Hello! This week, I selected an image from one of my favorite places: Mykonos, Greece. I visited the island during a Greek island cruise in August 2011. I shot “Cycladic Capture” using a Nikon D80 with an aperture of f/4.8 and a shutter speed of 1/60.
When I was in school, my photography professor talked a lot about the serendipity of photography; the accidental moments of good fortune that you never could have expected. This photo is probably my best example of a serendipitous moment. It is one of a handful of instances that the stars aligned and I found myself in a situation that magically presented a platter of perfect elements to photograph.
During the Greek island cruise, we docked in Mykonos where I spent the day photographing the beautiful sky blue and white scenes that are synonymous with the Cycladic Islands. Mykonos was one of those places that I always wondered if it really looked as amazing in real life as it does in photographs. After experiencing it, I can honestly say that it is in fact even more stunning than it appears on the pages of travel magazines. While there were many people walking the narrow streets, the town had a very calm and laid back feeling about it. I know that Santorini gets much of the Cycladic Island glory, but I found Mykonos to be much more picturesque and serene.
It was the end of the day and I had just sat on the shore and watched the sun go down. As I gathered my belongings, I looked up and saw this small domed church with a beautiful stained glass window on one side. I started heading towards the church to photograph the window (if you’ve looked at my Doors & Windows portfolio, I’m sure you noticed that I have a fascination with windows) and I saw that there was a man sitting on the bench right in front. I quickly realized, it wasn’t just a man…it was THE man. With his hat, sky blue shirt, gray hair, and mustache, he looked like the quintessential Greek island resident. It legitimately felt like he was magically dropped on that bench at the perfect moment specifically so that I could photograph him. Normally when I photograph people, I am very careful to be as unobtrusive as possible as to not offend anyone or make them feel uncomfortable, especially in foreign countries. In this case, however, I realized that there was no way to subtly take this photo. I either needed to commit to or let it go. After thinking it over for a minute or two, I decided that an opportunity like this is rare and passing it up would be crazy. So, I moved about 8 feet in front of the man, shot a few frames, and moved on. After all of my worry, I don’t think he thought anything of it. He seemed to be so deep in thought that I doubt he even noticed me taking photos of him. As I walked away, I realized that I had just been given the gift of serendipity. Looking back, it was one of my favorite photographic moments and a highlight of my entire experience in Greece.
Tips: Unfortunately this week, there aren’t a lot of tips to be given about finding a serendipitous situation. If you go out looking for a happy surprise, chances are you’ll probably come up empty handed. The best advice I can give is to make sure that you are always aware of your surroundings. Make sure that you’re not so busy in your daily activities that you overlook the details. In the same vein, don’t focus so much on the details of photography that you forget to experience your surroundings. Travel photography is all about balance. Maintaining a balance between you as the traveler and you as the photographer is absolutely vital. I’ve been to places where I was so caught up with photography that I realized later that I didn’t truly “see” the destination. I’ve also been to places where I’ve so caught up with running from museum to museum that I didn’t slow down enough to notice the nuances of the destination, which lead to a less than successful collection of photos. Finding that balance is key. Take the time to slow down and notice what might normally be overlooked. Stroll through a quiet neighborhood. Visit a monument or two. Stop and have a 2 hour lunch in an outdoor cafe. Then, put the camera down and spend the afternoon getting lost in a museum. I think that you will find that your travel experience and body of photographs will be much richer because of it.
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