... then it would look something like this ;)
Evening at the shore of Mäejärv in Väimela.Wednesday, August 20, 2008
@ EÜL Summer School
This time I was at the summer school of EÜL. Besides the studies and all other activities I found time to take a look around the town and this is what I found ...
... then it would look something like this ;)
Evening at the shore of Mäejärv in Väimela.
... then it would look something like this ;) Evening at the shore of Mäejärv in Väimela.
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
Exploring Estonia
I had a really fun weekend exploring my fatherland with some of my best university colleagues. As I was mainly perpetuating the event I managed to shoot a few more artistic photographs too.
This peculiar spectacle was by the side of an old distillery in Pärnumaa.
Just next to hotel Lepanina. Very close to our lodging.
This peculiar spectacle was by the side of an old distillery in Pärnumaa.
Just next to hotel Lepanina. Very close to our lodging.Monday, August 11, 2008
Lithuanian holidays
This is the second time I've been to Lithuania this summer - man, have I been busy travelling :) Honestly, I've never been abroad so many times in one summer. This time, though, it was more like a four-day holiday trip - visiting sights, camping and sunbathing. Altogether over 1200 km of land was covered.
Highlights of the holidays (in chronological order):
The first stop was at the Hill of Crosses near the city of Šiauliai. Over 50 000 crosses on a little hill - this really is an awe-inspiring place.
The first morning in a campsite in Karkle (about 15 km to the south of Palanga)
In Palanga we visited the Palanga Amber Museum. Never in my life had I seen so much amber in various shapes and sizes, some containing a piece of history inside.
These are sand ripples on one of the many dunes in the Curonian Spit near the town Nida. Yonder is the Curonian Lagoon.
It was a truly sultry weather.
You don't see an elegant shay as this every day. I'd definitely prefer this over any limousine!
The Hill of Witches near Juodkrantė is a great sight to see, because of the numerous wooden sculptures. As there are over 80 sculptures - it'll take some time to see them all, so reserve about 2-3h of your time.
These pictures were taken in the Lithuanian Sea Museum which is located in the farthest northern point of the Curonian Spit – Kopgalys. Very educational but interesting at the same time - children would love it.
Really breathtaking show by trained dolphines and seals at the Dolphinarium just next to the Sea Museum. This you just have to see :)
A little HDRI shot from hand in Trakai. Besides the famous Trakai Castle this little town has its own pecularity: most of the old houses have three windows on the side of the house which faces the street.
The Trakai Castle is located on an island on the shores of Lake Galvė. A splendid view to the surrounding lake and islands opens from the towers.
The St. Anne's Church is a real architectural masterpiece. The high dynamic range makes this photo especially appealing to me. Though it could use a little crop and straightening.
The last stop was at the geographical centre of Europe, which much to my surprise, is located in Lithuania. Actually the monument itself does not mark the centre, but there is a big rock nearby that is located at 54°54′N, 25°19′E which should be the centre of gravity of the geometrical figure of Europe.
Highlights of the holidays (in chronological order):
The first stop was at the Hill of Crosses near the city of Šiauliai. Over 50 000 crosses on a little hill - this really is an awe-inspiring place.
The first morning in a campsite in Karkle (about 15 km to the south of Palanga)
In Palanga we visited the Palanga Amber Museum. Never in my life had I seen so much amber in various shapes and sizes, some containing a piece of history inside.
These are sand ripples on one of the many dunes in the Curonian Spit near the town Nida. Yonder is the Curonian Lagoon.
It was a truly sultry weather.
You don't see an elegant shay as this every day. I'd definitely prefer this over any limousine!
The Hill of Witches near Juodkrantė is a great sight to see, because of the numerous wooden sculptures. As there are over 80 sculptures - it'll take some time to see them all, so reserve about 2-3h of your time.
These pictures were taken in the Lithuanian Sea Museum which is located in the farthest northern point of the Curonian Spit – Kopgalys. Very educational but interesting at the same time - children would love it.
Really breathtaking show by trained dolphines and seals at the Dolphinarium just next to the Sea Museum. This you just have to see :)
A little HDRI shot from hand in Trakai. Besides the famous Trakai Castle this little town has its own pecularity: most of the old houses have three windows on the side of the house which faces the street.
The Trakai Castle is located on an island on the shores of Lake Galvė. A splendid view to the surrounding lake and islands opens from the towers.
The St. Anne's Church is a real architectural masterpiece. The high dynamic range makes this photo especially appealing to me. Though it could use a little crop and straightening.
The last stop was at the geographical centre of Europe, which much to my surprise, is located in Lithuania. Actually the monument itself does not mark the centre, but there is a big rock nearby that is located at 54°54′N, 25°19′E which should be the centre of gravity of the geometrical figure of Europe.
Monday, July 21, 2008
Nobody knows where it's at
Finally I took some time off to go on an unforgettable road trip with a few of my friends to the busiest Lithuania's summer resort town - Palanga. Despite the 'road trip' like nature of the cruise, I still managed to make a few shots that I'd like to share.
The true highlight of the trip - an Audi R8. This is definitely a synonym for the word 'beautiful'.
One of the sights of Palanga - the pier.
The great view below the pier.
You have to give credit to Photomatix for this HDRI. Why? Because you cannot notice any big ghosting artifacts although the shots where all taken from hand. Photoshop CS3 could not handle the movement in the source images as elegantly as Photomatix did.
Where there's smoke, there's fire.
A little cute Yorkshire Terrier gazing.
The true highlight of the trip - an Audi R8. This is definitely a synonym for the word 'beautiful'. 
One of the sights of Palanga - the pier.
The great view below the pier.
You have to give credit to Photomatix for this HDRI. Why? Because you cannot notice any big ghosting artifacts although the shots where all taken from hand. Photoshop CS3 could not handle the movement in the source images as elegantly as Photomatix did.
Where there's smoke, there's fire.
A little cute Yorkshire Terrier gazing.
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
„Võro liivaliin 2008“
On my last visit to my hometown Võru I had the chance to glance at the sand sculptures on the beach of lake Tamula. The sculptures were made during the International Sand Sculptures Symposium „Võro liivaliin 2008“ by various sculptors from all over the world.
What astonishes me is the granularity of the sculptures and persistence to rain, because when I got there they had already seen quite a few showers without losing their shape or even smaller details. But look for yourself:
To see all of the sculptures take a look at my Picasa album.
What astonishes me is the granularity of the sculptures and persistence to rain, because when I got there they had already seen quite a few showers without losing their shape or even smaller details. But look for yourself:
To see all of the sculptures take a look at my Picasa album.
Monday, July 14, 2008
Mallard show off
Last Saturday I had a little stroll near my summer cottage, as the weather was quite muggy and sunny. At Perajärv (the hindmost lake of the two lakes very close together) I saw a nice duck family, which gave me quite a show so I had to take a few shots. It is a bit unfortunate that only five ducklings have survived out of 12 and all of them being female - life's a bitch.
But here are the pictures that I took:
↑ A mallard duck giving a little show off and on the next picture too ↓
But here are the pictures that I took:
↑ A mallard duck giving a little show off and on the next picture too ↓
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
Sunday night
The other day I had a short walk in the white midsummer night near campus. Of course I had my camera with me. Actually I had my tripod also with me - so it wasn't just a walk :)
Finally I came up with the following photos:
This is an HDR image from a single RAW image file. I really like the outcome.
The key to this picture is a long exposure time.
Here I have made a HDRI from 4 JPEGs.
Again a HDRI but this time from 3 JPEGs.
This photo is unmodified.
Here I have made a bit of exposure blending and then reduced color saturation.
A little HDR modification.
This photo has not seen a bit of editing. It's a pure camera trick called "zoom blur", but of course you could do it with a little digital editing too. It is done by zooming out while photographing with a long exposure time. Simple, but effective, isn't it?
Finally I came up with the following photos:
This is an HDR image from a single RAW image file. I really like the outcome.
The key to this picture is a long exposure time.
Here I have made a HDRI from 4 JPEGs.
Again a HDRI but this time from 3 JPEGs.
This photo is unmodified.
Here I have made a bit of exposure blending and then reduced color saturation.
A little HDR modification.
This photo has not seen a bit of editing. It's a pure camera trick called "zoom blur", but of course you could do it with a little digital editing too. It is done by zooming out while photographing with a long exposure time. Simple, but effective, isn't it?
Saturday, June 28, 2008
Helsinki Cruise
A few days ago I went on a one day cruise to Helsinki with Viking Line's new cruiseferry Viking XPRS. There is definitely more to see in Helsinki that one could in 10 hour time, so choices needed to be taken. I was fortunate enough to be able to visit Sea Life, Heureka and after that had a little walk near the port. So the Korkeasaari Zoo and other attractions will remain for another visit.
In my opinion, Sea Life would appeal more to youngsters whereas Heureka would be interesting to adults and fun for children. All in all I had fun all day even with the showers and thunder that I got :)
So a few cherries on the top of the cake:
In my opinion, Sea Life would appeal more to youngsters whereas Heureka would be interesting to adults and fun for children. All in all I had fun all day even with the showers and thunder that I got :)
So a few cherries on the top of the cake:
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