Category Archives: France

Beautiful Photography of France

Lit Candles in Notre Dame Cathedrale Paris

Posted on March 31st, 2014 by

The Language of Beautiful Music is Universal

I am not Catholic…I grew up Methodist but I cant help but be fascinated at the wonderful cathedral’s all over Europe. The of the grandest is of course Notre Dame in Paris, France. There is always a wealth of activity in these ancient churches and I never quite know exactly what is happening in all the nooks and crannies. While visiting this last week, I attended the Vêpres du Carême, there was some wonderful singing, but I didn’t quite know what was happening as mon français n’est pas très bon (my French is not very good)! It was interesting to me though how much I got out of the service considering I dindt understand much of the actual words…music for me tends to be universal.

Lighting a Candle

The simple notion of lighting a candle for someone seems to take on added meaning in some places. Depending on the location there seems to be different candles of different sizes. These lit candles in the Cathedral of Notre Dame seemed to be the largest and most expensive to light. Can some of my Catholic friends enlighten me as to the ins and outs of lighting a candle in church? Does it have different meaning depending on the alter or area of the cathedral?

Lit Candles in Notre Dame Cathedrale Paris
Lit Candles in Notre Dame Cathedrale Paris

Photo Technical Info

Hiding from a Monster

Posted on October 31st, 2013 by

Happy Halloween!

I hope everyone has a spooktacular Halloween…are you dressing up or handing out candy? I don’t think I will be doing either this year.

The Monster

I could only imagine what it must have been like to hide from one of these beasts. This relic can be found in the Natural History Museum in Paris. They have a wonderful collection of bones, but if you have dust allergies be forewarned this place smells as old as the bones it contains. Somehow that seemed really fitting when I was there.

Hiding from a Monster
Hiding from a Monster by W. Brian Duncan

A French Provincial Cottage

Posted on September 5th, 2013 by

Playing Peasant

Oh the odd, odd life of a Monarch. Heavy, it is said, is the head that wears the crown, but perhaps it isn’t all bad. Sure you have to have food tasters because you are scared someone will poison your food, but you also get to build the old world version of an Amusement Park in your back yard. This is one of the cottages in Marie Antoinette’s Hamlet at the Palace of Versailles. She went here to get away to the simple life. You know, in those peasant houses designed for entertaining. Peasants don’t need sleep after all.

HDR Photography
A French Provincial Cottage by W. Brian Duncan

The Fountain of Saturn

Posted on August 15th, 2013 by

Speaking of Versailles

On Monday I posted a photo of Salon Dorado and said how much it reminded me of Versailles. I was working on some photos this weekend and one of them happened to be of the one of the many fountains in the gardens at Versailles…The Fountain of Saturn. It was out of commission while we were there, but I was still intrigued by the slightly grotesque nature of the work.

Travel Photography
The Fountain of Saturn by W. Brian Duncan

Le Centre Pompidou

Posted on February 7th, 2013 by

Pipes Galore

A quick photo from Paris for today’s image. It’s of the Pompidou Center, the wonderful modern art museum in Paris, France. It is general for museums of modern art to have a striking design, but the French really outdid themselves on this one. The style is really more post-modern and something they call hi-tech. The facade is a internetworked crosshatch of pipes and conduit all of which are brightly colored making a visual delight for the eyes. This was also the first time on our trip the sun had come out so the new found light played well off the building. This photo is of the not often seen escalators at the left front of the center.

HDR Photography
Le Centre Pompidou by W. Brian Duncan

Joan of Arc

Posted on February 4th, 2013 by

On Callings

Joan of Arc was a simple peasant girl who felt a strong calling. A calling so strong, that she lead the French army to a number of victories during the Hundred Years War. She was later captured and transferred to the British where she was tried for insubordination and hetrodoxy. She was burned at the stake for her crimes when she was 19 years old. 25 years later the pope declared her a martyr. She was beatified in 1909 and canonized as a saint in 1920. She is today on of the patron saints of France. Today’s image is of her statue located in Notre Dame. It holds a place of honor gazing up at the awesome Southern rose window that graces the cathedral.

This photo got me thinking about callings. What are we here to do? Why do so few of us seem to know? Do you think if for just a moment, we could turn off out egos and still our minds, we might catch a glimpse? Perhaps divine providence is there for all of us, if we simply listen.

HDR Photography
Joan of Arc by W. Brian Duncan

The Magic of Cartier

Posted on January 31st, 2013 by

100 Photos

Today is a special day. Today I am posting my 100th photograph. It’s an interesting feeling really…it feels good. I have always had a bit of trouble with follow through. There always seems to be something newer vying for my attention. A new gadget, a new film, a new fleeting hobby, how do people stay focused! Maybe my ease is because I have never really enjoyed a hobby as much as I do photography. It is a sort of home, no matter where I am in the world. I love it enough to fly around the world to explore it more. It does of course help that I also love the travel, seeing new places, tasting new foods, finding different ways of living. But in the end, all of these seem to coalesce around my camera.

Magic

I have been saving this photo for a day like today. My first exploration of HDR photography was in Paris and this photo was one of the first that let me know I had really found something in photography I wanted to explore more. I hope you like it as much as I do and if you work for Cartier, call me, I think this would make a great ad spread!

HDR Photography
The Magic of Cartier by W. Brian Duncan

Palace Grounds

Posted on January 10th, 2013 by

Big House

The thing that impresses most (at least for me) at Versailles is the vastness of the complex. There are multiple palaces scattered around the grounds for as everyone knows the queen and the mistresses cannot reside in the same house, no matter how large. Regardless of infidelity as the king of a major country you also need to be able to get away from the main court to a much smaller and more intimate group. After all when you think about how some numbers put the number of nobles alone residing at the palace near 1000 people with some 3000 servants, there were a LOT of people milling about. We came up through the Orangerie and I was blown away by the scope of the palace. I wanted to capture the vastness of the building, how it goes on and on.

HDR Photography
Palace Grounds by W. Brian Duncan

Hidden Treasures

Posted on January 7th, 2013 by

Hidden Things

Sometimes the most wonderful things are hidden in plain sight. While I was walking around the grounds of the Louvre in Paris, I happened to (as I often do) look up. I was greeted by this wonderful piece of artistry attached to the ceiling. I am sure it serves some purpose. I am sure it has wonderful meaning. I am sure the artisans who created it put great effort and love into its birth. I am however not sure why it was there or quite why I enjoyed its company so, but what can tell you is all around us, there are things of beauty. We only have to look for them, and see.

HDR Photography
Hidden Treasures by W. Brian Duncan

Winged Victory

Posted on December 24th, 2012 by

Dangerous Waters

The Louvre is a sea of people.

I was thinking this as I stood on the platform of the staircase that displays one of the most famous sculptures in the world, Winged Victory. Along with the Venus De Milo, Winged Victory is one of the must see sculptures at the Louvre. It is impossible to see all the the Louvre’s treasures in a day (you actually would need a week or more), but there are highlights your first time through which you don’t want to miss. It’s best to have a plan, and my plan that day was to capture a bracket of Winged Victory with no extra people in shot. This brings me full circle to my ocean of fellow gawkers. In an odd way this struggle made me appreciate the photo more, and the victory of battle at sea.

Merry Christmas and Happy Hanukkah Everyone!

HDR Photography
Winged Victory by W. Brian Duncan