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This is the blog of Steve Burkett of Italy, Our Italy

Head On!

Two weeks ago, I brought you “The Gondola”. In that article, you saw a photo that I named “Procession”. Here it is, again.

In this photo, we see two gondole, one following the other, under arched bridges along a small canal of Venice. If you want to see how that photo was created…because yes, it was completely created from several elements, take a quick look here.

Today, I show you Procession 2, or perhaps more aptly, ‘Head On!”. Again, two gondole floating on a small canal of Venice, but this time they are traveling head on, rather than in a procession, and may collide if the gondoliers are not skilled in their craft.

This photo, like Procession, was the result of manipulation in Photoshop. When the elements of several photos are brought together in one image, it is called a ‘composite’. This composite was the result of planning well before the trip to Venice in 2012. On my shot list was my self-assignment to collect the elements of this photo. So, this was a targeted endeavor, and not some serendipitous or staked-out encounter.

Here’s how it was accomplished.

First, I had to find the right location for Head On!, so as I strolled Venice, I was on the look out for the right setting. The setting shown below caught my eye, and because I didn’t want to get home to find that I may had missed the exact layout that I wanted, I took several photos…film was expensive, but pixels are really cheap!

After reviewing the photo collection, I decided on the third one…shown below.

A bit of cropping gave my envisioned composite a base from which to work.

I didn’t want this scene to unfold during broad daylight, so I started by darkening the image a bit.

Now, I’m going to insert the first element into the composite, the gondola approaching from the right. Also, I thought that the arched watergate in the left of the image needed a bit of enhancement, so I emphasized the light within the building.

With any composite, the smallest details are important to make the photo believable…the sun angle, the color, the size, etc. In this case, the gondola needs a reflection in the water. So, that’s what I’ll do next. Subtle? Yes. But, important for believability. Unless you compare the images a few times, you may not even notice the reflection.

Now it’s time to insert the gondola approaching from the left, along with its own reflection…yes, though hard to see, it’s there.

You will note that the gondole are not as head-on as I could have made them…after all, I’m free to choose how they are aligned within the image. I made the left gondola a bit smaller than the one on the right…thus inferring that it is not in the same plane. So, they are less head on than they could be. After all, I don’t want anyone to get hurt on their romantic gondola ride.

What’s left? I’d like to crop the image to eliminate the excess water at the bottom…it’s just water and not very interesting.

Did you notice that bright, distracting bow hanging from something or other up and to the right of the watergate? That’s got to go…so it will. And, the arched watergate…I’d like to warm it up a bit with a tad more light coming from inside…and maybe give the grill work a bit of polish. Here’s the final image.

I do enjoy digitally adding a painting effect to some of my photos. So, I’ll do that for Head On!

I know, the painting is not all that obvious viewing it from this ‘distance’. Here are some crops of the photo, giving you a better idea of the brush work that I’ve employed. Clicking on the images will give you are larger view.

Back to the final image above the painted one…it’s still not moody enough for me…it’s a bit too bright for the impending drama that I want to create. It’s time to give it a bit more sinister mood.

So now, in the dark of night, and with drama and disaster impending, and after eight years, I give you ‘Head On!’.

DISCLAIMER: No one was injured in the production of this photo.

Glad to get THAT out of the way…darned lawyers.

I hope that you enjoyed seeing behind the digital curtain to see how numerous images can be composited to create a final, fine art photo.

Ciao for now,

Steve

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La Terrazza Del Principe

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Let’s talk about lunch in Florence!

Today’s lunch is not in the uber-crowded part of Florence…known to Italians as Firenze. It sits above Florence, to the south of the Arno River, and just a bit south of the Bobli Gardens. It is a quiet place…now very quiet, as I’ll explain at the end.

We dined here for lunch in May of 2014, after revisiting the sights of Florence, which can wear one out. We needed sustenance and refreshment…and we got both.

We were greeted and served by our new friend, Sabina, seen here with Ellen. She and her husband immigrated from Germany and opened this delightful restaurant.

Getting to La Terrazza del Principe was a bit of a task. As you can see in this aerial photo, the road is twisty-turny. La Tarrazza is the red awning in the green square. As you can see, the setting is beautiful. It’s only about 1/2 mile from the Arno and one-thousand feet from the Boboli Gardens.

But then, getting there was outdone by the parking. After driving back and forth a few times, we called and we were told to ‘just park on the sidewalk’…so that’s what we did. As you can see, Ellen was a bit flummoxed by this endeavor.

The view from the terrace is delightful…lots of green, with colorful flowers in the planter boxes on the terrace.

That’s the top of the Boboli Garden’s compound in the distance. And the Pitti Palace is just below the gardens.

As usual, our first choice after sitting down is white or red. On this nice sunny day, we chose to start with white…there will be plenty of time for red as we slow-pace the meal.

Regarding our meal…here is the only photo I took of our entre, as we were a bit hungry and my camera was of secondary importance. Looks like a veal dish, doesn’t it?

And, now we had a red!

It must have been a good one by the smile on my face.

I did manage to capture a couple of simple desserts.

And, speaking of simple, Sabina brought us a surprise of mulberries and cherries…nice. Who would have thought, right?

Ok, here’s the deal. I was going to title this article “Eat Here: La Tarrazza Del Principe”, but alas, there is no La Tarrazza Del Principe anymore. According to the web, it is permanently closed. Drats! We were hoping to return, with you in tow.

Oh well, we will just have to have our memories to sustain us. And, there are plenty of other nice restaurants down in Florence proper from which to choose.

Hope you enjoyed the respite from the hustle and bustle of Florence.

Ciao for now,

Steve

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The Gondola

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Quando sono solo, sogno Venezia. And when I’m having those dreams of Venice, I will assuredly picture ‘the gondola’. The gondola is the iconic symbol of Venice…and its been that way for over 900 years.

What does a gondola look like? Let’s try this. Close your eyes and image a canoe. Go ahead, I’ll wait.

Ok, now…uh oh…your eyes are closed and you can’t read what I’m now writing to you. I’ll just have to wait until you’ve exhausted your dreamlike state.

Wait…

Wait…

[And while I’m waiting, I’m going to remember one of my all time favorite gondola photos that I took in Venice…but actually it is a composite of several photos, and you can see how I did it here.]

Wait…

Wait…

Welcome back, and sorry about that…I should have thought ahead about you having your eyes closed.

Now, completely erase from your mind that canoe image, because the only similarity to a gondola is that they both float (well, Ellen and I had a canoe issue where it didn’t float, but that’s a different story).

Here are some significant differences between a canoe and a gondola:

Squerarioli hand crafting a gondola in their squero (workshop)

A canoe is symmetrically straight, while a gondola is asymmetrically shaped like a banana.
A canoe is around 15-16 feet long and perhaps 35 inches wide, while a gondola is 35-feet-7-inches long and 55 inches wide.
Where a canoe is typically around 75 pounds, a gondola tips in at 1,545 pounds…yikes!
While you and your canoeing partner sit within the canoe and use paddles, the gondolier stands not within, but atop, and at the rear of the gondola, and uses a single oar.
Where standing up in a canoe is a recipe for tipping disaster, standing up in a gondola is not, and is the de facto way to ride in a gondola used as a traghetto, or ferry, to get across the Grand Canal where no bridge is close by.
And, where sitting side-by-side in a canoe (and even getting into that position without tumping over) doesn’t allow one to relax during that endeavor, there is nothing more relaxing than sitting by your loved one in a gondola as you enjoy your romantic gondola ride.

So, let’s learn more about the gondole (plural of ‘gondola’) of Venice.

History

As I mentioned above, the gondola has been associated with Venice for around 900 years.

Illustration of early-day gondola by Jost Amman

Today’s gondola is of shiny black lacquer and each is mostly identical, except for the custom-designed lounging area and some of the gondolier’s personally-applied decoration.

In days gone by, some gondole had canopies covering them, where romantic rendezvouses and political intrigue took place.

As there were no motorized vaporetti nor water taxis to carry one about, there were around 10,000 gondole bumping into each other along the Grand (and lesser) Canal.

Some were so ostentatious and of such a troublesome size that the Venetian government put its foot down and decreed that all should be black and of similar size.

Besides their size and color, there is another historical element on the prow of each gondola. This element is the ferro (or ‘iron’). The design of the ferro takes into account many aspects of the Venetian lagoon. I’ll explain the significance of the ferro shortly.

Now, to construction of the gondola.

Construction

Here is a short quiz for you - how many of the following woods are used in the construction of a gondola?

oak
fir
cherry
larch
walnut
linden
mahogany
elm

Of the 8 woods listed above…wait for it…all 8 are used in the construction of a gondola.

Here are some other facts to consider as, in the future, you close your eyes to picture a gondola, instead of a canoe.

Recently deceased master squerariolo Roberto Tramontin ready to launch a newly completed gondola

How many pieces of wood make up a gondola? 280…each cut to specific, traditional dimensions and assembled in a precise order.

How does the gondola get its banana shape? One side is 10 inches longer than the other.

Why the banana shape? To counteract the weight of the gondolier and the torque created by the gondolier using the single oar on the starboard side of the boat.

How many gondoliers are there? About 450.

Are all gondoliers men? If you had asked just a few years ago, the answer would have been ‘yes’, and that’s the way it was for 900 years. Generally, the father passed the license down to the son. But recently, 23-year-old Giorgia Boacolo made it through the 400 hour training coarse to become the first woman gondolier. You go, girl!

How many gondola ‘sheds’ or ‘squeri’ or workshops are there? There are two, though the recent death of Roberto Tramontin has placed the Squero Tramontin e Figli in jeopardy.

How many days does it take to make a single gondola? It takes 45 days with 5 squerarioli (carpenters) working full time.

How much does a gondola cost? On average, a gondola costs $61,000.

The Forcula

Without the forcula, there is no gondola…it’s as simple as that.

Many say that the forcula looks a bit like a hand, as you can see in this photo of a forcula. Maybe it looks a bit like a hand…maybe not a big bit like a hand, but maybe an itty bitty bit like a hand. Actually, I don’t see a hand at all, just kind of a wooden twisty thing.

It is sculpted from a single piece of walnut that has been aged up to 3 years. And when I say sculpted, that’s exactly how it is produced. Each forcula is designed specifically for an individual gondolier, based on their height and rowing style.

The forcula’s gamba (leg) is inserted into a hole in the gondola's deck.

And being a work of sculpted art, the forcula is detached from the gondola each evening…it is a very personal thing.

After retirement, a gondolier’s forcula can be found on their home’s mantel, as a testament to their career.

In this photo showing Debbie and Scott during a pre-dinner romantic gondola ride, you can see how the gondolier applies his oar to the forcula.

There is no connection between the oar and the forcula, as the gondolier must be able to place the oar on various parts of the forcula to achieve forward, backward, side-to-side and turning locomotion.

It’s really amazing to watch these masters shuck and jive through tiny canals, often putting a foot up on a wall to push off to help steer through difficult situations.

The Ferro

Representative parts of the gondola’s ferro

The ferro, or ‘iron’ is located on the prow of the gondola. For those of you who are not familiar with the term, the prow is the front of a boat.

Note the six forward facing prongs. These represent the six sestieri, or districts, of Venice. The rear-facing prong represents the island of Giudecca.

There is often, but not always, 3 little shrimp looking thingies interspersed between the prongs. These represent the main islands associated with Venice, which are Murano, Burano and Torcello.

The top is representative of a Doge’s cap. This is the cap of office that the Doge, or president-like-guy of the Venetian empire, would wear.

The photo also shows some of the other Venetian iconic symbols that have been woven into the ferro’s design.

Decorative Elements

Here you can see a number of embellishments that the gondoliers are allowed to personalize. Many of the accoutrement feature a golden seahorse-styled sculpture.

A Squero - Or Gondola Workshop

These photos are of the Squero di San Trovaso, which we glimpsed during our quiet Venetian walk just recently.

The Gondolier’s Platform

Notice in these two photos how the gondoliers stands near the rear of the gondola, and they are somewhat cantilevered above the water.

Singing Gondoliers

Do you want a singing gondolier? They don’t do that. But, you can arrange ahead of time for a singer to join you on your gondola ride…usually accompanied by an accordionist. Plan to pay a good bit more.

But hey, avoid the cost and do your own singing. Here you can see Ellen, Craig and Leslie singing their hearts out as we glide along the Grand Canal. As we couldn’t think of the words to any particular song that we all knew (one time we had to resort to ‘White Christmas’!), the iPhone comes in handy.

Parting Shots

I’ll leave you with some photos from some of our favorite gondola rides.

That’s it for today folks. I hope that you’ve enjoyed seeing how gondole are made and used…and how they are so much different from canoes.

And, as you take your own romantic gondola ride, look back at your gondolier…it just may be me oaring away behind you, as together, we ply the canals of Venice.

For a small tip, I’ll sing for you…and then for a bit larger tip, I’ll stop singing! See how that works?

Ciao for now.

Steve

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Transformation at the Church of San Vidal

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A couple of weeks ago, we took A Typical Quiet Walk in Venice…you were there, right? We walked a bit, talked a bit, and saw some very pleasant sights along the way…some friendly people…a wedding-dress photo shoot…a sleepy gondolier. Ok, now you remember.

The Setting

Our walk started at our Hotel Flora, traveled along Calle Largo XXII Marzo, then through Campo Santo Stefano, over the Accademia Bridge, and into the quiet Dorsoduro sestiere of Venice. You may not have noticed it at the time, but we passed right by the Church of San Vidal just between Campo Santo Stefano and the Accademia Bridge. You can see our route in this photo…and I’ve circle the church in red.

Here is the door that I’ll be transforming for you today. This is from Google ‘Street View’, which covers most all of Venice, by the way.

I don’t like the location of this door, and I’ll tell you why.

There is a tower to the left of the door. That’s a bummer for me, as I wanted the door to sit in the midst of a solid wall…what we have here is kind of an asymmetrical mess.

In this aerial view, you can see the door and its location near the base of the tower.

The Blah Door

From past transformations, you know that I want your photo-memories of Venice (and all of Italy, actually), to be memories without modern yucky things like electrical and water conduits, manhole covers, and fire alarms, like the one in the original snapshot that you see just below.

The Transformation

It’s rather obvious that those electrical appurtenances have to go…we can all agree on that…right? OK, what else?

As I mentioned above, I don’t like the fact that there is no continuous wall to the left of the door…that’s our left, not the door’s left. For the door to be properly framed within the photo, we need more wall to the left of the door. I’ll work on that. And, that brick work to the right of the door will be super difficult to place all around the door, though the texture of the plaster to the upper left and right of the door ought to work ok.

I’ll get to work…

Voila, or should I say ecco, since we are in Italy and not in France!. At any rate, here we have it…a door centered on a wall of continuous texture.

The Final Product

All that’s left is the application of that traditional (at least on my part) Venetian patina. And here we have the finished product.

So, next time that we walk together in a quiet part of Venice, if I don’t see the potential within a door or window, please point such out and say, “Hey Steve, take a picture of that so you can transform it when we get back home”. I’d appreciate your help.

Oh, before we depart San Vidal, let’s talk about who he was. According to my research, he was either an 18th-century hermit from the region of Retz, Brittany, or he was Saint Vidal Luis Gómara, a Dominican priest who was martyred during the Spanish Civil War. Either way, I really like his medallion above the door…the dove-in-flight makes it look like he’s holding a cross, don’t you agree?

Ciao for now,

Steve

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A Promised Transformation

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Last week, we ran across a blah Venetian door whilst we walked through the quiet Dorsoduro district of Venice. Today, I fulfill my promise to transform it before your very eyes! So, let’s get started…

Here is the snapshot that we captured on our walk. I don’t like it. I’m going to do something about that.

As always in my Italy transformations, I want to give you an Italy of centuries ago, before electrical conduits and water pipes and doorbell buzzers and such were placed on the buildings. So, I’ll remove the distracting elements.

Distracting elements removed, but I don’t like the way the iron-embellished window throws off the balance of the photo. And the iron pipe to the right needs to go.

Window removed? Check. Iron pipe removed? Check.

It’s ancient-patina time, so I give the photo a rich mellow color.

Now to remove the house number and brighten up the colors of the door. But, I’m not liking the distracting stonework along the right edge of the photograph.

For my final version, I crop in a good bit to remove the distracting stone work along the right edge. Then, I’m not exactly liking the composition, as the window area on the left seems to compositionally weigh the photo down on that side. I’m going to add the iron water pipe back in to the upper right, where it belongs, as well as remove a bit of the plaster that surrounded the original. And, since I tightened the crop, I need to move the stonework at the top of the photo down a bit, so I’ll take care of that now.

So, here is the final image. A far sight better sight than the original snapshot captured while we were on our walk last week, don’t you think?

That’s it for today’s transformation from blah to ahhh. Hope you enjoyed the results, and the walk last week. Until next time, I say…

Ciao for now,

Steve

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