Sarlat - Market Day Photo

Photographer’s Note

Back in France again.

First, apologies to many who have visited my gallery recently, but I have not had internet access for a while and couldn't reply in any way.

The very old and charming medieval town of Sarlat, just north of the Dordogne River, is the capital of the Périgord Noir part of Périgord, the old name for the Dordogne département in northern Aquitaine. Its market last Saturday was a bustling and colourful scene, spreading from the square shown here into lots of tiny streets and lanes. The produce is heavily accented towards the specialities of the region, duck, goose and foie gras. I entered one restaurant in which there was nothing on the menu which wasn't derived from duck or accompanied by a layer of foie gras; I even observed it in dessert dishes. I don't have much fondness, I have to say, for ducks or their gizzards, unfortunately, but there was a marvellous array of other fresh produce on display and one could barely move at times in the crowd of early holiday makers from all over Europe.

This photo was taken beside the church of Sainte-Marie (to my right but not shown), looking across the Place de la Liberté towards the tower of the cathedral of Saint-Sacerdos. On the left of the square, with the weather vane on top, is the Hôtel de Ville. I liked the sculpture of the young man but have not yet been able to find any details on the internet, and of course I was in too much of a hurry to find a plaque with the sculptor's name.

The scene was strongly back-lit and I have done some 'home made' HDR on this one, using layers in Photoshop, leaving the sole dark cloud perhaps a bit too dark!

pelin, snunney, amaryllis, MarcT, asajernigan, SELU, cherryripe, JCG, chawax, Kielia, axiotea, maltese, Angshu, Elaine_Blath, PixelTerror, jaywalker, saxo042, plimrn, Royaldevon, molla, Loic_bzh, skippy007, jean11-3, bakes888, adores has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

pelin (2765) 2008-06-11 3:52

Wow, this is an amazing shot. Fantastic composition with that figure looking at crowds and markets. Stunning view, plus excellent colors and sharpness. Also I like the sky, creates unique atmosphere.
My favorite :-)
Thanks!

shabsslg (152) 2008-06-11 4:16

Hi Andrew,

It's cinematic. If not fairy like. I really appreciate the eye to discover the shot from the commonplace market.

Subhayan.

Buin (36852) 2008-06-11 4:32

Hallo Andrew!
A wonderful shot. The contrast between these old facades and these colorful umbrellas is simply great and this sculpture in the foregrpound is a good addition. It somehow "includes" the viewer into the scenery!
Greetings from Germany!
Frank

snunney (34060) 2008-06-11 4:34

Hello Andrew,
A fine composition of this busy market square taken from an excellent point of view. I like the point of view and the inclusion of the bronze. The dramatic sky adds much to the atmosphere. The umbrellas make a very good lead line taking the eyes directly towards the church tower. Excellent colours and clarity. We visited Sarlat many years ago on holiday; among the first people we met were our neighbours from across the road neither of the families had any idea the other was going down to that part of France. A small world!

SteveH (3857) 2008-06-11 4:34

Hi Andrew, well composed shot of this town square, with its attractive buildings surrounding the busy market. I like the inclusion of the statue looking out over the square with us. well done. cheers, steve

Morac (19922) 2008-06-11 4:41

Hello Andrew,
The people who make their races in this market are supervised by a man with the aguets and they do not know it.
Beautiful composition.
Regards
Marc

amaryllis (17045) 2008-06-11 5:07

bonjour,
et merci de me donner un aperçu de ce que je vais voir d'ici quelques jours en allant dans le Périgord; ces petits marches typiques sont superbes, bien vu avec l'église en arrière plan, un bon cadrage et toutes ces bâches de dressées au dessus des étalages car il valait mieux prendre des précautions avec le ciel qui se chargeait...
Oui il y a un guet en haut du mur..
boonne journée
juliette

MarcT (20983) 2008-06-11 5:10

Hi Andrew,
Very special POV. Really excellent composition. We're almost spectators like this statue.
Very well seen
Cheers
Marc

mossphoto (604) 2008-06-11 6:28

Andrew-

I don't feel you have left the clouds too dark. It is a very good use of your "HDR" process. It looks like there is a little bit of a halo around the building, but overall, a good job indeed. Nothing in it looks fake, as many true HDR shots tend to.

I love the statue in the foreground. I'm not sure if he is a protector, or a devious person looking for his next victim. I guess that's one of the things that is great about this shot, it allows the viewer to decide that one their own.

Nice post, great note!

~Vic~

asajernigan (13889) 2008-06-11 6:47

Andrew,
Very nice composition and POV with the inclusion of the statue in the foreground while giving us it's view of the market. The multi colored tents add nice color to the shot and contrast the darkening sky nicely. The lighting and colors are fine with excellent sharpness and detail.
TFS,
Asa

SELU (492) 2008-06-11 6:49

HI ANDREW,
THE CONTRAST FOR ONE DAY DARK AND THE BEATY COLORS HAVE ONE PICTURE VERY GOOD. NICE SHOT. A GREETING.

cherryripe (18794) 2008-06-11 8:40

Hi Andrew
You travel a lot for an Aussie !!!
But I guess it's the best way to escape from the losing Ds.
The depth is excellent, especially have the statue and the background so sharp. The colourful parasols seem to create a line towards the back. Personnally I like the way you treated the sky.
Regards
Nikki

JCG (24827) 2008-06-11 10:59

Hi Andrew,

You found a point the original point of view to emphasize this place and this market where the leading product must be certainly the foie gras… This statue, of which I also tried to find the name of the artist, without success, balances the image in very beautiful way, I like much. The treatment of the lights and colors are superb. Beautiful and interesting photograph, thank you Andrew.

With all my friendships and a very good evening,

Jean-Charles

PS : Good Parisian stay and I hope that the WE will be very sunny to enable you to make beautiful photographs in Versailles…

Kielia (8183) 2008-06-11 12:00

Hello Andrew,
thank you for sharing this great and perfect composition. It is full of atmosphere and also concerning the technical aspects excellent.
Congratulation!
Best regards
Harriet

chawax (5743) 2008-06-11 12:03

Hi Andrew,
A very complex shot, with a lot of things in the composition. But you perfectly did it and it's really an excellent shot ! We sit with this statue to see this nice daily life action. Very nice colours, on the market, on the buildings and on the clouds that look very threating and create a great atmosphere. Great light and great sharpness too. Congratulations.
Regards,
Olivier

axiotea (15919) 2008-06-11 12:35

Hello Andrew
A great pov including the statue which is inviting us to look at the traditional houses, bell tower, with in between the colored market roofs giving a fine contrast. I also like the dramatic sky adding more interest to the the scene...
Selamlar
Marilyn

vincz (19039) 2008-06-11 12:44

Great idea with the statue in the foreground discovering the palce with us. Great colors and tones, fascinating sky.

maltese (21529) 2008-06-11 14:26

Hello Andrew
Une belle utilisation de cette statue pour nous faire rentrer dans cette image. Une très belle gestion de la DOF pour une grande netteté sur toute la photo. Couleurs et rendu du ciel sont superbes.
Très bon travail!!
Amicalement
Hervé

UnTrained (0) 2008-06-12 0:08

Hi Andrew,
several interesting elements well put together here. A good strong cloudy sky as a fine juxtaposition to the coloured umbrellas. A wonderful view along the facades with great depth and well placed the statue with good textures. I like it.
Lieben Gruss, Ulf

Angshu (33267) 2008-06-12 0:36

Hello Andrew
From the thumbnail, I thought he was a real life person. Excellent POV keeping the statue to te left of the frame, overlooking the square with wonderful perspective defined by the multicoloured shades, through the lane to the steeple in the far end. Considering this was a backlit shot, the amount of details you managed to bring out thru PP is fantastic. Excellent!
With Regards
Angshu

Elaine_Blath (6170) 2008-06-12 1:04

Hi Andrew,

the shot is indeed a bit dark, but not to harm, I suppose...very well chosen POV, the composition and atmosphere are great...

Take care, Ivana

PixelTerror (86026) 2008-06-12 3:25

Hi Andrew,
I see we have shared similar experiences of enjoying the rain on Sarlat market day, the good point for you that it did apparently rain a bit less (cats, dogs and even elephants for me) so you could at least shoot a few pictures. I like your PP, not overdone to the point of becoming unnatural and managing to restitute some color, the compo having the statue watching the scene is excellent.
Have a nice day JY

testmaniac (11832) 2008-06-12 10:51

Hi Andrew, nice street photo with perfect composition, colors and atmosphere from Sarlat.I like it!
TFS and regards,
Philip

jaywalker (12186) 2008-06-12 15:27

Hi Andrew, wonderfully composed with the statue in the perfect position in the frame, the sky is excellent & I love the high POV overlooking the colourful canapés, really well photographed, kind regards Wilson.

saxo042 (15102) 2008-06-13 2:42

Hi Andrew,
This reminds my of several visits to this lovely little town, with its fine sandstone colours, which you have excellently combined here with the bright colours of the shelters (or whatever it´s called). The statue looking onto the town is a very fine indicator of depth.
Greetings from Gothenburg
Gunnar

plimrn (19558) 2008-06-13 10:44

Hi Andrew,
Looks like the young fellow was turned to turned to bronze as he sat overlooking the market. The bright tents add nice color while the clouds add depth.
HLJ, Pat

Royaldevon (5786) 2008-06-14 1:05

Hello Andrew,

I was waiting for a new posting but could not imagine that it would be so good!
Firstly, to capture the statue is a very intuitive and clever stroke. We all now feel to be looking at the market with him ... almost surreptiously!
Then the wall leads us in nicely to the colourful awnings and busy people.
Lastly, we move on to the interesting buildings under a moody sky.

For such a lot going on, you have composed this beautifully and supplied us with just enough detail to interest but not overpower.

I must add this to my favourites.

Kind regards,
Bev :-)

molla (6875) 2008-06-14 14:03

Dear friend,
This picture has a very special impact on me with this bronze figure sitting and watching the market and the crowd of people like he has some kind on curse on him that made him to metal... even the sky is fairytale:ish so me might se the good fairy coming soon and turn him in to flesh and blood. excellent POV and well maintained Postediting.
Tjingeling //Anders

azaf1 (15541) 2008-06-15 0:44

Hi Andrew. A great POV, the perspective of the statue looking at this beautiful town of Sarlat. Strong and vivid colors sharp details compose a nice scene to look at.
TFS
Argiris

Loic_bzh (6936) 2008-06-16 1:19

Hi Andrew!

You know what? I've never been in Dordogne & Perigord! Shame on me...

Your photo is really nicely framed. To be honnest I'm not a big fan of thee PP that made it unreal, but as we say in french "les gôuts et les couleurs"!

Have a nice week,

Loïc

ifanik (20462) 2008-06-17 3:12

Hi Andrew
This is a very beautiful composition
Wonderful photo with beautiful colours and Pov
This is like a movie picture
Bravo
Best regards
Nick**

skippy007 (6799) 2008-06-17 17:39

Hello Andrew, Looking at this I'm not surprised that you are not feeling home sick, not yet anyway. A stunning colourful vie not only for us all to see but also for that guy on the left. The market tents adding wonderful colour, I like your POV, excellent.
Thanks
Take care
Santo

jean11-3 (2799) 2008-06-18 13:11

Hello Andrew,a lovely busy shot of Sarlat.I remember the market for the crowds and the fine range of foods etc.,
This is a wonderful composition looking down on the stalls,canopies and people, all framed by the old buildings.Our eyes keep being drawn back to the statue.
If I remember rightly, the Dordogne has lots of thunderstorms in the summertime, so those clouds look just right.
Tfs, regards Jean.

Waylim (10717) 2008-06-19 12:41

Andrew,
Excellent POV I must say, and the DoF is so good. Everething is perfectly sharp from the statue to the distant architecture. Great details and texture of the buildings and the sky with nice cloud, beautiful. Great composition as well on this busy market place. Thanks
Way

AiresSantos (41322) 2008-06-20 23:40

Hi Andrew
Amazing colours and details in this excellent composition. Nice cloudy sky and POV. I like how you managed the light
TFS and greetings
Aires

bakes888 (18055) 2008-06-21 2:27

Hi Andrew. Your home made HDR works a treat and the one dark clouds a little drama to the scene which goes well with the statue. Good colours and compo. Thanks for sharing.
Cheers, Paul.

jongari (38) 2008-06-23 9:46

Hello Andrew,

a well done shot!

I like the contrast between the busy crowd down in the streets and the sculpture looking some kind of bored to the other direction. (I know, I disagree to many critiques saying, he overlooks the market...)

The bright colours and the the high contrast make the photo a very lively one.
I don't think the black cloud is too dark, maybe the white clouds to the left are a little too bright.
While looking at the sky it became very obvious to me that you 'improved' the sky in photoshop- there is a halo around the spire...

Greetings,
Oliver

pastadog (12821) 2008-06-25 2:11

Oh, yes, Andrew, that's a very attractive compo with the artwork as viewer. The colorful market goes well together with the sober tones of the buildings - and you had a nice busy sky too, which you efficiently included in the frame. Regards, Daniel

adores (15279) 2008-07-01 18:26

Hi Andrew!
This is a very good composition, seems the statue is watching the fair. Very well framed, with very good DOF and colors. Even the dark cloud is very good here.

marietom (31772) 2008-07-13 5:28

hello Andrew,

Superbe, cette composition, avec ce ciel chargé, et les couleurs des toiles.
Bon dimanche
Marie

kensimage (8539) 2008-09-28 8:25

Very nice choice of POV and composition here, Andrew--the statue seems to be watching over everything, making sure no one is misbehaving. Everything in the image leads the eye in a sweep toward the tower in the distance. Very rich color for a backlit scene--you did very well with your homemade HDR. Regards, Ken.

patmor (232) 2008-11-06 6:21

Bonjour,

A travers vos photos , je vois que vous avez aimé la France autant que moi,l'Australie .Vous avez toujours de trés beaux ciel.
Merci de votre interet