Gadling + BootsnAll – Picks of the Week (4.3.09)

by Jeremy Kressmann on

Another Friday is upon us, and we’re back with another round of weekly picks from our friends at BootsnAll, the independent travel experts. What strange stories, great lists and secret travel tips caught our eye? Take a look below and find out:

  • ABC’s of Study Abroad – spending a semester abroad has become an increasingly popular option for university students in recent years. Aaron Shew gives us a rundown of great tips on the whole process, covering everything from why to do it, where to go and how to make it work for you. If you’ve ever thought about studying abroad, here’s where you can take that first step!
  • Secret Wine Country – European regions like Bordeaux and Tuscany are synonymous with vineyards, tastings and great wine. But did you ever think to try a few bottles in the Ukraine? Or in Hungary? Eileen Smith fills us in on six unexpected Eastern European hotspots where you can try a few unique vintages.
  • Cave Culture – the first reaction of most people to word “cave” is not great. Pitch black spaces, flying bats and freezing cold water all suggest caves are not particularly great places to hang out. But as Deanna Hyland points out, caves are actually fascinating places to visit, filled with amazing rock formations, unique human history and fascinating wildlife. Take a look at her list of 12 Exciting Caves to Explore around the world.

That’s all for now – see you again next Friday for another installment of our ongoing Picks of the Week series. Stay tuned.

Are We in a Golden Age of Green Travel?

by Kraig Becker on

Clearly the entire travel industry has been undergoing some dramatic changes over the past few years. There was a time when the thought of “green” travel was relegated to a relatively small, niche market that included some eco-conscious tour operators. But in the past few years there has been an inceased effort to be more green in all area of our lives thanks to an increased awareness of global climate change and a focus on limiting our impact on the environment in general.

This increased awareness and focus within the travel sector has resulted in more energy efficient modes of transportation, the rise of sustainable tourism efforts across the globe, and better environmental policies from many nations. All of this has prompted National Geographic Adventure to ask “Is This a Golden Age of Green Travel?”

Adventure cites an action plan from the World Tourism and Travel Council that offers ten ways to combat climate change and the fact that four major international airlines have begun testing jets that use bio-fuels. They also point to the fact that Marriott Hotels is leading the charge to protect a 1.4 million acre section of the Amazon Jungle.

As further examples of the green movement, the magazine offers up five great eco-lodges, on five different continents, that are all leading the way in sustainable tourism and caring for the Earth. Places like the Black Sheep Inn in Ecuador and the Odd-Balls Camp in Botswana, who are making it easier for us to visit exotic places, while leaving a minimal impact.

Through the Gadling Lens: adding some oomph to your landscape shots

by Karen Walrond on

I was recently talking to a friend of mine, and he was lamenting the fact that his landscape photographs seemed a bit “boring.” “I look at all these other landscapes in the Gadling flickr pool,” he said, “and they’re so much more exciting than mine. What can I do to make my shots more compelling?”

To be honest, of all my photography, I struggle with making my landscapes interesting more than any other — shooting people is easy, I think. It’s really good scenery that’s difficult. And so I thought I’d go through some of the amazing landscape photographs in our Flickr pool, and point out some of their aspects that make them compelling. With some luck, some of the observations will help catapult us all into become the Ansel Adams-quality photographers we all can be.
1. Shoot with a relatively wide angle lens.

First things first: make sure that you’re using the right lens. As you probably remember, we discussed the various types of lens for various types of photography before — and the upshot is that if you’re shooting a landscape, you need a lens with a smaller focal length, rather than one with a larger focal length. For most landscape photography, I would choose a lens of, say 50mm or less. If you choose one much larger — say 100 mm — you’ll likely be disappointed how much of the scenery the lens crops out of the resulting image (although that type of lens is fabulous for portrait photography).

2. Consider focusing on the foreground.

Like many of you, I’m sure, when I’m taking a photograph of a landscape, I tend to focus on the horizon, figuring that it makes the most sense: “looking out there,” after all, tends to be what we do when we take in beautiful scenery.

However.

In looking through the Gadling photo pool, I’ve noticed that there are some photographers who, when taking their amazing shots, focus instead on the foreground, rather than the horizon. And as I think about it, this seems completely logical: after all, when we look out at a vista, our eyes naturally see all of the details closer to us, and what’s farther away isn’t as detailed. Why didn’t I think of this?

The following are some great examples of what I mean:

The two photographs, above, were shared by arex and shot in the San Francisco Bay area (as is likely obvious by the iconic Golden Gate Bridge in the background of the second image). Notice how, in addition to using a wide angle lens, arex focused on the details in the foreground: the foam of the advancing wave in the first picture, and the bubbles of the retreating wave in the second? By focusing in the foreground, arex added a wonderful depth to the image, which conveys how beautifully vast the vista was. If, instead, arex had focused on the horizon, I don’t think the image would’ve been nearly as impactful.

3. Add people to the foreground, to help emphasize scale.

Sometimes, when you take a shot of a beautiful vista, it can be difficult to really communicate how vast the scenery is, or how massive the mountain, or how expansive the ocean. One great way to express the impressive nature of your shot is to place someone in the foreground for the purpose of scale.

Here’s what I mean:

See how the figures in the foregrounds of each of the images shared by jlaceda and Buck Forester, above, show the scale of the scenery behind them? I love how huge the view looks behind the person in the first image, and I really love how the figure in the second image has his back to the camera, and indicates toward the view: this sort of stance helps direct your focus, rather than compete with your attention as it would have had he faced forward. Beautiful work, both.

4. Consider using a novelty lens.

Novelty lenses can be considered more of an extravagance than a necessity; however, they can add wonderful dimension to a landscape shop. I’m a fan of the Lensbaby, a series of lenses designed for SLR cameras that can help you “selectively focus” on certain aspects of your image, leaving the remaining images deliciously out-of-focus. Here’s are a couple of great examples:

Both of the above images were shot and shared by ashcrowe, using a Lensbaby lens. Notice how there is a portion of each image that is in sharp focus (known as the “sweet spot”), while the rest of the surrounding portions of the image increasingly blur? The result is a lovely nostalgic effect, which plays beautifully to the antique subjects of the photographs, and makes for a compelling landscape photograph. Great work.

4. And finally, don’t underestimate the power of Photoshop.

Or, for that matter, any post-camera processing software. I’ve discussed before how I believe that post-camera processing is a tool for conveying exactly what the photographer was experiencing at the time of the shot, and I really believe that this sentiment is never more true as in the realm of landscape photography. In fact, when it comes to landscapes, I’m far more likely to really go to town in using photoshop, because it helps convey exactly the type of mood I was in, or the emotions I was feeling at the time of the shot. And the following are wonderful examples of exactly what I’m talking about:

The really fabulous shot shared by crafterm in Tasmania, Australia is made only more stunning by his processing treatment post-camera. The boat sitting on the still water is quite old, and as crafterm says, “I’m sure it could tell quite a few stories judging its age and use.” He further makes his point by treating the photograph in a sepia tone — as a viewer, the image looks very vintage and classic, as well.

And finally, I really love the image above shared by B
ryn Tassell of the coastline on Vancouver Island. The photoshop treatment makes the entire scene other-worldly, not to mention conveys the absolute stillness of the water at the time of sunset. An absolutely amazing image.

Hopefully you find the handful of tips above useful in keeping at the back of your mind next time you’re out on your intrepid travels, and are capturing images of the stunning scenery. If you have any additional tips or images to share, please do so in the comments below. And as always, if you have any questions, feel free to send them directly to me at karenDOTwalrondATweblogsincDOTcom. I’m always happy to answer them here on Through the Gadling Lens.

Karen is a writer and photographer in Houston, Texas. You can see more of her work at her site, Chookooloonks.
Through the Gadling Lens can be found every Thursday right here, at 11 a.m. To read more, click here.

Spring painting for the Eiffel Tower: It takes gallons

by Jamie Rhein on

Every 7 years the Eiffel Tower is painted by hand. Although this icon attracts people by the droves to Paris and prompts folks like Tom Cruise to use it as a romantic backdrop for a marriage proposal, the Parisians don’t have much to do with painting it.

Actually, they don’t have anything to do with it, but probably do what they can to avoid getting paint dropped or splattered on them when they pass by.

This year, Romanians and Greeks will wield hand-held, small circular brushes to coat every bit of it with fresh paint. The specialized paint called “Eiffel Tower brown” is Norwegian.

Although the paint color has varied over the years, the painting method has remained the same ever since 1889. The color has stayed brown, however, since 1968 when it was decided that particular color works best with the skyline in Paris.

The statistics for this paint job are impressive.

According to the AP article, twenty-five people will use 66 tons of paint, 35 miles of climbing rope, and 18 months to do the job.

I’d say that the people who will be doing the painting will have an excellent view of Paris from the top as long as they don’t look down.

Canada and France face-off, and a tiny territory is caught in the middle

by Jeffrey White on

Here’s a place you’ve probably never heard of: St.-Pierre-Miquelon, the last vestige of France’s former colonies in North America. It’s a tiny archipelago with about 6,000 residents off the coast of Newfoundland, and it still belongs to France.

The question is whether you’ll soon be hearing more about this place?

St.-Pierre-Miquelon is in a row with Canada over territory’s desire to extend its claim on a small patch of petroleum grounds on the continental shelf off Easter Canada. Paris, which essentially runs St.-Pierre-Miquelon from afar, recently petitioned the United Nations and signaled its intention to extend French rights to petroleum and fishing resources on the shelf, according to Canada’s National Post.

Canada rejoined that it would fight any such extension.

And so, St.-Pierre-Miquelon is stuck in the middle. The locals, who have just as much connection to Canada as they do to France, want to turn to petroleum because, hey, it pays the bills, especially as the Atlantic cod industry has collapsed. That used to make the place lively and wealthy. Now, it needs to follow the way of its larger neighbors like Newfoundland and try to get at that oil.

I’ve also maintained a fascination with Canada’s maritime provinces but sadly have never traveled to them. Guess I should get up to them soon, before a war breaks out…