Category: Places & People

During the summer months in Portugal, a good alternative to avoid the crowded beaches on the coast is to head out to the interior. In recent years, the popularity of fluvial beaches in the interior of the country has increased, as they offer a nice experience to those that look for the quietness of a rural setting. Far from the busy coastal beaches, it is possible to combine a visit to a historical village with a cool swim to mitigate against the summer heat.

One of such places is the village of Constância, that I have visited recently with my family, simply to spend a nice and quiet day surrounded by nature. This village is in the Central area of Portugal, and sits atop a small peninsula, nested between the rivers Zêzere and Tejo. Constância is rich in historical and cultural heritage – the first Iberian inhabitants have settled here, followed by Romans, Visigoths and Arabs. One of the greatest Portuguese poets, Luís de Camões, author of the Lusiadas, has lived here between 1547 and 1550. In more recent times, the metal bridge over the Zêzere was designed by Gustav Eiffel, of Parisian fame.

The fluvial beach is a nice spot to spend the day, swimming in the clear and fresh waters of the river or resting in its forested green margins. Before leaving, we decided to stroll around the village in the late afternoon. The village has many points of interest, from its pelourinho to several medieval churches and chapels. Consequently, there are many interesting details to notice and photograph, wandering around the narrow streets. It is well worth it to walk up the village until the top of the hill, from where a broad view of the Tejo river opens to the east.

For this day trip I only carried the small Fujifilm X100F camera, the perfect tool for such occasions. It was entirely suitable to take a few obligatory family snaps, plus the required documentary shots. I also quite like the Acros B&W film simulation, which I have applied during RAW conversion. I think it suited the historical feel of the place nicely.

Taking advantage of a bank holiday, I have recently visited the Serra da Freita region, in northern Portugal. This has been in my “to-do” list for quite some time, as the area, albeit small, is rich in cultural, geological, and landscape heritage. The rugged terrain, made of granite, quartzite, and schist, has been settled by Man since pre-historic times; today, many of the isolated and picturesque small villages are deserted, or only have a small number of (old) inhabitants. People have left for better jobs in the coastal cities.

Despite this, the local municipalities are making strong efforts to renew the region, based on its core attractions: local culture, natural & historical heritage, trekking, gastronomy, are key elements that concur for a unique experience

I planned my visit around two of the main attractions in the area: Passadiços do Paiva and Arouca Geopark. You can learn more about them here: http://aroucageopark.pt/en/

The Paiva river is one of the least polluted in Europe, and now it can be appreciated at close range by walking along the Passadiços, a wooden walkway 8km long that is quite popular. It is part of the Arouca Geopark, a network of a dozen or so spots that provide a unique insight into the early (Palaeozoic) history of our planet.

The surrounding countryside and landscape are a feast to the senses, with the sounds, smells, and large mountain vistas that are visible at each turn of the twisting roads. The road network is more than adequate, and traffic is scarce. Sometimes, after another turn, a small village, no more than a dot in the landscape, appears similarly out of nowhere. Such was the case, for example, of Manhouce, a small rural village that in recent years has become famous thanks to some local traditional music. Just seeing the corn cobs drying in the sun along the road, the granite – built houses, feels like going back in time.

I experienced some of the most beautiful landscapes of my life in front of the Frecha da Mizarela, the highest waterfall in Portugal. To fully capture the scenery, I decided to shoot several frames, to be later stitched. That day would end at the top of Serra da Gralheira, basked in the golden light of the sunset.

In terms of photographic gear, for this trip I wanted to keep simple, so I only carried one camera with one prime lens, i.e. the Fujifilm X-Pro 2 and 23 f/2 lens. This is a high quality and small package, that I carried in my backpack, together with food, drinks, and travel tripod.

 

I recently went to Abu Dhabi on a business trip, to attend a conference. As always, I wanted to take a “small travel” camera with me. Recently, I had been looking with increasing interest at the Sony RX10. Actually, I had been looking at this camera since it was introduced in 2013, but the original high asking price cooled off my interest. With the price going down with time, I ended up getting one; after all, it is hard to resist the package: Zeiss 24-200mm f2.8 lens, 1 inch Sony sensor, good ergonomics, image stabilization, plus the other bits and bobs.

So when the time came to choose a camera to take with me to Abu Dhabi, the choice was obvious. I carried the camera plus a 13 inch laptop in a shoulder bag, no problem. I know Abu Dhabi well, but being on non-leisure trip means getting up early and staying up late, to make the best of the light. I was also travelling without a tripod this time, even my small travel one, so I was totally relying on upping the ISO and image stabilization. I went out mostly to photograph along the Corniche, close to the hotel where I was staying. The skyline in getting more impressive by the day, and makes for interesting photographs at sunrise and sunset.

The camera performed as expected. Zooming the lens is indeed slow, but after a while one gets the hang of it, and anticipating the focal length required makes up for it. Auto focus worked well, even in night scenes I always managed to find something to focus on, quickly and reliably. The ISO performance from the camera is acceptable, considering the size of the sensor. I was typically shooting in aperture priority mode and auto ISO up to 1600. This managed all the situations I encountered.

Now, at ISO values 800 and 1600, the image starts to degrade if you examine your images at 100% on screen. Careful sharpening and noise reduction can help up to a certain point, and the images end up being acceptable for most uses. In the end, I was able to take the photos, and it is marvellous how much technology has progressed.

I would say that the RX10 is a camera that will serve many photographers well, and that delivers high quality images if you understand its operational limits. It even allows you to step out a little bit from those limits and take photos that otherwise would not be possible, while maintaining a certain file integrity and quality. In the end, as a general purpose fixed zoom lens camera, it more than delivers.