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This is the blog of Steve Burkett of Italy, Our Italy

Transforming a Blah Green Door to Evening Blue

For the benefit of the several new readers, I don’t just write about things Italian…I also have a ‘Print Store’ on this website. In that shop are many photos of doors and windows of Italy. The time that I take to process the snapshots that I’ve taken in Italy into fine-art photos for you is my ‘happy time’.

“Yesterday a friend asked, ‘When was the last time you were in Italy?’ I replied, ‘I’m in Italy every day.’ ”

— Steve Burkett

The centuries-old buildings of Italy are a fabulous testament to the Italian craftsmen of old. However, because of the buildings’ ancient stone and plaster construction, adding modern conveniences like water and electricity often blemish the otherwise beautiful and charming façades. I want you to see these marvelous palazzos and common buildings in their pre-modernized state. So, what I do is remove blemishes through the magic of Photoshop to bring you the Italy of yesteryear.

Today, I give you a simple example of my digital architectural restoration. The door and façade to be transformed was photographed in Venice.

Where I Start

As always, I start with the original photo. My photos will always appear as blah when downloaded to my computer. When using a professional digital camera, one has the obligation to save photos in what is known as a “RAW” format. Saving photos in RAW format allows a much greater range of subsequent digital processing than a JPEG image from a typical camera, like your smartphone. But the tradeoff is that the JPEG format looks much better initially than an unedited RAW photo.

Enough said…and if you are interested, you can see more in a previous article of JPEG versus RAW which goes into more depth here.

Now, the Transformation

This original snapshot is all wonky, isn’t it? Because I had to capture the façade in the tight quarters of a narrow Venetian calle, I took the photo using a 14mm lens, which is an extremely wide-angle lens. A wide-angle lens will create distortion. So, I’ll have to get to work by straightening up this scene a good bit.

The original image, with significant distortion

In this second version, much, but not all, of the distortion has been resolved.

Just a bit more work puts things in proper perspective. And that note about mail delivery that’s been taped to the door? It had to go.

Here is where the restoration begins. I don’t like that dull green door. I’ve decided in my own volition that the door should be blue. So, I’ve made it blue.

The surface of the walkway in front of the door needs to be constructed, so I’ve done enough of that to satisfy my vision for the final photo.

And the plinth on which the pseudo-column to the right sits has to be constructed in this renovation…so, I’m on it.

Well, in my final crop of the image, it turns out that I didn’t need all of that pavement after all, but the plinth work was essential.

The Final Image

In the final photo, I wanted it to look like the palazzo is occupied and that someone is at home, waiting for you and me to drop by for an apertivo…and from last week’s article, you should now know what that is, right? So, I borrowed backlit lights above the door from another photo of Venice.

So, now you’ve seen behind the curtain in the transformation of a blah green door, to evening blue.

That’s it for today’s rather simple restoration of an ancient Venetian doorway. If you are interested in seeing more magical door and window transformations, check out my Index of Articles and scroll way down on the right-hand list to find, “Italy-Photo Transformations”.

I’ll see you next week to find out what the antipasto course is all about in Italian dining. Until then, I say…

Ciao for now,

Steve

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Lamplight on a Blue Door

Index of Articles

Today I have a transformation for you…but it is a bit different than my usual transformations.

“ I could have taken that mail out of the mail slot early on in the process, but I’m not sure of the legal ramifications”

— Quote Source

I came across a rather blah door whilst strolling Venice. And there, sitting right there in front of that door, sat a lamp…but, actually I think it was standing, rather than sitting. And, the cord was draped on the wall, unplugged.

Rather than leave it there in that state, I decided to digitally turn on the light and make it a nighttime scene. See how I did that.

The Original Snapshot

I know, I know. It looks horrible, doesn’t it. So, let’s get going.

Cropping the Original

As is nearly always the case, cropping is necessary. Not only to work down to a 4:5 aspect ratio, but to focus in on the subject. With the modern image resolution of professional cameras, one can zoom in a good bit without losing detail.

And the vertical lines of the doorway seem to drift a bit, so I’ll fix that.

There is still more cropping needed to get to that 4:5 ratio, which is perfect for an 8x10 or 16x20 print, but wait...

What is that Relief Carving Above the Door?

I think ancient superstition has been upheld here. You’ve heard that folks years ago, when hearing thunder, thought that the god’s were bowling in Heaven. I think this just might prove that old-time notion. Note that the angel is holding what appears to be a bowling ball. This large, plaque-like carving is obviously a bowling-trophy-of-old that one would place over their doorway.

Crop It Down

Here I crop it down to the finished size.

Let’s Add Some Color

I am now going to blue-up the door a bit. As the lamp will be emitting a yellowish glow, the contrast of the blue should work well.

Make it Night

There’s too much ambient light…and I want it to be night time so the lamp can do it’s thing.

Turn On the Light

Yes, I was able to find a place to plug in that lamp cord. So, now we have a lonely light, just sitting (or standing) around not doing much of anything, it seems.

And that distracting bowling trophy above the door has been removed.

Did you notice the mail in the mail slot?

Dealing with the Mail

I’ve been putting off this part. I could have taken that mail out of the mail slot early on in the process, but I’m not sure of the legal ramifications, being Italy and all. After examining it closer, I see that it’s just a circular of some sort, complete with a helpful map. Since it’s late at night and they haven’t yet claimed their mail, maybe they just aren’t interested. I’m going to take it out of the slot and throw it away.

Oops, it’s not actually night, is it? I took the photo in the morning…just after mail delivery. So, I’ll slipped it under the door…after all, it could be notice of an upcoming sale at a small, gem-of-a-store called Prosciutto e Parmigiano, which cuts the prosciutto by hand, right in front of you. You can learn more about prosciutto here.

So, here is the finished product. And oh, I also removed the lock on the door…just a little too modern for my taste. And, you can see that the mail has been slipped under the door…I have no interest in being sent to the Italian mail-theft prison.

That’s it for today folks. A lonely, abandoned lamp has been given a new lease on life, casting its abundant rays out into the night…oh, so poetic. But, that reminds me…how about a lamp double Haiku?

Lonely broken lamp,
Yearning for a place to glow.
Silent night - no light.

Broken lamp now fixed,
Casting light like ne’er before.
All is well - tonight.

Until next time…

Ciao for now,

Steve

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Haiku on a Blue Door

Index of Articles

I recently received an order for a print of one of my favorite doors of Venice. Connie had just written a beautiful haiku poem about her longing for Venice…I join her in that daily. As I’ve said many times, ‘Quando sono solo, sogno Venezia”…maybe you do, too.

“‘What is Haiku?’, you ask. I’ll tell you.”

Anyway, her haiku envisioned peeling blue paint on a door of Venice, and her search for an accompanying image resulted in one my transformed doors on this website (see Ancient Venetian Doors here).

Want to read Connie’s beautiful haiku? You’ll see it at the end of this transformation article.

I decided to give Connie a peak behind the curtain…something that most of you have seen many times…to show her how her door came about. As usual, I envisioned something other than what was before me as I walked through the San Marco sestieri of Venice. And as usual, I don’t want to give you the Venice of today, but the Venice of yesteryear, before electrical and water conduits, street lights, mail slots, doorbell ringers, etc.

So, today we get a transformation from blah, to ahh. Here you go, Connie.

[As always, you may click on an image for a full-screen view]

Step 1

Here is my original snapshot. Yes, I know…ugh! What possessed me to even stop and snap this lackluster door? But alas, I always have a vision, and I love to capture images to transform when I return home. And Connie, I’m sorry you have to see this!

Yes, this is the starting point for the final photo. This photo needs a good bit of work to get it to the point of my vision for Venice.

So, what is my vision as it relates to my photography of Venice? It’s important to me that you see a Venice of years gone by. It just so happens that Venice is now celebrating its 1,600th birthday…I know, right?!..that’s a lot of years that have gone by. I would love to have seen it along the way to what it is today…a marvelous city, unlike any other in the world.

To better understand why and how I work toward my goal of a Venice of another time, you can read one of my first blog articles, “The Venice That Isn’t There”.

But back to the blue door…let’s get started.

Step 2

Now, what has to go? The hole above the doorway. All things new, not old. The stormwater drain in front of the door. The window to the right. The doorbells. The address…did they have addresses in Venice’s early centuries? Conduits for water and electricity definitely have to go.

So, here is the door with all of those elements removed.

However, I’m not happy at all with this composition. The angled wall on the left just doesn’t balance well with the wall on the right. But, I can fix that.

Step 3

Time to remove that wall and it's window on the left.

OK now, we’re getting close.

Step 4

With the composition the way I want, it’s time to work on the richness of the color.

Step 5

And next, to move back in time to an older Venice, let’s work on the old-world patina a bit.

Now, we are into the ancient-Venice territory.

Step 6

A blue door is what I had in mind. I’ll show you why in just a moment. But in the meantime, I’ll paint over the door to get that nice blue color for which I longed. And, while I’m at it, I think I’ll polish the door handle a bit.

So, there you have it…Connie’s blue door.

Why the Door in Blue?

Now, about that idea to paint the door blue. As I was strolling the calle of San Marco, I ran across an image that I just had to capture. According to the time-stamp on my digital images, it happened to be exactly 46 seconds before I took a photo of today’s door.

Here was a man dressed in blue, white and red, reading the matching blue, white and red of a framed menu (the window beyond his head is the one that is to the left of the doorway…the wall and window that I removed in Step 3, above).

Serendipity at its best! I just had to match the door’s color to the gentleman’s sportscoat.

Connie’s Haiku

And now, to Connie’s Haiku. ‘What is Haiku?’, you ask. I’ll tell you.

Haiku was originally a form of Japanese poetry consisting of 17 syllables in three lines of 5 syllables, then 7 syllables, ending with another 5 syllables. I say originally, because the original subject matter had to do with evoking images of the natural world. But today, any subject matter that fits the Haiku cadence seems to work.

Finally, here is Connie’s beautiful Haiku:

For Venice, I long...
peeling blue paint—rusted locks
gondolas at dawn.

That’s it for today. Just a quick transformation to celebrate Connie’s Haiku. I hope that you enjoyed seeing behind the digital curtain to glimpse a photo going from zero, to hero. I’ll leave you with this…

For Connie, I print...
transforming pain to beauty,
I too miss Venice.

-or-

Old brown door so blah,
Photoshop transformation -
Now so pretty blue.

As always…

Ciao for now,

Steve

p.s. Please leave a comment below, but make the expression of your experience today into the 5-7-5 syllable format of a Haiku…go ahead, give it a try.

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Major Renovation

I recently completed a major renovation. 'At your home?', you ask. 'No', I say, 'it's another remodel in Venice.'

“As you probably know by now, I don’t want to present today’s Venice to you, but one from several centuries ago. So...with tools in hand, I begin the renovation.”

That's the subject of today's article...another Italian door transformation, but this one, a major renovation. See what I mean below.

Below is the original snapshot that I captured in Venice in 2012. As we find in many renovations, there was a lot that I didn't like when I saw this door, but I also saw some potential.

The original snapshot showing the renovation job ahead of me.

Here is what I didn't like about the scene as it appeared before me. I felt that the symmetry was ruined by the sliver of canal on the right. Does that drainpipe and bit of window on the left add to the architects vision? I don't think so.

As you probably know by now, I don't want to present today's Venice to you, but one from several centuries ago. So, the six apartment ringers on the left and the one on the right need to go. With tools in hand, I begin the renovation.

The canal demolition was easy...with crop tool in hand, all I had to do was chip away a bit at the right side of the image.

I removed the ringer at the right and then patched the hole that was left. Ditto the set of six ringers on the left...but it took a bit more plaster to complete that job.

That pesky drainpipe was a problem. As was the short half pillar. And then there is that bit of wall with window. But, as they say in Italy, "Nessun problema!"

With the proper tools, I was able to cut out the drain pipe, form up and cast the short pillar, and I even though I'm not a stone mason, I had the skills to do some repair to the stone pavement. I'm beginning to see that this job is not insurmountable.

So, below is the current status of my renovation.

Here is the current status of this renovation

Now, this is more of what I had envisioned when I saw the scene before me. Things are beginning to take shape.

There is still a bit more to do, though.

I think that only a designer with a skilled eye can see the changes wrought below, which mainly constitute applying a bit of darkened patina to the plaster work.

But, you with your skilled eye can, I'm sure, see that I've missed a significant element in my renovation work. Yes, it's the mail slot! That mail slot has to go...and it did. Don't bother to look around in nearby trash bins, as I've hidden it away where the residents won't be able to find it!

But, after I got rid of the mail slot, I felt that the huge knocker on the right sat lonely. I went to my catalogs and was able to find a duplicate, which I duly ordered and then installed on the door on the left. Better...I find the two big knockers to be satisfying.

Oh, I then called in an un-locksmith to un-install the modern lock. Gone.

And then as most renovations end, I went through paint chips so that I could apply a fresh coat of paint to the doors. The basic color was the same as the original doors, but I selected a more saturated blue, with just a bit more white in it to lighten the color.

That's it for this week. A complete renovation of a Venetian door. This one fairly dramatic with the removal of that wall et al on the left...and the complete removal of a Venetian canal.

Those knockers remind me of a knock-knock joke. Here it is. I'll leave it to you to start it off -- go ahead:

You: 'Knock-knock'
Me: 'Who's there?'
You: 'Uhhhh....'
Me: [I'm laughing uproariously]

Ciao for now,

Steve

The Venice That Isn’t There

If you've taken a look at my Ancient Venetian Doors collection, what you see is a Venice that doesn't really exist.

What you see in the door photo below isn’t exactly what you would see walking the streets of Venice today. What I create for you is the door you would see if you were walking the streets of Venice 600 years ago.

I spend hours removing electrical conduits, mail slots, bells, and any other items that contradict the feeling that you are in the Venice of yesterday – which is just where I want you to be.

You can see the difference in the ‘before’ photo below. That’s the year 1415 above, and the year 2015 below. It’s the same door, it’s the same surrounding brick, stone and plaster – it’s just a different time.

Now here is another example of the classic Venetian door of yesteryear.

While below is the door of today – laden with ringers and extraneous piping. This is the Venice that I don’t want you to imagine in your dreams. It’s not the more romantic Venice of a time gone by when electricity was not even an imagined concept.

Finally, the example below finds us passing a more modest door – this one not an entrance to a canal-side palazzo, but a more humble abode. No matter the stature of the residence, I believe in presenting the entrance in a more generous light…giving it the best chance of a days-gone-by charm – just for you.

Notice that I’ve taken the liberty of moving the early peacock-themed plaque from above the wall to the place where a window used to be. We’ve moved from an entrance with very little charm, to one loaded with charm. This takes us from a blot on the conscientiousness to an agreeable memory.

Whether in Venice or any other Italian town, I just can't pass up a door or window without stopping to take a photo. Sometimes I really have to stretch my imagination to visualize a dramatic improvement from what is before me. But, this transformational process is what fuels my passion for processing my photos.

Each of the ‘Ancient Venetian Doors’ on the website illustrates how I am dedicated to bringing you a fine-art photographic memento of your dreams of Venice…your dreams of walking through Venice in a different time…your dreams of love and romance in a timeless city in a magical lagoon within a by-gone world. I hope you don't mind!

Ciao for Now!

p.s. Feel free to comment below