The Canals of Bruges #3
Photo of the Day
Number three in my series of images of the canals of Bruges, Belgium. This one features the town hall rising in the background.
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The Canals of Bruges #2
Photo of the Day
Number two in my series of images of the canals of Bruges, Belgium.
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The Canals of Bruges #1
Photo of the Day
Starting today and going on for a dozen or so posts, I’ll be showing off some of my photos from a recent trip to Bruges, Belgium. Frequently dubbed the ‘Venice of the North,’ I couldn’t help but capture a few shots of the canals that criss cross the city. This series focuses on those waterways. Enjoy.
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Calgary Skyline Panorama
Photo of the Day
Here’s another HDR panorama, this time from my hometown of Calgary. On a recent visit, I made a point of getting a few shots of the skyline. Since moving to Manchester, I hadn’t shot Calgary’s skyline and my catalogue of images was in need of a bit of updating. That Encana building changes the view in a big way.
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Latin Bridge in Sarajevo
Photo of the Day
The infamous Latin Bridge in Sarajevo was the scene of the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, the event that served as a catalyst for World War I.
That violent history isn’t evident on the bridge anymore. It’s only the buildings around it that still have scars from more recent conflicts, but even those are slowly being wiped away in preparation for a brighter future for Bosnia.
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Deserted Mancunian Way
Photo of the Day
Manchester’s city centre is surrounded by the Mancunian Way, a sometimes-raised motorway that consistently hums with a steady flow of traffic. It’s rare to find an hour of the day when there isn’t at least an automotive trickle passing along the road.
The photo below might then make you wonder what I was thinking by wandering out into the middle of one of the city’s busiest streets. Well, it wasn’t busy that morning – once or twice a year, road crews block off all traffic and perform maintenance. On just such a morning, I was able to wander along the now-clear street to do a bit of cityscape photography.
Despite knowing that I was essentially alone on the strip of road, my body remained tensed at being in a place it normally shouldn’t be. I feel like this shot was worth a bit of unease…
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Sarajevo Panorama
Photo of the Day
I was pleasantly surprised by Sarajevo. I entered the city from the South and initially, I had trepidations about it. It seemed to sprawl forever and all I could see were the bullet-marked faces of uncharacteristic Soviet buildings. It looked a bit grim, really.
The Old Town changed my mind completely though. Mosques neighbour synagogues which neighbour churches and a cluster of pedestrian only roads form a medina that wouldn’t be entirely out of place in Morocco (if Sarajevo were more hectic). Combine that with the city’s sad but fascinating history and it became an enticing destination.
My brief stay in Sarajevo was ended with this view of the old town as night descended on Bosnia-Herzegovina’s capital.
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Riga Panorama
Photo of the Day
Taken from a popular vantage point in Riga, Latvia atop St. Peter’s Church, this shot was blessed by a beautiful day and good light that gave shape to the fantastic city below.
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Fez Panorama at Dawn
Photo of the Day
The evening before I took this photo, I was in this same spot enjoying the calm perspective on the madness of Fez below. It’s a city that seems to be composed almost entirely of alleys and every corner, while magical, is usually inhabited by someone trying to make some tourist dollars. I was happy to have briefly escaped the onslaught of touts, guides, hawkers and salesmen and have a moment of peace.
There I was, observing a dun sunset and preparing myself to rise to this same spot for what would probably be a more interesting sunrise than that grey evening when a man approached me and started chatting to me about what a lovely view it was. I agreed and relished the chance to converse with someone who wasn’t aiming to sell me anything. No sooner did I have this thought when he pulled a sack seemingly from thin air and started showing me his wares.
I couldn’t believe it. I was one of the only people up here! How could this be a profitable location to set up shop? I politely declined his offers and got back to my camera, constantly hoping for more interesting light to break through and bathe the city. Fortunately he wasn’t too pushy and eventually started back down the hill towards the city.
As darkness fell, I was cautioned away from the area by local police who informed me this wasn’t the safest place to be hanging around at night. Thanking them for their concern, I made my own way down the hill only to return early the next morning to catch the sunrise you see below. I do have some shots from the evening which I might post later, but for now, I was partial to this sunrise.
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Barcelona Cityscape Panorama
Photo of the Day
Fortune and a bright, purple dawn smiled on my as I descended Montjuic Hill in Barcelona. After searching around for a good vantage point, I eventually settled on an area close to the site used for the swimming events in the 1992 Summer Olympics. I would have loved to have been inside that facility for its more unobstructed views, but I made the best of it when I realized it wasn’t going to be open any time near when I needed it to be.
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Darby Sawchuk is a Canadian-born photographer who currently resides in Manchester, England. He has travelled to over 40 countries and is always adding more to the list. He creates stock for multiple agencies and is available for assignments.
+44 0790 992 8932
