I’ve taken a nap in a mosque once, and I must say, it’s a great place to sleep! This is obviously not me in the photo taking a nap, I should be clear. When I was walking around inside the Blue Mosque in Istanbul, I saw this guy and it reminded me of a nap I took in another one. Sometimes I’m out shooting for 12+ hours in a day… and when it gets hot and I need a break, it’s a great place to curl up and recharge. It’s always perfectly safe and no one seems to mind.

A Nap in the Window Sill of the Blue Mosque

Photo Information

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• Date Taken2016-10-02 15:47:41
• CameraILCE-7RM2
• Camera MakeSony
• Exposure Time1/13
• Aperture4
• ISO640
• Focal Length15.0 mm
• FlashOff, Did not fire
• Exposure ProgramAperture-priority AE
• Exposure Bias+1.3

I’m not exactly an expert on these, but now I’ve had five or six hamams. They’re alwyas a bit different, but I always emerge like a smooth dolphin in the water. I probably lose about a pound each time from having my outer layer of skin completely removed… It’s like a forced moulting or something. But it is always a great time to be pampered like that for so long! 🙂

An Ancient Hamam

Photo Information

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• Date Taken2016-10-02 21:38:18
• CameraILCE-7RM2
• Camera MakeSony
• Exposure Time0.6
• Aperture4.5
• ISO320
• Focal Length12.0 mm
• FlashOff, Did not fire
• Exposure ProgramAperture-priority AE
• Exposure Bias

After I got over to the hilltop right before sunset, I decided the spot was actually rubbish and I had wasted my time. It’s another one of those times when locals tell you about “amazing” places to go for photos, and then you get there are realized they are not photographers at all. It’s way too far away from the city, and it’s hard to get a decent sunset shot here. I figured this out after 5 minutes, barely found a taxi, and then in Extremely Broken Turkish + Google Maps, explained that I wanted to go down to the seaside on the Asian side. I walked along the shore for about 2 km during sunset. It was great! Right when it started to get quite dark, I came across this scene… That’s the “Maiden’s Tower” on the island in the background on the left there. A beautiful spot!

Istanbul Wedding Crasher

Photo Information

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• Date Taken2016-10-04 00:22:35
• CameraILCE-7RM2
• Camera MakeSony
• Exposure Time1.3
• Aperture5.6
• ISO400
• Focal Length24.0 mm
• FlashOff, Did not fire
• Exposure ProgramAperture-priority AE
• Exposure Bias-0.3

At first when I walked into the Hagia Sophia, besides being blown away, I was a bit disappointed to see all the scaffolding. It didn’t seem “right” to have all that in there, but I certainly understand why repairs and cleaning needs to be done. It also kind of depressed me from a photographic standpoint because I couldn’t get a “clean” photo. But then, when I looked at this final image in the viewfinder, I was strangely happy with it. Not only is that scaffolding a sign of the present, but it’s also a bit of a strange and delightful interloper. You don’t expect to see it, and it breaks up the basic patterns you see everywhere else in the photo. So, in other words, now I like it!

Repairs to the Hagia Sophia

Photo Information

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• Date Taken2016-10-03 19:07:42
• CameraILCE-7RM2
• Camera MakeSony
• Exposure Time0.6
• Aperture7.1
• ISO100
• Focal Length11.0 mm
• FlashOff, Did not fire
• Exposure ProgramAperture-priority AE
• Exposure Bias-1

Believe it or not, this was one of my handheld series. It came out pretty good, I think. The tripod shots came out great too, but I couldn’t quite get my tripod into this position, which was too bad. You’ll see more shots in the future from the video above when I set up my tripod over on the left side of the mosque. I’m happy with those shots too, but it was a toss-up as to what to post first. I chose this one just to prove that you don’t really need a tripod if you’re in a pinch! 🙂

Peeking inside the Blue Mosque

Photo Information

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• Date Taken2016-10-02 15:48:30
• CameraILCE-7RM2
• Camera MakeSony
• Exposure Time1/50
• Aperture4
• ISO640
• Focal Length15.0 mm
• FlashOff, Did not fire
• Exposure ProgramAperture-priority AE
• Exposure Bias-0.7

Here’s another photo from one of my favorite hot-photo-spots in Istanbul when I was eating dinner atop the Seven Hills Hotel at the restaurant there. I didn’t stay at this hotel, but anyone can go to the top for dinner. I recommend getting there about an hour before sunset so you can have amazing Turkish appetizers and just munch while waiting for the sun to go down. Then, just before things start getting really good, order dinner… it should be out right as soon as it begins to get dark. Then you can eat food and take photos until you get every last drop of light.

The Hagia Sophia at Nightfall

Photo Information

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• Date Taken2016-10-03 00:00:07
• CameraILCE-7RM2
• Camera MakeSony
• Exposure Time1/4
• Aperture4.5
• ISO200
• Focal Length27.0 mm
• FlashOff, Did not fire
• Exposure ProgramAperture-priority AE
• Exposure Bias-0.7

I heard there were two Medusa head statues hidden around the cisterns. I went down here with the mission to find both of them… I’ve always been a big gamer, D&D guy, etc etc, so having a mission like that was very exciting for me. I found both of them and had many other “events” along the way. I’ll save those for future posts and photos from this incredible underground structure.

The Roman Cistern in Istanbul

Photo Information

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• Date Taken2016-10-02 22:05:12
• CameraILCE-7RM2
• Camera MakeSony
• Exposure Time13
• Aperture4
• ISO200
• Focal Length16.0 mm
• FlashOff, Did not fire
• Exposure ProgramAperture-priority AE
• Exposure Bias