A good start to a happy weekend! My photo essay under pen name 蓝天游 on Taipei's pretty bookstore VVG Something 好样本事《台北隐藏最美的书店》is published today! "VVG" stands for "Very Very Good". So happy to see it being featured nationwide in print! Special thanks to Lianhe Zaobao, you have made my day! Thank U so much 感谢 感恩 :)
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It was a perfect winter day. The day started beautifully with a blue sky and the sun kept me warm. I love this winter weather. Winter had relaxed its grasp on the Amsterdam city a little. There was a lack of snow in December last year, and wispy clouds raced along a blue sky. It was a fine day to go exploring. There’s nothing finer than a walk around an European city on a crispy, windy morning; things were quieter than the morning before, but the sun streamed in between the narrow houses, reflecting off calm canal waters.
The Dutch sky is well known for its beautiful clouds. The Dutch love their skies. Many famous and lesser known painters illustrated the spectacular views of the Dutch sky in their work. Personally I think that the real Dutch sky is to be seen on the fields, in the countryside (and with the obligatory windmill in the background, of course). But in the few winter days the Amsterdam sky can also be spectacular, not only for its clouds but also for its deep blue colour. These are a series of cityscape view of the canal of Amsterdam in winter with a blue sky, house boats and traditional old houses. 荷兰之旅首站,阿姆斯特丹,这里的蓝天白云给人印象深刻。这么多年我走过了很多地方,也看了许多地方的蓝天,但阿姆斯特丹的天是最蓝的,像是一块湛蓝色的绸缎布接在了地平线边。单看蓝天白云作为背景的这些照片就可知当时的天气有多好。冷冷的,却不失暖和的阳光。当我一进入荷兰阿姆斯特丹境内,蓝天白云真是美不胜收。我喜欢在这样的冬节看天空,看那蓝蓝的天,看悠闲的白云点缀天空。 My visit to The Netherlands was perfect. The Netherlands are nothing short of spectacular, everywhere you point your camera you get postcard quality shots. I loved every minute I spent in The Netherlands. Amsterdam has always been on my list of places to visit. I spent many days in the Amsterdam with trips to enjoy other lovely cities such as Haarlem, Utrect, The Hague (a.k.a. Den Haag) and Rotterdam. Amsterdam, the capital of the Netherlands, is a magical place. As a tourist, you’ll never have enough sightseeing, canals, and beautiful adventure that will help improve your experience. You should also try walking the streets and have a taste of the wonders of Dutch architecture. I wouldn’t say I’m a massive architecture buff, but I’ve always had a fascination with old buildings and their history, and my favourite thing to photograph is interesting structures, archways, and houses. Amsterdam, unsurprisingly, lends itself very well to this little hobby of mine. You can’t walk anywhere in the city without seeing a row of gorgeous houses, often leaning slightly forward, slightly left or right. I hope you fall in love with Amsterdam like I did!
I took many sepia photographs in The Netherlands and I really liked the results. The sepia tone seemed to "warm-up" the image, and change the mood for the better. Photographs can be thought of as tangible memories of the past, providing a lens to reminisce and revel in nostalgia. I’ve always felt like I’m traveling back in time whenever I see those warm, brown-tinted old pictures. I, personally, find that sepia can be a softer, more delicately muted medium than black and white, even in high contrast sepia images. I should mention that high contrast and low contrast sepia are far different from their counterparts in black and white photography. 阿姆斯特丹被称为欧洲北方的"威尼斯"。城里,是一圈一圈环绕着的运河,整个城市有一千多座大小桥梁。缺少水的城市,总是让人感觉缺少了一份灵气,而水的存在,同时也让阿姆斯特丹拥有了一种从容。这是一个平坦的没有坡度的城市,于是,河里的水总是平缓的流淌,远看,甚至感觉是静止。与威尼斯不同的也是,今天的阿姆斯特丹并没有过分沉溺于月光小夜曲的甜腻与往日时光,它的每一条街道,每一块砖瓦,无一不透露着古典与现代共生的气质。很难说清楚,阿姆斯特丹到底是岁月静好的小城,还是纸醉金迷的华丽都城,它就像一颗被精心打磨过的钻石,瑰丽,并且多面。它是一个谜一般迷人的多面体。 阿姆斯特丹就是这样一座复杂的城市,它像谜一般令人困惑。时而它是个浪漫雅致的文化中心,时而它又是一个光怪陆离的后现代都市,你可以说它自由而包容,也可以说它放纵无度。这恰恰是其魅力所在。鲜有城市能将这么多截然不同的气质融合得如此恰到好处,而阿姆斯特丹正是这样的一座。 不少人都喜欢拍摄单色 (monochrome) 的照片,而通常也是指“黑白色”,但也有人会喜欢上图这种棕褐色 / 深褐色调 (sepia tone)。我用了棕褐色拍摄这系列的照片,因为它带有一种怀旧、温暖的感觉,也有一份历史的味道。 |
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