The First of Five Photo

Photographer’s Note

Riomaggiore

Image took from the small ferry that links Lerici to Monterosso, with stops at Portovenere and the other 4 villages of the Cinque Terre.
I think that is one of the most beautiful boat/ferry trip of the whole world.
Lerici, Portovenere, Riomaggiore, Vernazza, Manarola....are all colorful village located on dramatic landscapes, with a fantastic sky and sea all around.
The small restaurant and bakeries have fantastic food and breads (and the famous Focaccia Ligure), good wines.
The only big problems is the mass of tourists.
The only months were is possible to walk around are the winter ones or the spring beginnings.
In all the rest of the years there are thousands and thousands tourist that crowded that small villages.
W e have friends that have houses in the Cinque Terre villages, and they went there during few week ends in the good hot season for the too higher number of tourists.
In the last years the majors of the villages have proposed a maximum number of tourist per day, as was proposed for Venezia many years ago.
Nothing is changed at this moment.

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The Cinque Terre are five coastal villages in the province of La Spezia in Italy. Its are a main touristal attraction for North Italians from many decades, but its was "discovered" by the rest of Italy and foreigners only in the late 20th century;
they have come to be among the most touristed areas of Italy; they can be reached by train via the line from La Spezia to Genoa.

The coast line, the five villages, and the surrounding hillsides are all encapsulated in a national park of the same name.
There are nominal fees to use the more popular trails, but the less frequently travelled (and most arduous) are free of charge.

The best times to visit are in April-May, before the summer crowd comes, or after August, when all the crowds have left.

The five villages (in order from LaSpezia) are: (from East to West): Riomaggiore, Manarola, Corniglia, Vernazza and Monterosso.

A local train connects all the five villages from La Spezia. In addition, there are well-laid out walking trails connecting each village to its neighbors. The path from Riomaggiore to Manarola is called the Via Dell'Amore (or roughly "Lovers Walk").
This winds along the shore, is very picturesque and is very easy to hike. The stretch from Manarola to Corniglia is also easy to hike although the main trail into Corniglia finishes with a climb of over 400 stairs.

The train connecting the five villages runs in what is mainly a tunnel for the full distance between Riomaggiore and Monterosso, emerging from the rock infrequently for quick glimpses of the Mediterranean down the hill.
In addition to the train there is a passenger ferry service running between the five villages.

From Wikipedia

cobraphil8, Albrecht, Miks, marjan, ChrisJ, besnard, aloyho, cherryripe, PixelTerror, feather, isabela_sor, Quentin, mortijo, erdna, andante, AiresSantos, Marlis, banyanman, martou, alecsa, balatrek, qpochet has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

cobraphil8 (11652) 2006-02-22 3:47

Hi Paolo,
very interesting note, your composition is good, on the other hand I do not manage to appreciate your photograph with its right value because of its too strong saturation in the colors.
Regards
Philippe

RGatward (19751) 2006-02-22 3:48

Good PoV to cathc this extraordinary colourful place.

pastadog (12821) 2006-02-22 3:51

Hi Paolo, original POV from the water; very picturesque, with those green windows all over town providing commonality to the urban landscape in different colors, thanks for sharing, Regards, Daniel

tjanze (5674) 2006-02-22 3:52

Hi Paolo!
Very interesting arhitecture and colors.Good sharpness and contrasts.Thanks for sharing.

Albrecht (11265) 2006-02-22 3:52

Ho Paolo
Great coloured sight although the quality is a bit less. Perhaps you can improve that the next time. The scene is realy great.
take care, Albrecht

Miks (1707) 2006-02-22 4:02

Lovely place and a well composed picture of it. Great informative note as well. I think that the over-saturated colours and all the noise (espc. on the water) is a real shame. The place is surely scenic enough to speak for itself without such emphasis on the colours. Just a matter of personal taste of course.

Cheers,
Mikkel

marjan (6099) 2006-02-22 4:04

Hi Paolo, excelent shot and wonderful explanation about this part of wonderful Italy. TFS
Marjan

Graal (59126) 2006-02-22 4:21

Hi Paolo,
fantastic place, unusual and rich palette of colours of buildings. Good captured and well done. I like it.
Rgs, Aleksander

rbcy1974 (20746) 2006-02-22 4:21

Hello Paolo,
Beautiful strong colours, very nicely captured scene,
very well done
regards
Daniel

ChrisJ (70521) 2006-02-22 4:22

Ciao Paolo

Wonderful pov, & excellent contrast & lighting. But it looks slightly oversaturated, & possibly oversharpened (especially on the water), looking at my monitor. Good work overall & tfs. Bella photo.

aloyho (6109) 2006-02-22 4:22

Hi Paolo,
This is a fantastic place with all the colours on the buildings. I also love how the shadows bring out the forms of the buildings and the good composition. There are a good variety of textures for the eyes to enjoy. Excellent shot!! Regards.

cherryripe (19237) 2006-02-22 5:15

Hi Paolo
What a stunning village perched on the hill by the sea. The colours are so vivid. I like the balance between the sea below and the sky up top. For me the saturation is fine.
Regards Nikki

lestans (15550) 2006-02-22 5:18

Bello, bella vista su questo paese dal mare! A me piace l'esagerazione dei colori, sembra un villaggetto di zucchero, però manca un po' di nitidezza. Non è grave...!
Livia

Gerrit (36553) 2006-02-22 5:26

Hi Paolo,
Incredible place, how steep are the roads overthere?
The colours are amazing - you added a lot of saturation, I presume.
The POV and composition are perfect.
Thanks and regards, gerrit

Tweety (3472) 2006-02-22 5:39

Belle vue que tu nous proposes là Paolo ! Néanmoins, les couleurs sont à mon gout trop saturées, l'ensemble semble légèrement surexposé. Dommage car le cadrage est bon et le sujet très intéressant.

feather (50560) 2006-02-22 8:29

I see some people don't like the bright colours, but I think that is what makes the shot. The image is so vivid and the colours even manage to reflect themselves in the water.
Nice one Paolo! Good note too; I think you will encourage evn more tourists.
Kath

isabela_sor (42757) 2006-02-22 10:54

What a beautiful place!These colorful buildings are so close together!Fascinant!!
Thank you for picture and for note
Regards
Isabela

Quentin (5278) 2006-02-22 11:04

Hi Paolo
This is a beautiful village! I like of the houses are hanging
on the mountain. It must have some very beautiful and small
street in it. The colors are a bit to saturated to my opinion.
Well done.
Quentin

erdna (5360) 2006-02-22 12:48

A beautiful shot of this popular place and a nicely written note. I hope to see this place before I can no onger travel. So many places and so little time! TFS.

Andre'

designsoul (21394) 2006-02-22 13:45

Paolo, you lucky one! This is certainly a spot for me "to see before I die" ;-)... indeed Italy is the country of my dreams... as you know! There is nothing I didn't like about it when I visited. From the moment I got off the plane at Fiumicino, the languid slow walk of the passengers towards the carousels, as opposed to the NorthAmerican rush for the luggage... all is so beautiful, truly Epicurean... and did you know that Italian men are according to the latest research having the highest life expectancy? It is because of the beauty and joy, I am sure! Plus all those tomatoes...
OK, coming back to your shot, you see I am a bit carried away by it, love the colourful houses perched on the steep slope, the pineas, so beautiful!
sasa

bantonbuju (48856) 2006-02-22 16:03

ciao paolo,
this is su much an italian view! love it!
although i tend to agree with philippe - the saturation is a sort of disturbing here but on the other hand, if you bear in mind that this is an italian coastal town - it mus be "kicking" your eyes!
very sweet!
bw, j.

andante (7092) 2006-02-22 20:52

I liked this one a lot this morning when I first saw, I like it more now after a very long day at work.. it brings me a sense of vacations. Great capture, Enrique

gaby (19793) 2006-02-23 0:53

Paolo bonjour - que c'est beau, brillant et coloré - splendide, on dirait un jeu Lego pour enfants -
bonne journée et merci
Gaby

PixelTerror (87195) 2006-02-23 4:11

Ciao Paolo,
A very attractive subject and your vertical framing is fully appropriate to render the sensation of height, I like as well the rich mosaic of colors, but think too the shot is overexposed (visible on the stones) and too saturated. I'm not a great specialist of color adjustments, but I tried a small WS.
Buona giornata,
Jean-Yves

[workshop] [compare]

fabio_ts (13674) 2006-02-23 5:40

Che stupendo scorcio sulle cinque terre Paolo, i colori sono ben saturi ed esaltano la bellezza di questo villaggio.. eccellente la composizione, complimenti!!

buona giornata,

Fabio.

AiresSantos (43270) 2006-02-23 8:41

Hi Paolo, very interesting shot !
I like the texture and the lines. Excellent capture with very good perspective and sharpness.
King Regards,
Aires dos Santos

john_c (24635) 2006-02-23 10:22

Hi Paolo,
A rich pallette of colours that accentuates the beauty of this spot. I disagree with the criticisms of oversaturation and noise on the water. The scene resembles a painting and yet is clear and crisp. Moreover, the water is just fine on my monitor. The vertical format moreover superbly takes the eye upward in the frame to appreciate the layers of interest, as you have shot this from an ideal POV. Great work, Paolo.
John

fayeulle (26547) 2006-02-24 11:51

Hi Paolo
Great note as most of time. I like this shot. What a coloured village. Have a lunch here seems to be a good idea.
Have a nice WE.
Cheers
JP

Marlis (2274) 2006-02-24 15:05

hello Paolo,
wow is this ever colorful! No wonder everybody wants to see it.
Great POV- I guess this IS the best way to see those villages.
Thanks for sharing.
Marialuisa

KevRyan (22426) 2006-02-25 5:48

Hi Paulo - I think I agree with those people who love the shot and the image of the place and your overall composition but find the saturation a little too much - coming from northern climes we rarely see natural colour even half as saturated as this!!!! It's all too much!!! lol!

bw Kev

jemaflor (39871) 2006-02-25 8:28

Hi Paolo,
A colorful shot ! good light, interesting and TFS.

tinamunk3 (6390) 2006-02-25 13:01

Ciao Paolo,

Wow - colourful houses with a very dramatic location. Nice composed with the water.

:) Tina

banyanman (7739) 2006-03-01 0:29

What a colourful village, Paolo. I've noted the 'great debate' regarding the over-saturation. Personally I don't mind it too much in ths composition, but I think if you had posted the original per Jean-Yves' workshop, it would have been just as good. What disturbs me more is the sky - there is a problem around the trees in the top left which distracts the eye. Perhaps it is something you attempted in PP and didn't quite work. But the framing and sharpness is very good, and it certainly is an image with impact! Cheers . . . David

martou (1672) 2006-03-01 0:33

bonjour Paolo,
is just amazing this houses juxtaposition, superb colors and nice shadow/light effect with this good POV, great work,
félicitation Martin

Luan (15935) 2006-03-01 5:15

Hello Paolo,
Roooh, how can you catch so much colors in one shot ;o), I have to visit this place. Too bad ths picture miss a bit of sharpness but the picture is still very nice to look at.
Cheers
Luan

PS : love your intro picture ;o)

Henryk_Bilor (20375) 2006-03-03 5:27

Hi Paolo
Amazing place! I like very much the buildings climbing one by the other ;). Great capture.
Have a nice day.

balatrek (7419) 2006-05-09 17:43

Saludos Paolo,

Realmente es una foto bonita, el encuadre es correcto y los colores llamativos, enhorabuena, tiene que ser un buen ejercicio fisico vivir en ese pueblo.

José

qpochet (1378) 2006-05-18 5:45

Hi Paolo,

Nice job again, I love it! It's a true bunch of colours you offer to TE family! Wonderful and amazing place, nice composition. The only thing a bit disturbing is the saturation I think but I might been mistaken. Note is very complete and interesting as well. Suits perfectly to TE philosophy. Thanks for the time you spend sharing shots and information with us.
Nice job!
Quentin.