Pienza, Tuscany
Fujifilm GFX100S II, GF20-35mmF4 R WR,  f4 @ 1/60 second, ISO 6400

It's interesting which photos you gravitate to. After my trips to Europe last year, I produced a portfolio I have called Wanderings with around 50 images. Obviously I like all of them because I've invested the time to edit them carefully and I'm very pleased with the portfolio overall, but when choosing some of the images to write about, I find myself gravitating back to the little town of Pienza.

Back in November I posted a photo of this little piazza, but taken from the other side. I'm in a small courtyard, looking through an archway with a wonderful curve at the top. However, by keeping the curve within the composition, the other elements felt a little lost, so I tightened the framing so the hero of the image - the facade of the church - is correctly sized. And the curve of the frame solves the problem, but that's really incidental.

I love it. The light, the colour, the geometry of the shapes and how they fit together. Perhaps it is the location that is speaking to me, the experience of being there early in the morning, before the sun rises and the town begins to stir. A little coffee shop is opening its doors, but there's too much to shoot and so a hot cuppa will have to wait.

And I think this is the message for this week: follow your heart. We have no control over other people and whether they like our photos - or not. Obviously we hope they do, but don't worry about it. The only thing we can do is make sure we love it. 

Some of my edits in post-production included the lightening of the white church facade, darkening the stone flagging in the square and adding a little colour saturation to the orange building and church doors. But it's all held together by the gorgeous pre-dawn light.

And if you're interested in seeing more of this series of photos, I have a 100-page ePortfolio available for sale on the on website. It's titled Wanderings - I'm trying something new! You can see more details by clicking here.