Rhine Valley
I had a conference in Germany and decided to visit the Rhine Valley with a friend for a quick overnighter. The tiny town that seemed to take our breath away most was Bacharach. It’s on the west side of the river, and is nestled up into a valley. As it is in most of the towns here, the vineyards coat the steep hills that surround the town.
Steeg Valley
I loved this view in, and slightly above, the valley that leads into Bacharach. I responded to these shots, compositionally, and particularly the first one, with its timber-framed houses, stone tower, and rows of grapevines on the hill behind them. This was one of those “instinctual” shots that came to me without much forethought.
Vineyards occupy the hillsides in the Rhine Valley
The vineyards above Bacharach in the Rhine Valley.
This scene in the valley around Bacharach.
A cute part of Bacharach in the Rhineland.
Bacharach by Night
These two shots are high dynamic range (HDR) shots, composed of six shots (top) and four shots (bottom). The range on the top shot was tricky because of the illuminated ruin, which, admittedly, has some crazy lighting.
Overlooking Bacharach at night, with the steeple, the Wernerkapelle ruin, and the traffic which streaks along the Rhine.
Downtown Bacharach becomes deserted after nine o'clock.
Stahleck Castle
This 12th century castle lurks over the town and has some great views of the valley. The black and white below I attempted to trace the path that ascends to the castle, but the bright light at the top of the hill overpowered things a bit too much.
Stahleck castle is perched above the Rhine above the town of Bacharach. It dates from the 12th century and is now a hostle.
The sinuous path to the Stahleck Castle lit up by lights and stars., and Jupiter appears brightly in the sky too.
Noctilucent Clouds
It's 11pm, and these clouds continue to glow while the Sun set at 9:45pm. These are called Noctilucent clouds, or night-shining clouds. They form very high in the atmosphere.
These are very high clouds that are still reflecting sunlight at 11 o’clock. This is a 6-second exposure, so the Rhine looks nice and glassy.
Frankfort Airport
The tower at the Frankfort airport. A lot of architecture going on here. Somewhat steampunk.
This is a phone shot from the plane window as we were taxiing to the terminal. Love the architecture—looks a little steampunk.