TEMPLE OF ATHENA — PAESTUM Photo

Photographer’s Note

TEMPLE OF ATHENA — PAESTUM

(Reproduced in large part from my earlier post, Temple of Hera — Paestum)

Around 650 BC the Dorians founded Paestum after having been expelled from the city of Sybaris, across the Ionian Sea on the mainland of Greece. Three beautifully preserved Doric Temples comprise the main features of the site in what is now Southern Italy. Paestum flourished for a little over a century, then was severely damaged by attacks from the local Barbarians around 510 BC. Another 120 years later still it was dealt a fatal blow when the barbarians overran it again.

During the summer when the better known sites Pompeii and Herculaneum are overrun by tourists, Paestum, off the beaten track, remains an unusually placid and compelling place to visit. I had been serving as a guest lecturer on the cruise ship, Crystal Serenity, on a cruise that commenced in Venice, and visited the storied ports of Dubrovnik, Sorrento, Livorno (the port serving Pisa and Florence), Portofino, Monte Carlo among others. It was during the Sorrento visit that we rented an automobile, and drove first in the direction of Pompeii, and then south on the autobahn. The site is also accessible from Salerno, only 40-km away.

The Temple of Athena is seen head on from the south. Although not quite as well preserved as the Temple of Hera, it is still in an excellent state, featuring fluted columns with Doric capitals — all evocative of the iconic temple, the Parthenon, built a century later in Athens. The irony of site, is that although it contains the oldest, and best preserved of Doric temples, these majestic ruins were unknown all through the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. But perhaps that was fortuitous for us — during medieval times it did not become a rock quarry as did many other pagan temples. The site was discovered in 1740, and first accurately described in 1779.

A memorable event occurred to us earlier in the day when we met an elderly Japanese couple on our cruise. As I was taking a photo of the couple, the man seemed fascinated with my camera (a 4.4 Megapixel Fuji Cool-pix 4700). “My camera,” he announced. “Your camera?” I asked puzzled, fearing I might have picked up the wrong camera somewhere. “My camera, I make them,” he said. He was the founder of Fuji Filmworks.

Budapestman, eev99, jrj, nursez, zo_tos, snunney, AROBN54, meltemi, feather, carper, Ertan, isabela_sor, Silvio1953, danos, rushfan2112, sothy81, thea0211, vincz, salvator, jaywalker, papagolf21, zeca, Photo65Net, Cretense, JCG, puzzle, ahmetgedikli, mursaloglu, molla, norenastramus06, paura, singuanti, Angshu, Marcelo_Almeida, nivaldo, PixelTerror, Tue, jmcl, keribar, Henryk_Bilor has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

eev99 (1198) 2007-05-03 9:29

Nicely seen. The blooms really softens this shot as well as being a great framing element. I visited these ruins last summer on a cycling trip. The site is quite impressive to say the least.

jrj (34779) 2007-05-03 9:38

Good use of the foreground trees adding lots of life and colours to the ruins of the temple in the back. seems a most interesting place to visit, not least due to the informative notes that goes with it. Fun story of the Fujii man..

Shana (3203) 2007-05-03 9:55

Bonjour,

très beau temple, bien cadré et bien mis en valeur par votre mangifique photo.

Bravo et excellente soirée, Shana

nursez (1903) 2007-05-03 9:55

Selam Bülent bey,
bu güzel tapınak zakkum çiçekleriyle süslenmiş hali çok keyfli bir görünüm kazanmış,not'da son derece ilginç:))tebrikler,Nur

zo_tos (1082) 2007-05-03 9:57

hi bulent,
nice framing with the trees, excellent the note, thanx for sharing

snunney (34942) 2007-05-03 10:30

Hello Bulent,
A good pov on this still impressive ruined temple nicely framed by the blossom trees.

AROBN54 (10777) 2007-05-03 10:37

Hello, Bulent,
the light and contrast are wonderful in this shot and nicely framed by the flowering trees. I like the good detail you can see even from a distance. Well seen and captured and as always, a great and informative note. Warm regards,
Shelly

meltemi (9746) 2007-05-03 11:03

Hello Bulent,
a fantastic photo. Great view of magnificent architecture with splendid flowers, beautiful light and colors, very good contrast, this photo has that film look. The framing is very nice too, it gives the composition more depth and expression.
Thanks for the informative note. Kindest regards.
Stella

feather (49862) 2007-05-03 12:23

The square format works well here. You had good light and pleasant colours. The flowered bushes make a perfect frame for the temple ruins. Well done
Kath

carper (64936) 2007-05-03 13:02

a very good shot Bulent
a very nice looking through those flowers, nice details and good photojob, a nice job and nice too look at, well done.
gr. jaap

Silvio1953 (41843) 2007-05-03 14:52

Hi again Bulent, classic and splendid view of this wonderful architecture, I like also flowers and blu sky, well done, ciao Silvio

rushfan2112 (2965) 2007-05-03 14:55

Hi Bulent. Lovely, naturalistic colours. A beautiful place and an extremely well composed image. I really like the hot colours of the flowers and stones against the cool, blue sky. Nice shot. Regards, Paul.

erel (11540) 2007-05-03 14:58

MERHABA
Çok güzel bir açı yakalamışsın renkler ve kadraj harika tebrikler ..sizin kadar gezebilmeyi çok isterdim bol fotoğraflı günler
EREL

sothy81 (8536) 2007-05-03 16:45

Hi Bulent,

You have great architectural shot here. I am always interested in ruins. Just like how people come up with that kind of idea to build all of those cool stuff that we do not really have the ability to imitate. The inclusion of flower mkes it look like a really pleasant place with care takers. Well done

Sothy

thea0211 (1355) 2007-05-03 17:18

hello bulent,
love the natural framing here - it was obviously the perfect time of year to visit Athena's temple!
the temple itself is beautiful, i like to imagine stories about it being in the good old days, inhabited by gods and goddesses :)
nice photograph!
thanks,
dora

very good note and pleasant story in the end :)

Ertan (2979) 2007-05-04 3:33

Merhaba Bulent Abi
Cok hos renkler ve contrast.Ozellikle sag ve solda bulunan cicekler harika cerceve olusturmus.Cok guzel,ellerine saglik
Selamlar
Ertan

isabela_sor (42175) 2007-05-04 3:58

What a lovely framing ....the blossom trees in forground creates a very good contrast!!The details of this old temple are very good and avery detailed informative note
All the best
Isabela

vincz (19043) 2007-05-04 4:06

A very beautiful composition Bulent with the flowery bushes in the foreground forming an entrance to some magical ancient world where this temple is built. i like very much how you "staged" this in this shot, could not be a better setting for this old contruction.

salvator (18819) 2007-05-04 10:23

Hello Bulent Bey,
Supoerb composition. The colors, the flowers the wonderful sky... superb to put it in one word. I wish you an excellent weekend. Best personal regards. Salvator.

danos (32538) 2007-05-04 11:59

Merhaba Bulent,
nice the temple of Atena in Paestum.Very informative your note about the history of the area and the temples.The two laurels right and left of your capture shape a beautiful frame for the temple.Well done.
Regards,danos

jaywalker (12190) 2007-05-04 12:50

Hi Bulent, Beautifully composed, the ruins through the pink flowered bush looks wonderful, the ruins have created superb depth, the light & colours are very good, great shot, kind regards Wilson.

Clementi (44215) 2007-05-04 13:35

Hi Bulent,
the light and contrast are wonderful,
nice framing with the trees,
nice details and good photojob.
Giorgio

papagolf21 (56435) 2007-05-04 16:44

Cher ami Bulent,
De retour d'une espace campagnarde, je reprends le clavier de l'ordinateur pour exprimer l'admiration de vos dernières prises de vue. Les sujets sont particulièrement intéressants et parfaitement réalisés.
Bravo, mon ami.
Amitiés.
Philippe

zeca (20026) 2007-05-05 1:09

Hello Bulent!
Very nice framing to this beautiful temple! The flowers add life to the rocks and broke its cold image! Beautiful! The colours are a little bit washed, maybe because of the scan.
Regards,
Zeca

Photo65Net (43096) 2007-05-05 3:46

Hello Bulent,
A nice postacrd, typical of these european ruins (I first thought it was from Greece...).
You had clever idea including these flowers.
Very nice,
Regards,
JB.

Cretense (56222) 2007-05-05 8:09

Merhaba Bulent!

This seems to be a very interesting and beautiful archaeological site. With your great composition and light managment you brought up all of its beauty. Congratulations!

With my warmest regards,
Hercules

JCG (25377) 2007-05-05 12:32

Hi Bülent,

A very beautiful photograph on this jewels archaeological. I like much the composition of the photograph with these rose trees in the foreground which gives a pretty framework to the image and a beautiful contrast with the stone. Very interesting like the comment as usual. Cheer and thank you Bülent.

With all my friendships and a good WE,

Jean-Charles

puzzle (700) 2007-05-05 17:14

merhaba hocam,

cok guzel planlanmis bir kompozisyon.Bu guzel cicekler,tapinagin verdigi sert ifadeyi yumusatip daha da etkili kilmis fotografi.
elinize saglik,

leyla

ahmetgedikli (21916) 2007-05-05 20:20

Merhaba,
Sert ışık şartlarında nefis bir açı, iyi bir kadraj ve ilginç notla ifade edilen bir kompozisyon. Bu arada gönderdikleriniz elime geçti, Dikmenle ilgili yazınızda oldukça ilginçti. Selamlar, saygılar. İyi pazarlar.
Ahmet

mursaloglu (5164) 2007-05-06 4:53

Dear bulent bey
Wonderful composition andvery stunning image and extremly well sharpened. The cold stone of the monument is broken by the hot and armonious mood of the flowers of each side. Best regards happy weekend. ihsan

Yar (795) 2007-05-06 10:16

hello,

a nice arch drowning among blooming bushes. It might have been a nice picture even not considering the history. But the ancient events make this 'postcard' even more appealing.
Thank you

PS: regards to Fuji man :)

anesugur (16920) 2007-05-06 16:32

Merhaba Bülent Bey,
Türkiye'mizin güneyinde olduğu gibi tarihi eserler ve zakkum ağaçları birlikte. Oldukça aşina olduğumuz bir manzara.
Sonuç da bu fotoğraf da Akdeniz kültürü ve doğasını yansıtıyor.
Selam ve saygılar. Uğur

molla (6883) 2007-05-07 6:18

Hej Bulent!
Good info as usual. There's a nice tone of an colorbleched postcard over this image, that gives it a tuch of an pleasant jorney some times ago. It could also be a framed enlargement in the local Ozo-bar.
Anders Mohlin

norenastramus06 (1224) 2007-05-07 14:03

Merhaba bülent hocam,
Çok güzel bir açıdan renk ve detaylar ile güzel komposizyon.çiçekler ayrı bir tat katmış.tebrikler.
selamlar

adores (15567) 2007-05-07 19:03

Hi Bulent!
Very nice composition! I like the way you framed the temple with these trees in the foreground. Very nice colours and a good note too!
Regards, Anabela

paura (38456) 2007-05-07 22:01

Bulent,
Very beautiful composition here. A judicious point of view with the flowers in the foreground and the intersting temple works very well.

Paulo

singuanti (15240) 2007-05-07 22:46

Hello Bulent. You sure chose some beautiful bookends for the temple. The focus and DOF looks tricky here but you were wise to keep the DOF wide so as to help keep the flowers in focus. The light looks very bright out but I see no blown highlights anywhere. Well done Bulent!

Marcelo_Almeida (1044) 2007-05-08 18:38

Hi bulent,
Bela composição das ruínas do Templo de Athena, o POV é bem interessante.
TFS,
Marcelo Almeida

nivaldo (13103) 2007-05-08 22:04

Hello Bulent!
A nice photo with a very informative note!
The blooming trees gave a special color the picture and made such a good frame too!
Um abraço,de Recife,
Nivaldo

Angshu (33697) 2007-05-09 5:15

Hello Professor "A"
Perfect framing & a great note as usual...but I think the colours can be lifted a bit. The idea to include the bushes with blossoms was a good idea...I doubt if the picture would be as visually appealing otherwise.
With warm regards
Angshuman "B"

delic (6735) 2007-05-09 12:35

Merhaba,
Impressive view of the Temple of Athena between the blossoming trees. Contrast and saturation could be increased in PP to make up for the harsh daylight.
Best wishes,
Hakan

PixelTerror (86146) 2007-05-10 4:24

Hi Bulent,
It's a nice temple and a luminous sumer view, the presence of all those flowers is a plus that brings seasonal context as well, maybe the right bush is a bit too present.
Have a nice day,
Jean-Yves

Tue (25608) 2007-05-10 5:32

Hej Bulent,
Another good shot from Paestum! Wonderful to see the ancient architecture of the temple here in this picture. And it's really nicely framed by the trees full of lovely flowers. Good work, thanks for sharing!
Regards,
Lars

jmcl (13865) 2007-05-10 23:12

Hi Bulent,

I love this composition .. the ancient temple ruin ..between these flowered bushes so full of life .. I wish the whole thing were a nudge sharper .. but is such an overwhelmingly beautiful display that I love it.

take care,

John

keribar (42748) 2007-05-12 0:59

Hello Bulent,
Perhaps it lacks some sharpness, but the composition and the history is so wonderful, that it pleases us very much: Good decision to frame the old doric temple with bunches of pink bay trees.
I wish you a great week-end - Izzet

missninja (495) 2007-05-12 4:41

Hello Bulent!
I like the pov, with tree trees on both sides, very beautiful colors as well.
Warm regards, Nina

Henryk_Bilor (20367) 2007-05-12 6:11

Hi Bulent
Lovely capture of this ancient monument with the framing of blooming trees.
Very nice light.
Regards

Budapestman (42020) 2007-05-17 9:29

Hi Bulent,
Fascinating impression. This is a very spectacular and fine shot. I like the historical atmosphere and the fine details. Picturesque composition and superb quality. Very good image.
Have a nice day, thank you
George

fkokol (1614) 2007-06-21 18:39

Cicekler arasinda tapinak harika gozukuyor. Aciyi gercekten cok iyi yakalamissiniz. Ilginc bir tesadufle noktalmissiniz gunu. ellerinize saglik,

figen

mineelci (1492) 2007-09-11 0:11

ben arada bu fotoğrafı kaçırmışım. Bu haftasonu Didimde olacağım, başarabilirsem Milet ziyareti yapmak istiyorum, belki şimdi o yüzden gözüme takıldı.