As travel bloggers, photography is a fun hobby for us, and we do our best to include interesting shots that enhance our posts. Like all photographers, we have favorite photos, and it’s always nice to have an opportunity to show them off.
Thanks to our across-the-pond blogging buddy Restless Jo, who has nominated us for the Capture The Colour 2013 photo blogging competition, we’ve been given the chance. We really appreciate Jo’s nomination, and after browsing through her beautiful, entertaining, and informative blog, you’ll see why we’re so flattered that she recommended us for the competition.
According to Travelsupermarket.com, the competition sponsor:
“The idea was simple, publish a blog post showcasing five of your favourite travel photographs which best capture the colour of our five categories: blue, green, red, white and yellow.”
This sounded straightforward to us, but we thought that it would be fun to get our readers involved in the choice. So over the next 5 days, we will be publishing a post with three of our favorite photos to represent each of the colors for the competition. And we hope that you’ll make a comment to let us know which photo in each post is your favorite. After the five finalists are determined, we’ll enter the competition.
So here goes. Today’s color is BLUE.
Thanks in advance for your involvement and feedback.
James & Terri
1.The Apothecary’s Bottle
The backdrop for this photo is the central town square in Tallinn, Estonia … a scenic location steeped in history. The spire in the photo sits atop the 13th Century Town Hall, and the bottle sits on a windowsill in a pharmacy that’s been open for business since the early 15th Century. When I took the shot, I was trying to be so artsy-fartsy, that I failed to notice that the aquamarine bottle was acting as a convex lens.
The Post: Art Meets Science in Tallinn
2. Am I Blue?
We were strolling New Orleans’ French Quarter on a rainy February afternoon – just days before the infamous “Super Gras” – the unprecedented nexus of Mardi Gras 2013 and Super Bowl XLVII. The weekend was a guaranteed mega-party, but that day everything was quiet.
We stumbled across the gallery of George Rodrique, the famous Cajun artist know for his creation of the signature Blue Dog series of paintings. It seems he had also created a Blue Woman. She looked so forlorn, sitting in the window amid the blue dogs, staring out at the rain and passing cars, waiting out the calm before the storm.
The Post: The French Quarter: The Calm Before the Storm
3. A Cigar By The Sea
Terri’s Granddad was a cigar smoker. In fact, it defined him.
So when we went to Gould’s Inlet on St. Simons Island, Georgia to see if we could spot some of the elusive mink scrambling on the rocks, a denim-clad man appeared who was a dead ringer for her long-departed Grandfather – complete with cigar! A seriously big cigar.
And her Grandpa was a dead ringer for Alfred Hitchcock … or Winston Churchill. Freaky!
The Post: A Cigar By The Sea
PLEASE TELL US YOUR FAVORITE. MANY THANKS!
*** Check out our entries for Green, Red, White, and Yellow. And here is the Final Entry submission that you helped us choose. Thanks again!
I love the blue statue and the bottle! If I had to choose, I would say the bottle looks like a more travel-y photo. Good luck!
Thanks for the vote Leslie. I agree that the photo is a bit more travel-y and exotic. ~James
I vote for the bottle. It draws me in to this scene and makes me stay.
Thanks for the feedback Eric. It’s always good to hear the opinions of other photographers. ~James
They’re all interesting, but #1 is the most unique and doesn’t require any outside information to fully appreciate. I love all the leading lines in that shot, too.
Thanks Brittany. For me, blogging is about learning. And it takes an artist like you to appreciate “leading lines”, which I hadn’t even thought about. So much for my artsy-fartsy. Thanks for the vote and feedback. ~James
No problem! I’m looking forward to seeing the other entries. Another thing I like about the lines is the contrast between the curved lines of the bottle and the straight lines in the background. I’m sure it took a naturally artistic eye to frame that shot!
Hi guys, great snaps, and I love the Clive Anderson cigar smoking one. But I agree with Leslie (great taste, darling) my fave is the bottle. Good luck.
Thanks Steven. The cigar-smoker was one of those instances where seeing the action real-time made it even better. I mean, this guy was making love to the incredibly long cigar. Thanks for the vote and feedback. ~James
Great idea, folks! I know I had a few “this one, no that one” moments before I made my submission, but in the end went with a kind of romantic theme. Thank you so much for the link and kind comments.
The standout for me is James’ intriguing bottle shot, and it’s in an Eastern European country so I’d have to put my weight behind that one wouldn’t I? But I love your blue lady too 🙂
Looking forward to some more colours.
Thanks for the vote Jo, and for getting the ball rolling. We had lots of fun going through our photos, and it’s always enjoyable to hear our readers’ ideas. ~James
Blue bottle, though for me it is a bit too central. MM
Thanks for the vote and feedback. If the voting goes as it has been, it will definitely be our submission. ~James
Has to be #1 – The Apothecary’s Bottle – It’s such a unique and unusual photo and one of my all time favourites (I’ve seen on your blog).
Thanks for the vote Vicki, and for the input. I enjoy building a post around one photo, and this shot made it easy. ~James
Yep…I’m for the blue bottle as well. I’d already made my choice before I looked at what everyone else thought. The blue bottle definitely appeals! I wonder what’s in it?? Intriguing.
Many thanks for your choice. It definitely looks like the Blue Bottle is trending. And I’m with you – What IS in that bottle? 🙂 ~Terri
I love the blue woman photo. However, for a photo contest I would have to go along with the consensus of the others – #1. It does not require explanation.
Mike, thanks so much for your input. The Blue Woman just evokes a mood, but the Blue Bottle’s convex lens effect is pretty amazing. Have a blast in Croatia! ~Terri
I think you’ve nailed it, Mike. I felt personally more drawn to the Blue Woman, but agree that for a travel contest the #1 (as all seem to agree) is the stronger submission. Nice work, guys!
Thanks Erin. It appears that the judges have spoken (and personally, I like the results). This will be the submission, and we’ll see how it goes. ~James
I’d vote for the apothecary’s bottle with its convex lens effect! 🙂
Thanks Cathy! The convex lens effect was an unexpected perk. Looks like the Blue Bottle is on a roll! 🙂 ~Terri
I love the Apothecary’s Bottle ~ takes me away to a magical place!
Thanks so much for your choice. The apothecary’s shop was magical – like stepping back in time. 🙂 ~Terri
The blue lady in the French Quarter gets my vote. I love the novelty of it. Where else you gonna find one? http://ohtheplaceswesee.com
Many thanks Rusha for your input. The Blue Lady totally cracked me up sitting amid all the Blue Dogs. I could just hear her sigh. 🙂 ~Terri
I have to go with the Apothecary’s bottle as it is more than the color blur but a mystery all at the same time.
Thanks so much Sue! I love your take on the “mystery.” Very cool! It was such a wonderful old pharmacy and we sent lots of photos to Betsy whe we visited. Love, Terri
LA BOTELLA AZUL!!!!
Muchas gracias por tu voto. ~Jaime
The Apothecary’s bottle is my favourite. The colour plus inverted steeple makes the photo.
Thanks for the vote. As I mentioned, it was funny that I didn’t notice the inverted tower until later. I can say without a doubt, that in my photographs, luck counts too. ~James
I love the bottle too!
Thanks Sherry. It’s great to get feedback from a pro. ~James
Love the blue bottle I also love the old man and his cigar but my vote will have to go to the bottle.
Thanks Joyce. The bottle is cool, but you would’ve loved the cigar smoker. He was sitting alone, staring out to sea, and smoking his cigar like he was the only person on the planet. Something has to be said for blissful, private moments. Love, JH
Have to say, this is to much fun. Great thinking to get your readers involved. That’s an A+ on blogger engagement for you two!
Thanks Erin. From the get-go, our policy has been to have fun with our blog. We want it to be entertaining and informative, and for that, we take it seriously … but not too seriously. Also, given the cool contacts that we’ve made, we thought it would be a fun idea to let our readers decide, particularly since many of them are excellent photographers. Thanks again, I haven’t had an A+ in a while. ~James
Love the bottle
Thank for the vote Sheena. It looks like the artsy-fartsy bottle is the clear winner. ~James
Mmm, I adore the blue apothecary bottle! Super sweet shot…
Many, many thanks for those sweet words. It’s looking like the bottle’s got legs! 🙂 ~Terri
The blue bottle! Love it. 😉
Thank you Ruth. It seems to be winning by a landslide! 🙂 ~Terri
The blue bottle! What a gorgeous shade of blue and a captivating photo. 🙂
Thanks Tia! It reminds me of that gorgeous shade of blue you have on your masthead. ~Terri
Gottle to be the bottle! No disrespect to the other contenders, but that photo is so evocative. I feel I could pour that scene right out onto the counter. Lovely. See you tomorrow.
E
Well El, it looks like you “gottle” be right! It looks like it’s the runaway leader. So glad you’ll be back tomorrow. Love, T
Of course my favorite is the blue jar!
Thanks Pam. It’s looking like that’s the winner! ~Terri
I vote for the blue bottle!
Many thanks Chris. The bottle definitely appears to be in the lead! ~Terri
My eye went straight to the bottle… Great capture and many different aspects in one shot!
Tine, Thanks very much for your vote and kind words. It looks like you picked a winner!:) ~Terri
Hello. Nice pictures. I like like all of them as blue is my favorite color but if have to choose, i will go with 3rd picture ‘A Cigar By The Sea’
Thanks for your lovely reply Swati. The Cigar Man was quite interesting. All the best, Terri
Think I’m too late to vote for this one but I’m always a sucker for blue glass. Now I know the glass is probably clear and the water is blue but the image in the image sealed the deal for me.
Thanks Carol. We always appreciate feedback from our readers, and it’s never too late for us. I must admit, that I’m partial to this shot as well for the science involved … geek that I am. Check out the post link if you want to know more. ~James
My favorite is definitely the apothecary bottle. It is a beautiful photo – very “artsy-fartsy” 😉
Thanks Margo. I think about composition when I shoot, but I’m also a big believer in the axiom that “Luck counts too.” And there was a fair amount of luck with this photo. Thanks for the vote. ~James
What a brilliant idea! I dithered nearly till the closing date last year 🙂 They are all beautiful, but I go with the bottle too 🙂
Thanks Madhu. Seeking input from our readers has been a big success, and loads of fun as well. It’s definitely something we’ll keep in mind for the future. ~James
I love all your photography but if a vote is in order, I go for the blue bottle. 🙂
Thanks for the vote LuAnn. It looks like the bottle is the popular choice, and will be the entry. ~James
The Apothecary’s Bottle gets my vote!
Tahira, thanks so much for your input … and the good news is that the apothecary’s bottle won! 🙂 ~Terri
I like The Apothecary’s Bottle. I like how there’s multiple stories in the one photo. Great stuff.
Thank you Pania. So glad you stopped by. James first started snapping it because the color was so vivid. Then he said, “Hey look at what it’s doing with the reflection from the Town Square. Cool!” I guess the best part of photography is when it can make you smile. All the best, Terri
I really like the cigar smoker best. It just brings up a mood, peaceful, serene, silence. I can almost smell the ocean.
Thanks for stopping by my blog and liking my post on the hurricanes (or lack of) 😉
Thanks Jill. When I took that photo the tide was rushing in to fill a deep channel at Gould’s Inlet. The birds were scattering and I could smell the ocean … and his cigar. 🙂 I really enjoyed my visit to your blog and your independent spirit. All the best, Terri
Great pictures – the bottle is my favourite!!
Thank you. It looks like you picked a winner. 🙂 So glad you stopped by. ~Terri