mosque « xmagination Blog

Istanbul Mosque and Bosporus

February 21, 2012

Istanbul has quite a few Mosques where tourists have there own entrance; they are provided with plastic bags for their shoes. However tourists have to stay in the rear part of the Mosque, behind a wooden railing. Muslims wash their feet, arms and face before praying no matter how cold it is…and it was very cold. But obviously they are still ready for a smile.

Praying in Blue Mosque (Sultan-Ahmed Mosque)

Washing before prayer

Blue Mosque

Since weather became better we decided to take a boat ride in the direction of the Black Sea. After the cold and windy days it was a relaxing ride sitting in the sun, enjoying the landscape, drinking hot tea and eating fresh made yoghurt.

On the Boat

Bosporus

Relaxing on the boat

Warming sunrays

Bosporus and Süleymaniye Mosque

Filed under: City,Street Photography,Travel,Turkey — Tags: B&W, mosque, x100 — Andreas @ 1:38 PM

Istanbul – Hagia Sophia

When I entered Hagia Sophia for the first time I was stunned by the rays of light that filled the huge room above the low hanging chandeliers. Unfortunately there were already a lot of tourists walking around so that I decided to come back the next morning and to be the first inside. Hagia Sophia used to be a Byzantine Church, later a Mosque and today it is a museum.

Hagia Sophia

Early Morning at Hagia Sophia

Light Beam

Hagia Sophia - Low Chandeliers

Rays of Light in Hagia Sophia

Filed under: Allgemein,City,Street Photography,Travel,Turkey — Tags: cityscape, mosque, x100 — Andreas @ 1:01 PM

Istanbul – sightseeing

Istanbul at Sunset with Galata Bridge (from Galata Tower)

At least for me Istanbul does not have a structured cityscape and i could not find THE view when looking into google’s picture search. But maybe this is what characterizes the city. However I was pretty sure that the “blue hour method” would work out well, as it always does. The first day we were on the Galata Tower we were too early and it was quite cloudy. The second day the circumstances were better: I had a tripod with me, it was short to sunset and the sky was clear. It is almost impossible to enjoy the cityscape from the viewing platform as it is very very poky up there so that you will be jostled involuntarily by people who want to pass you. But this did not bother me: I waited as long as I had to wait standing there with my tripod and I finally took the pictures that were later stitched with Hugin. And when looking at the result there seems to be structure: it is the mosques that dominate the cityscape. From left to right: Topkapi palace, Hagia Sophia, Sultanahmed Mosque, Nuruosmaniye Mosque, Yeni Mosque, Beyazit Tower (green) and Süleymaniye Mosque. The Galata Bridge is connecting the Old City and Galata.