a museum.

The impressive decoration of the interior was carried out between 1315 and 1321. The mosaic-work is the finest example of the Palaeologian Renaissance. The artists remain unknown.  There are some 45 different frescoes and paintings.

 

Travel Photography – Istanbul Series 3:- Süleymaniye Mosque

A visit to Istanbul

This is the third blog derived from a three-day visit to Istanbul in February 2012. Visiting Istanbul in February or March turned out to be a good idea.  Many fewer other tourists and much cooler (almost too cool with a day of snow!).

One of the drawbacks / challenges of photographing the amazing Mosques and Byzantine architecture was that they do not permit the use of tripods – not even monopods.  I should have had a beanbag – I did get a fair number of lengthy exposures (8-10 secs) by placing the cameras on the floor, against pillars etc. and using a remote release.

The Süleymaniye Mosque

The Süleymaniye Mosque was built between 1550 and 1558.  It has blended Islamic and Byzantine architectural elements. It combines tall, slender minarets with large domed buildings supported by half domes in the style of the Byzantine church Hagia Sophia.  The interior of the mosque is almost a square, 59 meters in length and 58 meters in width, forming a single vast space which creates an inspiring place of worship and prayer. The dome is flanked by semi-domes, and to the north and south arches with tympana-filled windows, supported by enormous porphyry monoliths.  It was a privilege to be able to visit this amazing place.

 

 

Travel Photography – Istanbul Series 2:- Sultanahmet Cami – The Blue Mosque

A visit to Istanbul

This is the second blog derived from a three-day visit to Istanbul in February 2012. We stayed in the Old City at the “And Hotel” which was great – within walking distance of the main sites of interest, one of which was the Blue Mosque.

 

Sultanahmet Cami – The Blue Mosque

This is a breathtaking building built from 1609 to 1616.  Intricate patterns and designs cover virtually the entire interior.  The mosque is popularly known as the Blue Mosque for the blue tiles adorning the walls of its interior.

The design of the Sultan Ahmed Mosque is the culmination of two centuries of both Ottoman mosque and Byzantine church development. It incorporates some Byzantine elements of the neighbouring Hagia Sophia with traditional Islamic architecture and is considered to be the last great mosque of the Ottoman architecture classical period. The architect has ably synthesized the ideas of his master Mimar Sinan, aiming for overwhelming size, majesty and splendour.

 

Travel Photography – Istanbul Series 1:- Hagia Sophia

A visit to Istanbul

On a three-day visit to Istanbul in February 2012 we walked miles, had sun, wind and snow and I photographed – a lot.  Istanbul is a feast for the senses with great people and centuries of history.

 

Hagia Sophia

This has been the site of a church since 360 (during the reign of Constantius II).  The current building was built from 532-537 and was the largest cathedral for in the world for 1000 years.  It is generally regarded as the epitome of Byzantine architecture and is said to have “changed the history of architecture.”

It has a varied history –

  • Eastern Orthodox Cathedral (562–1204)
  • Catholic Cathedral (1204–1261)
  • Eastern Orthodox Cathedral (1261–1453)
  • Ottoman Empire Imperial Mosque (1453–1931)
  • Museum (1931-present)

The building today shows its age and its history but it is amazing and certainly a place to visit if you get the chance.

 

One day in Zimbabwe

Getting out and about

I have just spent a week in Harare – the capitol of Zimbabwe.  I spent the whole week in meetings but had one day when I could take out my camera on a field trip outside the city.  (One of the meetings was on the 16th floor of a building – with no working elevators!  A day after I had made the climb the newspaper carried a story of a woman who had had a miscarriage climbing the stairs in the same building – a heavy price to pay.)

Climbing out of the pit

I was in Zimbabwe as a consultant to support the drafting of a new national water policy.  In about 2008 the country hit the bottom.  Following the economic collapse with hyper-inflation, everything ground to a halt.   Wide spread unemployment meant that people could not pay their bills, local authorities had no revenue to provide basic services, infrastructure collapsed…  Without electricity water and sewage pumps don’t work, raw sewage is routed directly into rivers and dams from which drinking water is drawn, massive cholera and typhoid epidemics result…  And yet somehow the people continue, they have no other option.  Today, although the situation has not changed much, there is hope and a sense that the corner has been turned.  The resilience and energy of ordinary people on the streets and in the markets is inspiring.

Some images – Life goes on

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