Aethelu's Artistic Endeavours

[Aethelu]

Welcome to the thread where I post my attempts at being creative! It might be photos, it might be writing, maybe it'll be crafts, just wait and see!

To begin, I'll start with a photograph. I lived in China for a while recently, 6 months in the Southern province of Guangdong, and a year in Beijing. I managed to take a few trips in between a very intense teaching schedule and tried to take some nice pictures while I was on my little adventures. Last September I visited Japan, this first picture comes from one of the temples in Kyoto. Finding a moment where there was no one behind me to take this picture was a miracle all in itself and I was so happy I manged to snap it before the next group of tourists arrived.



Taken and edited with my phone.

[Taethowen]

Oooh, lovely shot! It really is a serene moment you managed to capture. It doesn't seem like there's imminent intruding tourists at all!

I had a friend that was able to travel to Japan a few years ago, and I know she went to Kyoto, but don't recall if she went to any of the temples there.

[Burnt Toast]

Woah, this is gorgeous-- I'm fascinated by it. I feel like almost as if I could step into it-- I want to know what's around the bend! (probably tourists, eh? XD) Thank you for sharing this!

[Zôrzimril]

This is lovely, Aethelu! (Good to meet you, by the way. :smiley8: I don't think we crossed paths in the past. If we have, please pardon my lapse in memory!) I know how hard it can be to get a shot at just the moment when crowds of tourists disperse. Kudos to you for having the patience to wait it out. I love the lines of both the pillars and their shadows in this photo. It's amazing that our phone cameras can take such quality photos these days. It's not always necessary to have something fancy at hand to capture a great shot!

[Thalionwen Hunigfolm]

I don't why--maybe it's that the narrow straight lines of the pillars remind me of wind chimes--but I really want to know what being here *sounded* like. This is such a fleeting moment trapped in time and looks so serene, I just want to hear it as well.

[Aerlinn]

Oh hey! Kyoto is one of my favorite places to visit but I still haven't been to this particular temple. Still, I definitely appreciate the timing of this photo, everything is usually so crowded!

Love the shadow and sunlight striped across the pathway, and the dabs of sunlight on the righthand beams.

[Aethelu]

Thank you all for your kind words. I probably should have said that this temple has these gates all along the path going up the hill, they are plain red on the front, while the writing is on the back of the pillars. I literally just happened to turn around and realised there was no one behind me so got to snapping. So there were indeed more tourists round the corner, I had to take pictures quickly before they appeared around the corner

I had thought about trying to write one of the many, many short stories in my head, but I was busy with craft projects and video games. I have a picture instead! Taken in around 2012 while visiting a former Priory near me, it was a very frosty morning if I remember rightly. This statue was right in the middle of the grounds.

[Zôrzimril]

I like the angle you've captured in this photo, Aethelu. The detail of the statue is lovely as well! Now I wonder what the rest of the building looked like. If you ever do get the time to write up your stories, we'll be happy to read 'em!

[Bereth]

@Aethelu It surely must be the mark of a good photographer to provoke curiosity in those of us who view your work. Both photos stir a longing to really hear a detailed explanation of the subject matter, a history and more descriptions of texture, climate and (as someone else mentioned) sounds. It’s so outside my realm of experience, it’s intriguing. Well done!

[Burnt Toast]

Echoing Tara, that angle is excellent. It really makes the face come alive. Really cool to get such a close-up shot as well, and get a view of the textures at work here.

[Eorlana Corvys]

@Aethelu, I love travel photos, especially when there's a good story behind them. Thanks for sharing!