Mosque magic
You have to visit the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque at least twice on a visit to Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates. By the dazzling light of day, this beguiling building teems with visitors and can be hot work. But it remains open until long after sunset, and is transformed by illuminations which unveil a magical spectrum of colours, shimmering reflections and accentuate the wonderful lines and shapes created by this wonder of architecture.
After dark, the visitors have thinned out and lurk as silhouettes, and you can find stretches of the mosque are your own. The grounds are lit with warm, golden lamps which add to the atmosphere. And as for night photography, the lighting means that a tripod isn’t essential or even necessary. You must definitely take a night stroll around this building if you’re ever in this Middle Eastern city.
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mikeosbornphoto 
Mike, these images are absolute attention grabbers. Spectacular clarity and colour. Dual silhouette is the star because of its simplicity, with the man adding a sense of scale to the scene.
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James, thank you very much, I’m glad you like them. I’m pleased I managed to convey some of the spectacle and atmosphere of the mosque after dark. I hope all is well with you oop north.
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OOP North is fine thanks for asking Mike and I hope all is well douwn souf .
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Glad to hear it, James. It’s fine down here although no real Spring breakthrough quite yet…
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Beautiful! It’s also interesting to see that, in spite of the spectacular colour, the mono images are still easily able to hold their own.
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It’s a super place, Noeline. And I agree, I don’t think it falls flat without colour – there so many shapes, lines and reflections which remain strong in mono.
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Wow, Mike these are stunning images. Those colours are astounding. How I would dearly love to experience this myself. I hope to one day perhaps visit. p.s. I became a Naturalised British Citizen last week ;) Hoorah!
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Thanks so much, Cindy. It’s great to visit and I would especially do so at night. Well worth the trip. And many congratulations on your naturalisation! I thought they would have handed it to you given all the work you do to promote London!
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Hahahaha! yeah, you’d think!!! But nope, I had to work for that too. But, It’s such an amazing feeling….I still wake up in the mornings with a little thrill….I’m a UK citizen. :) Amazing. I’m aplying for my passport this week, and then the world (maybe) is my oyster ;) Photos to follow LOL
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Wonderful, almost worth a stopover just to see this one building!
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It’s pretty stunning, Lee. I must confess this was my primary reason for popping by Abu Dhabi.
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Stunning images, Mike! The Blue Stucco one is quite haunting, but it’s the Nocturnal Colonnades that REALLY blows me away! :D
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Wow thank you Richard. To be honest with this illuminated by building there’s such a wealth of riches it would be hard not to take some away. It’s fast becoming one of the most photographed attractions. Fair play to the Emiratis!
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