The broken chain, a photo from Kyyivska, West

Photographer's Note

‘Kiev - The broken chain’

On the well landscaped square, surrounded by colour fountains, omnipresent music and lots of people having fun, the drama of still fairly recent events is never far away.

First, there’s the canvas on the Trade Unions Building, the temporarily political center of the protesters in 2014 that burned down on the night of 18-19 February. The words ‘Freedom is our religion’ (at the other side in Ukrainian ‘Свобода - це наша релігія’) and the broken chain are visible from almost every corner of Maidan.

Furthermore, in the street that starts next to the column of the Independence Monument there’s also a long row of plaques with pictures of people who were killed during the revolution. You will always find someone there who comes to mourn his killed relatives or friends.
Much more plaques can be found on a huge wall near the St. Michael's Golden-Domed Monastery.

Joy and sorrow lie close together in Kiev.

pajaran, ikeharel, papagolf21, holmertz, macjake, ChrisJ, jhm, PiotrF, worldcitizen, rychem, sacimar, danos, cornejo heeft deze opmerking als nuttig gemarkeerd

Critiques | Translate

papagolf21 (152607) 2017-10-08 0:51

Bonjour, cher Paul,
Merci de nous servir de guide en exprimant ce que vous ressentez à travers la ville.
Pour ma part, je me contente de contempler la ville, ses fontaines illuminées, ses immeubles éclairés, sa foule en mouvement.
Très bonne journée.
Amitiés.
Philippe

ikeharel (114535) 2017-10-08 0:53

Lights and water, "burning" water, marvelously shown on the foreground fountain, Paul, combined with another subject - the large square.
People around appearing very clearly on this night scene, well done on camera settings.
Have a nice sunday,
Ike

peterpap (2863) 2017-10-08 1:32

Hi Paul, nice politically loaded subject, well seen and executed. Well chosen title too. Greetings

lousat (139960) 2017-10-08 1:37

Hi Paul,another magnificent trio from Kiev,the main pic is beautiful witht the surround effect made by the buildings in background around the fountains. I like the second night view in the WS full of life around the street artist,while the clock made by flowers and vegetables is very common everywhere..ehhee...well done! Have a nice Sunday and thanks,Luciano

holmertz (103584) 2017-10-08 1:55

Hello Paul,
The illuminated buildings and the red lights in the fountain create a fantastic atmosphere at this blue hour. Slowly I discover the people moving all over the square and realize even better what a magnet this place is to the inhabitants of the city. It is surely a place for mingling in the evenings and for taking photos. For the moment of my arrival in Kiev I knew I had done the right thing to have booked a room in Khreschatyk Street.
Kind regards,
Gert

Tue (93374) 2017-10-08 2:02

Hallo Paul,
Het drukke plein ziet er heel aantrekkelijke uit in al zijn levendigheid. De verschillend gekleurde lichten maken er ook een heel mooie foto van. Het grote doek aan de rechterkant laat ook het belang zien van herinnering van de recente geschiedenis. Uitstekende nachtfotografie.
Lars

GyurMaster (25018) 2017-10-08 2:32

Hello Paul,

Amazing nocturne with spectacular lights and colours.

Best Wishes,
Gy.

Nicou (193814) 2017-10-08 2:42

Hlelo

quel jeu de jet en premier plan avec le lumière rouge quel effet puis cette lignée de lumières blanches et en fond la belle lumioère jaune douce sur ces édifices quelle vue nocturne et maîtrise des lumières sueprbe.
Bravo et amitié
Nciou

macjake (98544) 2017-10-08 4:03

Hi Paul
this may be my favorite shot you've posted of this main area recently. this image has alot going on for it, the lights in the fountain look like they're on fire, the poster on the right is powerful, and the blues/yellows are a sweet filler in the upper bg. cool shot with a hidden political meaning as well. cheers
Craig

ChrisJ (172408) 2017-10-08 4:15

Hi Paul,

A terrific blue hour shot from Kievs main square. Good warm cold color contrasts and excellent sharpness. I like the repetition of the fg plumes of water and their orange lights. Tfs!

jhm (211738) 2017-10-08 4:51

Goedemiddag Paul,

Antwoord op uw vraag: niet het is onmogelijk het gebouw te betreden.

We krijgen niet één, maar vijf mooie foto's te zien, zijn bijna allemaal TE waardig.
Ik vind het altijd spijtig dat de mensen zo een kort geheugen hebben, na de gebeurtenissen is er geen sprake meer van wat in het verleden is gebuurt.
Ik vind de fontein heel mooi met de brandende kaarsen.
Pracht foto werk, bedankt.

Prettige zondag,
John.

Sergiom (117241) 2017-10-08 7:32

Bonjour Paul,

C'est vrai que l'histoire très récente des événements dans cette ville ont laissé des traces. Ils sont fait quelque chose de très beau avec ces fontaines colorées, mais il na faut pas oublier surtout.

Amicalement

Serge

bebbetto (122) 2017-10-08 10:46

Very good night-picture. Lights and shadows are well balanced

batalay (41261) 2017-10-08 14:03

Hello Paul,

Are the flames representative of the oil and tar fields? It's a very effective nighttime photo where you've managed the light ideally. I have not visited the Ukraine in the past 6-7 years, certainly not since Crimea was annexed by the Putin. I wonder what the prevailing feeling is in Kiev?

Incidentally, in the "optical illusion" embodied in my last post, the staircase is laid out horizontally, with each floor actually a room. The woman in the photo (my wife) simply walked into room 3-4 as I prepared to take the photo.

Warm regards,

Bulent

carlo62 (81265) 2017-10-08 14:15

Ciao Paul
forse la musica, le luci e tutto il resto è solo un modo per esorcizzare i brutti eventi ricordati dalle targhe commemorative.
Spero proprio che la popolazione viva senza le paure del passato.
Saluti
Carlo

PiotrF (55934) 2017-10-08 15:02

Hello Paul,
Another interesting view from Kiev. Very good picture with excellent color , good saturation and sharpness. Thank you for informative note.
Good work, fine presentation.
Regards
Piotr

worldcitizen (16226) 2017-10-08 15:54

Hello Paul,
The plaques of those who lost their lives in the WS photo are a sad reminder of the recent past. They are a stark contrast to this beautiful view of the square at night. The red lights make the small fountains look like they also have fire coming out of them, and the billboard with the broken chain is certainly large. It looks larger than some of the buildings on the other sides of the square. It's a very interesting set of photos.

emka (158744) 2017-10-08 23:47

Hello,

another picture from Maidan with this huge canvas. In this picture it seems that the people are enjoying the summer evening, but could they forget the killed friends? I saw the symbolical cemetery with the photos of the victims when I was in Bratislava . Fantastic blue hour pictures. Splendid colours.

Rgds MAlgo

rychem (72187) 2017-10-09 8:20

Beautiful night photo and beautiful square full of life, excellent presentation
regards Ryszard

gervaso (28387) 2017-10-09 10:33

Hello, Paul!

Wonderful night shot, with the different colors of the lights of the fountains, in the foreground, and the buildings in the background! The light was very well managed and the sharpness is perfect! Very nice job!

ktanska (45048) 2017-10-09 10:59

Hi Paul,
A place so full of history and symbolism. And your late blue hour shot is absolutely beautiful. Although light is low, i'm glad that you didn't use longer exposure time. This way those fountains that seem to be on fire look quite lively.
Kari

mkamionka (75079) 2017-10-09 23:46

Hi Paul,
fantastic contrast of the fiery little fountains in the foreground with the orange buildings at the back and the dark blue sky.
This is so extraordinary that it could serve as a scenery for the new Star Wars movie which was released today :)
Great reportage from the famous square. Each picture seems so different like from a different place.
Very attractive presentation, encouraging to visit Kiev!
M

sacimar (38173) 2017-10-10 5:42

Hello Paul,

good night image of this square, I like the fountains with the light we can see here, it is interesting also the image of the broken chain and the sentence we can read, well seen,

Best regards,

Sergio

Silvio1953 (222847) 2017-10-10 6:32

Ciao Paul, fascinating nocturne shoot, excellent exposure, wonderful colors and splendid light, very well done, my friend, ciao Silvio

danos (110407) 2017-10-10 11:08

Hello Paul,
nice the night snapshot from the impressive square of Kiev,with the canvas on the right to be the eye catching of the scene.The well lighted old buildings with the red lights in the fountains makes the image even more attractive.

regards,Danos

cornejo (61504) 2017-10-16 11:30

Hello Paul, very good photo of this interesting view of the beautiful night panorama of the city, very well captured in this beautiful image, with good clarity, light, color and quality. A great job perfectly done, my congratulations, my friend. Thank you for sharing this interesting work.

Good night and happy week.
All the best from the south of Spain.
Angel.