Summer has been good to us this far. We are currently in Sibenik, Croatia, and I am making a lot of new images. Until those are completed I thought to share some images I took with my phone camera. These only show glimpses of our vacation and the things we saw and did. I hope your summer is going well!

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The three of us on our way to Zadar, a city nearby. This was one of our many daily visits in the aeria we made.

A shot at the beach where we are spending most of our days. The water is very clean and fresh.

Of course there is a lot to eat with us. This is some salmon with fried tomatoes, and potatoes with pesto rossa. Very good!

A shot of the coast with the island Krapanj in the distance.

We also made a trip to the Solaris Beach and Wellness Spa Resort. There are a lot of great Canon 6D images from this place, that I'm dying to show to you all!

As our summer vacation slowly winds down (we leave tomorrow), things are getting bought, locations are being visited and final images are taken. There i a lot of editing ahead, but I promise you a big and fun travel photo series!

Linking to Sweet Shot Tuesday, Nature Notes  Our World Tuesday
Water World Wednesday and ABC Wednesday (B is for Beach)

There is always something to see around our Mountain Cottage. Summer is in full swing here and nature has come to bloom, from our roses in the garden to the nearby trees and bushes along the forest paths. While returing from Sarajevo, I made a short visit here and took these images that follow. 

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I love taking hikes in the woods around this place. Not only is it calming and relaxing, but there is also a lot to see. And no matter how many times I take images from certains spots, nature keeps shifting and the images always turn out a little bit different. 

Little Div is not so little anymore. He has grown into a big lovable labrador, and Beni likes to play with him a lot. They quickly became good friends.

The many roses that have sprung in our garden are what fascinated me the most on this day. All of these shots reminded me how beautiful these flowers are. There is a great variaty to be found.

Have a great Sunday and thank you for visiting.

I am currently on my summer vacation (and making lots of new images for a whole new summer travel series!). I will be home soon, and before then I'll post some On Location images. Will catch up on your blogs as soon as I'm back!

My first night of summer vacation. It's 4:30 AM and the summer night is weighing down on me. Outside the air is crisp and cool, but the inside of my room isn't. My eyes are wide open and as I glare at the window I notice the intense blue light of the night. The moon is almost full, and as I open the window the cold air whiffs in my face. As I gaze outside I notice how calm the city looks and how everything is colored in these amazing colors.

I'm fully awake now. No going back to sleep. I grab my camera and take these shots. Once again I'm amazed at the Canon 6D's capabilities at night.

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I return back to the bed and find a half-a-sleep Beni on the bed, probably wondering what I'm doing up. I took this next shot, with almost no light at all.

In case you wonder, I didn't fall asleep immediately. I watched some "Modern Family" episodes on my laptop, and eventually fell asleep around 6:00, only to be waked by the alarm at 8:00. My vacation is off to a good start...

Linking to Friday My Town Shoot Out

I actually pride myself on regularly grooming my Maltese dog Beni. From the very beginning I got him used to being brushed and picked at. Regular grooming is very important. It keeps your dog clean, healthy, and manageable (also pretty) :) I took Beni recently to a professional groomer that always cuts his hair and fluffs him up, but there are also many home tips and tricks I use.

Once you are used to regular grooming it really becomes a routine, and remember this has nothing to do with cutesy and fancy pimp-ups, this is hygiene for your dog, just as you brush your hair, clean your ears, brush your teeth, get a hair cut, etc.

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First up is a before and after from his recent visit to the dog groomer.

Maltese dogs tend to have heavily flowing tear ducts, that stain the coat under their eyes red. I got a tip to use boric acid, which is also called acidum boricum and put a little bit of that boric acid (which looks like water) on a pad and clean stained areas of the coat. And it did really work with Beni. But don't get it in the eyes. Only the coat. This can also be used on other stained aerias like the coat around the mouth that gets discolored from food.

According to veterinarians, about 80% of dogs have periodontal disease. If plaque is continually digested on a larger than normal scale, it can cause kidney or liver troubles. Try to brush your dog's teeth at least 2 to 3 times a week, or use an antimicrobial spray if you don't have time or your dog is particularly resistant to the idea. Beni is 50-50 with me when I clean his teeth. Use only those products made specifically for dogs so that you don't unintentionally poison your dog.

A clean ear may contain some wax and shouldn't have any particular smell to it. Warm any cleaner or medication in a container of body temperature water (as you would a baby bottle) before you put it in the ear. Cold is painful in the ear canal. A few drops of warmed rubbing alcohol will dry water from the ear canal and kill bacteria, yeast and mites.

The dog groomer I have been taking Beni to for the last couple of years is very good. Her dog saloon is called "Puppy Village" located in Sarajevo, and it's always filled with different type of dogs.

They make the experience for the dog a good one, and that is something that has to be checked on since it's very important not to traumatize your dog. Another little guy was on the table, and as they finished him up, Beni was up next.

And here is the complete after shot. Once the fur is in control again, it's much easier to regularly groom and keep Beni clean, but having said that, he doesn't stay clean for too long, since there is always a puddle around the corner :)

I realize that most people will know these things, but they are so crucial that I think it's worth repeating them here. Also you got to see a small glimpse of Beni's life that always goes on in full swing, somewhere in the background of this blog. :)

Thanks for stopping by!

I have waited for a long time to show you the finished result of my numerous shootings in the local hills and mountains around Mostar. It took me many evenings to complete this video. It shows a day as it comes to an end, and how the busy winds slow down and come to peace. It also depicts the colorful transition into the sunset, and the blue hour, when the most vibrant colors of nature show their face.

If you are interested in a behind the scenes look of this timelapse video, click here to view yesterdays post in which I showed some making-of images.

Scroll down for the video!

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Without further ado, here is the complete new timelapse video "Going to Sleep". Enjoy!

Please make sure to view it in Full 1080p HD and Full Screen for a maximum effect.

There are a lot of details in the video, and you can watch it actually a couple of times, and notice new things. An example: can you spot the sheep in the fields during one camera pan?

Thank you all for visiting. I really hope that you have enjoyed the video, and I hope to make more for you in the future.

Linking to ABC Wednesday - A is for Alone

Linking to Sweet Shot Tuesday, Nature Notes,

  Our World Tuesday

It's only a day away. While I'm typing this up, the new timelapse video is uploading to YouTube. Over the course of May and June, I tried to make time (besides work and regular blogging photography) to go out and shoot some timelapses. In order to shoot it properly you have to take a lot of images, and that usually means that you get one finished collection of frames per session.

On top of that, I added the factor of sunset into the mix. This usually meant that I had to wait around for the perfect time of the day, and then go and shoot quickly so that the light wouldn't vanish. On some shoots I also did a transition from sunset into dusk.

My first timelaspe was posted on my 600th post, and it was 30 seconds long. This time, the video will be 1:43 minutes, which is considerably longer. The video features more shots, more angles and more views.

The new video will be uploaded tomorrow. In the meantime, I wanted to show some making of screenshots and show you, how I make such a timelapse video.

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1. It takes a lot of images to get one finished sequence. Each frame is slightly different then the one before it.

2. It takes A LOT of images. :) One second of finished video contains 24 frames or still images. You do the math! As you can see below, this particular shot had 266 images, which results in 11 seconds of finished film.

3. After I process the images in Photoshop, I move to Adobe After Effects, where I import the image sequences, do some editing and color correction, as well as pans and zooms.

4. In the end I finish the video in Adobe Premiere Pro, where I add the titles and, most importantly, music. A goof score makes half the video.

I hope to have wet your appetite with these screenshots. Tomorrow I will post the video with some still shots from it. I hope to see you back again for it.

In the second part of this new photo series I will show you the Old Town of Mostar at night. During summer the old part of the city is filled with tourists and even during the night, the old town is almost never empty. People roam the bazaar, old bridge, sit in the various cafes and restaurants.

This is a two part series:

Part One: Modern Mostar at Night

Part Two: The Old Town at Night

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A view of the "Luka Bridge" from the old bridge.

A view of the old town. The country's flags are still up from the recent plays in the World Soccer Cup 2014.

One of the restaurants in the old town. As people are sitting down for dinner quiet music is playing, transforming the cobble stone streets into a unique place.

Thanks for visiting. Hope you had a great weekend.

I took an evening stroll through Mostar with my camera the other night. I visited the book fair first, but continued roaming the city and taking shots. I wanted to divide the images I took into two parts. Part one is about the more modern part of the city, while the second part will be nightly summer shots from the old part of town where the Old Bridge is located.

This is a two part series:

Part One: Modern Mostar at Night

Part Two: The Old Town at Night

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A shot of my high school with the moon rising in the background. Summer nights in Mostar are special, because the city is filled with people, both locals and tourists.

The city emblem, engraved on a stone in the Spanish Square. It shows the Old Bridge with the river Neretva flowing underneath it.

Above: the main walking lane in Mostar. Below: A side entrance to the city park that you can access directly from the walking lane.

A small cafe next to the park. As the night approaches people are slowly filling the empty seats...

The Spanish Square in Mostar. It was recently reconstructed, with new seating arrangements, fountains and flower beds.

A look from the Tito Bridge on the river Neretva. Night is rolling in and the colors of the city are changing.

I hope you enjoyed taking a stroll with me thorugh the modern part of the city. Of course, there is more to show from the modern part, but these happened to be the sights that I captured on my route. 

Part Two will be up tomorrow and there we will visit the old town of Mostar at night.