2024: One year in 7 photos

January 1, 2025January 1, 2025 / mikeosbornphoto / 8 Comments

A Happy New Year to you all! We might be wondering what lies ahead in 2025, but the old year can be neatly packaged.

I’m pulling together 2024 in just seven photographs. It was a year punctuated by more travel since the pandemic, including some unheralded destinations.

Spells at home were spent stalking the changing buildings of Manchester and waiting for the next departure – a rollercoaster ride.

Do you have just a few photos that bring the year to life?

1. FAMILY HOLIDAY

I went on a summer break to the Spanish island of Fuerteventura and observed hundreds of family holidays, including this beautifully-placed one taking their sunset walk along the beach. It was for me an unusually relaxing, enjoyable week in the sun and I found a fascination with resort architecture in this holiday playground.

2. LITTLE CORNER OF THE MARKET

The African island nation of São Tomé e Príncipe was an adventurous trip to a virtually unknown destination. The main island had a lively, chaotic capital city and amidst the natural beauty was still processing its colonial past. I’d found my gateway to seeing more unusual corners of the planet with this memorable visit.

• See more of fabulous São Tomé here

3. CUBES AND THE TOWER

I visited the Dutch city of Rotterdam with the intent of chasing the city’s varied and bold post-war architecture – and wasn’t disappointed. Even the zany cube houses, seen by millions of tourists, were a delight. Rotterdam, basking in summer sunshine, was a pleasant place to spend a long weekend.

• See more of ravishing Rotterdam here

4. PERAST AND BEYOND

This was a first trip to Montenegro’s stunning Bay of Kotor – an inland sea with the qualities of an Alpine lake. The town of Perast (pictured) and a beautiful hotel were quieter out of season in April, while my relaxing stay also included a whistle-stop tour of Montenegro’s ruggedly scenic north.

• See much more of Montenegro here

5. TINY ISLAND CAPITAL

You can’t visit São Tomé without hopping over to sister island Príncipe – much smaller, less developed and natural. It’s become a far flung destination for small-scale more sustainable tourism and has turned a legacy of plantations into high-end accommodation offering relaxation and adventure. I could easily go back for a two-week holiday.

• See more of this little paradise here

6. CENTRAL HALL, MANCHESTER

The one Manchester highlight that has squeezed into a travel-rich 2024. This building, not far from where I live, started out as a railway station and is a well-known city centre landmark. It was opened to the public this year and stepping inside made its true scale and ingenuity apparent. It’s not all about new skyscrapers in this city.

• See more of this engineering feat here

7. OUTSIDE THE STORE, ANJOUAN

The final trip of the year took me to a country which took a long time to reach and was barely touched by tourism, possibly the most obscure destination I have ever visited. The Comoros Islands was beautiful, its people fascinating and wonderfully photogenic even in mundane settings. I’m still digesting my visit as 2025 takes hold.

• See more of unknown Comoros here

Fuerteventura: Costa Calma

September 22, 2024September 22, 2024 / mikeosbornphoto / 2 Comments

My recent island travels have taken me to São Tomé e Príncipe and Cape Verde, which were all about exploration.

This time I visited Fuerteventura in Spain’s Canary Islands, where the emphasis is on sun, sand and relaxation.

I stayed at Costa Calma in the south-east of the island, settling down to days of hotel buffet meals, lounging around and sunset wanders.

But there was photography too, capturing the essence of this popular destination.

Would you like to kick back and take it easy here?

Tap/click first image to see gallery

Fuerteventura: Island architecture

September 8, 2024September 8, 2024 / mikeosbornphoto / Leave a comment

I recently went on a good old-fashioned beach holiday to the Spanish island of Fuerteventura.

It’s a destination blessed with a sunny climate, beautiful beaches and has relaxation at its heart.

But on Fuerteventura’s Costa Calma, especially popular with German holidaymakers, I became fascinated with the resort’s architecture.

Could your attention be turned away from the beach? CONTINUE READING BELOW

Tap/click first image to view gallery

I stayed at the SBH Crystal Beach Hotel, a large confection of concrete and marble made for hundreds of holidaymakers.

It was a layer cake of whitewashed tiers, confusing to navigate, but boasted a beautiful view over the long beach.

The coast has been developed over the years with several large hotels and a little resort town, packed with white and pastel buildings guarded by sturdy desert plants.

The neighbouring Taro Hotel took the prize for architectural exuberance, topped with peaked concrete slabs like southern Fuerteventura’s rugged mountains.

Down on the beach, the bright yellow lifeguard pods became something of an architectural obsession in their own right.

This little getaway reminded me of family holidays to Spain in the 1970s and 80s, when the big hotel was king and you didn’t have to go far.

The beautiful skies, stark lines and rich colours were a joy to photograph – it wasn’t all snoozing and swimming on this sunshine break!

Has your simple beach holiday turned into an architectural joy? Let me know :)

The Monochrome Challenge

December 6, 2014 / mikeosbornphoto / 21 Comments

Five monochrome photographs in five days on Facebook. This was the gauntlet laid down to me by photographer Steven Kelly. This gave me the chance to delve into the archives and revisit favourite old shots and explore why they are etched in my memory. Click the images to enlarge

Day one: Towards West Pier from March 2012, one of the first shots published on mikeosbornphoto. Brighton’s skeletal structure is often photographed, while the figures on the stone jetty make it look distant. It’s timeless in monochrome and reminds me of a coastal visit on an unusually warm day.

Day Two: Towards the Mountain. Taken on the Spanish island of Fuerteventura in May 2013. It’s not just a holiday playground but endowed with dramatic landscapes. The lone figure trudging across the sand makes this memorable for me.

Day Three: Wapping Portico. A shot from 2012 of a covered walkway in the affluent riverside area of London. The shadows and sense mystery made it clear that architecture is a favourite area of mine.

Day Four: Elegant descent. A swirling, beautiful design at London’s Tate Britain gallery which naturally lends itself to monochrome treatment. This is a piece of work that needs to be photographed.

Day Five: Contemplation. I picked a recent photo to complete my five shots, from the Tower of London on Armistice Day when the moat was filled with ceramic poppies. The scarlet has gone to add emphasis on the young woman’s expression and the capture of a moment.

And then the challenge is passed onto someone else, like a pleasantly creative chain letter. I asked Richard Cooper-Knight to choose his monochrome five, which he has published on his blog.

If anyone fancies a nomination, I will happily provide one!

Favourite shots of 2013: Part I

December 30, 2013December 30, 2013 / mikeosbornphoto / 16 Comments

The first full year of taking photographs and sharing them with you has almost passed. 2013 has been eventful and I’ve been to numerous places around London and beyond, seeking inspiration.

It’s been tough to choose 10 shots that have really stayed with me, proved a lasting joy and pleasure – and evoke memories of the past 12 months. Click to enlarge the photographs or view them as a gallery here or at the foot of the post.

WHITE CITY

This hazy, sepia-tinged image of the rooftops of west London’s White City estate sums up the severe winter weather we experienced at the beginning of 2013. I took it from the top of BBC Television Centre, a workplace I would leave for good in March as a broadcast era came to a close.

DESSICATED BEAUTY

This shot of a flower at the end of its life pleased me with the amount of detail and fresh, dappled bokeh. After moving house in May, I came to Ravenscourt Park’s walled garden for two seasonal sessions. Such a small space but so much beautiful natural material for the camera.

HAMMERSMITH AND CITY GOLD

This night image of a London Tube train hurtling past the back of my old house reminds me of a warm Spring evening with the window wide open and a tripod set up. This gold abstract has become the emblem of my online presence and sparked off an interest in creating digital art through photography in 2013.

TOWARDS THE MOUNTAIN

I love the drama of this photograph, with the rugged mountain in the shadow of the sun and the lone figure moving over the sand. My only trip overseas in 2013 was to the holiday island of Fuerteventura, which was a revelation with its bristling light, fantastic sunsets and vibrant colours.

BEACH HUT INFINITY

A trip to the lovely seaside resort of Whitstable in Kent yielded this slice of endless colour, which I noticed but could easily have missed. It might be less vibrant than the beach huts in Bournemouth, but is a reminder of a memorable day trip to the ever-giving British coast.