Stephen Levitas  


Istanbul Galata tower by Stephen Levitas

November 2024 - Istanbul Galata tower

November 2024 - Stephen Levitas

Original

About the Image(s)

Istanbul Galata Tower

This is the famous Istanbul landmark (European side), the Genoese Galata tower. It was a military watch-tower, built in the form you see here in 1348. It is now a museum. The neighborhood is a charming destination of quaint old buildings and shops. There are no good views of the tower close up, except like this up a street. Any panorama of old Istanbul usually includes the tower, several mosques, and the inlet of water, called The Golden Horn, dividing the northern and southern European parts of Istanbul.

I straightened this only slightly, but even that has taken a bit away from the tower’s vertical sense. I lightened the shadows to bring out the buildings on the left, darkened the highlights, and increased contrast. I repaired a few bright spots where the sky peeked through on the sides too brightly.

That’s a flag on the upper right. Should I remove it? Is the building on the left too big? Should I crop it a bit? Should I then crop a bit from the bottom to keep the image proportions?


This round’s discussion is now closed!
9 comments posted




Manel Puigcerver   Manel Puigcerver
Hi Stephen, this is still a city I have to visit, plenty of history...

Coming back to the photo,I see a nice grey scale, without burnt high lights nor too dense shadows.

From my point of view the flag should be removed and the crop would help you to improve the photo. Besides, have you tried to correct the perspective to avoid vertical lines falling? I think it will improve the photo.
  Posted: 11/05/2024 15:01:50
Stephen Levitas   Stephen Levitas
Manel,
Thanks for confirming my questions about the flag and cropping.
About the perspective, I did do a small amount of alteration of the vertical perspective, but if you compare the original color shot to the monochrome, the perspective change tends to fatten the tower, and it loses a little its vertical soaring. If I did more perspective alteration, to make all the vertical lines parallel, it would considerably fatten the tower. See below the example, that I definitely do not like.
Therefore, I generally do not do much adjustment of vertical parallels, so as to retain the sense of soaring upwards. Of course, some situations might work well to do this. Commercial architectural photographers almost always adjust their vertical parallels.
Note that we photographers never adjust parallel lines that are in the horizontal plane, like roads or railroad tracks. We all like that those parallels converge. So I do not think it should be automatic to adjust vertical parallel lines.   Posted: 11/05/2024 17:40:29
Comment Image
Manel Puigcerver   Manel Puigcerver
Stephen, I certainly agree with you that the corrected version you show us doesn't improve the original one... thank you very much for showing it!   Posted: 11/05/2024 19:48:05



Michele Borgarelli   Michele Borgarelli
(Groups 71 & 92)
Stephen,

this is a very nice image is definitively better in monochrome of the color version. To me the flag doesn't create any distraction, and on the contrary I believe it creates some balance to the building on the left.

best

Michele   Posted: 11/10/2024 23:09:43



Tom McCreary   Tom McCreary
Going with monochrome was the way to go. The flag doesn't bother me, and as Michele said it does help balance the image. I would crop off a bit from the bottom, to lessen the confusing area in the lower left, but leave some room below the people walking. I like the tower centered, so would not crop off any of the building on the left. Your making the building on the left lighter and bringing out details helps the image. If it was darker as in the color image, than it should be cropped off.

Your image with the vertical lines corrected makes the tower look too squatty.   Posted: 11/15/2024 18:41:45
Stephen Levitas   Stephen Levitas
Thank you, Tom. Yes, the extra image with the squatty tower is showing that verticals should NOT always be altered, a personal bug-a-boo for me.   Posted: 11/15/2024 18:51:41



Wes Odell   Wes Odell
The problem you'll create if you crop the bottom is that the entire picture will lose its height and thus the soaring of the fort. This is an old part of town as evidenced by the laundry lines between the houses, so all else that is antique, belongs in the picture. Dodging the dark building on the left to bring out detail is good.   Posted: 11/18/2024 20:01:48



Jennifer Doerrie   Jennifer Doerrie
While this image works as you've presented it, I do think I might prefer it cropped in from the left side, keeping the people who are walking, but eliminating the head of the person in the lower left corner. Of course, that changes the composition with centering the tower, so you could try just cloning out or darkening the person in the corner (although obviously not for PSA travel or other places where that wouldn't be allowed). The flag in the upper right corner doesn't bother me.   Posted: 11/25/2024 06:04:22



Stephen Levitas   Stephen Levitas
Jennifer, thank you for noticing that person's head on the left lower side. No matter how hard I look at an image, it is always helpful for others to have a look.   Posted: 11/30/2024 22:04:08