juni 20, 2007

Redu a Belgian booktown


 

A Book Town is a small rural town or village in which second-hand and antiquarian bookshops are concentrated. Most Book Towns have developed in villages of historic interest or of scenic beauty.

 


 

juni 15, 2007

Bayern : Forest

 

 

 A tracking shot is any shot where the camera follows backward, forward or moves alongside the subject being recorded. In cinematography, the term refers to a shot in which the camera is mounted on a camera dolly that is then placed on rails – like a railroad track. A handheld steadycam or gimbal may also be used for smaller scale productions. The camera is then pushed along the track while the scene is being filmed or moved manually when using a handheld rig. The technique is often used to follow a subject that would otherwise leave the frame (ergo, it is often called a following shot), such as an actor or vehicle in motion. In this spirit, any conveyance, such as a motorized vehicle like a car, may also be used to create a tracking shot. A handheld or Steadicam mounted camera following a similar trajectory is called a tracking shot as well. While the core idea is that the camera moves parallel to its subject, a tracking shot may move in a semi-circular fashion, rotating around its subject while remaining equidistant.




Fair debut



 Home movies are motion pictures made by amateurs, often for viewing by family and friends. When the hobby began, home movies were produced on photographic film, but availability of video cameras and camcorders and digital storage devices has made the making of home movies easier and more affordable to the average person. The boundaries between consumer movie-making and professional movie-making are becoming increasingly blurred as prosumer equipment often offers features previously only available on professional equipment."Saving our film heritage should not be limited only to commercially produced films. Home movies do not just capture the important private moments of our family's lives, but they are historical and cultural documents as well. In recent years, clips from home movies have been available to wider audiences through television series such as America's Funniest Home Videos and Internet online video-sharing sites such as YouTube. The popularity of the Internet, and wider availability of high-speed connections has provided new ways of sharing home movies, such as video weblogs (vlogs), and video podcasts.


 

Paris centre




;A flashback is an interjected scene that takes the narrative back in time from the current point in the story. Flashbacks are often used to recount events that happened before the story's primary sequence of events to fill in crucial backstory. In the opposite direction, a flashforward (or prolepsis) reveals events that will occur in the future. Both flashback and flashforward are used to cohere a story, develop a character, or add structure to the narrative. In literature, internal analepsis is a flashback to an earlier point in the narrative; external analepsis is a flashback to a time before the narrative started.


;In movies and television, several camera techniques and special effects have evolved to alert the viewer that the action shown is a flashback or flashforward; for example, the edges of the picture may be deliberately blurred, photography may be jarring or choppy, or unusual coloration or sepia tone, or monochrome when most of the story is in full color, may be used.



 

Champs-elysees



What is a video transition?Transitions are the mechanism used to change from one shot to the next in a video production. There are a vast number of transition types but basically they can be broken into three categories. First, most often used is the cut, it is the simplest and best for seamless unnoticed edits. A cut transition is created when one clip ends and the next one begins with no overlap or effect. Next we have the dissolve which is generally used to show the passage of time or cover an awkward shot change. A dissolve is when the two shots overlap for a period of time and the first shot dissolves into the second shot. At the mid-point of a dissolve both clips can be seen equally well. Dissolves are sometimes called fades. All other transitions can be grouped as effects. Effects include pushes, page peels, spirals, irises and any and all other imaginable effect transitions.

Habour district Amsterdam



Docufiction (or docu-fiction), often confused with docudrama, is the cinematographic combination of documentary and fiction, this term often meaning narrative film.

It is a film genre which attempts to capture reality such as it is (as direct cinema or cinéma vérité) and which simultaneously introduces unreal elements or fictional situations in narrative in order to strengthen the representation of reality using some kind of artistic expression.

More precisely, it is a documentary contaminated with fictional elements, in real time, filmed when the events take place, and in which the main character or characters — often portrayed by non-professional or amateur actors — are essentially playing themselves, or slightly fictionalized versions of themselves, in a fictionalized scenario. In this sense, docufiction may overlap to an extent with some aspects of the mockumentary format, but the terms are not synonymous.




Weddingcake in Rome



In 1885 construction of the monument started after a design by Giuseppe Sacconi, winner of an architectural contest. The northern slope of the Capitoline Hill was cleared to make way for the monument. Roman ruins and medieval churches were destroyed in the process.

The Victor Emmanuel Monument is not exactly known as one of Rome's most beautiful structures. It is considered too monumental and the bright white color does not fit well into the ochre color of its surroundings. The monument has been given nicknames such as 'typewriter' and 'wedding cake'.
The monument is nevertheless well worth the visit, even if only for the great views from the top.


 

juni 14, 2007

Sound and Vision Netherlands



The treasure-houses of the Netherlands Institute for Sound en Vision: the collective memory of the Netherlands.The Netherlands Institute voor Sound and Vision looks after, and releases, 70 per cent of the Dutch audio-visual heritage. In total, around 700,000 hours of television, radio, music and film, making Sound and Vision one of the largest audio-visual archives in Europe. But the institute is more than just a collection. Sound and Vision is the business archive of the national broadcasting corporations, a cultural history institute and also a unique media experience for its visitors. Programme makers use the collections for new programmes and the archive is a unique source of information for research, not only for students and academics, but also for journalists.



Colours of the Provence



Quality of computer images.Once a computer has imported DV footage, it keeps the original source files on the hard disk and creates a series of preview frames to display in the video editing application. These preview frames are created by removing much of the video and color information that  televisions require, and simply displaying the frames as they will best appear on your computer monitorAlthough these images will appear blocky, fuzzy, or more muted than those seen through the viewfinder of a camcorder, don't  worry: These screen images are simply low-resolution stand-ins for the real footage. Once formatted, these preview frames will appear at full screen and full motion, and display much faster than the higher-resolution images of an uncompressed video stream.Previews make the long and arduous task of editing infinitely more bearable by speeding the response time of video playback. Without these low-res substitutes, even the fastest computers would be unable to display motion pictures in real time. Meanwhile your full-quality original footage remains locked inside the clip by the DV codec until you are ready to export your final movie in all its glory.



juni 13, 2007

Civil guardians





The famous dutch painter Rembrandt painted the civil guards "in action"  in a period when this no convention. Later on the edges of the painting were cut. The main figures are now in the middle in stead of to the right which was more dynamic and intended by the artist.A key ingredient of cinematography is framing. This refers to the edges of a shot, in that framing determines both what is included and what is excluded. There is indeed a close link between framing, composition and mise en scene. Mise en scene refers to what is to be filmed and how it is arranged and therefore in effect defines what the framing will be; however, strictly speaking the framing is only realized when the shot is filmed through the camera lens.




Dutch walk



SHOTSIZEShot size is determined by the framing. (see else There are many possible choices of shot but we can think in terms of five basic shot sizes with intermediate shots in between. Shot sizes can be closely tied to narrative development, notably to the progression of scenes. Typically a film, and often a scene, will begin with an extreme long shot Just as the story tend to begin slowly in order to acquaint us with characters and locations, so films visually use an establishing shot to place things in context. It allows us to see a subject in relation to her/his surroundings.



Island of flowers

 

Film colorization (American English; or colourisation (British English), or colourization (Canadian English and Oxford English)) is any process that adds color to black-and-white, sepia, or other monochrome moving-picture images. It may be done as a special effect, to "modernize" black-and-white films, or to restore color films. The first examples date from the early 20th century, but
colorization has become common with the advent of digital image processing. 


 


Intermezzo Roma

Many roadshow presentations of films from the 1950s through to the 1970s were provided with entr'actes that took the form of overtures to the second part, including most of the adaptations of Broadway musicals released at that time, but the practice soon spread to drama films. In many cases it was the same piece as was used for the overture (as in Lawrence of Arabia in 1962 and 2001: A Space Odyssey in 1968), but others such as Ben-Hur (1959) and How the West Was Won (1962)

Vacations for beginners



This is my very first vacation movie shot op super 8 in 1975 in Switzerland Home videos are priceless records of our personal histories. They help us to keep our memories alive, or to share important events with friends and family. Most of us don't have the time or equipment necessary to properly shoot, light, and edit our videos, but that doesn't mean our videos can't look great and be entertaining for all our friends and family. Silent film actors emphasised body language and facial expression so that the audience could better understand what an actor was feeling and portraying on screen. Much silent film acting is apt to strike modern-day audiences as simplistic or campy. For this reason, silent comedies tend to be more popular in the modern era than drama, partly because overacting is more natural in comedy.




Trajans column



Trajan's Column is a monument in Rome raised by order of emperor Trajan. It is located in Trajan's Forum, built near the Quirinal Hill, north of the Roman Forum. Finished in 113, the spiral bas-relief commemorates Trajan's victory in his military campaigns to conquer Dacia.The structure is about 30 meters in height, 38 including its large pedestal. The shaft is made from a series of 18 colossal Carrara marble drums, each weighing about 40 tons, with a diameter of about 4 metres. The 200 meter frieze winds around the shaft 23 times. Inside the shaft, a spiral staircase of 185 stairs provides access to a viewing platform at the top.Originally, a statue of Trajan would have stood atop the column. In 1588, it was replaced by a statue of St. Peter The relief portrays Trajan's two victorious military campaigns against the Dacians; .The scenes on the frieze are continuous. The imagery is not realistic as the sculptor pays little attention to perspective. Often a variety of different perspectives are used in the same scene, so that more can be revealed The scenes depict mostly the Roman army in military activities such as setting out to battle and engaging the Dacians, as well as constructing fortifications and listening to the emperor's address. In all, 2500 figures are shown. It was traditionally thought that the Column was a propagandistic monument, glorifying the emperor's military exploits. But because the structure would have been generally invisible, surrounded by other buildings in Trajan's Forum, and simply the difficulty involved in following the frieze from end to end, it is now considered to have had much less propagandistic value.Based on the inscription, the column may have been a measuring guide for the construction of the forum.




Avignon city of arts

 

 

The Avignon Film Festival celebrates French, European and American independent film at the Cinema Vox in Place d'Horloge. There are premières, retrospectives, round-tables on pertinent issues with industry experts and interviews, along with awards for emerging filmmakers and cinematographers.Features, short films and feature-length documentaries are screened in French, English and other European languages. All French films are subtitled in English and European-language films are subtitled in English or French. Directors, producers, screenwriters and actors from invited films come to discuss their work with festival-goers.Related InformationWebsite:Avignon Film Festival Websitehttp://www.avignonfilmfest.com\





 

juni 10, 2007

Hessen



Situated in west-central Germany, Hesse state borders the German states of (starting in the north and proceeding clockwise) Lower Saxony, Thuringia, Bavaria, Baden-Württemberg, Rhineland-Palatinate, and North Rhine-Westphalia.

Most of the population of Hesse is in the southern part in the Rhine Main Area. The principal cities of the area include Frankfurt am Main, Wiesbaden, Darmstadt, Offenbach, Hanau, Gießen, Wetzlar, and Limburg. Other major towns in Hesse are Fulda in the east, and Kassel and Marburg an der Lahn in the north. The densely populated Rhine-Main region is much better developed than the rural areas in the middle and northern parts of Hesse.

The most important rivers in Hesse are the Fulda and Eder Rivers in the north, the Lahn in the central part of Hesse, and the Main and Rhine in the south. The countryside is hilly and the numerous mountain ranges include the Rhön, the Westerwald, the Taunus, the Vogelsberg, the Knüll and the Spessart.

The Rhine borders Hesse on the southwest without running through the state, only one old arm – the so-called Alt-Rhein – runs through Hesse. The mountain range between the Main and the Neckar Rivers is called the Odenwald. The plain between the rivers Main, Rhine, and Neckar, and the Odenwald Mountains is called the Ried.

Hesse is the greenest state in Germany, as forest covers 42% of the state.



Winterpalace Hermitage 1



The State Hermitage Museum is a museum of art and culture in Saint Petersburg, Russia. One of the largest and oldest museums in the world, it was founded in 1754 by Catherine the Great and has been open to the public since 1852. Its collections, of which only a small part is on permanent display, comprise over three million items (including the largest collection of paintings in the world. The collections occupy a large complex of six historic buildings along Palace Embankment, including the Winter Palace, a former residence of Russian emperors.


juni 02, 2007

Forum Romanum




The current image of the Forum Romanum is a result of the changes made by Julius Caesar as pontifex maximus and dictator, which included the construction of the Basilica Julia where the Basilica Sempronia stood, the building of a new Curia and the renovation of the Rostra, the speakers platform. Caesar didn't see all his plans realised before his death, but most was finished by his successor Augustus, including the Temple of Divus Julius, dedicated to Caesar deified.
In imperial times the importance of the Forum as a political centre diminished, but it remained a centre of commerce and religious life. Construction and restoration continued, but now mostly in the form of honorary monuments, such as the Arch of Augustus, the Arch of Titus and the Arch of Septimius Severus.
After the fall of the empire in the west, the area was abandoned. A few buildings were converted into churches, including the Curia, the Temple of Antoninus and Faustina and the Temple of Divus Romulus; the rest was left to shepherds and their animals, to the extent that the popular name of the area became Campo Vaccino, the cattle field.

juni 01, 2007

When in Rome



Rome is called L'Urbe (The City), Caput mundi (head of the world), Città Eterna (eternal city), and Limen Apostolorum (the threshold of the apostles).
Some proverbs about the Eternal City:
* When in Rome, do as the Romans do. * All roads lead to Rome.
* Rome wasn't built in a day.
During its long history, Rome has always had a scarcity of native inhabitants, so by tradition a "true" Roman is one whose family has lived in Rome for no fewer than 7 generations: this is the original "Romano de Roma"
Piazza Navona is a square in Rome. The piazza follows the plan of an ancient Roman circus, the 1st century Stadium of Domitian, where the Romans came to watch the games : today's name stems from the corruption of the latter in in agone. Defined as a square in the last years of 15th century, when the city market was transferred here from the Campidoglio, Piazza Navona is now the pride of Baroque Rome. It has sculptural and architectural creations: by Gian Lorenzo Bernini, the famous Fontana dei Quattro Fiumi in the center; by Francesco Borromini
The traditional market was moved in 1869 to Campo de' Fiori, but the square has also a traditional role in housing theatrical and costume shows, horse races, buffalo jousts.
Campo de' Fiori is an informal rectangular piazza near Piazza Navona in Rome, on the edge of rione Parione . Campo de' Fiori means "field of flowers", a reminder of its nature as a grassy space in the Middle Ages. A "Flora", a woman loved by Pompey, who built his theater close to the square, is probably imaginary: the name is medieval rather than ancient.


mei 23, 2007

The Pantheon



The Pantheon, from Greek Pantheion, meaning "Temple of all the Gods") is a building in Rome which was originally built as a temple to the seven deities of the seven planets in the state religion of Ancient Rome, but which has been a Christian church since the 7th century.
It is the best-preserved of all Roman buildings and the oldest important building in the world with its original roof intact. It has been in continuous use throughout its history. Although the identity of the Pantheon's primary architect remains uncertain, it is largely assigned to Apollodorus of Damascus.



The original Pantheon was built in 27 BC-25 BC under the Roman Empire, during the third consulship of Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa, and his name is inscribed on the portico of the building. The inscription reads M·AGRIPPA·L·F·COS·TERTIUM·FECIT, "Marcus Agrippa, son of Lucius, having been consul three times, built this." It was originally built with adjoining baths and water gardens.


In fact, Agrippa's Pantheon was destroyed along with other buildings in a fire in AD 80, and the current building dates from about 125, during the reign of the Emperor Hadrian, as date-stamps on the bricks reveal. It was totally reconstructed, with the text of the original inscription added to the new facade, a common practice in Hadrian's rebuilding projects all over Rome.

Hadrian was a cosmopolitan emperor who traveled widely in the east and was a great admirer of Greek culture. He seems to have intended the Pantheon, a temple to all the gods, to be a kind of ecumenical or syncretist gesture to the subjects of the Roman Empire who did not worship the old gods of Rome, or who (as was increasingly the case) worshipped them under other names.

(The dome is made of concrete contrary to what my italian source says)

mei 19, 2007

Hard & Soft in Valencia



General Tips
Hold the camera steady. Use a tripod whenever possible. One of the largest factors contributing to professional-quality pictures is steadiness.Remember that Super 8, with its small frame is a "close-up" medium. There is a limit to the amount of detail that the Super 8 frame can capture when compared to larger film formats, and the comparatively small screen poses some limitations, too. Often the most effective images are those shot at medium and close-range. Be sure that your camera's batteries are fresh to ensure proper operation of the motor and built-in meter. If your camera has a "zoom" lens, use it sparingly. When shooting interiors with limited light and high-speed film, consider the use of a small "fill light", even if your camera's meter indicated that you have sufficient light for an exposure. This will add depth and detail to your pictures.


mei 18, 2007

Siesta in Valencia





Experimental film, experimental cinema or Avant-Garde Cinema is not so much a genre of film as mode of filmmaking that rigorously re-evaluates cinematic conventions and explores alternatives to traditional narratives or methods of working. Many experimental films—particularly early ones—relate to arts in other disciplines: painting, dance, literature and poetry, or arise from research and development of new technical resources. While some experimental films have been distributed through mainstream channels, or were even made within commercial studios, the vast majority have been produced on very low budgets with a minimal crew or a single person, and are self-financed or supported through small grants. Experimental filmmakers generally begin as amateurs, and some—though not all—used experimental films as a springboard into commercial film making, or transitioned into academic positions. The aim of experimental filmmaking is usually to render the personal vision of an artist, or to promote interest in new technology, rather than to entertain or to generate revenue, such as is the case with commercial films.


mei 07, 2007

Piazza del Popolo




The Piazza del Popolo is one of the most famous places, especially for foreigners, in Rome. The name in modern Italian literally means "piazza of the people", but historically it derives from the poplars after which the church of Santa Maria del Popolo, in the northeast corner of the piazza, takes its name.The Piazza lies inside the northern gate in the Aurelian Walls, once the Porta Flaminia of ancient Rome. l. For centuries, the Piazza del Popolo was a place for public executions, the last of which took place in 1826.To the north of the Piazza stand the Porta del Popolo and the ancient church of Santa Maria del Popolo.



mei 06, 2007

SantAngelo in Rome



Hadrian's Tomb
The Tomb of Hadrian was erected on the right bank of the Tiber, between 135 and 139. Originally, the mausoleum was a decorated cylinder, with a garden top and the golden quadriga of the emperor. Hadrian's ashes were placed here a year after his death in Baiae in 138, together with those of his wife Sabina, and his first adopted son, Lucius Aelius, who also died in 138. Following this, the remains of succeeding emperors were also placed here, the last recorded deposition being Caracalla in 217. The urns containing these ashes were probably placed in what is now known as the Treasury room deep within the building. Hadrian also built the Ponte Sant'Angelo facing straight onto the mausoleum - it still provides a scenic approach from the center of Rome and the right bank of the Tiber, and is renowned for its statuary of angels holding aloft elements of the Passion of Christ added during its Baroque rebuild.

Much of the tomb contents and decoration has been lost since the building's conversion into a military fortress in 401 and inclusion by Flavius Augustus Honorius in the Aurelian Walls.
The popes converted the structure into a castle, from the 14th century; The fortress was the refuge of the Pope The Papal state also used Sant'Angelo as a prison;
A bronze statue of Saint Michael, executed by the Flemish sculptor Peter van Verschaeffelt in 1752, surmounts the tomb and portrays the archangel sheathing a sword. Legend holds that an angel appeared atop the mausoleum, sheathing his sword as a sign of the end of the plague of 590, thus lending the castle its present name.

april 28, 2007

Dutch Fairytales



Efteling is the largest theme park in the Netherlands and one of the oldest theme parks in the world. It's located in the town of Kaatsheuvel, in the municipality of Loon op Zand. Over the years, the park has received over 100 million visitors.

Since its opening in 1952, Efteling has evolved from a nature park with a playground and a Fairy Tale Forest into a full-sized theme park. It now caters to both children and adults with its cultural, romantic and nostalgic themes, in addition to its wide array of amusement rides. It is twice as large as the original Disneyland park in California and predates it by three years.

The park is fantasy-themed and its attractions are based on elements from ancient myths and legends, fairy tales, fables and folklore.
 


april 26, 2007

Roman Baths



Roman houses had water supplied via lead pipes. However, these pipes were taxed according to their size, so many houses had just a basic supply and could not hope to rival a bath complex. Therefore for personal hygiene, people went to the local baths. However, the local bath complex was also a gathering point and served a very useful community and social function. Here people could relax, keep clean and keep up with the latest news.

Taking a bath was not a simple chore. There was not one bath to use in a large complex such as the one at Bath. A visitor could use a cold bath (the frigidarium), a warm bath (the tepidarium) and a hot bath (the caldarium). A visitor would spend some of his time in each one before leaving. A large complex would also contain an exercise area (the palaestra), a swimming pool and a gymnasium. One of the public baths at Pompeii contains two tepidariums and caldariums along with a plunge pool and a large exercise area.

The building of a bath complex required excellent engineering skills. Baths required a way of heating up water. This was done by using a furnace and the hypocaust system carried the heat around the complex.

april 25, 2007

In the wood





A home movie is a short amateur film or video typically made just to preserve a visual record of family activities, a vacation or a special event and intended for viewing at home by family and friends. Originally, home movies were made on photographic film in formats that usually limited the movie-maker to about three minutes per roll of costly camera film. The advent of camcorders that could record an hour or two of video on one inexpensive videocassette, followed by digital video cameras that recorded to flash memory, made the creation of home movies easier and much more affordable to the average person.

The technological boundaries between home-movie-making and professional movie-making are becoming increasingly blurred as prosumer equipment often offers features previously only available on professional equipment.

In recent years, clips from home movies have been available to wider audiences through television series such as America's Funniest Home Videos, in Great Britain You've Been Framed! and Internet online video-sharing sites such as YouTube. The popularity of the Internet, and wider availability of high-speed connections has provided new ways of sharing home movies, such as video weblogs (vlogs), and video podcasts.


 

april 23, 2007

Dutch Capital Amsterdam




According to the Dutch constitution Amsterdam is the capital of the Netherlands, although the parliament and the Dutch government have been situated in The Hague since 1588, along with the Supreme Court and the Council of State.

Only once during its history was Amsterdam both "capital" and seat of government. Between 1808 and 1810, during the Kingdom of Holland, King Louis Napoleon resided in Amsterdam and declared the city capital of his kingdom and seat of government. To accommodate the king, the grand seventeenth-century Town Hall of Amsterdam, prime example of the republican values that were prevalent for so long in the Netherlands, was converted into a Royal Palace.

In 1810 the Netherlands were annexed by the French Empire and King Louis Napoleon was replaced by a French governor, who took up residence in the Royal Palace in Amsterdam. From 1810 to 1813 Amsterdam kept its position of capital city somewhat, as Emperor Napoleon declared the city to be the third city of the Empire (after Paris and Rome) and an imperial residence. In December 1813, after the fall of Napoleon and the accession of Prince William VI of Orange as Sovereign of the Netherlands, The Hague was restored as the seat of government.

april 21, 2007

Baune in Bourgogne



Speed ramping, or simply "ramping", is a process whereby the capture frame rate of the camera changes over time. For example, if in the course of 10 seconds of capture, the capture frame rate is adjusted from 60 frames per second to 24 frames per second, when played back at the standard movie rate of 24 frames per second, a unique time-manipulation effect is achieved. For example, someone pushing a door open and walking out into the street would appear to start off in slow-motion, but in a few seconds later within the same shot the person would appear to walk in "realtime" (normal speed). The opposite speed-ramping is done in The Matrix when Neo re-enters the Matrix for the first time to see the Oracle. As he comes out of the warehouse "load-point", the camera zooms in to Neo at normal speed but as it gets closer to Neo's face, time seems to slow down, foreshadowing the manipulation of time itself within the Matrix later in the movie.


april 17, 2007

Madeira music



Folklore music in Madeira is wide spread and mainly uses local musical instraments such as the Machete, rajao, Brinquinho and Cavaquinho, which are used in traditional Folklore dances like the Bailinho da Madeira.
Locals from Madeira emigranting also influenced the creation of new instraments such as in the 1880s, the ukulele is based on two small guitar-like instruments of Madeiran origin, the cavaquinho and the rajao, introduced to the Hawaiian Islands by Portuguese immigrants from Madeira and Cape Verde.

april 16, 2007

Peter the Great captain

A movie star (also known as a film star and cinema star) is an actor who is famous for their starring, or leading, roles in motion pictures. The term is used for actors who are marketable stars and whose names are used to promote movies, for example in trailers and posters.

Eternal Spring on Madeira


Madeira was re-discovered by Portuguese sailors in the service of Henry the Navigator in 1419, and settled after 1420. The archipelago is considered to be the first territorial discovery of the exploratory period of the Portuguese Age of Discovery.


Today, it is a popular year-round resort, being visited every year by about one million tourists, noted for its Madeira wine, flowers, landscapes and embroidery artisans, as well as for its annual New Year celebrations that feature the largest fireworks show in the world, as officially recognized by the Guinness World Records The main harbour in Funchal is the leading Portuguese port in cruise liner dockings, being an important stopover for commercial and trans-Atlantic passenger cruises between Europe, the Caribbean and North America.


 


april 05, 2007

Loretta of Prague


The Prague Loreto is a remarkable Baroque historic monument, a place of pilgrimage with captivating history. The expansive decorative frontal façade with a clock tower, from which the Loreto carillon tunes may be heard every hour, shall certainly not go unnoticed by any local or
foreign visitor passing here on his or her way to the Prague Castle. It would, however, be a great pity to enjoy only this picturesque view opening before us from the terrace of the Czernin Palace. Those who descend as far as the Loreto Square and pass through the Loreto gate will be pleasantly surprised by the place of pilgrimage disposition.


Castle district Prague




Panning refers to the horizontal movement or rotation of a film or video camera, or the scanning of a subject horizontally on video.Movie and television cameras pan by turning horizontally on a vertical axis, but the effect may be enhanced by adding other techniques, such as rails to move the whole camera platform. Slow panning is also combined with zooming in or out on a single subject, leaving the subject in the same portion of the frame, to emphasize or de-emphasize the subject respectively.In photography, the panning technique is used to suggest fast motion, and bring out foreground from background. In photographic pictures it is usually noted by a foreground subject in action appearing still (i.e. a runner frozen in mid-stride) while the background is streaked and/or skewed in the apparently opposite direction of the subject's


maart 26, 2007

Armsterdam Jordaan quarter


There are also many films and photographs from the EYE collection available online.

At present, the website covers the introduction of film in the Netherlands and the first decennia thereafter. Soon the site will be expanded with much more material, including the history of the feature film, experimental film, animated film and films from the Dutch East Indies. Altogether, these will provide an extensive image of Dutch film and cinema culture.
The Film in the Netherlands website currently features information about close to 2,300 early films. Many of these films have been lost; it is estimated that approximately 500 films have been preserved and more than 270 of these can be viewed on the website. In addition to this, there are fragments from nearly 50 other films that can be watched through the website.




maart 25, 2007

Ancient StPetersburg



Saint Petersburg was founded by the Tsar Peter the Great on May 27 [O.S. 16] 1703. From 1713 to 1728 and from 1732 to 1918, Saint Petersburg was the Imperial capital of Russia. In 1918 the central government bodies moved from Saint Petersburg (then named Petrograd) to Moscow. It is Russia's 2nd largest city after Moscow with 5 million inhabitants (2012) and the fourth most populated federal subject. Saint Petersburg is a major European cultural center, and also an important Russian port on the Baltic Sea.




Saint Petersburg is often described as the most Western city of Russia, as well as its cultural capital. It is the northernmost city in the world to have a population of over five million. The Historic Centre of Saint Petersburg and Related Groups of Monuments constitute a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Saint Petersburg is also home to The Hermitage, one of the largest art museums in the world. A large number of foreign consulates, international corporations, banks, and other businesses are located in Saint Petersburg.

maart 22, 2007

Tasty St. Petersburg



Info:
A historical, cultural and culinary landmark, the Grand Hotel Europe has played an important role in the life of St. Petersburg for over 130 years. The Grand Hotel Europe was here that Tchaikovsky spent his honeymoon and George Bernard Shaw dined with Maxim Gorky. Discerning travelers are charmed by the hotel's warm Russian hospitality, impressive architecture and exceptional service.
Positioned on Nevsky Prospekt, St Petersburg's most splendid avenue, the Grand Hotel Europe is surrounded by some of the world's greatest cultural treasures, including the Russian Museum and Mussorgsky Theatre.



maart 14, 2007

Trevi/Umbria



Trevi (Latin: Trebiae) is an ancient town and comune in Umbria, Italy, on the lower flank of Monte Serano overlooking the wide plain of the Clitunno river system. It is 10 km (6 mi) SSE of Foligno and 20 km (12 mi) north of Spoleto.
The population of the comune was c. 8,000 in 2004, with the town proper accounting for about half of that; the rest lives in the frazioni of Borgo, Bovara, Cannaiola, Coste, Pigge, Manciano, Matigge, Parrano, Picciche, San Lorenzo and Santa Maria in Valle. The historical subdivisions of Trevi proper are the terzieri of Castello, Matiggia e Piano; they come into play only for the Palio.
Most of the town, densely inhabited and of decidedly medieval aspect, lies on sharply sloping terrain, only the very center being more or less flat. It commands one of the best views in Umbria, extending over 50 km (30 mi) in most westerly directions. Trevi is served by the main rail line from Rome to Ancona as well as the line from Florence to Rome via Perugia.

maart 09, 2007

Golden lane Prague


The Golden Bear is the highest prize awarded for the best film at the Berlin International Film Festival. The bear is the heraldic animal of Berlin, featured on both the coat of arms and flag of Berlin.
The Palme d'Or (English: Golden Palm) is the highest prize awarded at the Cannes Film Festival and is presented to the director of the best feature film of the official competition
The Golden Lion (Italian: Leone d'Oro) is the highest prize given to a film at the Venice Film Festival. The prize was introduced in 1949 by the organizing committee and is now regarded as one of the film industry's most distinguished prizes. In 1970, a second Golden Lion was introduced; this is an honorary award for people who have made an important contribution to cinema.

maart 04, 2007

Mountains of Madeira



A tapeless camcorder is a camcorder that does not use video tape for the digital recording of video productions as 20th century ones did. Tapeless camcorders record video as digital computer files onto data storage devices such as optical discs, hard disk drives and solid-state flash memory cards.
Inexpensive pocket video cameras use flash memory cards, while some more expensive camcorders use solid-state drives or SSD; similar flash technology is used on semi-pro and high-end professional video cameras for ultrafast transfer of High-definition television (HDTV) content.
Camcorders using DVD media were popular at the turn of the 21st century due to the convenience of being able to drop a disc into the family DVD player; however, DVD capability, due to the limitations of the format, is largely limited to consumer-level equipment targeted at people who are not likely to spend any great amount of effort video editing their video footage.
Most consumer-level tapeless camcorders use MPEG-2, MPEG-4 video compression or its derivatives as Video coding formats. They are normally capable of still-image capture to JPEG format additionally.
Consumer-grade tapeless camcorders include a USB port to transfer video onto a computer. Professional models include other options like Serial digital interface (SDI) or HDMI. Some tapeless camcorders are equipped with a Firewire (IEEE-1394) port to ensure compatibility with magnetic tape-based DV and HDV formats.

maart 03, 2007

Liseberg


Liseberg is an amusement park located in Gothenburg, Sweden, that opened in 1923. It is one of the most visited amusement parks in Scandinavia, attracting about 3 million visitors annually. Among the noteworthy attractions is the wooden roller coaster Balder, twice (2003 and 2005) voted as the Best Wooden Tracked Roller Coaster in the world in a major international poll. The park itself has also been chosen as one of the top ten amusement parks in the world (2005) by Forbes Magazine.
Additional to the summer season, the park is also open during November and December, albeit with fewer rides operating, hosting a Christmas market with traditional Swedish cuisine such as mulled wine and specialties such as döner kebab made from reindeer meat.
The official colors of Liseberg are pink and green as can be seen on the entrance and the older houses in the park, the colors were also adopted for the logo, which was introduced in the 1980s.


maart 02, 2007

The Pantheon of Rome



Works modeled on, or inspired by, the Pantheon

The Rotunda designed by Thomas Jefferson at the University of Virginia.
As the best-preserved example of an Ancient Roman monumental building, the Pantheon has been enormously influential in Western architecture from at least the Renaissance on; starting with Brunelleschi's 42-metre dome of Santa Maria del Fiore in Florence, completed in 1436.

Versions include the church of Santa Maria Assunta in Ariccia by Gian Lorenzo Bernini (1664), which followed his work restoring the Roman original, Belle Isle House (1774) in England, and Thomas Jefferson's library at the University of Virginia, The Rotunda (1817–26). There is also the 19th-century Rotunda of Mosta in Malta.


The style of the Pantheon can be detected in many buildings of the 19th and 20th centuries; numerous government and public buildings, city halls, universities, and public libraries echo its portico-and-dome structure.