Joe Turic Photography

The First Few Days in Paris

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After a packed day in Dublin, we arrived in Paris around 10 pm.  This was my fourth time visiting Paris and the third time at Vijay’s apartment in the 16th arrondissement, so it always feels comfy when I get there.   Bryan and I should have gotten to sleep immediately, but the draw of wine, cheese, fresh baguette and friends I haven’t seen in a while won out.

A good night of sleep followed by an excellent Parisian brunch of eggs, pain au chocolat, croissant buerre, honey, jams, baguette and Nepali tea zapped my jet lag and spurred me to get out of the apartment for a walk.  Christie and I went to an area I had never been to before (took line 2 to the Colonel Fabien stop) and spent the day walking down the Canal Saint-Martin talking and taking pictures before stopping in a cafe for an afternoon drink.

Apartments near the Colonel Fabian metro

 Tourist boats navigating the the canal locks and trains as we got off the metro

I’ll do a little “equipment” blog post later, but for this trip I brought my tripod with me as well as borrowing a 10 stop ND filter.  Having a tripod with me was probably one of the best decisions I made, and it allowed me to play around with the ND filter and daytime long exposures.  I did a few in Dublin, but this first walk in Paris I was able to try a bunch more.  These are all on the Canal Saint-Martin.

We ran into these kids on the way home and when I pointed my camera at them they defended themselves quickly, “C’est public!”.  I guess in my older age I look too much like “the man”…when all I wanted to do was get a shot of them 🙂

That night it rained and we ducked into a cozy little Italian restaurant for dinner.  The food and wine were excellent as was my mascarpone créme that I had for dessert.  Christie spent most of the next morning preparing a wonderful Nepali lunch, in which I was made to eat traditionally, with one hand and no utensils :).  After lunch, Christie and I headed over to the Marias to meet some friends and I grabbed a few more shots when I could.  We passed an open air book market and then up to a bridge over the Seine near Île Saint-Louis.

The next morning I got up early and worked out like I did every morning.  I wish I had taken a video of myself doing burpees in front of the Arc de Triomphe.  Eddy arrived that morning and we went out for a decent lunch and walked from Vijay’s place up to the Arc and down the Champs-Élysées, met Vijay for a drink and then continued our photo walk through the Tuileries Gardens and hung out near Concorde messing around with long exposures and time lapses before making our way back home.

Sitting in the middle of the Champs-Élysées trying to take long exposures may not be the safest thing in the world, but I love this shot!

Next up, day trips to Brussels and Amsterdam!

Back in the States!

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Although I wanted to blog while I was over in Europe, I also felt that I wanted to be thorough with documenting the trip.  That takes time, something I ironically never seem to have while I’m on vacation.  I did, however try to update Joe Turic Photography on Facebook with a picture every couple of days (LIKE me on Facebook to see updates!), as well as my Instagram feed (I’m joeturic on there, follow me!).  I took over 5000 pictures on this trip and over the next couple of weeks I plan on trickling out some blog posts detailing my adventures.

The weather on the east coast is AMAZING right now and I can only imagine it’s because I brought it back with me from Paris.  Here are a couple of shots from the last few bluebird days over there to whet your appetite for what’s to come.

Jardin du Luxembourg (The Luxembourg Gardens)

Walking along the Seine – homes on the right bank viewed from the left bank

 

Eurotrip 2012 has begun!

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The goal for day one was to drink Guinness, see The Book of Kells and try not to fall asleep.  Mission accomplished.

After spending the 2011 new year in France, I’ve been trying to get back, even if just a week.  My friend, Bryan and I left on Thursday night from JFK and arrived in Dublin around 5:30 am Friday morning (still 12:30 am in NY, time to drink some Guinness, right?).  We sleepily stumbled off the plane, got some cash, stowed a bag and soon were off to the city center of Dublin.  We were dropped right next to Trinity College, Ireland’s oldest University, founded in 1592.  The walled campus is beautiful and quiet, providing a nice contrast from the surrounding bustling streets of Dublin.  Here are a few shots.

After some walking, we found Bewley’s Cafe, for a full traditional Irish breakfast.  Jet lag was officially setting in at this point, but we had to power through.  We stuffed our faces and then it was back to Trinity College to see The Book of Kells.  After our dose of culture, we headed out into the city to find some Guinness.  We hit up a few nice pubs, including Temple Bar, which is apparently the most famous in the area.

I don’t know this guy…he just seemed excited that I was taking a shot in front of Temple Bar so he thought he’d join me

After a few pints of Guinness is the best time to try some new photographic techniques, right?  I borrowed a 10 stop ND filter from a friend for this trip in anticipation of trying out some long daytime exposures.  I’m still working on figuring out some of the best techniques.  Here’s a first try on the Grand Canal in Dublin (I have some better ones I’m getting in Paris).

It was chilly on the canal bridge and beginning to rain, jet lag had set in 3 times over and we were just getting our fourth wind.  We ducked into Gallaghers Boxty House back in the Temple area for a hearty traditional lunch of bangers and mash and a Murphy’s stout before heading back to the airport.  All in all the “12 hour layover” experiment was a success.  In the future when traveling I may try this technique more.  It’s a little tiring, but can give you a great snapshot of a city in a very short amount of time.