Daily Banana – Sultan Ahmed And The Sea

With my trips to Istanbul this year, I really wanted to highlight some beautiful views of The Blue Mosque. Fortunately, there are plenty of rooftop restaurants and bars everywhere. And with all the genuinely kind hearted Turkish hospitality, it’s an absolute pleasure to seek out rooftop vantage points.

It’s hard to find a place that’s more inviting for photographers than Turkey. No matter where I went, shop owners would eagerly invite me into their stores to take pictures of their wares. In this case, my wife and I auditioned 15 rooftop views to find the right angle. Each place we went went, whether it was a hotel or restaurant, was more than happy to show us the view. When we found this one, I made a dinner reservation to secure the right table.

Whenever I find these great vantage points, I make sure to take full advantage of them. In this case I shot the scene multiple times as the light changed from a very warm golden hour to a very dramatic night shot.

I also had no idea that the Kurban Bayrami (feast of the sacrifice) festival was going on so I was totally surprised to find the additional lights wrapped around the minarets. Thank you universe. 🙂

Istanbul - Sultan Ahmed and The Sea

Istanbul - Sultan Ahmed and The Sea

 

Burning The Midnight Oil

Another cool thing about this photo is that I shot it a few hours before a live Google+ Hangout with +Catherine Hall. Remember that hangout? This was the photo I said that I was excited about.

The hangout started at 2am (my time) so I was a little groggy with Red Bull in hand. If you haven’t seen it yet it’s worth the watch. There’s some great commentary from +Colby Brown, +Mihailo Radi?evi?, and +Dave Cox

Check it out here: https://goo.gl/yJqPH

Elia Locardi Hangout Google Plus