weekly photo challenge: inside
For the weekly photo challenge, we are “inside” Hagia Sophia in Turkey! This tremendous ancient wonder steeped with history will have you in awe.
For the weekly photo challenge, we are “inside” Hagia Sophia in Turkey! This tremendous ancient wonder steeped with history will have you in awe.
wise monkeys abroad 
October 11, 2014 at 2:09 pm
great shot! Yeah, it is an awesome place.
October 12, 2014 at 12:49 am
Thanks Jill 🙂 We were just blown away by the architecture and the interior!
March 18, 2014 at 4:26 am
Wow!! That’s some architecture!! And you have done a very good job of capturing it! 🙂
March 18, 2014 at 5:56 am
Thank you for the compliment – it’s incredible how many times we’ve walked past all these buildings without even a second glance! Now that we’ve stopped and really looked, we certainly won’t take any of it for granted anymore!
March 18, 2014 at 2:04 am
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March 17, 2014 at 7:12 am
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March 17, 2014 at 2:08 am
Wow. This is so beautiful! Great photo and I’m loving your blog!!
March 17, 2014 at 6:14 am
Those words are so wonderful for us to read! Thank you for visiting and taking the time to leave us such an encouraging comment 🙂
March 16, 2014 at 10:48 pm
[…] weekly photo challenge: inside « wise monkeys abroad […]
March 16, 2014 at 10:45 pm
I bet this is even more magnificent in person! what a treasure!
March 17, 2014 at 6:09 am
It really is magnificent – thanks so much for visiting & commenting!
March 16, 2014 at 4:36 pm
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March 16, 2014 at 2:59 am
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March 15, 2014 at 10:42 pm
Great picture! Its an amazing space. I was there many years ago and would really like to go back. Its such an important place for Byzantine and Turkish history. Thanks for bringing back the memory!
March 16, 2014 at 7:27 am
Pleasure is ours 🙂 Thanks for taking the time to comment – Turkey in itself has so much history, we knew about it before going but being there and learning more was just mind-blowing!!
March 15, 2014 at 10:39 pm
Great picture! I t really shows the size/height of this beautiful building!
March 16, 2014 at 7:26 am
Thank you so much! It is massive, right?! So glad to have had the opportunity to see it 🙂
March 15, 2014 at 8:14 pm
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March 15, 2014 at 7:29 pm
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March 15, 2014 at 6:16 pm
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March 15, 2014 at 5:27 pm
I love the gold tone in this picture, and feedback from Rick Diffley is like gold for us amateurs!
March 15, 2014 at 5:32 pm
Thanks!! Yes, tips from experts are always welcomed!
March 15, 2014 at 3:12 pm
One of many destinations in my wish list. Beautiful photo!
March 15, 2014 at 3:47 pm
Turkey is an incredible place – hope you get there someday!!
March 15, 2014 at 12:15 pm
I always enjoy all of your lovely pictures! What exciting lives you lead! 🙂
March 15, 2014 at 12:48 pm
So glad to hear that you enjoy our photos!! Thank you so much for your lovely and kind words! 🙂 We appreciate the encouragement!
March 15, 2014 at 11:21 am
What a beautiful place. Nice picture !
March 15, 2014 at 11:24 am
Thank you so much for your comment 🙂
March 15, 2014 at 10:42 am
You asked…”Tell us what you think.” Ok, here’s a few thoughts off the top of my head. The difficult part for me in providing feedback is not knowing what equipment (Camera, lens, filters, etc.) was used and if you have post processing software.
I like this location as it offers numerous opportunities for other images.
What you did provide here is pretty good with lots of tricky, varying lighting.
Lighting is always an issue with this type of indoor shot. You have to deal with bright sunlight coming through the stain glass windows and the windows at the top. Plus, it appears there’s some sort of spot light shining on the entryway to the stairs.
Finally, when composing I work not to partly cut off items in the image. Example: The stain glass window in the bottom left corner, the box that the spot light is located, and the entry way door to the stairs, the bottom right corner.
Without actually being there, the best solution would be to compose a HDR shot. However, that requires a good DSL camera and software. Or, trying shooting on a cloudy day which would filter out some of the strong light. For more on HDR go here: http://www.stuckincustoms.com/hdr-photography/
I want to emphasis this. You did a good job with this image given what you were presented with.
March 15, 2014 at 10:51 am
Appreciate you taking the time to provide such an extensive comment. We are very amateur photographers so always love learning from people who know what they are talking about! Thanks for the feedback!!
March 15, 2014 at 8:02 pm
well I have to chime in on Rick’s comments – because while I am sure he is a pro – and a respected photographer – I still think images and shots are very much open to interpretations. and so even with something like the role of thirds – there may be times when we want a shot that is smack in the bull’s eye center.
and here, I think it was super nice of you to offer your critique – what a generous investment of your time, but the things you note to take out are some of the things I happen to love about this shot.
For example, the stained glass window on the left and the lower right entry way being cut off – that adds interest to me. It softens the formality of the photo – gives us a causal, raw view of what they saw – in this inside shot.
and then the lighting happened to be one of my favorite parts as well. And I think I know what you are referring to – and what you would have liked with your background and preference – but the lighting form the upper windows and that yellow glow gives this photo INTEREST. Almost a spiritual and mysterious feel – which matches the richly ornate and dense history of the Sophia. The yellow light is artsy and pulls the eye into the photo – and then it allows us to move around the many details in the scene.
I also like how the upper arched lights happen to have two on both sides – providing a sense of balance that goes top down. And the way she centered the steeple of the staircase – well that is brilliant too because it anchors the frame and allows the eye to go from side to side.
so in closing, it sounds like you (Rick) have some nice cameras and great preferences – and maybe even some formal photography tips – but my favorite things about these challenges are that people take artsy photos – and many times they have more interest and intrigue than some of the photos that are cropped, staged, altered, or missed afternoon light because they waited for the “supposed” correct lighting – because the so called “right” light may not have been aesthetic for all.
~Yvette
March 15, 2014 at 8:12 pm
Hi Yvette, Thank you so much for taking the time to express your thoughts on this photo. We really appreciate your encouraging words! It is definitely interesting to hear everyone’s perspective and we are so glad that you have such great things to say about it! You’ve shed light on things we hadn’t really even noticed ourselves.
We too love the challenges for the same reason, that all entrants come in from such different angles and share what they have come up with.
Again, thank you for commenting! Happy weekend to you! 🙂
March 15, 2014 at 10:42 am
Beautiful.
janet
March 15, 2014 at 10:51 am
Thanks Janet 🙂
March 15, 2014 at 10:14 am
Beautiful
March 15, 2014 at 10:46 am
Thank you 🙂
March 17, 2014 at 12:46 am
🙂
March 15, 2014 at 10:09 am
Beautiful..love the design and colors!
March 15, 2014 at 10:45 am
Thank you – it’s a pretty amazing place!