The City of Valletta Photo

Photographer’s Note

Valletta is the capital city of Malta. It is located in the central-eastern portion of the island of Malta and has a population of 6,315.
Valletta, the Città Umilissima, is essentially Baroque in character, with elements of Mannerist, Neo-Classical and Modern architecture in selected areas. Although many of its treasures survive, World War II left major scars on the city. The City of Valletta was officially recognised as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1980.
The foundation stone of Valletta was laid by the Grandmaster of the Order of Saint John, Jean Parisot de la Valette on 28 March 1566. The Order decided to found a new city on the Xiberras peninsula just after the end of the Siege of Malta in 1565, so as to fortify the Order's position in Malta and bind the Knights to the island. The city was designed by Francesco Laparelli. Many of the most important buildings were built by the Maltese architect Gerolamo Cassar. Valletta is an urban area which boasts many buildings from the 16th century and onwards, many built during the rule of the Knights of St. John of Jerusalem (the Knights Hospitaller).

The city's plan was a departure from medieval Maltese architecture, which exhibited irregular winding streets and alleys. Laparelli designed the new city with rectangular grids, without any collacchio (an area restricted for important buildings). The streets were designed to be wide and straight, beginning centrally from the City Gate to end at Fort Saint Elmo overlooking the Mediterranean. Certain bastions were built 153 feet (47 m) tall.
After the Knights' departure and the brief French occupation, building projects in Valletta resumed under British rule. They widened gates, demolished and rebuilt structures, widened newer houses over the years, and installed civic projects.
Nazi and Fascist air raids throughout World War II destroyed areas of the city and its infrastructure.

Wikipedia..

danyy, JudyR, PaulVDV, pauloog, Floydian, cunejo200, JCG, Jakab has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

danyy (67882) 2009-05-09 9:00

Bonjour Francis,
une photo pleine de détails et dans de très bonnes lumières,le choix du POV est judicieux ainsi que le cadrage qui laissent apparaitre une mer d'un bleu profond.
Bien à toi.
Daniel.

aristo (1565) 2009-05-09 9:09

Hello Xavier!
What a beautiful postcard you've made!
Great composition of this wonderful capitol.
Amazing architecture.Superb colors and sharpness.Compliments,
Have a nice weekend!
Arek

tober (3872) 2009-05-09 10:02

I visited La Valetta 5 years ago and you refresh my memories in yhis small but beautiful country with those typical photos Francis. Excellent harmony between the blue color of the Mediterranean and yellow texture of the cityscape. Best regards, Tolga

JudyR (783) 2009-05-09 11:02

Fascinating shot with intricate detail. I find it amazing that only 6315 people inhabit this densely packed city, since my little fishing village houses 10,000 people and looks nothing like the city I see in your photo. Very interesting! Judy

PaulVDV (5032) 2009-05-09 11:50

Hello Francis Xavier,
A very beautiful, sharp and well detailed picture of the Valletta-skyline.
The many towers and domes sticking out above the beautiful houses with those wonderful balconies remind me my visit of La Valletta (about a year ago).
Best regards, Paul

pauloog (6278) 2009-05-09 13:19

Hello Francis,
A clear and sharp tele view of Valetta, well composed and with plenty of details to discover.

mirarer (4254) 2009-05-09 13:23

Hi Francis,
Great postcard of Valletta.
Beautiful light.
Regards,
Mirari

Floydian (30970) 2009-05-09 15:00

Hi Francis,

A beautiful one, classic, but very impresiive on the architecture. But also in light and most of all on the composition. Love the boat on the left, brings a great balance to the dome tower on the right....a very good one.

Regards,

Henk

stego (22318) 2009-05-09 15:14

Hi Francis,

Beautiful panoramic view of that old town and its magnificent architecture. I like the presence of the white sail and it helps much the compo by drawing an imaginary diagonal with the big cupola on the right.

The name of Malta always remind me ancient stories of knights, namely because the Order of the Hospital had an important role in Portuguese history. Its seat in Portugal was very near the town where I was born, Crato.

Regards, José.

vincz (19039) 2009-05-10 4:25

Very beautiful place, very well composed image with the sail boat getting in the picture.

Ola_Kwiatek (2234) 2009-05-10 4:33

Amazing cityscape. Nice lightness. Superb colors.
Cheers

cunejo200 (7157) 2009-05-10 4:40

Hello Francis,
A fine river view of Valleta. All the important landmarks of the capital city are captured, there is good tech details. My best regards...Danilo

JCG (24783) 2009-05-10 9:41

Hello Francis,

Pretty framing on this town of Malta, I like much the balance of the image with this sailing ship on this so blue sea. The light is very good but perhaps a small excess of sharpness, it is a detail… Well done Francis and thank you for the note.

With all my friendships and a very good evening,

Jean-Charles

aadilj (17950) 2009-05-10 22:14

This is a beautiful composition Francis. I love the expanse and the width of this shot and the balance with which you have compsoed the lovely looking and very pleasing shot

lisadang (504) 2009-05-10 23:07

I like the old architecture country.....

delpeoples (5318) 2009-05-11 2:46

Hello francis Xavier, this is an amazing photo, not just for its technical merits (which are many). It tells a history of Malta and documents this magnificent city for us all. The photo is beautifully composed, so sharp and so well-exposed. Thank you for sharing it with us. Malta's role in WWII will never be forgotten, nor the dear price it paid for us all. Best regards, Lisa.

BennyV (4458) 2009-05-13 5:24

Hello Francis,

Classic postcard shot, good format. Malta looks like a fascinating place to visit, there's an ad campaign to visit Malta in Belgian newspapers at the moment. Just might be a good in-betweenie break... This view is very attractive.

Benny

Jakab (3404) 2009-05-15 13:08

Hello Francis,
astonishing architecture, you are lucky to admire these magnifient buildings as often as you whish. A precise, well detailled and well composed photo in optimal light condition.
Best whishes
Laszlo

P-S-I-G (24482) 2009-06-01 3:17

Hello Francis Xavier,
An excellent POV. I like the view. You composed this scene very well with the city, the façades and the boat.
Best regards,
Fabrice

diegomach (467) 2009-06-13 21:02

Francis estupenda composición esta, mucha arquitectura y mucho detalle. Estupendo el contraste de los edificios que se enmarcan en el azul del agua y el celeste del cielo.
Felicitaciones