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This is the blog of Steve Burkett of Italy, Our Italy

Transforming l’Uomo della Pizza

“The l’uomo della pizza (pizza man) was standing out front contemplating…who knows what? Which adds just a bit of mystery to the photo, don’t you think?”

I’d have to say that Rome by night is a good bit more enjoyable than Rome by day. The summer heat, traffic and general hub-bub of the day are gone.

It’s as if the setting sun acts as a catalyst to transform the streets, piazze and campi of each neighborhood into something that is far more charming, more romantic, and of course, more temperate.

It was during a late evening stroll to the Trevi Fountain that we came across this scene at a neighborhood pizzeria.

The l’uomo della pizza (pizza man) was standing out front contemplating…who knows what? Which adds just a bit of mystery to the photo, don’t you think?

Upon spying him standing there, I quickly dropped to one knee to take this photo, as I visualized him being the dominate object of the image, and the lower camera angle seems to make him a bit larger than life. 

Because I was kneeling down, with the camera aimed slightly up, there was a good bit of distortion as the vertical lines of the buildings converged. So here is the image after I eliminated the vertical distortion. 

You can see that a bit of the photo has been lost due to the correction, but as I was shooting wide angle, there was plenty with which to work.

I am now ready to do a bit of cropping and adjustment to color balance and lighting.

In the version above, you will note that the interior of the pizzeria is well lit, while our pizza man is in shadow – as are the tables and patrons. After a bit of work, we can see below that the building exterior, table, patrons and the pizza man have been illuminated, while the interior has been darkened a bit. 

Additionally, I really liked the texture of the paving stones and the shadows that our pizza man was casting, so I emphasized those aspects, too.

Finally, a bit of cropping to get right down into the subject of the photo resulted in the version you see just above.

That was a good bit of cropping of the original image wasn’t it? Yet, there is still a lot of detail in the photo. My camera gives me the ability to do significant cropping without a lot of loss of resolution. The Nikon D800 is a 36mp camera – this camera has a huge sensor, whereas the vast majority of other cameras are in the 10-12mp range. That gives me a lot of room to isolate objects in the image.

For my final version, I found the two patrons on the right and the Hostaria store to be distracting. I was able to crop out the store, but the two patrons had to be removed through magic – even Harry Potter would be jealous.

In cropping, it was important to the composition that our pizza man is off-center a bit to the left. Since he was looking to our right, we need to give him some room to gaze.

So, here is the final photo, which can be found on my website in the Rome gallery.

I like the feel of this late evening shot -- colorful cloths on the street-side tables, two patrons studying the menu to select just the right ingredients for their pizza, and our l’oumo della pizza contemplating…what?...use your imagination.

If you would like to speculate upon that which he contemplates, use the comment box, below.

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Stumbling-Block Holocaust Memorials

Though today’s article will probably be my shortest, it is perhaps the greatest of significance.

“These stumbling blocks are a type of monument created by German artist Gunter Demnig beginning in 1992 to commemorate victims of Nazi oppression.”

I was overwhelmed by the stolperstein (stumbling block) plaques that we found embedded in some of the cobblestone streets of Rome.

These plaques were placed outside the former residences of Jews who were taken away to concentration camps by the Germans. Yes, the Jews of Italy suffered the same fate as others in Europe.

This original snapshot shows two such plaques.

In this transformed version, you are able to read the inscriptions. 

Here is what these two plaques say:

“Here lived Angelo Tagliacozzo. Born 1916. Arrested August 8, 1944. Deported to Auschwitz. Died February 20, 1945 at Dachau”
“Here lived Angelo Limentani. Born 1920. Arrested May 8, 1944. Deported to Auschwitz. Murdered”

These stumbling blocks are a type of monument created by German artist Gunter Demnig beginning in 1992 to commemorate victims of Nazi oppression. Stolpersteins are small, cobblestone-sized memorials for individual victims of Nazism. They commemorate individuals who were taken by the Nazis to prisons, euthanasia facilities, sterilization clinics, concentration camps, and extermination camps.

Why the term ‘stumbling block’? Before the Holocaust, it used to be the custom in Germany for non-Jews to say, on stumbling over a protruding stone, "There must be a Jew buried here." There’s an historical irony here that’s hard for me to get my head around.

Do you know that there are people who to this day deny the existence of the holocaust?

May God bless those who suffered the Nazi’s atrocities.

 

Ciao for now,

Steve

Securing Your Haven

[Note: This article has two parts: the usual transforming the snapshot part, and a part about this doors mysterious and flabbergasting security]

“Formidable is the word for this green door with its complex locking mechanism. Maybe this old timer was the home of someone with a lot to protect, like a Venetian jeweler.”

I have an affinity for old, Italian doors. That affinity is somewhere between I-think-they-are-swell and I-have-an-old-door-fetish.

I am captivated by their historical significance. Like, for the door below: who lived beyond that entrance? How many lifetimes were experienced here?

What was their profession? How large was the family? What was their fate? Did they help to shape the fate of Italy? Or were they maybe early-day couch potatoes just whiling away the day doing nothing?

Whatever happened behind those closed doors, it happened a long time ago, and over many, many years. 

And these particular doors? Formidable is the word for this green door with its complex locking mechanism. Maybe this old timer was the home of someone with a lot to protect, like a Venetian jeweler.

And regarding its level of security, I was flabbergasted! So don’t miss the ‘Extra-Added Bonus’ at the end of this article.

 

The Door Transformation

When I took the original snapshot to the left, I made a big mistake. That mistake was in my framing of the original shot and my unwittingly not accounting for a more robust aspect ratio for later printing. What I mean is that if I wanted an 8x10 print, and if I cropped down from the top to the spot I wanted so that I could eliminate uninteresting space above the door, I would have white or blank space to the left and right of the door.

To avoid this problem, I usually try to back away from the subject of my photo to capture more than I think I will need. Using a Nikon D800 with its 36mp sensor, gives me a lot of image area in which to crop to common printed photo sizes without losing resolution. 

What all of that gibberish boils down to is that I needed a bit more image to the left and right of the door to allow me to keep the composition I wanted while satisfactorily allowing me to print to, let’s say, an 8x10 photo. But as usual with Photoshop, where’s there’s a problem, there’s a solution.

That solution can be seen in this next photo, where I’ve added more image to each side. In the photo above, notice that there are not quite 3 long-carved-out-thingies to the right of the top of the door; where in the photo below, there are 4 ½ of these long-cared-out-thingies. [Please forgive me for using such technical photographer’s terms here] You can see a similar transformation to the left of the door. Now, with the extra added bit of photo to the left and right, if I crop down to the point that I want, I can have a pleasing composition.

Next I can work on aging the door a bit, primarily through color, texture and making it richer through darkening, as in this next photo. 

But we’re still not there.

I’m not sure exactly when mail slots in doors came about, but it was surely after the time period that I wanted to portray for this door. So I eliminated the modern mail slot. And note that in the version just above, I had already eliminated the round-key-hole-thingie in the center of the door (sorry about using those technical terms, again). 

As I found the door color and finish to be a bit bland, I transformed it a bit to brighten it up, as you can see in this final image.

“Pretty cool huh? But that’s not the half of it, folks!”

So, there you have it! One more door transformed to satisfy my door mania.

When I run out of doors to transform, I think another trip will be in order!

You can find this door and many more on my website in the Venice-Doors gallery.

Extra-Added Bonus

But, here is an extra-added bonus about this door and its locking mechanisms. And first, let me say that though I did eliminate some of the elements on the door as described above, I have added absolutely nothing to the image with Photoshop. What you see below is actually there.

 

When you look at the finished photo above, see that long squiggly bar going from the top of the right door to the mid-point of the left door? Well, that little orangie thing in this photo…

…has a key hole to release that bar so that it stops doing its security thing. Open that lock and you can then rotate that squiggly bar away to open the doors.

 

Then, just below the door pull on the left part of the door is a small key hole that takes a squarish key – as seen in this photo.

What’s that about?

 

 

 

 

 

 

And for even more mystery, there are two keyholes in the lower part of the right door – seen in this photo. Why are they way down at the bottom of the door, and why are there two of them?

Hmmm, the plot thickens.

 

Pretty cool huh? But that’s not the half of it, folks! 

 

 

In the finished door photo way up above, see that long bar that hangs down to the steps in the lower part of the right door?

When you swivel that bar up to the left to its horizontal position, and when you put a pad lock on it through the ring on the left door –seen here…

 

 

 

…that horizontal bar covers up the two keyholes you just saw so that a key can’t be inserted into either of them. Holy my golly, what is that all about?! This is like some dawn-of-man combination locking system.

I must say that this door, with its complicated locking mechanisms, really appeals to the engineer that still lurks somewhere inside of me. 

I hope you found this door interesting. Tell me what you think about this door using the comment box below.

 

Ciao for now,

Steve

 

 

 

Transforming the Bee Fountain

“I was intrigued by this little fountain because of its unique subject – that being an open seashell with three bees drinking from the water spouts of the fountain”

Today’s transformation article is a short one.

The subject is the Fontana della Api, or Bee Fountain. You can find this charming little fountain in Rome just off of Piazza Barberini on the Via Vittorio Veneto, a quiet, tree-lined Roman street. 

Here is my original snapshot.

 

[click an image for a larger view]

The original snapshot

This fountain was sculpted by Gian Lorenzo Bernini in 1644. The inscription on the shell reads, "Urban VIII Pont. Max…built this little fountain to be of service to private citizens. In the year 1644, XXI of his pontificate."  The service it provided was to water horses.

And since, as I’m sure you are aware, 1644 is the year that Pope Urban VIII died, it is one of the last works he commissioned. And thus ends the lesson in history. And, you were aware of that fact, weren’t you?! Thought so.

Detail of one of the bees sipping water

I was intrigued by this little fountain because of its unique subject – that being an open seashell with three bees drinking from the water spouts of the fountain. Here you can see one of those bees sipping away at that fresh Apennine water. 

My transformation of this photo was pretty straightforward.

My first inclination was to crop the photo into a square image, as none of the area to the left and right seemed to be important to the image.

Cropped version of original snapshot

There were several elements I wanted to remove for my final image. Do you see the woman walking in the background to the left? Out of here. The sign in the doorway just to the right of the shell? Out of here. The bit of bright sky at the top left? Out of here. See the bit of drain screening in the water just below the bee on the left? Out of here.

For the final transformation, I darkened the background a good bit. And finally, I wanted to bring out the texture within the sculpture, as it looked rather flat to me. So that’s what I did.

I find this image, with the bees, the open shell, and the autumn leaves floating in the quiet water of the fountain, to be one of peace. 

You can find this photo on my website in the Rome gallery.

Ciao for now,

Stev

One Fine Day!

In my July 28th article, I shared with you a wonderful day of discovery in the Lake Como area. Today, I want to share with you another day that my wife and I will always cherish…it’s one of those Top-10 Days…maybe even a Top-5 Day! It just might be in the Top 1! 

“Gian-Carlo’s Blue Angel is a 38’ Itama, built in Italy – a gorgeous boat with a rear deck comprised of thick, fabric-covered pads for our lounging pleasure.”

The Day's Details

  • Where: The Amalfi Coast of Italy.

  • When: The time is early June.

  • Who: My wife, Ellen, and me.

  • What: An unforgettable day boating along the Amalfi Coast on the way to the Isle of Capri.

  • Why: Well, why not?! It was high on our Italy bucket list and here we were.

  • How: We asked our concierge at the beautiful Grand Hotel Convento di Amalfi to give us a hand in figuring out the best way for us to make a day trip to Capri. She came through.

The Day's Events

Our base of operations on the Amalfi Coast was the Grand Hotel Convento di Amalfi, sitting high above the town of Amalfi. This former convent has been converted to a gorgeous white-washed hotel that can be seen spread across the top left in this century-old photo.

[click on any image for a larger view]

Old photo of the town of Amalfi

Our concierge scheduled a pickup at the Amalfi’s marina at 9:00am, where we were met by, Gian-Carlo – the captain of the Blue Angel. 

Our Captain, Gian-Carlo of the Blue Angel

Gian-Carlo’s Blue Angel is a 38’ Itama, built in Italy – a gorgeous boat with a rear deck comprised of thick, fabric-covered pads for our lounging pleasure.

In the two following photos, you can see how our day started as we headed out of Amalfi Town. You can see the modern day Grand Hotel Convento di Amalfi in the left-center of the photo below.

(BTW, the building dead center in the photo above is Amalfi's cemetery/mausoleum)

Here is a typical view of the coastline with villa after villa going up the hillside. See the horizontal rows of vegetation?

Lemons. Lemons. Lemons. The whole of the Amalfi Coast is covered with lemons. And what does one do when given so many lemons? They make limoncello, of course. Amalfi is the center of the limoncello universe.

Our journey found us slowly traveling the coast with views such as those below. Stone roadways and buildings have been erected over hundreds of years, and seaside restaurants are in abundance.

A History Lesson

And there are dozens of stone towers (torre) like the one below all along the Amalfi Coast.

These towers were erected as an early warning system to alert the coastal towns of invading Muslim pirates, who captured and sold as slaves over 1,000,000 people, including many US merchants. The United States had a big part in defeating these marauders, as President Thomas Jefferson sent the newly formed US Navy, carrying the US Marines in their first battle, to defeat these pirates. We were successful in 1805 after the Second Barbary War. This is where the line in the Marine Hymn “…to the shores of Tripoli” originated. OK, that’s the end of today’s history lesson.

Getting to the Beach

Each of the hotels along the coast has access to the water’s edge – not necessarily to a beach, as they are few and far between. Here is a beauty-of-an access stairway. You really, really have to want to get to the water to challenge these steps.

Positano

Next up, we see the stylish town of Positano, as seen below.

By road, Positano is 9 miles west of Amalfi. As it takes about 40 minutes to drive from Amalfi to Positano, you can see that your average speed will be about 15mph. If you ever plan to drive the Amalfi coastline, keep this in mind. We have never been on a narrower road with more bends, blind curves, buses, autos, motorcycles, joggers and women with baby carriages.

If you stay in Positano, your hotel will more than likely be located somewhere on the hillside. Like a bit of exercise getting to town or the beach? You’ve got it!

And the beach sits right there with the town. Hope you’re not shy!

Now, we say goodbye to Positano, as it’s time to head to the Isle of Capri.

And along the way, Gian-Carlo continues to take care of our needs.

Isola di Capri

Capri is both the name of a town and the island upon which it sits. Capri (pronounced ‘cap-ri by the Italians, with emphasis on the first syllable) is an island located in the Tyrrhenian Sea off the Sorrentine Peninsula, on the south side of the Gulf of Naples in the Campania region of Italy -- got that? 

As we made our way to the Piccolo Marina (Small Marina) on the east side of the island (the Grande Marina is on the west side of the island), we passed by the rock formations named The Faraglioni, or The Stacks.

The natural opening in one of the outcroppings is called ‘The Tunnel of Love’. Couples sailing through that opening are promised blissful love for all time, or something of that nature, so I think my wife and I are pretty well set, now.

One of my clients who has the following photo in her office lyrically says that “it graphically portrays her fondest memory of the coastline of Capri -- with the colorful towering limestone cliffs meeting aqua waters”.  

As we motorboated along the coast of Capri, were able to stop and take a swim in the White... 

...and Green Grottos. Chilly, but super refreshing!

The Best Lunch Ever!

We’ve been sailing for about 3 hours, so it’s now time for lunch. Here is our lunch spot. The Torre Saracenas Restaurant is open for lunch from April to October, so we’re in luck. 

As we're arriving by a large boat, they sent a smaller skiff out to shuttle us to their dock.

As we look back, Gian-Carlo is preparing our boat for the afternoon return to Amalfi. Nice boat, huh?

At this restaurant, you get to pick out your lunch from these tanks.

Here is Ellen taking stock of the available wares, caught just that morning.

We started with a bit of vino bianco.

And some fried zucchini.

While we were enjoying the view from the seaside table…

…our lobster arrived.

And then there was a bit more vino bianco…

…until our fish was presented to us.

After being deboned…

…we dived into our scrumptious lunch.

Now, let’s finish that bottle of wine and head up to the town Capri.

A Short Visit to Capri Town

Our waiter called us a taxi and we were whisked away.

OK, so the town of Capri is pretty much like many other small Italian hill town, except that the ‘streets’ are really, really skinny, and they have to use these really, really skinny carts for deliveries.

We were able to find a couple of souvenirs as we shopped Capri style.  

As we waited for our tender to take us back out to our boat, I snapped this photo of the green waters of the harbor.

The End of One Fine Day

Now it is time to head back to Amalfi town to end our day on the water and the Isola di Capri.

So, how was our day? Does this seem to be something that you would like to do? Well, I can tell you that we sure enjoyed our day exploring the Amalfi Coast.

They say that a picture is worth a thousand words. So, I will try no further to express to you our feelings about this memorable day.

I will let the photo below be that expression.

 

Here are some links to help you plan your own fine day:

Have you been to the Amalfi Coast or to Capri? Leave a comment with your own experiences, below.

 

Ciao for now,

Steve

 

 

 

 

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