Curly Hair

Italian man with Curly Hair
1/1000 sec | f/2.8 | ISO 200 | 70mm

A quick street portrait today of a man with curly hair. Taken with the Leica SL2-S with the Vario Elmarit F/2.8 24-70 ASPH. Jpg out of camera (taken with the Leica’s high contrast monochrome profile).

If you are looking for tips and inspirations around street photography, check out my free Learning Center

Have a great Friday

Marcus

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Dimitri

Camouflage

Camouflaged Peacock
Camouflage | Seville | 2023

A rainy day in Genoa gives me time to edit my photographs from our recent trip to Seville. I came across this one of the peacock already featured in this previous post. Not only shows this image the prefect camouflage its plumage provides to this magnificent bird in its natural habitat, rainforests. But the photo also demonstrates the things my eyes are constantly scanning for when roaming the streets. I’m always on the lookout for interesting combinations of light and shadows, colors and textures. I’m doing this also when I don’t even carry a camera (which practically never happens, as at least the iPhone and its camera is always with me). This is what I call my daily visual push-ups. In this photograph, it all comes together. Bringing home an image like this after a day of shooting gives me great satisfaction.

Taken with my Leica SL2-S with the Vario-Elmarit-SL 1:2.8/24-70 ASPH. Image specs are 1/400 sec @ f/8 and ISO 200, 70mm focal length. Post-processing (brightening up the shadows) in Lightroom Classic.

If you are looking for tips and inspirations to improve your photography, check out my free Learning Center.  

Have a great Wednesday

Marcus

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Hanging in there

Seville Explored – Setas de Sevilla

Setas de Sevilla
Setas de Sevilla | Seville | 2023

Seville explored – Setas de Sevilla (Mushrooms of Seville) is yet another post about a stunning architectural masterpiece located in the heart of Seville, Spain. Only this time, it is a rather modern structure. Also known as “Metropol Parasol”, it supposedly is the largest wooden structure in the world. Located at La Encarnación square in the old quarter of Seville, it was designed by the German architect Jürgen Mayer and completed in April 2011. For more about the Setas’ history and some more photographs, continue after the jump….

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Seville Explored – Plaza de España

Plaza de Espagne, Seville
Plaza de Espana | Seville | 2023

Seville explored – Plaza de España is a post about a stunning architectural masterpiece located in the heart of Seville, Spain. Built for the Ibero-American Exposition of 1929, the plaza is a fusion of Spanish Renaissance and Moorish architectural styles, designed by the architect Aníbal González. More than a thousand workers worked on its construction at the same time. Constructions began as early as 1924 and were completed by architect Vicente Traver in 1928, after Aníbal González resigned as the Exposition’s chief architect. For a mix of more color and monochrome photos, architectural and street shots continue after the jump…

Continue reading “Seville Explored – Plaza de España”

Tilted

Girl standing at a tilted red traffic light
Tilted | Genoa | 2023

For today’s post I selected a color street photograph, one I call “tilted”. I generally love black & white street photos. Colors can draw the viewer’s attention away from the main subject of the photo. Bright or contrasting colors can create a visual noise that detracts from the overall composition of the photograph. This can be especially true if the captured colors are not balanced or if they do not complement each other in a pleasing way.

In some cases, however, the use of color can be intentional and can enhance the overall impact of a street photograph. The photographer might use color to draw attention to a specific detail or element within the scene, or to create a particular mood or atmosphere.

The slightly irritated view of the girl noticing a a photographer pointing a Leica SL2-S at her face would have just as well worked in black & white. But I felt that the unusual, tilted position of the little figure in the red lamp of the pedestrian crossing traffic light needed color to work, to get noticed.

The key is to use color deliberately and thoughtfully, rather than allowing it to distract from the main subject or message of the photograph.

I took the photograph with my Leica SL2-S and the Vario-Elmarit-SL 1:2.8/24-70 ASPH. Image specs are 1/400 sec, f/4.5, ISO 3200 and 61mm focal lenght.

For more tips and inspirations around street photography check out my free Learning Center.

Wish you all a happy Tuesday

Marcus

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Little Smile

Little Smile
Little Smile | Capernaum | 2022

Going through some street photographs from earlier this year I noticed this image I took with my Leica SL2-S and the Vario-Elmarit-SL 1:2.8/24-70 ASPH just before the camera suffered a terminal shutter failure on the second day of my Israel trip. What is still clearly visible here is the incredible dynamic range of the Leica’s full frame sensor. I just love the soft tones on the face of the little girl, the triangular spot of light on her cheek. Given the fact that here is brightest sunlight in the background behind her face, it is amazing the sensor still captured these subtle details of that beautiful little smile.

Exif Data show 1/160 sec | f/4 | ISO 100 | 70mm. Black&White jpg out of camera.

If you are looking for some tips and inspirations around street photography, check out my free Learning Center

Have a great Saturday

Marcus

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The only one

Mean looking man with a helmet holding a motorcycle
Got a question? | Genoa | 2022

Yesterday afternoon I was roaming the streets of Genoa with camera in hand, while accompanying The Significant Other on some downtown shopping. I snapped quite a few images over a couple hours time. Only a few came out decent. And then there is the only one that I consider a real keeper. Not a good success rate. But I’m totally happy if I get one good photograph out of a photo walk. The only one.

Image taken with the Leica SL2-S and the Vario-Elmarit-SL 1:2.8/24-70 ASPH. RAW conversion into monochrome and some post processing (mainly cropping) done in Lightroom Classic.

If you are looking for some tips and inspirations around street photography, check out my free Learning Center

Have a great Saturday!

Marcus

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Night Vision Lens

Band playing in a pebble stone alley
1/125 sec | f/2 | ISO 6400 | 50mm

I still owe you the images from the second night of “Viggiona by Night”. Different bands, different street food. I wanted to shoot with a different lens, and put my night vision lens, the TTArtisan 50mm .95 prime “Nifty Fifty” to a real test. I attached the M-Mount lens via adapter to the L-Mount Leica SL2-S. I was really curious how the manual focus 0.95 China built lens would perform vs the Leica Vario Elmarit zoom I used the previous night in the same conditions. See the results below…

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Pasta King

Cook in front of a steaming pot of pasta
Pasta King | Viggiona | 2022

Just a snapshot from last night when I shot with my Leica SL2-S and the TTArtisan 50mm 0.95 prime lens. A photograph that works. The guy was cooking pasta at a street kitchen, and it was nearly midnight. He was a master (we tasted his delicious Bolognese when it was ready), a true Pasta King.

The Exif Data for this image read 1/1250 sec @ f/2 and ISO 3200. The file was so clean of noise that I introduced some noise in post production, when converting the RAW to monochrome. It was really pretty dark in the alley, but the TTArtisan 0.95 made it all come to live. Manual focusing with the marvellous electronic viewfinder of the Leica was a breeze.

Wish you all a great Sunday!

Marcus

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Viggiona by Night

Motion blurred people dancing in front of a band at night
0.3 sec | f/2.8 | ISO 200 | 24 mm

This weekend, The Significant Other and I headed to Italy’s Lago Maggiore to visit friends who are spending their summer vacation in Viggiona, a little village in the hills above the lake. This weekend, the normal pretty sleepy Viggiona is hosting its annual “Viggiona by Night” festival, where bands are playing, all different kinds of street food and drinks are offered and the little alleys are full of people having a great time. For me a great opportunity to once more enjoy the low light capabilities of the Leica SL2-S.

Continue reading “Viggiona by Night”

The Leica is back

Man refreshing in the heat at a fountain
1/1000 sec | f/4 | ISO 100 | 50mm

Finally an image in the familiar 3×2 full frame aspect ratio. The Leica is back. Fixed and cleaned. And I got a free new battery with it (100$ retail value). I’m not sure whether to laugh or cry. Probably both. Glad to have the camera back. Because the SL2-S can do things for me that my other cameras can’t do. Like shooting with manual M-Mount lenses with a 0.95 aperture. On the other hand I’m still disappointed by their service and handling of the matter, after my brand new Leica failed me 3 days into our Israel trip with a mechanical shutter defect. I picked it up yesterday and took it for a spin around the Old Town, shooting with the beautiful TTArtisan 50mm .95 lens.

Continue reading “The Leica is back”

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