MONOLITHS OF WILSHIRE PLAIN, a photo from Wiltshire, England

Photographer's Note

STONEHENGE

Starting around 2200 BC, an unknown people, the ancient inhabitants of Wiltshire Plain, erected this remarkable monument for the ages. Although its exact purpose is not known, the extraordinary effort required in building it — acquiring the massive blocks (blue stone) in Southern Wales, transferring them a distance of 240 miles (about 400 km), and finally hoisting them into their upright position — suggest that the site held great importance for the people. Certainly it had to have religious significance, but, more than that, it appears to have served as a sort of calendar/calculator to predict seasons, eclipses of the sun, and perhaps more. It stands as a stark reminder of the power of religious belief.

I took the the original slide (Kodachrome 25) in 1990, during a day’s excursion from Oxford University, where I was attending a meeting. Some years earlier I had been a member of the department of theoretical physics, and had made the trip to Stonehenge on numerous occasions. The camera used on this occasion was a Nikon 2020, mounted with a 70-210 lens. The rule of thumb for getting effective silhouettes is to meter 90° away from the subject.

sanalytis, mdetay, levocan, Ertan, cunejo200, carper, branley, nwoehnl, stego, jhm, TeresaT, peter1892, henrytf, pablominto, ALIRIZA, missninja, salvator, boonie, emjleclercq, arturo, amino has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

sanalytis (1634) 2007-01-27 22:18

Hi Bulent,

I like your vertical composition here. Making the blocks of stone in the foreground a silouhette and using the dark sky with the sun filtering through it was the right choice. Well done.

Spiros

mdetay (4863) 2007-01-27 22:36

Hi Bulent,
Nice shot of the monoliths.
Very graphic.
Nice silouhettes also. Well done.
Cheers from Hong Kong and viva Da Vinci!
Michel

Ertan (2988) 2007-01-28 2:42

Merhaba Bulent Abi
Cok hos bir fotograf.Her zamanki gibi mukemmel.Ellerine saglik
Ertan

suhan (3552) 2007-01-28 3:07

Gökyüzündeki ışığın biraz fazla parlak olması dışında, hoş bir kompozisyon, başarılı bir kadraj (belki sağdaki adam yarım olmayabilirdi :-))
ayrıca siyah/mavi/beyaz kontrastı da çok hoş durmuş.
tebrikler
merve-süleyman

anducina (8407) 2007-01-28 4:42

Excellent compo, light and silhouettes. Great misterious atmosphere.

TFS,

Andreea

cunejo200 (7281) 2007-01-28 6:27

Hi Bulent,
Lovely lighting and silhouette showcasing the monoliths. Well composed. TFS. Danilo

carper (96) 2007-01-28 7:14

nice one for a scanned photo Bulent
another good backlight shot, the silhouettes of those famous rocks are great, it create a very nice atmosphere. Good informative note with the shot. this is how is must be here on TE. very nice job.
gr. jaap

branley (3681) 2007-01-28 9:38

Hi Bulent,

this is a photograph very dear to my heart as I once lived about 1km from 'the stones' and could see them from my bedroom window. I remember visiting them long before they erected a fence to stop people touching them. Good silhouette against a very moody sky and I like it in the portrait format, it suits it very well. A fine image and well composed.

Regards

Stephen

nwoehnl (122) 2007-01-28 15:50

I like this one, Bulent. The silhouetted presentation of the Stonehenge formations is quite effective, and the dark-ish sky with the light breaking through adds a dramatic aspect to the photo. The quality of the scan is good. Well done with the notes, too, a useful mix of location info and technical advice.

stego (22556) 2007-01-28 19:11

Hello Bulent,
Quite adequate compo for showing that monument, evocative of ancient misteries and magic. The over/unser exp is great here and not a flaw at all. The shapes of those shining clouds adds much dramatism to the image, as we can imagine strange signs or figures floating above the monument.
TFS, Cheers, José.

jhm (122474) 2007-01-29 6:02

Hi Bulent,

Maybe a poetic pictice with a melancholic tint, the dark big stone under care for a nice contrast against the cloudy sky, where we a goed white part can see, very well done! TFS.

Have a nice day,
John.

TeresaT (10806) 2007-01-29 18:18

Hello Bulent,
Wonderful compostion with thisa dark silhuette of the monoliths.
The sky is great.
The light is perfect.
And you did well by choosing this vertical format to enhance the beauty of this sky.
regards
Teresa

peter1892 (1681) 2007-01-29 18:21

Hi Bulent - a very atmospheric image, the strong sunlight & dark silhouettes add to the mystery & magic of this place.

rhizomes (15343) 2007-01-30 13:15

Hi Bulent,
Impressive point of view on this monument ! The strange light adds a great atmosphere !
Christophe

pablominto (53744) 2007-01-31 1:11

Hello Bulent,
A different point of view on Stonehenge!
A sinister atmosphere is captured...
Nice silhiuettes are captured, inclusion of people works well with me... gives scaling and adds to mystery!
Greetings,
Pablo -

ALIRIZA (16419) 2007-02-01 4:27

Merhaba Sayın Hocam,
Değişik bir çalışma ve o kadar da hoş bir silüet. Ellerine sağlık...
Selam ve saygılarımla...
Ali Rıza

missninja (497) 2007-02-02 15:32

Hello Bulent!
This is a very impressive picture, nice framed and with good light conditions. It seems as magic comes from the sky downvto the monoliths.
I hope to see Stonehenge in summer, too.

Warm regards,
Nina

kensimage (8557) 2007-02-03 12:23

A great way to exhibit Stonehenge, Bulent! Good exposure, too. Of course the bright areas are a bit blown out but that's unavoidable with film, I think. The vertical format is not usual for something like Stonehenge but it lets you have a lot of sky while still keeping the structure large in the frame, which is ideal. It isolates just the structure and the heavens, which is fitiing. Regards, Ken.

salvator (19102) 2007-02-05 5:30

Merhaba Bulent Bey,
Masmavi gokyuzu ve bulutlara karsi, stonehenge'in muhtesem silueti. Brilliant. elinize saglik. selamlar. Salvator.

Apex (336) 2007-02-05 8:57

Hello Bulent.
Great composition. It has a simple composition but still recognizable. The silhouette is well done.

-Jeff

boonie (779) 2007-02-05 23:15

Bulent
Interesting in the light of the recent discover near Stonehenge.
The clouds add to the "drama" of the capture - I enjoy it very much.

Dan

emjleclercq (15778) 2007-02-06 17:01

A bit dark, but the bright opening in the sky makes like a lightning strike or some sort of mystical or magical power linking the megalith to the sky. A very dramatic picture, on which I am sur a writer like you can imagine lots of fantasctic stories.

All the best,

Emmanuel

Angshu (51174) 2007-02-15 23:02

Hello Bulent
How many pictures of this landmark I've seen before, I've lost count. This though a bit dark, has the bright area of the sky which can be imagined as a heavenly light linking the megalith & that makes this dramatic!
With Best Regards
Angshuman

arturo (31) 2007-02-25 9:56

Hi Bulent,

was it actually 2200BC or maybe as some suggest it happend before the great flood that people erected this site?...one thing is there for sure, they were clever enough to align the whole complex astronomically and leave us modern people pretty puzzled about the place...i enjoy the dark, british sky opening above the monoliths...cheers, arturo

amino (412) 2007-03-03 23:21

Great quality photo with a sensual feel. The silhouette against the dark sky perfectly complement how we percieve these structures. I know from my architecture history courses that the structure was also used occassionally to perform a circular dance on the top. I am not at a position to confirm that but maybe you can lament further on this.

I like how this structure continues to puzzle people. In its state as a ruin, it raises scientific curiousity but also moves our senses. I am interested in knowing more of how it was used but i am sure others are too.
Beautiful shot, as in all your photos