And yet more labels for 2020

Photographing the Essence of Prague, Day 8 and 9

Photo by Mairead

Day 8

This morning, the morning of our last full day in Prague, most of us woke up in time to witness the sun rise over the Charles Bridge and the dramatic architecture of Old Town. I was surprised at how many people were already on the bridge at that time of day.  We were all frustrated with the people walking through our compositions.  Patience was necessary, and underexposing was a successful strategy (to blend the people into the shadows and make the sky color more saturated). The early morning wake-up was definitely worth it!  We made some beautiful images.

We had the entire morning for editing images and working on our portfolios. Ms. Wilson was available in the lounge for guidance. 

After lunch we set off on a last-chance shopping trip. It was rewarding to recognize so many areas of the city and finally know where we were in relation to the other areas we had visited.

We enjoyed a last group dinner just north of the American Embassy. Afterwards we hiked a short way up Petrin Hill in order to get a view of the castle to use as a backdrop for some light paintings.

It was a beautiful night, crisp and clear.  Prague architecture is lit beautifully at night, making it even even prettier.

Day 9

This morning we shared our final portfolios with each other in the conference room.  It was great to see everyone's work, and to see how differently we all think, see, and use our cameras.  We talked about our strongest works and our most original works. 

After the portfolio viewing we finished packing and left the hotel for our journey home.

( Due to winter storm Stella, our journey home included a 25.5 hour layover in Zurich!)

It's been an awesome week, photographing the essence of Prague!  Photo by Mairead.

Photographing the Essence of Prague, Day 7

Today was an awesome day for us to visit the Karlstejn castle. We left hotel as usual around 9am. Then, we took the tram for several stops and transferred to a half-an-hour train ride. When we arrived at  Karlstejn, the sun shone brightly in the sky, with pretty cloud formations. The scenery was just so amazing. We walked all the way up to the castle and took pictures along the way. Pictures of the castle from so many different angles came out well. We had free time at the castle to explore and find angles. Soon, we had a tour in the castle and we were informed of much history regarding Charles IV. Karlstejn castle was used to store the treasures collected by Charles IV and it took 17 years to build it with three phases of construction. We visited the first floor and some of the second floor together and saw the knights, king's bedroom, and guards' room. Rather than names, motifs and crests were painted on the doors of knights' individual wardrobes so that they could distinguish them from each other. The most realistic image of Charles the fourth was in a painting with him kneeling down with golden suits. Secret hallways were built in Charles IV's  room so he could get into  his wife's room anytime. His throne room was arranged so that he was seated between two windows, so that his face would be in shadow. Meanwhile, the faces of his visitors were lit by the windows and tall candles. Charles the fourth was a really wise and ambitious leader.

After the amazing tour of the castle, we hiked back down the hill and traveled back to our hotel by 5:30. We had some free time in the mall for shopping as well. Today was a "short" and relaxing day for us to wander in the castle and on the street of Prague. 

I cannot wait to see the essence of Prague tomorrow early morning at 6 am to capture the beautiful sun rise.

-Anny and Shirley 

Karlstejn Castle, summer palace of King Charles IV and former home of the crown jewels, photo by Anny

Charles IV's shadowed throne

Photographing the Essence of Prague, Day 4

Today we started our day by the national theater where Mozart premiered one of his operas. We then went to the Old Town Square and climbed to the top of the clock tower. For lunch we went to an amazing little restaurant outside the town center. Featured meals consist of trout, duck and vegetable salad.

Old Town Square architecture by Moesy

Working with reflective surfaces, photo by Moesy

For our afternoon workshop we met with our photographer friend, Martin, and worked on portrait photography in natural light. We also worked on photographing things in motion as well as reflections and street photography. We finished our day with a historical tour of the Old Town Hall and a delicious dinner at an Italian restaurant in Old Town Square.

Portrait of a street performer, by Moesy

-Julia

Photographing the Essence of Prague, Day 5

Today was a busy day! After a much needed sleep in, we had a good breakfast and a photo editing session with help from Mrs. Wilson. After this, we headed back into the Old Town to admire the beautiful Municipal House built in the art nouveau style of architecture. We then climbed to the top of the "Powder Tower" and saw the beautiful views overlooking the entire city. This tower was a beautiful Gothic style structure that was part of the original wall surrounding Old Town. In the early 20th century it was connected to the Municipal House, a palace in an art nouveau style.  After this, we headed into the palace and admired the intricate decorations and details.

After spending some time in the palace, we headed over to the Palladium which is a giant mall and shopping center built in place of a former military barracks complex. We were able to have some free time and find lunch in the Palladium all while practicing photo journalism. After this, we met Martin from Matela Studio under the Zeleznicni bridge. The theme for this third session with Martin was architecture. We walked to the top of the Vysehrad hill where we were able to capture pictures of the beautiful basilica of St. Peter and Paul from both the outside and inside. After this, we headed to a platform with a beautiful view of the entire city of Prague and practiced taking panoramic photos. We were all very cold after this, so we headed into a nearby coffee shop where we got coffee and various delicious desserts. We then headed into the DOX museum of contemporary art in Holesovice and  admired the current photo exhibition. Once our session with Martin was over, we said goodbye and headed back to the Palladium for some dinner and shopping. We are now back at our hotel uploading and editing photos and getting ready for another busy day.
- Moesy

Waiting for the tram with our photography instructor

Photographing the Essence of Prague, Day 6

The view from Petrin Hill

Today in Prague we started out with an elevated view next to the Havana Pavilion. We were able to capture the famous view of the multiple bridges spanning the Vltava River. Once we created our pictures we traveled to the Prague Castle. As the seat of the Prague monarchy and the current office of the President, it is a very important historical site. We climbed all two hundred and eighty five steps to the top of the castle tower. Here we experienced one of the highest views in all of Prague. After our hike we got a tour of the San Vitus Cathedral and the Old Royal Palace, and then visited the Golden Lane.  We left the castle area through the New World, listened to the bells of Loretto, and then found a cafe in which to warm up.   We walked home via Petrin Hill, from which we had a gorgeous, sunlit panoramic view of the castle and Prague.

This evening a few of us chose to go to see Figaro at the Estates Theatre, while others chose to have  more leisurely evening and catch up on their photo editing.

-Catherine

The view from Havana Pavilion

At the opera!

Photographing the Essence of Prague, Day 3

Part of our group on top of the tower

Learning Portraiture at Matela Studio

I woke up at half past seven feeling tired, but I was refreshed after our breakfast. We learnt some basic principles about designs of photography, such as the symmetry of photo and the natural lines that lead the eyes. And then we walked to Kampa Island through cobbled streets in the warm sunlight. The island is filed with elegant sculptures and bridges, and we had a chance to take photos of Prague across the Vltava River. Then we walked up to the Charles Bridge and climbed up to the top of the Old Town Bridge Tower, and we were amazed by the beautiful landscape with architecture of different styles.

After having lunch, we hopped on a tram heading for Matela Studio, and in the next couple hours we learnt how to take portraits with each other as models. With different intensity of lights and different angles of the lights, we gave different emphasis or moods to the portraits. By switching the background color form white to grey, the atmosphere of the portrait is more serious and somber.

After that, we went to a traditional Czech restaurant for dinner. In an adventurous spirit I tried a homemade lemonade with gooseberry and mint and it was surprisingly good. The main dish was wonderful as well with tender beef in tasty sauce accompanied with dumpling (kind of bread). We were glad to have some persona
l time after a busy day in the Venceslav Square, it was relaxing just to walk in the street with the breeze. After that we went back to the hotel to rest, getting charged for tomorrow.
- Z 

Every one had a turn both modeling and photographing with each new change of lighting situation.

One light Portrait by Maureen

Photographing the Essence of Prague, Day 2

Strahov Monastery spires by Z

We arrived at our Prague hotel today at 4:15 pm following an overnight flight to Zurich and another short flight to the Czech Republic. After a very quick check-in we were out on the street, getting out first tour of the city from Ms. Farr-Williams.  Across from our hotel is a furnicular that we took up Petrin Hill. On this ride up the hill we experienced our first view of the city and the Vltava River, the observatory tower, the Old Town Wall and the exterior of the Strahov Monastery.  We were literally chasing the light down cobblestone streets as the sun came through the clouds for moments just as it was going down, lighting up the westward slopes of the magnificent architecture.  As we walked to our dinner the sky darkened to deep blue, and the city yellow lights began to twinkle in contrast.  

Our assignment this afternoon was landscape. We set our aperture (and shutter) accordingly for varying depths of field.  As it grew darker we learned to set our cameras to maximize the evening light, hand-holding or balancing our cameras on railings (we traveled without tripods).

Views of the Prague Castle from below the Strahov Monastery.  - Photo by Ms. Farr-Williams

Observing the details. Photo by Ms. Farr-Williams

 

Photo by Z

Prague Castle, Photo by Z

Prague, Day 1

We are finally en route to Prague!

This morning, while still on campus, we had tutorials on our technology from Ms.Wilson. She taught us the basic tasks of setting the camera for creative expression and strong exposure. Next we learned the entire digital workflow: uploading, organizing, editing in Photoshop, and uploading final images to our flickr portfolios. It was a quick, crash course!

This afternoon Ms. Farr-Williams gave us a brief illustrated history of Prague through its 10 centuries of architecture.  She also introduced us to the map of Prague and showed us where we would be exploring the next few days.

At the end of our afternoon Kacenka presented us with some basic Czech words and phrases we will need to know and use.  We spent a few minutes practicing, and laughing, at our pronunciation!

Now we sit on the coach bus to Logan Airport, energy and excitement barely contained.  I can't wait to get there!

Prague: Essential Question

How do you use the camera to capture centuries of cultural
history and daily life in the city of Prague?

The history of the magnificent city of Prague, Czech Republic, spans 11 centuries. We will be using our cameras to capture and document the beauty and diversity of Prague's incredibly rich history and daily life. 

The week will include instruction in photography from Ms. Wilson and Czech photographers from the Matela Studio.  Ms. Farr-Williams will be our personal guide and translator, and will help us maximize our experiences in her home city!

Passports? Visas? Transportation ? Currency? Cameras? YES! We are ready!

Photo by Ms. Farr-Williams