The historical city of Ouro Preto - SET 1

[Otavio]

Nice set and history lesson. Thanks for sharing!

Hi, Mike. It is always a pleasure. Thanks for viewing. Rgds,

[Otavio]

All of them are great! #2 is my favourite.

Hi, Murat. Thanks fro viewing and commenting! Cheers,

[Otavio]

Nice set Octavio! I can't choose a winner amongst your shot. They are all beautiful and your history is very informative.

Hi, Isabel. I am glad you liked the images. Thanks for viewing and commenting. Rgds,

[ajsmith]

Beautiful images. I like the green color in #1 and the scene in #2. Lovely architecture in the photos.

[Otavio]

Very nice. Does the city have a more heavily Italian or Portuguese influence?

Hi, John. A more heavy Portuguese influence as Portugal was where the crown was, although Italian influence played its part also. Thanks for viewing.

[Otavio]

Very interesting Otávio. Lovely images and a fascinating background. I notice that the churches share some unique architectural similarities. Are these church designs common to the ones found in Portugal?

Hi, Frank. Thanks for viewing. Regarding the churches, their style is classified as "Minas Gerais Baroque". This was based on the European Baroque, but was adapted, including local materials and techniques that generated an unique style. Many local arquitects were involved in the projects (called "Sketchs" at the time) so that each church has its own particular touch, depending on the artist. The main master was Aleijadinho. A genius that produced lots of quality work. I shot his masterpiece in the past (the 12 prohets). If you would like to check it, here is the link MINAS GERAIS - Set 1: The Twelve Prophets

Cheers,

[Otavio]

Great Images and history Otávio, thanks

Thank you very much, Mark. Cheers,

[Otavio]

Hi Otavio,

I think I'm changing my mind to #3 for the beautiful scene, but I also love #4 and #5...

Your compositions are always sublime. Do you have any pointers to share about how you compose your landscapes, first in your mind (artistic) and also from a technical point of view, ie; the best l way to achieve all that your vision encompasses from a technical point of view? (camera, focus, physical limitations of the scene at hand, etc)

Thank you.

Hello, Christina. I appreciate you kind and encouraging words. I will try to share some points that I consider important:
-Before pointing the camera, I try to detect/compose the scene in my mind and evaluate if it has any chance of being a nice shot.
- If so, I start thinking technically what is the best angle, considering light sources, fisical constraints, etc
- After positioning myself, I decide what type of shot I want, what lens to use, tripod or handheld, etc. This will determine many variables, specially shutter speed/aperture./ISO.
- When holding the camera, I finally compose. At this time, I try to include, as much as posible, entire items. Just a personal taste. What I mean is I try to avoid half a car, half a tree, half a window/door. Really not sure if that is crucial, but I like it this way.
- Sometimes it is not posible during the shot (ie. you include an entire tree on the left side and you will have a half tree on the right side), then I do it on PP. When cropping during PP, I never get myself stuck due to the need to follow a "standard" format, like 1:1, 4:3, 3:2, etc. I just crop to achieve the best harmony in the image. Again, just a personal taste.
- Try to consider the rule of thirds and try to avoid placing the horizon in the center. But bear in mind there are always exceptions. One example is a mirrored image of mounts in a lake. That will justify a centered horizon, IMHO.
- After this, analyse your image. if there is something that you dont like (unwanted car, unwanted cow, unwanted pedestrian, unwanted half bird), dont think twice before cloning them out! Most of the times, this is an easy job.
- When shooting architectures, you will, many times, have perspective distortions! This is also easily correctable with the lens correction tool.

I am afraid these are so basic tips, but they are what came to my mind now. I hope they can be of any assistance to you.

Happy new year to you!

[Otavio]

Beautiful images. I like the green color in #1 and the scene in #2. Lovely architecture in the photos.

.
Hi, Ali. I am glad you liked the images. Regards,

[jamn4ex]

Super set!

[Otavio]

Super set!

Thank you, James!

[Brownbear]

Thank you for an excellent and very thoughtful guideline that is full of great tips and indeed very helpful. There are a lot of different variables to think about when photographing landscapes, before taking the image, and for sure I will make myself a check list following your tips.

Unwanted cow? If I were fortunate enough to come across a cow in a landscape scene, for sure I would include the entire cow in the image.

I will tackle perspective distortions upon my first encounter!

Hello, Christina. I appreciate you kind and encouraging words. I will try to share some points that I consider important:
-Before pointing the camera, I try to detect/compose the scene in my mind and evaluate if it has any chance of being a nice shot.
- If so, I start thinking technically what is the best angle, considering light sources, fisical constraints, etc
- After positioning myself, I decide what type of shot I want, what lens to use, tripod or handheld, etc. This will determine many variables, specially shutter speed/aperture./ISO.
- When holding the camera, I finally compose. At this time, I try to include, as much as posible, entire items. Just a personal taste. What I mean is I try to avoid half a car, half a tree, half a window/door. Really not sure if that is crucial, but I like it this way.
- Sometimes it is not posible during the shot (ie. you include an entire tree on the left side and you will have a half tree on the right side), then I do it on PP. When cropping during PP, I never get myself stuck due to the need to follow a "standard" format, like 1:1, 4:3, 3:2, etc. I just crop to achieve the best harmony in the image. Again, just a personal taste.
- Try to consider the rule of thirds and try to avoid placing the horizon in the center. But bear in mind there are always exceptions. One example is a mirrored image of mounts in a lake. That will justify a centered horizon, IMHO.
- After this, analyse your image. if there is something that you dont like (unwanted car, unwanted cow, unwanted pedestrian, unwanted half bird), dont think twice before cloning them out! Most of the times, this is an easy job.
- When shooting architectures, you will, many times, have perspective distortions! This is also easily correctable with the lens correction tool.

I am afraid these are so basic tips, but they are what came to my mind now. I hope they can be of any assistance to you.

Happy new year to you!

[Brownbear]

Happy New Year, to you, too! Wishing you the best of everything in 2014!

[Otavio]

Thank you for an excellent and very thoughtful guideline that is full of great tips and indeed very helpful. There are a lot of different variables to think about when photographing landscapes, before taking the image, and for sure I will make myself a check list following your tips.

Unwanted cow? If I were fortunate enough to come across a cow in a landscape scene, for sure I would include the entire cow in the image.

I will tackle perspective distortions upon my first encounter!

Always a pleasure Christina! Cheers,

[Otavio]

Happy New Year, to you, too! Wishing you the best of everything in 2014!

Thanks!