Sunset

The Sun is setting on 2013, and soon it will be a new year. Hopefully we will get a proper snow winter here as well for now all is so very bleak and dark. As you can see from the photo, there is no snow or ice in Helsinki at the moment. Last year, one could have walked to the island in the distance on ice.

Now we have green grass, open sea, and constant rain.. As in the not frozen kind rain. I enjoy the fact that it is not cold, but I hate the bleak dark periods. I would much rather get the light mirrored from snow. Much more photogenic as well, which to me is always important.

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Merry Christmas!

I wish all my friends and all the visitors of my humble blog a Merry Christmas!

A different home

Another ones trash is another ones treasure, goes the saying. Or in this case, a home!

Christmas time

It is the darkest season in the northern hemisphere, and here in the very north the days still shorten day by day for a little time longer. After winter solstice it will slowly get better, although winter proper is still ahead. A good excuse for nice Christmas lights then..

The official Christmas shopping street of Helsinki, Aleksanterinkatu has beautiful lights in the winter.

Shopping centers also have pretty decorations, ’tis the season for spending money after all..

Snowman

Outdoors

Christmas is closing in. Winter is upon most of the land, but the Helsinki region still is dark and bleak. Half an hour away and what you get is this:

Not a lot of snow by any means, but still what one would call winter.

This rock seemed to be split in two, somehow interesting.

Birch trees have a beautiful cover. A very common tree in most of Finland. The ones in Lapland are quite small though.

Enjoy the week end everyone, be safe!

Night time

I am not a night time photographer in any way, I rarely have the energy to carry a tripod around and a tripod is pretty much a necessity to get anything usable in dim conditions. Unless you happen to be lucky and own a Canon Eos 1D X or a Nikon D4 / Df which can see in the dark pretty much..

However one can improvise, use other methods to stabilise the camera. These following photos are by no means excellent, but I just wanted to show a glimpse of what my home city looks in the dark. Definitely need to improve upon this and start to carry a tripod maybe..

Merihaka.

Ice-breaker (the sort of ship designed for one purpose alone, to plow through sheer ice and keep the sea open for passage in the coldest of climates).

Katajanokka and a bit of the centre of the city in the right side of the photo.

All photos taken with around a 30sec exposure at iso 320, steadied on a railing or a rock..

Winter

is here, at last.. Well sort of..

Helsinki still is dull in shades of grey and black, but snow is slowly easing ever so nearer. The neighboring countryside already has a bit of snow.

6th of December

Today is the independence day of my fair homeland. Happy birthday Finland!

Fare thee well, Tallinn!

This is the third and final post on Tallinn.

As you can see from the earlier photos, there is a lot to see and do in the thriving capital of Estonia. Summer or Christmas time are maybe the best times to visit but whenever you go, there is always plenty to do.

The town square in the old city. There are many churches in the city, some very beautiful to look at.

Beautiful small details on a street store. Lovely color as well.

The rain, a constant companion on this trip.

Old well on the street. I can almost smell the history of a place looking at such details.

No trip would not be complete without enjoying some of the finer things in life.

Excellent cake, a great treat for a pause from roaming the streets.

Again with the contrast of old buildings in bad condition and a brand new Range Rover. Lovely car, would be great in Finnish winter or in the Sahara..

Punk is not dead!

Citywalls still stand.

I highly recommend anyone visiting Europe to visit Tallinn. Also a fun thing to do would be to visit Helsinki and Tallinn both. For the budget minded Tallinn is the better bet though..

More tk.