Independence Square Kiev (HDR)
Great Travel Deals
Image by Roads Less Traveled Photography
Ah yes, Independence Square, Kiev. A central focal point of the 2004 Orange Revolution that bought Viktor Yushchenko to power. Well, good old Viktor Y has come and gone, to be replaced by another Viktor Y, Viktor Yanukovich.

Wait! Is this the same Viktor Yanukovich who won…er…lost the 2004 election? Why yes, yes it is. Much was expected from the first Viktor Y, but little came of it. He was often viewed certainly as more democratic than most politicians in this part of the world, but a great deal less effective, which led to less popular, which led to the lowest approval rating any major politician has ever garnered, a measly 2.7% approval. People voted out democratic and ineffective, opting instead for authoritarian and, it is hoped, more effective. Wait! What happened to democratic AND effective? Oh. That wasn’t a choice? Oh well.

Photo taken May 2, 2010, during the extended Labor Day (May Day) holiday. I caught this shortly before the square got real busy!

Processing Notes:

This photo is a HDR created from one original photo. This is the original photo.

farm5.static.flickr.com/4076/4770187123_f88dd0ea0f.jpg

(Dang, for some reason I can’t get the photo to show in the comment).

I created two duplicates of this photo in Lightroom, setting one photo at the original exposure, one at -1 stop, and one at +2 stops. Why +2? Intuition. It just seemed right.

Created the HDR using Photomatix. I played with the settings a bit, but in the end used the settings that Photomatix had selected.

In the original photo (at the link), you can see that the buildings on the left and the right are tilting slightly inwards. Corrected this using the lens correction feature (Filter > Distort > Lens Correction) in Photoshop. Setting, -10 Vertical Perspective.

Since this left empty space on the right, the left, and the bottom, used the Photoshop crop tool to return the photo to a rectangular format.

From within Photoshop, I used Topaz Adjust (sold separately) (Filter > Topaz Adjust 4 > Recovery – Highlight preset) to add what I felt to be a more pleasing effect. Then, back in Photoshop, I did a fade on the Topaz effect (Edit > Fade Topaz Adjust 4). Moved the slider from 100% to 40%.

That’s all Folks!

100+ Views & Other Sets @ Flickr

Everybody seems to be complaining about the cold at the moment, so if you are one of those people, this could be your chance to do something about it. Finding discount travel deals to Portugal is not a difficult task at the moment, and they seem to be blessed with regular winter sunshine too. The best deals though are to Lisbon; due to it having an International airport, which always helps when cheap travel is concerned.

Lisbon is an overlooked European capital. Tourists tend to flock to Paris, Rome, London, but that little country on the edge of Europe? Portugal is not always on major tourist routes, but there is plenty to see there.

If you\’re looking for a trip to Europe, but you\’re hoping to stick to a tight travel budget, you might want to give Lisbon a look. Portugal has always cost less than other destinations in Europe.

So what is there to see in Portugal\’s capital city? Well, to start with, the city itself. It is compact and teems with everyday life. Its pleasures are its street life and setting…. Lisbon was built on seven hills, on the Tagus River where it spills into the Atlantic. It doesn\’t seem overrun with tourists.

The Portuguese shop in the Chiado and Bairro Alto districts on one of the hillsides above downtown. They party and listen to fado in the alleys of the Alfama on the opposite hillside. The Bairro Alto also has a vibrant nightlife.

The Baixa, the downtown district, runs between the two hills from Rossio Square inland to Comericio Square, the large, much loved plaza on the river. It is the main shopping and banking district that stretches from the riverfront to the Avenida da Liberdade. There are elegant squares and pedestrianized streets… and lots of cafes and shops.

Lisbon has history too. It bills itself as the City of Explorers. Prince Henry the Navigator set the course for exploration in the 15th century. Vasco da Gama sailed from the the city\’s Belem neighborhood. Her Glory days were the 15th and 16th centuries when she sent da Gama and other explorers out to \”discover the world\”.

Much of the city was rebuilt after it was flattened by an earthquake in the 18th century. The Chiado area suffered a devastating fire in the 1980s, but it has been reborn. Actually, many areas of the city have been rebuilt through the years after being flattened by earthquakes or burned by fires. Find pockets of the old grandeur in the Belem district, the Alfama, and the Bairro Alto.

Lisbon is a great city for tourists because of its compact size. Walk the downtown. Take the Santa Justa Elevator (also called the Elevator of Carmo or Carmo Lift) up to the Bairro Alto. This elevator was designed by a student of Eiffel and built in the early 1900s.

Climb back into history through the medieval alleys of the Alfama on the opposite hill. This is possibly the city\’s most emblematic quarter.

Get lost winding up narrow streets with laundry hanging over them. You will find stone staircases that open suddenly onto terraces with spectacular views over the red tile rooftops to the Tagus River. Stop in little local restaurants for a bite to eat.

At night listen to real, not-for-tourists Fado here. Admire the Azulejos de Lisboa, the blue tiles that decorate nooks and crannies at every turn…. There are strategically placed miradouros (or viewpoints) that offer breathtaking panoramas over the city. At the top of the hill is the Castle of St. George (the Castelo de Sao Jorge). All that is really left is the walls, but it has a great view out over the city.

Ride the colorful old yellow trams around the city. We haven\’t even had time to mention the museums like the Ancient Art Museum (which is Portugal\’s National Gallery) or the Calouste Gulbenkian Museum which are two of Lisbon\’s best. And since we\’ve only mentioned historic Belem in passing, we\’ll have to leave that for later.

Let\’s just say, if you\’re want a great travel experience but you\’re counting your pennies, you could be pleasantly surprised to find that there are currently many discount travel deals to Lisbon this year.

Take a look at the Globe Cheap Travel Guide and find out just how you could be bathing in that warm winter sunshine next week…

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