Greece photo gallery

Greece is a spectacular country that balances perfectly its rich past and difficult present in its everyday’s life. Greeks are truly social beings. During my 15-day trip, I saw Greeks living and enjoying life to the fullest almost everywhere, even at the most difficult of times. They are passionate and their passion continues to drive their society forward despite the last sad economic turmoil.
I started my journey in Santorini, one of the most iconic Greek islands. Santorini is adorned with spectacular volcanic cliffs soaring over 300m from a sea-drowned caldera which offer some great views and spectacular landscapes. Spent a few days in Oia, a tiny hilltop white village contrasting with the indigo Aegean sea below.
Then I flew to the Greek capital. Bustling and somehow chaotic, Athens is a heady mix of ancient and modern with its city centre truly like an open-air museum dominated by the impressive and breathless Acropolis. Despite the last sad financial issues, I found Athens be a live, sophisticated, cosmopolitan and somehow stylish city.

Prague photo gallery

My first trip to Prague was at the end of summer 1995. At that time, the “Velvet Revolution” and the end of the Iron Curtain freshly delivered the Czech capital back to Western Europe but you could still notice some reminiscences of the recent Communist past: the cobblestone streets near the Old Town Square were still peppered with marketplaces selling old soviet memorabilia, many historic buildings were still blackened by carbon air pollution, you could still spot a fairly good amount of automotive socialist icons like Trabant or old Skoda cars in the streets and not so many tourists yet around.

Ramadan for travel photographers

If you plan to visit a Muslim country here are a few tips and explanations about Ramadan for travel photographers. Ramadan is a holy month for Muslims around the world. It is the ninth month of the Islamic calendar, and the month in which the Quran was revealed. Being the Islamic calendar a lunar calendar, months begin when the first crescent of a new moon is sighted. Since the Islamic lunar calendar year is 10 to 11 days shorter than the solar year and contains no intercalation, Ramadan varies every year.

In 2017, Ramadan will start on May 27 and end on June 25.

During this period, observant Muslims tend to abstain from food (sawm), drinking or smoking from dawn to dusk and also restrain from all activities or behaviours that are not compatible with Islamic values.

Apr

Posted on April 3, 2017 by Stefano

Belgium photo gallery

Incredibly blessed by an unusual warm sunny weather, my 6-day journey through Belgium let me fully enjoy its vibrant capital and its two most known tourist destinations: Ghent and Bruges. Though definitely highly multicultural, I found Brussels also unexpectedly shabby if not even dirty through most of the places and streets I have been to. Its gorgeous Grand Place, the Brussels’ historic centrepiece and one of the most impressive squares in the old continent, was another story anyway.

2017 World Press Photo contest winner announced

A dramatic image of the assassination of Russia’s ambassador to Turkey, taken on December 19, 2016 in Ankara, Turkey, was named the Photo of the Year in the 2017 World Press Photo contest. The photo was taken by Burhan Ozbilici, an Associated Press photographer during a photo exhibition that he decided to attend at the last moment simply because it was on his way home. The Turkish photographer arrived during Ambassador Andrey G. Karlov’s speech, and within moments a 22-year-old off-duty police officer, Mevlut Mert Altintas, opened fire and killed the Russian Ambassador. Although Mr. Ozbilici was just a few metres away from the gunman, he did not panic and run. The 2017 World Press Photo contest winner said in a phone interview: I’m a journalist and I had to stand and do my job even if I got hit or killed. At that moment I tried to represent not just A.P. but all good independent journalists.