Blue Eyes

Blue Eye in Albania

At the Blue Eye in Albania, the water changes from light turquoise to deep blue in a small space. The treetops frame the spring so closely that the dark area immediately catches the eye. A steep view shows the color distribution, a slanted view shows the visitor paths at the edge.

The dark core of the source

At the Blue Eye, the environment changes the perception of the source. The water appears particularly bright between the dark crowns, while the color is particularly noticeable in a narrow section.

A striking water color immediately catches the eye in a small preview. In order to understand the source, the transitions at the edge are also important. There you can see where vegetation extends to the water, where a path runs and where the water surface continues. A broad view shows these connections. For a detailed shot, a section that includes part of the bank edge as a reference point for the changing colors is useful.

What the treetops reveal

A forest changes the view of every structure and every path that lies on its edge. From one side the treetops cover the lower area, from another a small gap opens. Photos in which the boundary between open space and vegetation can be clearly seen are particularly interesting. They explain which parts of a motif are visible. In a description, it is possible to distinguish precisely between the section depicted and the terrain hidden by the foliage.

Light and surface of the water

On water, colors and brightness change with the direction of the light. A bright spot can be a reflection, a darker stripe can be caused by the shadow on the bank. The easiest way to describe such differences is to use a solid bank edge or an object in the water as a comparison. Two different distances are attractive for a sequence of images. The closer view shows small surface structures, while the overview makes their location in the entire water surface understandable.

The distribution of blue tones

Among the 10 photos in the gallery, shot 2 and shot 10 provide a good starting point for the comparison. In the first excerpt, shades of blue play a smaller role. In the second shot, blue areas take up more space. Blue can extend over a large contiguous area or only appear in individual parts. What also counts for the effect is whether these areas extend to the edge of the picture or surround the main subject.

The camera captured September 20, 2021 for shot 1 and shot 10. The time interval between these two views is approximately 8 minutes. The exposure time was 1/240 second for the first of the images mentioned and 1/400 second for the second.

For a selection of moving images, the gallery contains 3 linked clips. Below is “Blue Eye in Albania from the air”. Under Aerial Videos the preview leads to the aerial photographer's respective offer at Adobe Stock.

Show the proportions of the landscape

It is easy to overestimate the size of a shape in a landscape painting. A bright spot may be a small open area or show an extensive portion of the terrain. When selecting images, a comprehensible reference point is therefore more important than the most dramatic perspective possible. If present in the motif, a path or a clearly recognizable shoreline can take on this task. An aerial photographer can also relate an overview and a single view. Readers are then given an idea of ​​the location before viewing the surface up close.

More aerial photos for comparison

Two further articles invite comparison. In the first, Landscapes in Albania, a different detail is in the foreground. In the Albanian landscape series, narrow beaches alternate with mountain ridges and open slopes. Then Ali Pasha Fortress is a good option. The dark surface of water traces the contour of the Ali Pasha Fortress in Albania.