By Mark Dafey. Jerusalem was one of the last places I wanted to visit after seven years living in the Middle East. I wanted to explore and stay in its Old City – a goldmine for photographers. This is the Dome of the Rock on Temple Mount, just outside the Old city walls. It is one of the Muslim religion’s most holy sites and can be seen with Judaism and Christianity’s holiest sites in the same day.
Canon EOS 5D; EF20mm f/2.8 USM; 1/125s; f/11; ISO100
Don’s response
Judging from the near absence of shadows on the figures just off-centre, photographer Mark Dafey captured this image at midday – which isn’t often the best time to be taking pictures. And yet this image works very well thanks, as much as anything, to the exquisite texture created by the beautiful and intricate tile work of the facade.
By capturing the passers by just off-centre, he’s added a subtle dynamism. Without the people it would have been just a pretty, if somewhat dull picture of a facade.
To my eye, the only minor niggle is the slightly distracting pincushion distortion (which causes the horizontal lines to bow toward the middle of the picture). Fortunately Mark can easily remedy this minor defect with his favourite image editor.
