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This is probably one of the best known and most photographed scenes in the world.
I'm standing in the pre-sunrise twilight looking out over the Guidecca Canal towards the island of San Giorgio Maggiori.
In front of me a line of moored gondolas gently bob up and down in the swell, while behind me St Mark's Square and the Doge's Palace lie somnolent in the still, cold air.
There's only one place in the world I could be - Venice - and I'm here at the most magical time of day.
I've photographed here before at the other end of the day as twilight fades to dusk, but there's a world of difference between the two experiences.
At dusk there are hundreds of visitors milling around taking flash photos, and the ambiance is one of a genteel frenzy - nice enough but not with that special something that I seek.
Dawn, on the other hand, arrives in silence like a gentle breath of wind, as the party goers and tourists are all safely tucked up in bed, leaving the scene to the odd photographer or two and a lonely seagull.
Dawn is my time, a time for contemplation, for prayer, and for taking photographs.
Filename - venice gondolas 04.jpg
Camera - Canon 5D
Lens - 24-105mm zoom @ 24mm
Exposure - 30secs @ f14, ISO100
Location - Venice, Italy
This image - 800x450px JPEG
Conversion - ACR & PS-CS2
Comments - Long exposure use to blur the water and gondolas.
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