Monthly Archives: February 2018

Places

Images from historic churches and monasteries in Bucovina and Moldova

In August of 2*** (regular readers will know the year 😁), we took a tour of the historic churches and monasteries in the provinces of Moldova and Bucovina (within the territory of Romania).

A clarification is in order here. When people hear Moldova they automatically think about the Republic of Moldova, which used to be part of the Romanian province of Moldova but was taken by the Russians in 1940. That whole region has a fairly tumultuous history which you can read here. Just keep in mind these photographs were taken within the current-day borders of Romania and yes, there are two provinces called Bucovina and Moldova in Romania. I’ve lost track of how many times people have tried to correct me on this, all of them foreigners…

romania-historical-provinces

I could have published individual posts of each place but that would have been tedious for me (and for you too). I know it was tedious for me when we visited these places, one after another, day after day, dealing with heat, huge crowds and the hospitality industry (you know, the three Hs of travel; they add together to form a fourth H which is a four-letter word)… but we had made a plan and we stuck to it. Romanians in general tend to make trips to these places yearly for religious reasons. We visited these places because of their historical and architectural value, so while we were there we saw as many as we could in the time we had allotted ourselves.

In this gallery of photographs (there are 134 of them), you will see images from the following places:

  • The wooden church in Șurdești (Maramureș), a UNESCO monument and also the highest wooden church in the world
  • Moldovița Monastery
  • Sucevița Monastery
  • Chilia lui Daniil Sihastrul
  • Putna Monastery
  • “Dragoș Vodă” wooden church
  • Voroneț Monastery, famous for the blue used in its exterior murals, called Voroneț Blue
  • Humorul Monastery
  • Arbore Church
  • Dragomirna Monastery
  • Agapia Monastery
  • Văratec Monastery
  • Neamț Monastery
  • Secu Monastery
  • Sihăstria Monastery

Since I arranged the photos in chronological order, you’ll see them just as they’re listed above. You’ll probably want to know which was my favorite place. Dragomirna Monastery, definitely! Enjoy the gallery and thanks for being a subscriber!

Biserica de Lemn “Sfintii Arhangheli Mihail si Gavriil”, Surdesti, Romania, a UNESCO monument
Biserica de Lemn “Sfintii Arhangheli Mihail si Gavriil”, Surdesti, Romania — the tallest wooden church in the world.
Biserica de Lemn “Sfintii Arhangheli Mihail si Gavriil”, Surdesti, Romania — the tallest wooden church in the world.
Biserica de Lemn “Sfintii Arhangheli Mihail si Gavriil”, Surdesti, Romania — the tallest wooden church in the world.
Biserica de Lemn “Sfintii Arhangheli Mihail si Gavriil”, Surdesti, Romania — the tallest wooden church in the world.
Crossing the Carpathian Mountains in the province of Maramures, Romania
Main gate, Manastirea Moldovita, Bucovina, Romania.
Interior courtyard, Manastirea Moldovita, Bucovina, Romania.
Church, Manastirea Moldovita, Bucovina, Romania.
Interior courtyard, Manastirea Moldovita, Bucovina, Romania.
Church, Manastirea Moldovita, Bucovina, Romania.
Interior courtyard, Manastirea Moldovita, Bucovina, Romania.
Lovely stone architecture, Manastirea Moldovita, Bucovina, Romania.
Interior courtyard, Manastirea Moldovita, Bucovina, Romania.
Cloisters, Manastirea Moldovita, Bucovina, Romania.
Church, Manastirea Moldovita, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Moldovita, Bucovina, Romania.
Interior courtyard, Manastirea Moldovita, Bucovina, Romania.
Flowers at the cloisters, Manastirea Moldovita, Bucovina, Romania.
Church, Manastirea Moldovita, Bucovina, Romania.
Church, Manastirea Moldovita, Bucovina, Romania.
Interior courtyard, Manastirea Moldovita, Bucovina, Romania.
Church, Manastirea Moldovita, Bucovina, Romania.
Main gate, interior courtyard, Manastirea Moldovita, Bucovina, Romania.
Entrance to Manastirea Sucevita, Bucovina, Romania.
Stairway to cloisters, Manastirea Sucevita, Bucovina, Romania.
Interior courtyard, church, Manastirea Sucevita, Bucovina, Romania.
Interior courtyard, garden, Manastirea Sucevita, Bucovina, Romania.
Interior courtyard, Manastirea Sucevita, Bucovina, Romania.
Defense wall, cloisters, Manastirea Sucevita, Bucovina, Romania.
Interior courtyard, defense walls, cloisters and church, Manastirea Sucevita, Bucovina, Romania.
Defense wall and cloisters, Manastirea Sucevita, Bucovina, Romania.
Church and interior courtyard, Manastirea Sucevita, Bucovina, Romania.
Church, Manastirea Sucevita, Bucovina, Romania.
Church and interior courtyard, Manastirea Sucevita, Bucovina, Romania.
Interior courtyard, Manastirea Sucevita, Bucovina, Romania.
Cloisters, Manastirea Sucevita, Bucovina, Romania.
Cloisters, Manastirea Sucevita, Bucovina, Romania.
Interior courtyard, Manastirea Sucevita, Bucovina, Romania.
Interior courtyard, Manastirea Sucevita, Bucovina, Romania.
Church exterior, Manastirea Sucevita, Bucovina, Romania.
Langa Chilia lui Daniil Sihastrul, Bucovina, Romania
Langa Chilia lui Daniil Sihastrul, Bucovina, Romania
Bucovina, Romania
Manastirea Putna, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Putna, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Putna, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Putna, Bucovina, Romania
Manastirea Putna, Bucovina, Romania
Manastirea Putna, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Putna, Bucovina, Romania
Cloisters, Manastirea Putna, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Putna, Bucovina, Romania.
Biserica de Lemn “Dragos Voda”, Bucovina, Romania.
Biserica de Lemn “Dragos Voda”, Bucovina, Romania.
Biserica de Lemn “Dragos Voda”, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Voronet, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Voronet, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Voronet, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Voronet, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Voronet, Bucovina, Romania.
Interior courtyard, Manastirea Humorul, Bucovina, Romania.
Late afternoon, Manastirea Humorul, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Humorul, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Humorul, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Humorul, Bucovina, Romania
Manastirea Humorul, Bucovina, Romania
Manastirea Humorul, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Humorul, Bucovina, Romania
Manastirea Humorul, Bucovina, Romania
Historic district, Mediaș, Romania
Manastirea Humorul, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Humorul, Bucovina, Romania.
Biserica Arbore, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Arbore, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Arbore, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Arbore, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Arbore, Bucovina, Romania
Manastirea Arbore, Bucovina, Romania
Manastirea Arbore, Bucovina, Romania
Manastirea Arbore, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Arbore, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Arbore, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Dragomirna, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Dragomirna, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Dragomirna, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Dragomirna, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Dragomirna, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Dragomirna, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Dragomirna, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Dragomirna, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Dragomirna, Bucovina, Romania
Manastirea Dragomirna, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Dragomirna, Bucovina, Romania
Manastirea Dragomirna, Bucovina, Romania. Ligia enters the fortified walls by one of the doorways.
Manastirea Dragomirna, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Dragomirna, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Dragomirna, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Dragomirna, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Dragomirna, Bucovina, Romania
Manastirea Dragomirna, Bucovina, Romania
Outside the fortified walls, Manastirea Dragomirna, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Dragomirna, Bucovina, Romania
Manastirea Dragomirna, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Dragomirna, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Dragomirna, Bucovina, Romania
Manastirea Dragomirna, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Dragomirna, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Agapia, Romania.
Cloisters, Manastirea Agapia, Romania
Manastirea Agapia, Romania
Manastirea Agapia, Romania
Manastirea Agapia, Romania
Manastirea Agapia, Romania
Manastirea Varatec, Romania.
Manastirea Varatec, Romania.
Ceiling murals, Manastirea Varatec, Romania.
Manastirea Neamt, Romania
Manastirea Neamt, Romania
Manastirea Neamt, Romania
Inside the cloisters, Manastirea Neamt, Moldova, Romania.
Interior courtyard, Manastirea Neamt, Bucovina, Romania
Manastirea Neamt, Romania
Manastirea Neamt, Romania
Inside the ossuary, Manastirea Neamt, Moldova, Romania.
Manastirea Secu, Moldova, Romania.
Interior courtyard, Manastirea Secu, Moldova, Romania.
Manastirea Sihastria, Moldova, Romania
Manastirea Sihastria, Moldova, Romania
Cloisters, Manastirea Sihastria, Moldova, Romania.
Manastirea Sihastria, Moldova, Romania
Manastirea Sihastria, Moldova, Romania.
Manastirea Sihastria, Moldova, Romania

I kept things simple in terms of photo gear for this trip, because there were four of us in the car and I knew I’d have to deal with the 3Hs of travel I mentioned above. I shot mainly with my Canon EOS 5D and the EF 24-105mm f/4L lens. My backup camera was the Canon PowerShot G10.

Canon EOS 5D (front)

Canon EOS 5D

Canon EF 24-105mm f4L IS USM Lens

Canon EF 24-105mm f4L IS USM Lens

Canon PowerShot G10

Canon PowerShot G10

Standard
Places

A walk through Sibiu’s historical center

These are a few photographs (only 13 this time 😁) taken during a walk through Sibiu’s historical center nine years ago (yes, 2009). If you’re wondering why I keep publishing photos from that year, it’s because I’m finally taking care of my editing backlog. Wait, Raoul, are you saying you’re nine years behind on editing your photos? Ahem… most of my photos, yes. When you take lots of photos, that’s what happens 🤷‍♂️.

Anyway, these photos were taken with my cellphone at the time, the now-venerable Nokia N95 which had a 5 megapixel camera. It was pretty good by the standards of its time and is woefully behind the times now, not necessarily in megapixels but in dynamic range and image quality. Still, it did okay in daylight.

Enjoy the photos!

Historic district, Sibiu, Romania
Sibiu, Romania
Sibiu, Romania
Sibiu, Romania
Sibiu, Romania
Historic district, Sibiu, Romania
Sibiu, Romania

And here is the grandfather of many of today’s cellphone cameras:

Nokia N95-1

Standard
Places

Around the town in 2009

This is a gallery of photographs taken in and around Medias in the summer of 2009 (68 photos in total). As I look back on these photos, it’s interesting to see how the town has changed and stayed the same during this time. It’s definitely changed since 2006, when I took these other photos. Enjoy!

Inside the medieval city walls, Medias, Romania
Medias, Romania
Margarethenkirche, Medias, Romania
OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA
Medias, Romania
Relics from communist times, Medias, Romania
An older apartment building on a bright summer day, Medias, Romania.
Historic district, Medias, Romania
Medias, Romania
Houses and villas from the city of Medias, Romania, on a bright summer day.
Medias, Romania
One of the towers marking an old medieval entrance to the fortified part of the city of Medias, Romania.
Medias Medieval Festival
Dusk, a watch tower at the Roth school, Medias, Romania.
A cityscape of the city of Medias, Romania, showing some of the city’s apartment buildings.
Medias Medieval Festival
Historic district, Medias, Romania
Historic district, Medias, Romania
A distant hillside visible from inside the historic city center in Medias, Romania. The rooftop of one of the old German houses is visible in the foreground.
Historic district, Medias, Romania
Walking in the city of Medias, Romania, on a clear summer evening. The city’s main clock tower is visible above the rooflines of the buildings in the foreground.
Medias, Romania
Medias, Romania
Margarethenkirche, Medias, Romania
Houses and villas from the city of Medias, Romania, on a bright summer day.
Medias, Romania
A man walks down a street in the historic city center, Medias, Romania.
Medias, Romania
Medias, Romania
Historic district, Medias, Romania
Historic district, Medias, Romania
Inside Margarethenkirche, Medias, Romania
Historic district, Medias, Romania
Margarethenkirche, Medias, Romania
Doesn’t this fellow look like the mutt from “Lady and the Tramp”?
Historic district, Medias, Romania
Medias, Romania
Walking in the city of Medias, Romania, on a clear summer night. The city’s main clock tower is visible above the rooflines of the buildings in the foreground.
Historic district, Medias, Romania
Historic district, Medias, Romania
Historic district, Medias, Romania
Old brick chimneys on the roof of one of the old houses in the historic city center, Medias, Romania.
Medias, Romania
The towers of the medieval city of Medias, Romania are visible in the distance on a bright summer day. Houses and villas from downtown can also be seen.
Historic district, Medias, Romania
A cityscape of the city of Medias, Romania, showing the older, medieval buildings of the city. The clocktower is indeed leaning.
Historic district, Medias, Romania
Medias, Romania

I used the following cameras and lenses to take these photographs: an Olympus C770 UZ, a Nokia N95 (my mobile phone at the time), a Canon EOS 5D, a Canon EOS Rebel XTi, a Canon PowerShot G10, a Canon EF 24-105mm f/4L IS lens and a Canon EF 50mm f/1.4 lens.

Olympus Camedia C-770 UZ

Olympus Camedia C-770 UltraZoom

Nokia N95-1

Nokia N95

Canon EOS 5D (front)

Canon EOS 5D

Canon EOS Rebel XTi

Canon EOS Rebel XTi

Canon PowerShot G10 Front

Canon PowerShot G10

Canon EF 24-105mm f4L IS USM Lens

Canon EF 24-105mm f4L IS USM Lens

Canon EF 50mm f1.4 USM Lens

Canon EF 50mm f1.4 USM Lens

 

Standard
Places

Blue hour and snowfall!

This past Sunday morning, I woke up to a beautiful snowfall and luckily for me, about 10 minutes before the blue hour (which actually lasts less than an hour). I tiptoed down the stairs so I wouldn’t wake up my wife and child, put some clothes and shoes on, and because it was snowing heavily, I took my Canon 7D (my only weather-sealed camera), along with the 10-22mm EF-S lens (which is also weather-sealed). I wanted an ultra-wide perspective to the photos and also the ability to shoot without a tripod at low shutter speeds. An ultra-wide lens lets you do that because of the “reciprocal rule”: as long as the shutter speed matches the focal length, you should get a good photo (provided you have steady hands). A 10-22mm lens would let me use shutter speeds as low as 1/10th of a second, which is just what I did on some of the photos. Enjoy the gallery!

Taken during a mid-February snowfall in Medias, Romania
Taken during a mid-February snowfall in Medias, Romania
Taken during a mid-February snowfall in Medias, Romania
Taken during a mid-February snowfall in Medias, Romania
Taken during a mid-February snowfall in Medias, Romania
Taken during a mid-February snowfall in Medias, Romania
Taken during a mid-February snowfall in Medias, Romania
Taken during a mid-February snowfall in Medias, Romania
Taken during a mid-February snowfall in Medias, Romania
Taken during a mid-February snowfall in Medias, Romania
Taken during a mid-February snowfall in Medias, Romania
Taken during a mid-February snowfall in Medias, Romania
Taken during a mid-February snowfall in Medias, Romania
Taken during a mid-February snowfall in Medias, Romania
Taken during a mid-February snowfall in Medias, Romania
Taken during a mid-February snowfall in Medias, Romania
Taken during a mid-February snowfall in Medias, Romania
Taken during a mid-February snowfall in Medias, Romania
Taken during a mid-February snowfall in Medias, Romania
Taken during a mid-February snowfall in Medias, Romania
Taken during a mid-February snowfall in Medias, Romania
Taken during a mid-February snowfall in Medias, Romania
Taken during a mid-February snowfall in Medias, Romania
Taken during a mid-February snowfall in Medias, Romania
Taken during a mid-February snowfall in Medias, Romania
Taken during a mid-February snowfall in Medias, Romania
Taken during a mid-February snowfall in Medias, Romania
Taken during a mid-February snowfall in Medias, Romania
Taken during a mid-February snowfall in Medias, Romania
Taken during a mid-February snowfall in Medias, Romania
Taken during a mid-February snowfall in Medias, Romania
Taken during a mid-February snowfall in Medias, Romania
Taken during a mid-February snowfall in Medias, Romania
Taken during a mid-February snowfall in Medias, Romania
Taken during a mid-February snowfall in Medias, Romania
Taken during a mid-February snowfall in Medias, Romania
Taken during a mid-February snowfall in Medias, Romania
Taken during a mid-February snowfall in Medias, Romania
Taken during a mid-February snowfall in Medias, Romania
Taken during a mid-February snowfall in Medias, Romania
Taken during a mid-February snowfall in Medias, Romania
Taken during a mid-February snowfall in Medias, Romania
Taken during a mid-February snowfall in Medias, Romania
Taken during a mid-February snowfall in Medias, Romania
Taken during a mid-February snowfall in Medias, Romania
Taken during a mid-February snowfall in Medias, Romania
Taken during a mid-February snowfall in Medias, Romania
Taken during a mid-February snowfall in Medias, Romania
Taken during a mid-February snowfall in Medias, Romania
Taken during a mid-February snowfall in Medias, Romania
Taken during a mid-February snowfall in Medias, Romania

For those of you who love looking at camera gear (I know I do), here is a photo of the camera and lens I used.

Canon EOS 7D

Canon EOS 7D

Canon EF-S 10-22mm f:3.5-4.5 Lens

Canon EF-S 10-22mm f:3.5-4.5 Lens

Standard
A Guide To A Good Life, How To

How to choose a camera that’s right for you

In this video, I’m going to walk you through a process that will help you choose the right camera for your needs; it’s the same process I use myself as I choose new photo and video gear. Here are the decision-making steps I talk about in the video:

  1. Love what you already have
  2. Learn to use your equipment properly
  3. Don’t stress out about resolution (megapixels)
  4. Don’t get on a tech merry-go-round
  5. You don’t need UHD (4k video) just yet
  6. Be wary of “filler resolution”
  7. Separate the “nice to have” from the “must have”
  8. Get separate photo and video gear in order to obtain the best quality images and video

I hope this helps you!

Released 17-02-2018

It may seem like what I say in this video about camera resolution and about separating the equipment you purchase for photograph and video is contradicting what I say in this post, or in this post, but it isn’t that. I’ve done a lot of research and I’ve given this topic a lot of thought, and I’ve simply become more nuanced in my understanding of many aspects of digital cameras; when I sat down and thought about what kind of advice I wanted to give in this video, the statements I made above rang truest.

Thanks for watching!

Standard