So close and yet so far away, a photo from Yerevan, West

Photographer's Note

‘Yerevan - So close and yet so far away’

In the foreground you see a part of the Armenian capital, Yerevan.
In the distance Mount Ararat with its two peaks: Greater Ararat (5.137 m.) and Lesser Ararat (3.896 m.).

According to the Bible and the Koran Noah's ark landed on Mount Ararat when the waters of the flood subsided.
Also in Armenian culture this mountain is of high significance.
Like Mount Olympus is the home of the Gods in the Greek mythology, Mount Ararat is the same in the Armenian mythology. It has become the national symbol of the country and is featured in its coat of arms. Armenians consider the Ararat as their highest mountain even though he is located on Turkish territory.

As a consequence of the history of both nations, the border between Armenia and Turkey is closed.
It is possible for Armenians to visit Turkey and for Turks to go to Armenia. But then a long detour overland through Georgia or Iran must be made or the airplane must be taken to Istanbul.
While Mount Ararat is at a distance of only 56 km. from Armenia's capital and clearly dominating its skyline, for many Armenians their symbol remains unattainable ...

The picture was taken a little before sunset on top of Yerevan Cascade (a very huge staircase and monument built on a hillside with water fountains running down).

Kamilutka, jhm, ikeharel, adramad, Cricri, photoray, bukitgolfb301, boa, ChrisJ, Romano46, kato, nikkitta, josepmarin, adores heeft deze opmerking als nuttig gemarkeerd

Critiques | Translate

npecanhuk (79329) 2014-03-13 20:11

Hi Paul!
It seems a great location for a city! I love those mountains in the background!
Very attractive picture too!
Although I miss a bit more of sharpness and contrasts, I do enjoy the soft light & colors, chosen pov and composition!
TFS,
Cheers,
Neyvan

emka (158128) 2014-03-13 23:15

Hello Paul, Finally the photo from Armania! I notice that there are so few photos on TE from Armenia, about 20 pages only and I have seen them all. Interesting note. From photos, this Cascade seems very attractive and wirh many photo opportunities. And what a beautiful view it is. Lovely colours before sunset.
Still three weeks and I will be there.
Have a beautiful day

MAlgo

jemaflor (147104) 2014-03-14 0:56

Salut Paul,
Très belle vue dominante sur la ville avec en fond ces silhouettes montagneuses, la lumière est splendide avec ces tons rosés très plaisants.

Kamilutka (8107) 2014-03-14 3:34

Hello Paul,
The city does not look very charming with all the concrete blocks but the way you made the foreground of it for the Mt Ararat was very clever idea. I like also the colors which soften the image and make the whole scene look more subtle. Well proportioned composition with very good light management.
Thanks for sharing
Kamila

jhm (211736) 2014-03-14 5:28

Dag Paul,

Het een beetje lang geleden dat de Ark van Noë daar strandde, maar wie weet misschien is het de waarheid.
Uw titel is mooi aangebracht, we zien dichtbij en toch ook zeer ver.
Uw foto is gemaakt met een goed licht en schaduw gedeelte, waardoor uw fot interessant wordt.
Goede nota ook en goede voorstelling van dit stuk van Armenië.
Mooie presentatie, bedankt.

Prettig weekend,
John.

Sergiom (117241) 2014-03-14 6:13

Bonjour Paul,

Une belle vue d'ensemble sur la vallée bien remplie d'habitations. Une ville moderne à laquelle on ne s'attend pas en Arménie. Une lumière superbe avec ces belles teintes de rose sur les montagnes en arrière plan.

Amicalement

Serge

lousat (139236) 2014-03-14 6:50

Hi Paul,great choice of the moment,very difficult to manage but very nice to wacht,great warm diagonal light to create this beautiful 3D effect,all under a magic pink sky,i like it! Have a nice weekend and thanks,Luciano

ikeharel (113319) 2014-03-14 8:52

Good evening Paul,
We do not see many pictures from Armenia on TE, so this is a great contribution.,
The town under golden afternoon light is under the shade of the high mount Ararat, I think this would be the "trade-mark" of this city.
Inspite of the mist prevailed, I enjoy looking at, a very impressive sight.
Gest regards,
Ike

holmertz (102672) 2014-03-14 9:16

Hello Paul,
Finally you have arrived in Armenia. The title is well chosen for this view of the culturally significant mountains. They are clearly visible in spite of the evening haze and light clouds and they are shrouded in beautiful colours. At my hotel I was offered a choice of a slightly cheaper room facing the garden and a slightly more expensive with a view of Ararat. Naturally I chose the Ararat side.
Kind regards,
Gert

adramad (72978) 2014-03-14 11:00

Hi Paul.
A great POV, with this wide plain, where it sits, the capital of the Armenians, superb DOF with the image of the emblematic mountains in the distance, a great time of late, with the remains of sun, illuminating the buildings and creates a beautiful blue sky and those pink clouds.
A colorful perfect very natural.
A bright image with optimum clarity.
Good job. I love it.
Enjoy a good weekend.
Best wishes.
Luis.

Subhogen (4067) 2014-03-14 12:04

Hello Paul,
Nice view of the city skyline from your high POV. Like the last rays of the sun making the buildings glow. The view of the mountains through the haze looks like a large sand storm is approaching the city. A moody and atmospheric shot which I like a lot. Thanks for sharing.
Regards,
Subhi

Didi (61589) 2014-03-15 9:36

Salut Paul
Certes tu étaie en Arménie, mais le mont célèbre fait partie de la Turquie
Vu l'orientation, je pense que l'image a été prise après le lever du soleil
J'apprécie les couleurs
Je me demande cependant si tu avais la possibilité de photographier le volcan avec le soleil à l'opposé
Contraintes de voyages oblige peut être
Amicalement

rbassin (27472) 2014-03-15 10:26

bonsoir Paul
Une vue très agréable sur la ville;
j'aime bien la lumière qui effleure le haut des façades créant ainsi du rythme et du relief.
Bon W-E
Roland

Cricri (176) 2014-03-15 10:56

Bonjour Paul
Belle vue sur la ville avec un bel effet de lumière et une vue agréable sur les montagnes, tout bon POV et moment choisi
Belle soirée
cricri

mesutilgim (0) 2014-03-15 13:56

Hello Paul,
Nice capture of Yerevan backed with this majestic Ararat. Very nice warm sunlight and many interesting notes.
TFS and have a nice weekend
MESUT ILGIM

photoray (13981) 2014-03-15 14:53

Howdy Paul,

Mount Ararat does dominate over the last sun glow, with Yerevan stacked and crowded construction from foreground as far as visible.

Thanks for sharing,
Cheers,
Ray

bukitgolfb301 (54014) 2014-03-15 17:17

Hi Bonsior dear Paul, how are you? Sorry for my late reply as so busy weekday.

Very wonderful and fantastic landscape.Delight slight color gradation and warm light are so well cought. I like this color touch so much.
Are you ready for Visit Japan? Waiting for you.

All the best and have a good Sunday! TAKERO

SWEETFREEDOM (24623) 2014-03-16 1:09

Hi Paul,
nice colors and view over the city and the big mountains in bg.
regards
Alessandro

krzychu30 (15512) 2014-03-16 5:24

Hello Paul,
what a breathtaking view!
Superb panoramic shot with lovely,warm light illuminating the whole scene and impressive mountains as a backdrop for the city.
Everything works just fine here to achieve such magnificent visual effect!

Have a nice sunday
Krzysztof

boa (8039) 2014-03-16 13:22

Hi Paul,
you must had an interesting journey when you was in this part of the world! Beautiful view and amazing light and colors in this scene.
Tblisi are more beautiful than Yerevan after what i have heard, but still worth a visit. Is it possible to travel by train between the two capitals?
Nice shot and an interesting note, tfs!

Best regards/
Boa

ChrisJ (171822) 2014-03-18 14:26

Hi Paul!

Some of my Muslim students have pointed out that Noah's ark actually came to rest on Mt Judi, which is in the southern Ararat Range of mountains.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mount_Judi

Semantics aside, I like the late afternoon sunlight hitting the tops of the taller buildings and the soft sunset colors. Nice warm cold color contrasts between blue and orange. Tfs!

fabbs99 (17179) 2014-03-18 23:47

Hi Paul,

Remarkable shot of the Arafat mountains from Yerevan.Nice colors and good sharpness.TFS.

Cheers
Farhat

Romano46 (18472) 2014-03-19 10:00

Ciao Paul
non sapevo che il Monte Ararat fosse visibile anche da Yerevan.
Peccato però che la luce molto bella per illuminare in maniera suggestiva i palazzi della città non sia la più favorevole per mostrare il suo cono di neve sulla sommità.
Ma a parte il Monte Ararat la foto è molto suggestiva e la composizione molto curata- Eccellente la nitidezza.
Ciao e buona serata
Romano

kato (11630) 2014-03-19 20:39

Hello Paul,

You're capturing well this cityscape and the surroundings by a good angle and excellent tone/clarity, so it's interesting and impressive to see the Yerevan with a lot of buildings on flat ground and tasteful/high mountains in the distance. It's good color contrast in evening. And, the whole is harmonized well by the beautiful color combination.

Kind regards,
mikio

carlo62 (81265) 2014-03-20 0:17

Ciao Paul
luce fantastica e panorama incredibile, con un bellissimo cielo.
È veramente piacevole osservare questo spazio infinito.
Saluti
Carlo

nikkitta (17070) 2014-03-20 15:04

Hola Paul

So now is Armenia and..Ararat mountain looming at the back, must be the better hour to take photos, because of the golden light and some mist covering it
Good composition and informative note, tfs
Maria

Gigidusud (21679) 2014-03-21 14:53

Bonsoir Paul,
Très joli panorama sur Erevan éclairée d'une belle lumière rosée. Une destination très peu vue sur TE. Une série de photo qui fera plaisir à ma belle-mère d'origine arménienne.
Merci pour le partage.
Gigi

ACL1978 (7511) 2014-03-22 19:06

A meaningful shot here, Paul, showing the draw of Ararat to Armenians, and yet also its unattainability behind Turkish borders. Beautiful light across a modern part of Yerevan overlooking the mountain, and the clouds gathered around it are a sight in such great sundown light. Thanks!

Andrew

josepmarin (59385) 2014-03-23 5:26

Hi Paul,
the low light and the tones of the sunset give a very beautiful atmosphere on the view of the city, while the silhouettes of the Biblical mountain in background provide a great depth sense.
I like the structure of the elements in the framing, you've reached a high quality level in your composition.
Well done.
Best regards,
Josep

adores (46979) 2014-04-13 17:39

Hi Paul!
Seems you have started another magnificent country!
A good shot to start your series, I like this view of the city with Mount Ararat in background and the sunset colours are very good.

jmdias (115128) 2014-06-08 15:52

paul

an impressive view of the mountain. the title give us an idea about the troubles with the property of the famous mountain. very nice image with a pink hue and the buildings.

hugs

jorge

mkamionka (74375) 2022-05-20 1:56

Hi Paul,
You captured a very romantic moment with the last rays of sun subtly touching the tallest buildings in town. Yes the mountain clearly dominates the panorama and makes us think how little are people and their problems in comparison to the scale of the world.
Quite a sad story with the Armenian Turkish relationship.
I have a lot of admiration for Turkish culture but I think that maybe it grew out of proportion at certain point and it seems impossible for cultures so different to make one country. Maybe that is why Turkey committed genocide there.
Very interesting trip for sure. Much closer from Poland I suppose but yes since I don't live in Poland anymore it is actually further for me now...
Great reportage,
M