It's been wet. It's been really wet, mild, windy, occasionally cold, but mostly just wet. We are not supposed to have a monsoon season in the UK, but this January was very like one - albeit cooler. All that dampness condenses on glass and makes for interesting opportunities for image making. A new glass bus stop has... Continue Reading →
It's that time of year when we reflect on the past and turn to face the future with a sense of newness. Hopefully, if you have a mindfulness meditation practice, that sense of newness will creep into every moment - after all isn't each moment absolutely and totally brand spanking new? At the turn of... Continue Reading →
It was my interest in "street photography" that caused me to pick up a stills camera again five years ago after a twenty year hiatus from taking photographs (in the 80's and 90's it was how I made a living - but that's another story). Even in a place as picturesque as Venice I can't pass... Continue Reading →
Sooner or later I will come to the end of my prolific week spent in Venice but for now the photos keep on coming. I'm gratified by the number of half decent pictures I came back with despite walking with crutches due to my disability. Just goes to show that you don't have to trudge ten miles a day searching for... Continue Reading →
My last post showed just how crowded Venice can get. Amazingly, it seems that most visitors don't move very far from St Mark's Square, so it's actually easy to reclaim some personal space by taking a short walk or water bus ride away from the area. Venice is famous for beautifully crafted glassware. The most famous (and... Continue Reading →
Photographs taken with an Olympus OMD EM1 and 12-40mm f2.8 or Olympus OMD EM5 with Panasonic 35-100mm f2.8 - In my opinion the perfect mirrorless travel photography kit. All photographs © all rights reserved, Miles Pilling
All photographs © all rights reserved Miles Pilling In Venice you cannot avoid gondolas. They are one of those "got to do" things for a lot of visitors. Personally, we made the decision to spend our hard earned money on nice Italian food and water bus fares to parts of the lagoon further away from Basilica di... Continue Reading →
Each of these pictures were taken near Venice's Lido water bus stop on the way to the beach. It was a wonderful surprise to find that Venice can be a sunbathing and sea swimming holiday. The beach was beautiful. As we relaxed, ordinary Venetians carried on their working lives. I like the similarities and the differences of these two pictures of... Continue Reading →
I didn't literally "pap" these newly weds, but I couldn't sit by and let them have their wedding pictures taken in such a beautiful location without grabbing some candids myself! (Click on the images to see them in higher resolution) Heavy full frame camera gear there - I wonder if he's considered going mirrorless? If you've seen... Continue Reading →
Another image captured at German artist Heinz Mack’s The Sky Over Nine Columns in Venice. It was a beautiful day with warm light reflecting off the gold of the Nine Columns and the blue sky was doing its thing - over the nine columns 😉 This cream suited man and his dog brought Graham Greene novels to... Continue Reading →
A friend recently told me, with a bit of sadness, that she found the streets of Venice were not garlanded with colourful washing anymore. I may have been lucky, but just a few water bus stops away from the main tourist spots we found areas where the washing lines were works of art. . I spent a very enjoyable hour in... Continue Reading →
(Click on the image to see it bigger) Even at the height of the tourist season, when we were in Venice, it was still possible to spot native Venetians amongst the thousands of non-Italians. There are also bars and cafés away from Piazza St Marco where you can pick up a more authentic Venetian vibe.... Continue Reading →
The sales people for the Olympus camera I was using in Venice make a big deal about its weather sealing. I'm always cynical about marketing claims, so when I found myself by the Ospedale Civile and as Italians (apparently) say it started "piove da morire" (raining to death), I gave this claim a real world test. These are a couple of the... Continue Reading →
mindful photos 