Specifications
(Above) This panorama was created from a set of four shots that I took with a tripod. I was amazed how easy it is to generate panoramas automatically from a set of photos with Photoshop. I had to edit the photo a little after Photoshop did its magic but that wasn't too difficult. Panoramas are definitely something I would consider taking to add variety to my collection.
(Above) I guess it's quite typical to place boats in the foreground when taking shot of lakes, rivers, beaches and so forth. Nonetheless, it works well. I had to boost saturation and fill light quite a bit in post-processing to accentuate the colors of the boats.
(Above) I took this on the way back from Walchensee. I got as close to the water as I could and used the rocks as the foreground for this shot. The water there is extremely clean. You could drink it - I did.
(Above) A house on stilts typically used to store boats. I guess you could have a little "beach party" in there too. I got down very low to take this shot - my camera was only a few inches above the platform. I used the platform as a leading line into the picture. I boosted saturation a little to enhance that gold-ish tone just below the roof.
(Above) This shot is similar to the one above. It's a different house though and I used the rail as a leading line instead.
(Above) Kochelsee with the Alps in the background. I got as close to the water as possible and composed the shot with some rocks in the foreground to add more depth to it. I increased saturation in post-processing to make the elements stand out more (it was pretty flat before that).
(Above) On the way up to Walchensee, there was a small rest spot with an excellent view of Kochelsee. We decided to get down and take some shots. Kochelsee is about 600m above sea level whereas Walchensee is about 800m. This is one of the two shots I took.
Hope you liked them. Let me know what you think.
At the other end of Kaufingerstrasse is a gate known as Karlstor, which is shown in the first picture in this photo blog post (above). For this photo, I set my tripod very low and found a spot where the sun was hidden behind the buildings. I did this to ensure that I had an overall well-exposed photo without flare and too many blown out spots.
The second picture in this photo blog post (above) is also of Karlstor. It's a different shot from the first one above. In Photoshop, I used the curves adjustment tool to dramatically increase the contrast and subsequently increased the saturation as well. I managed to get a retro look here.
Beyond this gate is a square called Stachus and there is a beautiful fountain in the center of it - shown in the third picture in this photo blog post (above). People often hang out here and sit on the stones surrounding the fountain. It was difficult preventing my lens from getting wet here. In fact, I had to wipe my lens with a microfiber cloth (that I always take along in my camera bag) several times. Anyway, I took this shot at an angle with the stones positioned further and further away to add some depth to the shot. I also wanted to capture that beautiful building in the background. The truth is, I don't know what is it.
In part one, I ended at the Church of Our Lady (Frauenkirche). Next, I continued along Kaufingerstrasse, moving away from Marienplatz and towards Karlsplatz. It was indeed a pleasant walk. It was still early and wasn't crowded yet. There are places to sit and relax along the way, beautiful plants and flowers, a nice fountain, fruit stalls, cafes, etc.
The second photo in this photo blog post (above) shows one of the many fruit stalls along Kaufingerstrasse. It had gotten very bright and sunny when I took this shot, resulting in a slightly blown out sky.
The third photo in this photo blog post (above) shows a poor man collecting trash from Marienplatz. Munich is one of the most expensive and wealthiest cities in Germany. Scenes like these are not often seen during the bustling hours of the day. Nonetheless, they obviously do exist. With this photo, I try to capture this contrast in society. In the foreground, a man is collecting trash for a living while in the background, you have George Clooney sipping his Nespresso.
The final photo in this photo blog post (above) is my favourite from the outing in Marienplatz that day. It does suffer from a bit of lens flare in the bottom right but I still like it. When I took this photo, I was a little tired from lugging my tripod and camera gear around, embarassed from the quirky stares of the people there and a little pissed off that I hadn't really gotten a spectacular shot yet. I wanted to capture the "street mall" side of Kaufingerstrasse and I think I achieved that with this shot here.
On the 11th of July, I got up very early in the morning and went out to do some photo shooting. My stop was Marienplatz. I left my apartment at about 7 in morning hoping to beat the crowd to Marienplatz. However, when I got into the train I realized "I ain't gonna beat no crowd". The train was practically already full. So much so that I couldn't even get a place to sit. I was hoping that most of them would not be getting off at Marienplatz and that was true for the most part. It seemed that most of them were headed somewhere else. Anyway, the train ride took me about 12 minutes.
