On my last blog post, I shared some of my images that I captured from the six sessions we had with the Camargue horses in the South of France. Did I mention how incredibly beautiful these white stallions and mares are?
Anyway, I am already missing my time near the sea eating moules à l'ail, beurre et vin. However, we are in the lavender region of the Provence and tomorrow will have our second photo shoot with the lavender. Our first lavender shoot was at the Sénanque Abbey where new lavender had been replanted recently and it looked terrific. I heard that last year there was scaffolding on the abbey. Lucky us, it was gone and the building looked spic and span.
Tonight, we are having dinner at a restaurant that overlooks the The Pont du Gard which is an ancient Roman aqueduct. After dinner we plan to photograph the bridge during blue hour, and we’ll wait around for them to light the bridge with different colors.
On the following morning, we will will visit Roussillon which is one of the nicest villages in my opinion. The town is famous for its magnificent red cliffs and ochre quarries that are accented with green pine trees.
Sony Alpha 1 Mirrorless Digital Camera and Sony FE 24-105mm f/4, G lens, sky replaced in Photoshop
Update -July 8th, we went early to Roussillon well before the crowds. It was just as I had remembered. I saw one of the painted doors that I love so much and visited the bake shop for a delicious pastry and cappuccino before exploring the quaint village and sunlit cliffs.
Next we hit the lavender fields. The fields are always impressive to see and smell; the aroma is out of this world fantastic. One of my favorite things about the fields are the long rows that seem to go on forever. The color and lushness of the fields can vary greatly. This year I concentrated on some closer shots (not really macro but closer than usual with a wide angle lens) using my Sony 24-105mm lens. I shot at about 50mm for most of my lavender images (not the abbey) and used f/4 to create a softer look. I even tried a few high-key looks.
We also visited some of the well-known fields that we frequent year after year. Unfortunately, there was a heat wave and several of those fields had already been harvested. But our expert guide found a few beautiful fields at peak. One of the spots was secluded and we had it all to ourselves. We ate our dinner as we photographed the lavender and shared a bottle of wine as the sunset over the lavender. We said our goodbyes to each other and Au Revoir to the Camargue…
at last light… Sony Alpha 1 Mirrorless Digital Camera and Sony FE 24-105mm f/4, G lens
High-key lavender, shot with the Sony Alpha 1 Mirrorless Digital Camera and Sony FE 24-105mm f/4, G lens @50mm, f/4.
shot with the Sony Alpha 1 Mirrorless Digital Camera and Sony FE 24-105mm f/4, G lens
Photoshop multiple exposure by blending one sharp shot with one in-camera blur. Sony Alpha 1 Mirrorless Digital Camera and Sony FE 24-105mm f/4, G lens