Travel
Berlenga Grande Island is part of an archipelago, a short boat ride away from the seaside Portuguese town of Peniche. Although it is known for its fort, it is worth exploring other parts of the island itself - including a view to the lighthouse and the small beaches caved out along the coast.
Cape Carvoeiro sits at the westernmost point of Peniche, perched over the Atlantic Ocean. We visited this spectacular location on the way to Peniche, and then again on the way to the Berlenga Islands. The wind was suprisingly calm on that day, which provided an excellent opportunity to fly the drone over the area and get a bird’s eye view of the place.
The oldest of Sintra’s six castles and palaces open for visitation, the Moorish Castle originally dates back to the 9th Century. It was built as a fortified observatory, and sustained the test of time - through the Christian Crusader invasion, a fire, and two earthquakes. In the 19th Century, it was restored to its former glory by the Portuguese monarchy. To this day, it provides stunning views over the other palaces of Sintra and, on a less foggy day, the coastline beyond the town.
Sintra is a small town, surrounded by castles. It is where the Portuguese monarchy used to spend their holidays away from Lisbon, bringing their sumptuous palaces and gardens along with them. Two of the palaces we explored during our visit to Sintra on a very foggy day were Quinta da Regaleira and the National Palace of Pena. The national palace was almost entirely shrouded in mist, giving an eery atmosphere to the place.
Azenhas do Mar is a stunning seaside village north of Lisbon. It boasts two excellent seafood restaurants and two hotels, even though its population is of only about 400 inhabitants. It makes for a great overnight stay on the way from Lisbon and Sintra to the beaches further up along the coast. We spent only one night there, and made sure to stop by the lookout to watch the sunrise. It proved a worthwhile visit - we stayed for a while and watched as the colours of the sky changed dramatically over time.
Following my visit of the Tower of Belém, I stayed behind and waited for the sunset. As most tourists disappeared into the nearby restaurants, a golden light surrounded the tower and coloured the sky yellow. Soon after, a full moon had risen just behind the tower. I just wish I had had a longer focal lens with me to make the most of the moonrise at blue hour! Even so, I’m happy with several of my images from that evening, and I hope you enjoy this selection too.
The Tower of Belém is arguably one of the most recognisable landmarks of Lisbon. I enjoyed exploring it both from the waterfront, and having a look at it from the inside (which was well worth queueing up for!). If you are planning to visit, don’t miss out the top floors, which provide jaw-dropping views over Belém and beyond.
No visit to Lisbon is complete without a day in Belém. Belém offers beautiful waterfront walks, and some of the most iconic tourist destinations in Lisbon: the Belém Tower, Jerónimos Monastery, and its monuments.
Upon arriving, I took the picturesque riverside walk to the Padrão dos Descobrimentos monastery, towards the 25 de Abril bridge. It was a beautiful day with vibrant blue skies. Here are some of my images from in and around the waterfront.
Another spectacular spot from which to appreciate Lisbon is the lookout at Miradouro da Senhora do Monte. During the Summer, this is an ideal place to watch the sunset, as it colours the sky bright pink and purple. But don’t be fooled by the warm colours - it’s very cold up on that hill, so come prepared for some very chilly winds!
Below are some of my favourite images of one lovely sunset over Lisbon…
As a great admirer of classical horsemanship and particularly dressage, the Portuguese School of Equestrian Art was an unmissable stop for me during my time in Lisbon. The riding school has regular shows of classical dressage performed by lusitano horses and their riders, as well as morning training sessions that can be attended by the general public. Our timing was off for their presentations, unfortunately, so instead we attended a morning practice session and guided tour of the school. Below are some of my favourite images of these beautiful Portuguese horses.
In every photographic trip that I take, I try to make the most of the soft light during sunrises and sunsets. This was no different in Portugal. The first sunrise of the trip was photographed at the Miradouro de Santa Luzia, a viewpoint in the Alfama neighbourhood. Even in the peak of the Summer holidays, this was nearly empty for sunrise, suggesting that not many other photographers are aware of this place.
Lisbon truly displays architecture for all tastes. From medieval to colonial and modern, there is a street for everyone. Along with the amenable weather and blue skies, this makes it an unmissable travel destination and endless photographic opportunities. Here I share some of my favourite images of a day walking through the city.
One of our first stops in Lisbon was the Carmo Convent. These are now both convent ruins and an archeological museum in the heart of the city. Despite its tragic history, the Carmo Convent remains an essential part of the Lisbon experience. For a photographer, it was the perfect location to get creative with a wide-angle lens and photograph some more unusual angles and details.
My most recent trip to Portugal started off in the capital city of Lisbon. We spent a few days there enjoying the mouth-watering food and the incredible architecture. Lisbon is famous for its painted tiles, colonial architecture, meandering trams, and colourful streets. All of which I have tried to capture a little bit off for my very first post on it. From now on, I will be posting new content from Portugal every Saturday - so check back next week for more!
The Atacama Desert put on a show for us one afternoon. This was one of the most fantastic light I’ve ever seen and resulted in some beautiful imagery of the Altiplanic Lagoons. I’ll be looking to print some of those to decorate my home - and I will make these available as canvases and metal prints for anyone interested.
For the final two blog posts on the Atacama Desert, I am sharing my images of the Altiplanic Lagoons. This place was a stark contrast to the rest of the desert landscape, with lakes peppered throughout the arid landscape and sparse, brightly-coloured vegetation surrounding them. It also seemed to be a hotspot for wildlife, that gathered around these lagoons in greater numbers than anywhere else on the Atacama landscape.
One of the highlights of our travels through Chile was a day out at the Altiplanic Lagoons of the Atacama Desert. The morning began with some wildlife photography, including several species of flamingoes posing in front of an incredible mountain range. The skies were a deep, rich blue, suggesting a storm was on its way. Luckily for us, the weather held up all day long and the oncoming storm provided some truly magical light.
This weekend, I’m sharing a few more highlights of the Atacama Desert. First, some aerial photos of the Death Valley, followed by an incredible sunset at the Amphitheatre in the Moon Valley. The Atacama is one of the most unusual landscapes I have ever photographed, and I would have loved to spend longer there to capture more of its arresting beauty. I hope to be back there again some day soon!
The blog has had to take a bit of a hiatus lately, but will be back up and running every Saturday for the next few months.
This weekend I am sharing some of my favourite images of the incredible Lagunas Escondidas de Baltinache we photographed at the Atacama Desert. I hope you enjoy these images of spectacular hidden lagoons and alien moon-like landscapes.
Our final stops in the Eduardo Avaroa Andean Fauna National Reserve were Laguna Colorada and Termas de Polque. Both spots amazed us with their scenery and provided yet another opportunity to see wild flamingoes.
Both these locations provided excellent opportunities for flying the drone and getting some aerial images, although we did keep it quite high so we didn’t interfere with the wildlife.
Here are some images from both land and air of these two locations, our last stop in Bolivia before we headed to Chile’s Atacama Desert.
