Lights of Gamla Stan, a photo from Uppland, Svealand

Photographer's Note

Lights of Gamla Stan, Stockholm

Gamla stan (The Old Town), until 1980 officially Staden mellan broarna (The Town between the Bridges), is the old town of Stockholm, Sweden. Gamla stan consists primarily of the island Stadsholmen. The surrounding islets Riddarholmen, Helgeandsholmen, and Strömsborg are officially part of, but not colloquially included in, Gamla stan. The word "stan" is simply a contraction of the word "staden" ("sta'n"), meaning "the town."

The town dates back to the 13th century, and consists of medieval alleyways, cobbled streets, and archaic architecture. North German architecture has had a strong influence in the Old Town's construction.
Stortorget is the name of the scenic large square in the centre of Gamla Stan, which is surrounded by old merchants' houses including the Stockholm Stock Exchange Building. The square was the site of the Stockholm Bloodbath, where Swedish noblemen were massacred by the Danish King Christian II in November, 1520. The following revolt and civil war led to the dissolution of the Kalmar Union and the subsequent election of King Gustav I.
As well as being home to the Stockholm Cathedral, the Nobel Museum, and the Riddarholm church, Gamla stan also boasts Kungliga slottet, Sweden's baroque Royal Palace, built in the 18th century after the previous palace Tre Kronor burned down. The House of Nobility (Riddarhuset) is on the north-western corner of Gamla stan.
The restaurant Den gyldene freden is located on Österlånggatan. It has been in business since 1722 and according to the Guinness Book of Records is the oldest existing restaurant with an unaltered interior. A statue of St. George and the Dragon (sculpted by Bernt Notke) can be found in the Stockholm Cathedral, while Riddarholmskyrkan is the royal burial church. Bollhustäppan, a small courtyard at Slottsbacken behind Finska kyrkan, just south of the main approach to the Royal Palace, is home to one of the smallest statues in Sweden, a little boy in wrought iron. The plaque just below the statue says its name "Järnpojken" ("The Iron Boy"). It was created by Liss Eriksson in 1967.
From the mid 19th to the mid 20th century Gamla stan was considered a slum, many of its historical buildings left in disrepair, and just after WW2, several blocks together five alleys were demolished for the enlargement of the Parliament (see Brantingtorget). From the 1980s, however, it has become a tourist attraction as the charm of its medieval, Renaissance architecture and later additions have been valued by later generations.
While the archaeology of the 370 properties in Gamla stan remains poorly documented, recent inventories done by volunteers have shown many buildings previously dated to the 17thy and 18th centuries, can be up to 300 years older. There is also a metro station in Gamla Stan with the same name. (Source: Stockholm & wikipedia)

jlbrthnn, jlbrthnn, ChrisJ, Graal, timecapturer, lakshmip1949, lousat, Cricri, amaryllis, ebingul, annjackman has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

jlbrthnn (79773) 2012-05-05 1:30

Hello George,
The exhibition of this picture is very good night. There is no over exposure. The colors and sharpness are excellent. Excellent quality. Bravo.
Have a nice day
Cordially
Joël

ChrisJ (86862) 2012-05-05 1:42

Hello George,

A superb nocturnal shot with good use of diminishing linear perspective with the arch nicely positioned over the vanishing point. I like the warm, earthy colors of yellow, red & brown. Good sharpness & light management. Tfs!

mohammad_H (6598) 2012-05-05 2:10

salam george
چشم نواز و دلنشین
نمایش فوق العاده با وسعت نگاه در تصویر
نمای جذاب با طرحی جالب و قاب قشنگ
وضوح و نور مناسب
روز خوبی را برای شما ارزو میکنم
Eye-catching and pleasant
View the pictures look great extent
Beautifully framed with an attractive and interesting landscape plan
Clarity and good light
I wish you good day

besnard (48787) 2012-05-05 2:18

Bonjour George
Une très belle photo nocturne aux chaudes couleurs. De l'excellent travail.
Bon week-end.
Nicole

GREGG (8243) 2012-05-05 2:50

Hello George,
good shot, the the night streets of Stockholm, it reminds me of "the golden street" of Prague, by the dominance of red-yellow color,
Have a nice day
Szép napot :)
Greg

timecapturer (30324) 2012-05-05 3:09

Hi Gyorgy
this is such a beautifully managed night shot. Love the aspect and golden colours . Enticing and wonderfully detailed. Atmospheric and magical.

Have a great weekend - best wishes Brian.

Bluejeans (64231) 2012-05-05 3:20

Ola George ,
Uma boa foto noturna nesta rua estreita , gostei dos tons dourados das luzes a iluminar as paredes, boa profundidade de foto com o túnel de fundo , parabéns!!
Um abraço Gonçalo

lakshmip1949 (19110) 2012-05-05 4:02

Hello George,

An excellent shot taken in the night without any fuss or mess. The yellow and orange colors dominate the scene. I like the way the road converges at the far end where the bicycle is parked. The sharpness and colors along with the depth are excellent.

Lakshmi

npecanhuk (53901) 2012-05-05 4:10

Hi George!
Beautiful narrow street!
Very attractive and certainly lovely urban & night picture!
Sharpness, exposure, colors, chosen pov, vertical format, black & white borders and composition really pleased me!
TFS - congrats,
Have a great week-end!
(um ótimo fim-de-semana prá ti)
Neyvan

cornejo (18054) 2012-05-05 5:01

György Hello, very nice photo of the street with lovely lighting, I like this very interesting image, well framed and with clarity and depth. Excellent and beautiful work well done, congratulations my friend. Tfs.

Good afternoon and happy weekend.
Best regards and best wishes.

Angel.

dale54 (4922) 2012-05-05 5:25

george hi,lovely,peacefull feel to it!beautifull scene of stockholm,love it!very nice color and light! tfs! dr

Sergiom (39223) 2012-05-05 5:26

Bonjour George

Une de tes rares photos de nuit mais on voit bien que techniquement, c'est parfait. Les couleurs sont belles et la texture de l'image est superbe.

Amicalement

Serge

siudzi (23879) 2012-05-05 5:49

Hi George,

Beautiful night shot of this incredibly golden street captured at night. Superb quality as always. Taken with great sense of depth. Very well done.

Warm regards,
Malgorzata

siamesa (27449) 2012-05-05 8:11

Bom dia George

Simply spectacular! Superb exposure. Very, very beautiful place. Perfect exposure. It's magic as always are night pictures.
Abraços
maria

jjcordier (62328) 2012-05-05 8:51

George
Une très belle photo nocturne avec de superbes couleurs chaudes et une belle maitrise des lumières. Tu as créé une très belle atmosphère dans cette image.
Amicalement
JJ

lousat (57626) 2012-05-05 8:53

Waaw George,what a magnificent night pic! Fantastic camera settings for a fantastic result,there is a magic atmosphere inside,i like it!Have a nice evening and thanks,Luciano.

holmertz (26932) 2012-05-05 11:13

Hello György,
I thought you had gone to Kalmar, but you are still in Stockholm :-). Seeing Gamla stan like this certainly makes me feel I'm somewhere in Italy rather than Sweden. You used the artificial light very well to create a marvellous atmosphere.
Kind regards,
Gert

SWEETFREEDOM (18415) 2012-05-06 0:43

Hi George,
nice athmosphere, good light management and details.
regards
Alessandro

Cricri (86431) 2012-05-06 2:15

Hi George
Très jolie nocturne, j'aime les teintes chaudes, les éclairages, la netteté, la profondeur et les détails de l'architecture, belle réalisation
Belle journée
cricri

Silvio1953 (98129) 2012-05-06 7:12

Ciao George, fascinatimng nocturne shoot, excellent perspective, wonderful colors and splendid light, very well done, my friend, have a good week end, ciao Silvio

dkmurphys (36801) 2012-05-06 11:59

Hi Gyorgy,
Very beautiful night capture from the old streets of Stk. Nice atmosphere, well catch.
Have a good night.

Daniel

macjake (39227) 2012-05-06 17:44

Hi George
I know i've written about your photo's from Gamla Stan a few times, and i will continue to do so :)
this scene captures the spirit and atmosphere perfectly.
I remember all the yellow and orange, so this is perfect.
Cool to see it without tourists too.
cheers
craig

amaryllis (30149) 2012-05-07 9:03

Bonjour Georg
une très belle perspective de cette rue avec ses lumières dont tu as très bien maitrisé le rendu
une rue pavée, personne, le paradis pour faire des photos
belle composition
Juliette

ebingul (1760) 2012-05-07 13:11

Hello George,
Very well composed and managed night shot with fine colours and light.Very good DOF,texture and clarity.TFS and best regards.
Emin

jaywalker (16061) 2012-05-07 14:01

Hi George, What a superb photo with stunning light, the shot offers a great atmosphere, having a mysterious feel, brilliantly framed, TFS, kind regards Wilson.

annjackman (13195) 2012-05-08 7:55

Hello George,
This image has a richness of colour that makes it stand out. A lovely view of this old street.
Kind Regards, Ann