Traveling Thailand – Ritva Sillanmäki Photography

Monochrome madness – temple

Black and White photos, Traveling Thailand

I took these nine years ago, but as I was going through my archives I edited few more photos I have previously ignored..

The Big Buddha statue

Known among Thais as the Phra Puttamingmongkol Akenakkiri Buddha, this magnificent statue has garnered significant cultural and spiritual importance. Built in 2004, it stands majestically at a height of 25 meters across at the base, making it one of the largest Buddha statues in the region. The body of the statue is constructed from sturdy reinforced concrete, ensuring durability and resilience against the elements it is layered with beautiful Burmese white jade marble, which gives it a radiant shine under the sunlight.

There are several golden monk statues, here are two of them.

Leanne’s Monochrome Madness

I just read that the Phuket Buddha site ordered closed due to landslide risks. Phuket’s Royal Forest Centre will order a big Buddha site on top of Nak Koet Hill in tambon Karon to be closed due to fears of further landslides after 13 people were killed in the area by landslides on Aug 23.3.9.2024

Wat Chalong

Traveling Thailand

The most important of the 29 buddhist temples of Phuket is Wat Chalong, located in the Chalong Subdistrict, Mueang Phuket District seen from the temple building opposite it for Thursday Doors

golden light of sunrise

Landscapes, Traveling Thailand

I don’t know how you start you posts, but what I do is, I open a new blank post. I choose an image, them I start to think of a title and maybe some text to it. I always start with an photo. I mainly posts photos, lately I have started add some more words to my posts, but I am a strong believer that the photo should convey the message – I don’t know if it true, but it is what I want to believe.

This photo I took years ago in Koh Lanta in Thailand, this is the first time I’ve edited it. I don’t know why I haven’t shared it before.

The beautiful beach, the tall palm trees, and the serene waters all bathed in the golden light of sunrise created a truly lovely scene that morning. The untouched sandy beach and scattered rocks add the feeling of untouched natural charm, while the sky’s gradient from blue to golden yellow is uplighting the spirit. I still remember to calmness and peaceful atmosphere as I had the beach to myself, just me and the tranquility of the lovely morning. I wish I was there now 🙂

Just out of curiosity, do the words add value to the post?

Throwback Thursday

Cities, Photography, Travel, Traveling Thailand

We all have these photos … throwback photos! Don’t we just… so many. It’s described as ‘nostalgia-inducing pictures … from a different era of your life”. This week (#TB Thursday).Thursday is filled with memories from Kwai River in Thailand in 2008. We had a family vacation in the sun and these beautiful settings. We slept in these floating bungalows over the river Kwai.

The River Kwai, more correctly ‘Khwae Noi’ (Thai: แควน้อย, English small tributary) or Khwae Sai Yok (แควไทรโยค), is a river in western Thailand, near, but not over the border with Myanmar. It begins at the confluence of Ranti, Songkalia and Bikhli Rivers. At Kanchanaburi it merges with the Khwae Yai River to form the Mae Klong river, which empties into the Gulf of Thailand at Samut Songkhram.

Jumping and swimming in the clear fresh water of the river has been a particular favorite of many, us too .There has always been something nice, and calming about swimming, and letting the water take all your worries away.

Lens Artists Challenge #225: Wildlife Close to Home

lens-artists, Photography, Travel, Traveling Thailand

Ann from Slow Shutter Speed A photographic journey hosts this weeks Lens Artists Challenge #225: Wildlife Close to Home. Wrote; Stop. Look. Listen. Doing those three things will help you discover the abundance of wildlife you have nearby. You have wildlife in your yard, nearby park, local pond or lake and just about anywhere around you.

My contribution this week are these images. Animal Photography is not my forte, I don’t have the patience or the equipment to get the best shots, but I occasionally get a shot.

Birds big and small that I have been able to capture. this type of photography is not my forte.

Capturing this Seal was just a happy break, I was at a right place at right time.

Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #224 – Exposure

lens-artists, Photography, Travel, Traveling Thailand

SOFIA ALVES from PHOTOGRAPHIAS is hosting the challenge for #lens-artists

LENS-ARTISTS CHALLENGE – EXPOSURE she wrote the following:

For this challenge, it is up to you how you work on exposure. You might, like me, prefer to use shutter speed to change the exposure balance when shooting. You can also play with aperture. Or you can have fun changing the exposure settings while editing. The idea here is to see how the mood of any photo depends on its exposure.

I am posting three sets of photos that I have over – or underexposed in post edit. I usually shoot in automatic mode for exposure and edit the photo to suit it to way to capture what I thought I saw or change the mood. exposure, light and contrast are the main things I work with when editing my photos, but over the years I have learned few more tricks to get the photo to express more of what I want to show in it.

Light makes photography. Embrace light. Admire it. Love it. But above all, know light. Know it for all you are worth, and you will know the key to photography. – George Eastman

Contrary to the general belief about photography, you don’t need bright sunlight: the best moodiest pictures are taken in the dim light of almost dusk, or of rainy days… – Jack Kerouac

All these shots except the portrait were taken late afternoon or at dusk so I wholeheartedly agree with the quote above.

I feel that this side profile mood is totally different in these shots, other is more hopeful and often overexposed shot is more forgiving to the person at least if you have lots of lines on your face 🙂

Shooting in nature with backlight has its challanges and you have to be careful not to over light the front,so that is doesn’t look unnatural. Obviously the what the eye sees and camera captures are often totally different in these situations.