POSTCARD FROM ISTANBUL Photo

Photographer’s Note

The conquest of Istanbul by the Ottomans on May 29, 1453 had been the end result of processes that were set into motion several centuries earlier. The Crusades had weakened the Byzantines, and the Ottomans had been encroaching from all sides, tightening a metaphorical noose. The Dardanelles, straits a few hundred kilometers to the southwest of Istanbul, had seen the erection of a pair of castles on opposite shores with chains being stretched across, in order to prevent military assistance from Mediterranean Allies. In late 1452 Sultan Mehmed II, or ‘Fatih Sultan Mehmet,’ had a pair of castles built on opposite shores of the Bosporus in Istanbul, as the next step of the strategy. The far more prepossessing of the two castles, located at the narrowest point of the straits, is the Rumeli Hisar seen in the photograph. The erection of the building took place with lightning-speed, taking only three-months, but culminated in a building that has lasted the better part of six centuries. Over the years the castle has served as army barracks, a prison, and today it houses a small amphitheater for summer performances. Because of its magical setting on the west bank of the straits in Europe, the castle peers at the east bank, in Asia.

High on the hills above the castle one can see the sprawling campus of the prestigious secondary school/college Robert College (founded in 1863), which became the equally prestigious Bosporus University, or “Bogaziçi Üniversites” in 1971.

I took the photo in June 1998 from the deck of the cruise ship, Silver Wind, sailing north through the Bosporus toward the Black Sea. An antenna of the ship is seen as a vertical line on the lower left corner of the frame. My camera at the time was a Nikon N90, and the film Kodacrome-64. After scanning the photo, I created a simple mat using PhotoShop, and signed it with the Leonardo da Vinci Font, "Forward" (there is also a "da Vinci Font, Reverse," mimicking the manner that left-handed Leonardo originally wrote).

thea0211, Ertan, Mondaychild, bostankorkulugu, ALIRIZA, levocan, stego, Yar, triptych2003, jmcl, john_c, Vinsachi, henrytf, boonie, pablominto, salvator, nivaldo, arhangel, meltemi, ChrisJ, amino has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

thea0211 (1355) 2007-01-15 2:47

hello Bulent,
lovely view of Istanbul again - could easily be a postcard!
good note,too!
tfs,
dora

gemlik (969) 2007-01-15 3:04

Dear Bulent,
Beautiful view and most important castle for history of Istanbul.Thank you very much for sharing with member of TE.
Regards,
Bulent Isilman

delic (6735) 2007-01-15 3:54

Thanks Bulent, for a great picture of my university. I wonder if I was somewhere behind the trees as you were pushing the button. Best wishes, Hakan

Ertan (2979) 2007-01-15 5:07

Merhaba Bulent Abi
Belgesel nitelligindeki fotonuzu ilgiyle takip ediyorum
ve hepsi birbirinden guzel
Eline saglik
Saygilar ve sevgiler.
Ertan

Mondaychild (1513) 2007-01-15 6:46

Hi Bülent,

it really looks like a postcard ... or even far better than most of the postcards you can buy in various countries.

Excellent point of view, very good composition and colors.

bostankorkulugu (33982) 2007-01-15 10:03

klasik bir kare ama çok hoş yine... bu istanbul kartpostalları seriniz notlarıyla beraber belge niteliğinde... elinize sağlık bülent bey...

selamlar

korkut

ALIRIZA (16197) 2007-01-15 12:46

Merhaba Sayın Hocam,
Güzel bir bakış açısıyla hoş bir manzara. Harika notunuzla Ülkemizi tüm dünya tanıyacak...
Ellerinize sağlık...
Selam ve saygılarımla...
Ali Rıza

levocan (2253) 2007-01-15 14:39

Bülent Bey;
Hakikaten tam kartpostallık bir kare.
Ama kadraja sol taraftan dikey olarak giren bir nesne var anten mi ?
Elinize sağlık
Saygılarımla

stego (22448) 2007-01-15 21:23

Hi Bulent,
Beautiful postcard indeed. The colors denounce it as a scan, but a reasonably good one, and they reinforce the postcard look.
You used very well those walls and the water to produce a very nice compo, much efective grafically.
Warm regards, José.

Yar (795) 2007-01-16 13:31

Hello Bulent,
a very beautiful view and compo of the great historic place. also, detailed nice description which teaches the history. thank you

triptych2003 (1398) 2007-01-16 20:06

i like the pov here. the way the wall snakes its way around the hill is interesting. it seems only slightly bright though, but it's very minor. a good note full of history as well. thanks

jmcl (14149) 2007-01-16 21:06

Hi Bulent,

again you have provided me a thoughtful and evocative place to stare at .. all the life filled greens against the ancient buildings is a wonderful contrast. The texture of the sea is great .. I might spend a lifetime cloning out the antenna .. but that may just be my own dishonest obsessiveness .. beautiful and wonderful image.

take care.

John

john_c (24635) 2007-01-17 11:27

Hi Bulent,
A well composed shot of this fascinating historical spot. How I have yearned through the years to visit Turkey and see first hand so many of the historical spots that have been important throghout history...A very good scan, as the integrity of the details and quality are well preserved. I like the angled view here, and the antenna is only mildly distracting. And what a first rate note. Well done, Bulent...later.

boonie (777) 2007-01-21 16:52

Bulent
As usual a very nice scan - the photo would make a fine postcard. The bus and truck provide a great perspective. That is one big castle.

Dan

anducina (8133) 2007-01-30 11:53

Excellent compo and POV. Very impressive architecture.

TFS,

Andreea

pablominto (41354) 2007-02-05 2:08

Hello Bulent,
It is a good point of view, giving an interesting impression of the fortifications!
Good details in walls and towers, the image is nicely composed with good balance...
Older photographs are often interesting photographs, often because there has been changes!
Greetings,
Pablo -

abrahamd (132) 2007-02-06 11:45

Bulent,
This is a fantastic photograph of a fantastic place. Istanbul is on my list of 'must see' places and this image only makes me want to visit even more. I really like the subtlety of the frame too. If only the wind had swept the antenna away :)
Beautiful,
Dan

salvator (18939) 2007-02-13 3:26

Hello Bulent Bey,
I just love the triangles, the placement of the skyline, the different shades of blues and greens. Wonderfull composition.
Best regards.
Salvator.

nivaldo (13389) 2007-03-02 22:40

Another great picture Professor ! A real Post Card !
Congratulations again,
Nivaldo.

jrj (34779) 2007-04-11 6:01

Interesting photo of the place Bulent and perfect to your informative notes. This empire was really pressing into Europe from the east, not that many years after the invasion of the moors from the south, holding Spain and southern France..

meltemi (9746) 2007-05-18 16:06

Hello Bulent,
I like the different elements to the composition, the water reflection, the towers and the walls creating a line towards the sea and another one in the angular direction.
The colours are great, they create a very peaceful atmosphere to this image. Warm Regards,
Stella

Matthew-Watt (4467) 2007-06-20 3:33

Hello Bulent,

This series of Istanbul buildings is very spectacular indeed. I like the cassic framing these images have and a good signature. Fine composition with the little wedge of water and dominant greenery. I find the most imposing tower, close to the boundary to be well placed in relation to the distant tower. Almost looks like an east-meets-west great wall of China segment. I hear many good reports of travel in this part of the world, it seems that you were very impressed with it. Thanks for posting.

From the opposite point on the globe

Matt

tuncayhuyuk (0) 2007-07-30 17:14

cok guzel, yapma kalecikler gibi duruyor, bravo.

ChrisJ (70443) 2007-09-26 0:10

Hi Bulent

Good colour, sharpness, & colour saturation, with an excellent pov. Good to have the diagonal disappearing into the bottom right corner of the frame. Tfs!