Sunset in The Afternoon – Rule of Twos

Photographed December 2021 in Tampere city (near) center, in a park called Sorsapuisto (Duck park) where there's an island for wild birds and when the summer comes, chickens, ducks and a peacock is brought to the park to their own cages. (Unfortunately, because of covid, not this summer or the summer before.)

Sorsapuisto is right next to Tamperetalo (Tampere building) in which there are concerts, exhibitions and other events held, Tampere University, and not that far from Nokia Arena (built 2021) which has hockey games, a casino, restaurants and all kinds of events too, like Tamperetalo, but much larger scale.

There are events also held in Sorsapuisto. For instance the Tampere Philharmonic Orchestra organizes a free outdoor concert every year and also there's a second hand market every Sunday in the summer months where anyone can go sell free of charge.

But now, wintery photos of Sorsapuisto.

As usual, I've decided to make this a post about many things. This is not only an info post about Sorsapuisto but also a little bit about history. And of course photos. Taking them and evaluating my own work. So here we go.

Pairs and couples.

I had a hard time deciding on which photos I should post here, as always, and finally when I had only two left from each topic, I decided to make it the theme of this post. Couples, pairs and twos.

Usually the hardest thing is to determine which one did I do better, the horizontal or the vertical photo. Did I get the right amount of things in to the photo and did I manage to leave all the unnecessary stuff out of it. Did I manage to maintain the balance, keep the focus of the actual subject or does the photo look like it could be better cropped or should I have added some empty space.

And when I feel that there's nothing I want to add of take away but there's still two photos left, vertical and horizontal, I have a problem. Except today when I'm posting both.

Such a neat branch from this direction, landscape photo must be out of the question then.

Then again...
Can't decide but it's a good thing I can post both.

I think the main focus in this one is the light.

But in this one, vertical photo, it's the two trees. Like lovers.

Speaking of lovers. Nice light edge on their beanies.

Nice light on the tree branches as the lovers continue their journey.

Sometimes it's not about picking between two good photos but picking the one that doesn't suck that much or has less flaws than the other option. I know I may ignore many flaws that for instance professional photographers can't unsee and the flaws make the photo in their opinion crappy, but I do however claim that I do have, to some extent, a photographic eye, sometimes I just choose to ignore the flaws in the photo because of various reasons. Usually because I want to tell a story but also because I can't sensor everything I think that might not be that good because then I wouldn't have any publishable pictures or even text. And my personal opinion is that as no-one is perfect, then why should we try to act like we are? So here are my flaws. The ones that I admit anyways.

Nice light but perhaps a little too much stuff goin on in the background.

A little calmer background but no light, no light.

Island right in the center of the photo, except it isn't in the center of the photo and there's a branch on the right side that unbalances the photo so that it's not even a sorry attempt to make a somewhat symmetrical photo.

Something in the foreground but so hard to decide if I want the square building in the background there too or not.

An exception to the rule of twos and couples, this was a party of three, but only because in this one I think I managed to get the right amount of space and branches in the photo.

Couldn't get the setting sunlight to highlight her from the background but as I already mentioned, I'm not perfect. Could have done stuff in post-processing but I think it's a waste of time in not that exceptional photos. The actual sunlight looks quite different than some light added in photoshop, so why bother.

A bit better photo, not great but far more less hassle in the background.

I could end this post with a photo, or in this case two photos that are in my opinion great, to lift the spirit after couple of not that great photos, but why bother and I don't even want to so I'm just going to end this with two photos full of vital information.

But before that, infodump ending, lets jump in to a time machine. I have five photos taken May 2018.

Sitting Woman
No snow, no frost.
Doesn't look like a white walker anymore.

Okay that's enough warm and sunny and time before covid remembrance.

Let's drag ourselves back to this day, coldness and winter.

Time for the infodump I promised.

It says do not feed the Nazis! Garbage law (something)2§

And this one promotes the protest called Helsinki without birds. It also says that together we are stronger. It took place December 6^th, on Finland's independence day.

I'm kinda bummed for the birds but who am I to say how the people in the capital want to deal with bird problems because I do understand them in a way since there are numerous reported occasions when seagulls have stolen weaners, hot dogs and even ice cream from people, right out of their hands and although I'm not sure how a demonstration could help because seagulls do not care, but I absolutely am not going to feed any Nazis. Never! Obviously for the most evident reasons (I don't want to tolerate the intolerant people, hate groups or murderers) but also because of the symbol. They took a beautiful thing that represented something magical and good luck and turned it in to completely horrendous and sickening thing. And of course because Finns used a very similar symbol first and the meaning is now completely ruined.

Never forget.

In so many ways.