I was in Italy to attend (and make the cake for) the wedding of my dear friends Tom and Jen of TomEatsJenCooks. All the details of their amazing wedding are here, including the reception dinner at Villa Passerini, where these photos were taken.
Every surface of this astounding villa was covered in murals which I was told were at least 300 years old, but A History of Painting In Italy: Umbria, Florence and Siena: From the Second to the Sixteenth Century says they predate 1529, which would make them nearly 500 years old. My favorites were the dreamy ceilings, which seemed to be the sort of luxurious yet homespun ceilings that a fairy tale heroine would gaze up at. The nice boy I was sitting next to at dinner took a photo of them, too, saying, "I feel like I shouldn't like them...but I do."
Other than a jar of perfect plum jam, the only souvenir I bought myself was to have these photos printed. I had them done at PhotoworkSF as always, and bought the frames at Community Thrift. They are indeed chipped, but I scored 6 frames and a pair of hiking sandals for a total of $23, which happened to be exactly my frames & sandals budget. Sadly, the frames are a teeny bit crooked, as I had to wrap the hanging wires around huge hanging nails to make them earthquake safe. If I can't have those actual ceilings above my bed, I definitely want the photos to hang above me.
(Images: Tess Wilson)
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In Tuscany I took a zillion pictures of old tiled floors everywhere. The tiles were just so awesome. But I got home and wondered why. None of the photos were as nice and frameable as the ones here. Just my toes and some tiles in many different views.
After decades of travel, I have largely stopped taking photos on trips. Sure, I'll whip out a compact camera and snatch a shot of an amusing sign, shop window, mailbox, etc., but for the most part the the scenery and "tourist site" shots I don't bother with (and I do not carry a smart phone with camera). What I've found is if I'm spending it e photographing, I'm not really experiencing things fully.
The exception to this is trips like the long one I had in New Zealand, where I spent much of my time outside in drop-dead-gorgeous scenery. That place I photographed extensively. I run the slide show on my tv occasionally and relive the trip.
I can understand Rural and Rueful's position. Some trips I feel seperated from the action if I'm shooting pictures the whole time. The Indianapolis 500, is one such trip. I took some photos of some things, but rather than miss out on the thrill of racing I didn't even bring my DSLR or Lenses to race day.
But then there are other times and places where I just love being a photographer, and has made me more aware of the everyday beauty that sometimes surrounds us, and seeing places with new eyes. Case in point, on my first time in Seattle I made sure to have my camera handy and thus captured some of my favorite shots. I'll never be able to get those again because I was seeing the place for the first time and had new eyes to see it with.