Well in Blue Photo

Photographer’s Note

One of the most beautiful thing of Sidi Bou Said is the option to loose the way in the small lanes of that white & blue village.
Apart the main street, full of touristic shops and the main square on the top of the hill, full of cafè and restaurants, the most part of the rest of the city is totally empty of people, shops, restaurants and hotels.
And the strange thing is that there aren't tourist all around.

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Sidi Bou Said (Arabic: سيدي بو سعيد) is a town in northern Tunisia (it is located only 20 km from the capital of Tunisia, Tunis). It is the capital of the Sidi Bou Said Governorate.

The town got its name for a Muslim religious figure who lived there, Abou Said ibn Khalef ibn Yahia Ettamini el Beji (before he came along, it was called Jabal el-Menar). The town itself is a tourist attraction as it is known for the extensive use of blue and white colors all over the town. All kinds of souvenirs (some not even remotely connected to Sidi Bou Said and sometimes not to Tunisia itself) can be bought in the main street. While staying in Sidi Bou Said for a few days is not common, tourists from Hammamet and other tourist towns usually come to Sidi Bou Said. It can be reached by a TGM train, which runs from Tunis to La Marsa.

Sidi Bou Said is still under reputation as a town of artists. Many famous artists lived there or visited Sidi Bou Said. Most famous is probably Paul Klee. Other European artists include Gustave-Henri Jossot, August Macke and Louis Moillet. Tunisian artists in Sidi Bou Said are members of Ecole de Tunis (painting school of Tunis). Most famous are Yahia Turki, Brahim Dhahak and Ammar Farhat.

From Wikipedia

AiresSantos, Floydian, sufi, ChrisJ, riclopes, besnard, delkoo, vinicio, carper, leo61, parbo, chrisnet, john_c, JCG, Henryk_Bilor, Ramy has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

AiresSantos (43250) 2006-11-16 4:34

Hi Paolo,
Very gorgeous view of this town's place in northern Tunisia. I like your POV and how you framed the picture.
Excellent colours and light.
Thanks and greetings,
Aires

Floydian (30970) 2006-11-16 4:35

Hi Paolo,
Beautiful composed with that arch in front leading us to the blue door at the end. Great depth in this wonderful compostion..perfect.
Regards, Henk

pastadog (12821) 2006-11-16 4:37

Hi Paolo - Superbly framed, light well managed and by getting into this courtyard you certainly made the blue doors and windows look authentic and not "touristic", like the ones on the main streets there... Regards, Daniel

sufi (9568) 2006-11-16 4:40

Merhaba Paolo...
It's a wonderful and very creative point of view and ingenious shot, my friend... The colors (especially blue) and the contrast between the blue and white are perfect... Also perfect light, details and clarity...
TFS...
Stay well..
Salim.

ChrisJ (70485) 2006-11-16 4:42

Hi Paolo

Good use of the fg arch, to frame the attractive bg scene. I like the blue & white colour combination. Ciao!

besnard (31316) 2006-11-16 4:47

Bonjour Paolo
Très joli cliché bien cadré sous le pont avec ces couleurs bleues qui sont la marque de fabrique de la Tunisie.
Merci pour le partage et bonne journée.
Nicole

riclopes (33137) 2006-11-16 4:48

Olá Paolo, in a glance I saw so many good images in your gallery that I've been loosing. For now, I just have the pleasure of comment this beautiful composition, under the arch, while peeping the deserted alley in blue. Good balance of lighting, considering the bright white wall at right. The result is great.
Ciao,
Ricardo

gaby (19793) 2006-11-16 5:03

Paolo bonjour - vraiment, je suis toujours ébahi par ta façon d'arranger ou de mélanger les couleurs - en voilà encore un exemple, c'est vraiment très beau et en plus parfaitement éclairé et équilibré -
je te souhaite une bonne journée
Gaby

delkoo (35014) 2006-11-16 5:22

bonjour paolo
from the darkness to the light we arrive in a courtyard to admire the beautiful blue windows and doors.
perfect light
ciao
didier

feather (50480) 2006-11-16 5:55

I like the use of the arch to frame the beautiful blue and white building. Very well exposed and good depth and focus.
KAth

vinicio (22498) 2006-11-16 5:58

UN bel posto sicuramente, pochi colori ma belli e forti, bello il punto di vista anche se avrei inquadrato di meno l'arco per dare più spazio alla scena, ottima nota e qualità della foto, manca solo di partire :)
Complimenti
Ciao
Vinicio

celinaconroy (717) 2006-11-16 8:32

Hi Paolo,
Lovely portal view with some nice contrasts and textures. My favourite part of the image is low arch that forces the viewer to appreciate the symmetry.
Best wishes,
Celina

banyanman (7739) 2006-11-16 9:41

I like this POV, Paulo - well spotted! Using the arch to frame this makes for an interesting composition, even if it is a bit empty as Rafal pointed out. I assume you must have used a centred weighted exposure setting for this. Your Canon Powershot has read the light well as many point-and-shoot cameras would over-expose the white wall on the right given the amount of shadow in this.
Cheers . . . David

brevbrev14 (372) 2006-11-16 10:10

ciao PAolo, mi piace questa semplice composizione, soprattutto per l' arco che ti fa da quinta!hai usato bene anche le luci!
ciao!
Valeria

evanrizo (456) 2006-11-16 12:06

Frame in frame to this nice view.
Very good seen Paolo, I like the blue here and the depth.

carper (66108) 2006-11-16 12:32

very nice one Paolo,
the looking through is very special, good photo job, wit this great pov, good light and very good composition, well seen and congratiolation.
gr. jaap

lestans (15546) 2006-11-16 14:00

La Tunisia!! Così vicina eppure.... !
E che bei colori, che bel posto, inquadrando gli edifici attraverso l'arco ci fai entrare e percorrere le vie della città. Come dappertutto, basta allontanarsi dai posti più turistici e si trova ancora la vita.

Paolo!! sto tentando di fare un mini raduno TE da me, con salsicce formaggio e merlot, e punto su questa domenica: verreste?
Livia

leo61 (44102) 2006-11-16 14:47

Hi Paolo!
A very well composed photo with the view through the arch at the nice scene.Excellent POV and good contrast between white and blue at the facades.Well seen and done.
Regards,Leo

capthaddock (28640) 2006-11-16 17:40

Hi Paolo - the arch makes an excelent frame, I also like the blue & white combination, it reminds me of Chaouen in morocco, the Assad graffiti intruigs me, a support for syria or some boy named assad who wrote his own name there?

parbo (11054) 2006-11-16 17:52

Ciao Paolo,

Huge arch is making your frame very unique with this two colored alley. I like Façade’s white color with their blue colored windows and doors. Using this arch as a frame is very clever idea that creates excellent depth with focus. Bellissimo. Congratulations.

Best Regards,

Parbo

bantonbuju (48844) 2006-11-17 3:11

ciao paolo,
my friend, this is a cute photo, cosy place etc etc
but apart from this "usual" stuff i cannot say anything else, i am affraid, and i'd love to, as the place really gives lots of potential:
for instance - waiting for some by-passer would reveal some more information about people who dwell there, about if it were hot or not, etc,
getting few steps forward would allow to see the laundry to the right thus we could tell something about people living there, instead you make us see the ceiling which is less than interesting;
so - in my opinion: you found a great place, but you missed an opportunity to "squeez it to the last drop";
bit pitty,
tc, j.

jinju (14265) 2006-11-17 3:33

Hey Paolo,

I see you are now taking urban landscapes, applying a similar appoach to the city. Sometimes it works, a times not, I think youve pulled it off. As a study of color and forms of urban space its a success. I do like it even if its a bit empty. But its fine like this.

chrisnet (20378) 2006-11-17 11:39

Hi Paolo,
Good framing with the arch, I like these blue and white colors, good exposure too.
Well composed and seen.
Christian

john_c (24635) 2006-11-17 12:09

Hi Paolo,
Tasteful framing and tight cropping help enhance this fine photo and make the viewer truly want to lose oneself in this village. Indeed the blue and white contrasting hues really present a beautiful theme, and the archway here helps also create an aura of mystery, of perhaps entering forbidden places. The clarity of detail is very fine, allowing the eye to even discern the individual cobblestones. Well captured, Paolo.
John

Henryk_Bilor (20375) 2006-11-18 3:55

Hi Paolo
Very interesting and nice framing. And a beautiful view at the blue and white with a pavement before the wall.
Have a nice day.

JCG (25863) 2006-11-18 4:04

Hi Paolo,

A judicious framing which increases the interest of these places. the management of the lights is very beautiful. I like much these typical colors of Tunisia. A beautiful composition.

Best regards and good WE,

Jean-Charles

fabio_ts (13674) 2006-11-19 4:45

Questa mi era sfuggita, bellissimo il modo in cui hai usato l'arco come cornice naturale della foto, perfetta anche l'esposizione... (non facile) ...ottimo lavoro Paolo!!

buon weekend,

teutza (10568) 2006-11-20 7:55

Hello,
very pleasant mood i found in your blue-white shot1the light is so warm and the colours so soft!
TFS!
teo

plimrn (19856) 2007-03-18 23:21

Hi Paola,
Your photo was featured destination today and I couldn't resist your lovely framing. Light, detail and note are all excellent as well,
HLJ, Pat