Author: Ian J Myers

I'm a half English, half Irish guy who has been in France for the last 30 years. I have a devouring passion for photography, be it digital or analogue. Photography is my escape, and what helps me feel whole. INFP

Pommeraye et Crébillon

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As you might have realised by now, sometimes I seem to find myself in Nantes quite often. Ever the creature of habit I have my “spots” that I seem to go to and one of them is the street between la Place Royale, and la Place Graslin, La Rue Crébillon. It’s basically where rich people do their clothes shopping and you have to be skinny to get into any of those clothes, but it’s all so elegant. Along the way you have the Passage Pommeraye which also oozes French elegance, with Hermès at the top, and a rather delightful place at the bottom that sells chocolat and macarons….

I could tell you the history of the place but you can look it up on Wikipedia if you want. This is more about the photography…

The Passage Pommeraye is a small shopping mall in central Nantes, France, named after its property developer, Louis Pommeraye. Construction started at the end of 1840 and was completed on 4 July 1843. The Passage Pommeraye is a passage between two streets, the rue Santeuil and rue de la Fosse, with one 9.40 m higher than the other. Midway, there is a flight of steps and the mall then continues on another floor. Two architects, Jean-Baptiste Buron and Hippolyte Durand Gasselin, contributed to its design, which is very elaborate and includes renaissance style sculptures. The Passage Pommeraye has been classified as a historic monument since 1976.

Wikipedia

This is a collection of photos taken on my last visit, taken on the Canon 6D Mark II with the 16-35mm lens which has become a firm favourite with me. I enjoy the distorsion and how I can use it creatively, as well as the sheer joy of diving into the scene before my eyes. I also brought out the Helios 44-2 58mm lens to take some photos in the café where I like to have a couple of coffees to keep me going for the rest of the afternoon. An idea for another article perhaps…

St Nicolas Basilica, Nantes

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Do you remember me saying that in one of my previous articles that I would show you the inside of the Basilica? Chose dite, chose faite. As I say, I will do! You may be a Catholic, you may not be. I’m not going to judge anyone. You may even be a convinced, and militant atheist. I am going to present a building to you that was designed by men for the glory of God. Everything in it was made to centre on God and the presence of God in the Tabernacle.

Even though you might not share those beliefs, a church is not an ordinary building. It is not just a place. There is something special, as there is in any place of worship. We see the hopes and wishes of men being handed over to something that is a power beyond them. These are the prayers represented by the candles in the Catholic tradition, and the statues to remind us of the piety of certain saints and the symbolism that is included in the representation in those statues. The same is true in the artwork. It is what it represents to the faithful. The stations of the cross which retell the story of Jesus’ final sacrifice here on earth, and the sacrifice of the mass.

It is a place of contemplation. So let’s contemplate…

Garden birds

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I have always loved watching the birds in the garden and since I was a small boy we have always put out food for them. For my last birthday, my wife and children bought me a couple of feeders and they have been well used. It may sound silly, but it brings me such happiness and pleasure. The cats seem to agree.

I was using the Canon 6D Mark II with a 75-300mm F4 lens and the editing was done in Lightroom. I’ve tried to give another feel to these photos and keep them slightly unnatural, but it seems to work. I hope you think so too.

In the streets of Nantes on Ascension Thursday 2019

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Same day as the last article, but this series is about the streets on Nantes, with some obligatory bike shots, some lovely knockers, shops, churches, and other buildings. This seems to represent part of my universe when I’m in Nantes. Or more the way I see this little area of Nantes.

I usually park in the Feydeau car park, and head through Bouffay, towards Place Royale where I’ll eat in either the Sugar Blue Café (really nice and one of my favourites) and when it’s not open I have to cross the road and eat at the Suppli Factory which is like Italian street food, but not on the street, but still really good food!

After the food, which was delicious we headed off towards the St Nicolas Basilica (photos of which will be the subject of another article) and up past the Cathedral towards the river Erdre (yet another article). Spoiler alert!!!

The river Erdre in Nantes and some birds…

Posted on Posted in Landscape Photography, Nantes Photography, Wildlife PhotographyTagged , , , , , , , , 4 Comments

It was Ascension Thursday which is a public holiday in France, and as usual I headed out to Nantes with my camera. The Canon had been getting jealous of the Fuji so I acquiesced.

Killian, my son, and favourite travelling companion (have a look at the photos from Edinburgh) came with me. We ate at the Suppli Factory, which was a lovely change, and also happened to be open!

We went round the St Nicolas Basilica (photos of which will be in an other article), and then walked up towards the Île de Versailles, which is an oriental garden themed park on an artificial island on the River Erdre in Nantes.

I had previously promised him a trip out in a small boat (you can hire small electric boats that you don’t need a permit for) and it was time to honour that promise.

The following photos were taken on that boat. It was a brilliant idea and the man that had it is obviously a genius. There was just the two of us. Sometimes joking. Sometimes talking. Sometimes saying nothing but just enjoying the father son moment.

I took out the 70-300mm zoom lens, just in case we spotted some birds that wanted their photographs taken. And it turned out to be yet another genius idea.

Photography in the streets of Nantes, May 2019

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Now that you’ve had a bit of time to get used to me, I’m going to show you some of the usual photography I do, to keep my eye in. No fancy lenses. Just the Fujifilm X100F with it’s 35mm equivalent lens.

So basically I go into town with my small inconspicuous little camera that does the business, and, believe it or not, take some photos. I then find a café to sit in, take a few more photos just in case, and start editing.

That entails sending the photos from the camera onto my phone via Wi-Fi, and getting annoyed when I have to start again a few times… Then comes the editing on my phone with Snapseed, and there you are. Photos ready to publish on Instagram or Facebook etc.

Win I do this I have my own preset as a starting point and that allows me to finely tune the end result. I nearly always go black and white for this kind of photography. The idea being that o manage to get photos of the ordinary things and try and give the justice. You’ll be able to decide when you look through.

On this particular trip, those of you who know Nantes will be able to see exactly where I went…