I’m just back from holiday and struggling, as I always do after a good break, to find my work rhythm again.
My holiday was in Greece, starting in Athens and then travelling to the island of Naxos, followed by Santorini. As always, when travelling, I took a small Micro 43 camera to capture interesting scenes. During this holiday, I also used my iPhone much more, which proved invaluable, but I will talk more about that in a future post.
I’m mentioning all this because I had an important realisation when I shot this next image of the Parthenon in Athens.
What struck me was how few people were taking photographs of the side where all the scaffolding was visible. Instead, everyone was around the other side where the scaffolding had been removed.
But then another thought struck me: the scaffolding was only temporary. It will be removed at some point in the future and probably won’t be back for a long time. This needed to be documented as a moment in history, just like the excavation of the pyramids or the building of the Golden Gate Bridge.
But that wasn’t the end of my thinking.
I returned home wondering about other historical renovations that I’ve photographed in the past. That’s when I found an image I shot in Italy, where the Cathedral di Pisa was undergoing restoration to the dome. And that led me to wonder if I could combine artistic editing techniques to produce a photo with more of a fine art feel.
Here’s the result.
I like this initial attempt, and this is something that I may do more of in the future. It’s made me realise that I need to document the restorations of historic monuments rather than avoid them.
I hope you like the photos and have a great weekend.
The Lightweight Photographer 
A good idea – in fact why not take a few views? I particularly liked the Pisa shot. So, so different. Well seen. Bill Stace
Thanks Bill, I’m glad you like the photo. I hope to have a few more of these in the future. I think we are in the age of renovation. Every landmark seems to be undergoing major renovation, and it’s a good opportunity to document it if we change our perspective.
I went to New York a few years ago and was disappointed to find the Flatir
were you going to say “Flatiron building covered in scaffolding”? I hipe you got some photos. That won’t happen often.
I do like your photo, though generally I am not keen on very sharp photos. Whilst they are good for a record, which is what you wanted.
I find them unrealistic. people just can see that clearly. And don’t get me started on HDR.
Good one.
I forgot to say, it looks like a really good pencil drawing.
I’m glad you added this. That was something I liked about the processing. Not sure I can repeat it though.
gorgeous photo. I am in Rome at the moment so your newsletter was very timely. Seems like scaffolding is everywhere. Will take a leaf out of your book and shoot for B&W.
Fantastic. Have a wonderful time and don’t let the scaffolding put you off taking photos.
If you bump into two American ladies (Phyllis and Jane) say hi from me. You’ll know if you meet them. They stand out in a crowd (in a good way).