Category Archives: Photography

Photo of the Week – Solomon’s Pillars

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In my most recent post about the exhibit at the Israel Museum I mentioned the Egyptian goddess Hathor which Canaanite worker-miners identified with their Ba’alat. Timna is a popular place north of Eilat for hiking. As your guide, I can show you a shrine to Hathor and an engraving of the Pharaoh Ramses III that was found, 1st half of 12th Century BCE.

This week’s photo is of Solomon’s Pillars, tall sandstone rock formations at Timna, one of the places in Israel where ancient Egyptian artifacts were found.

Solomon's Pillars 2

The technical details – this photo was taken late afternoon with a Nikon D90 digital SLR camera in February 2010 (ISO 220, 25mm, F10 at 1/250 sec). Clicking on the image will display it larger.

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Photographs on this website are © Shmuel Browns (unless marked otherwise) – if you are interested in buying or using one of my photos for your own project please contact me.

Photo of the Week – Poppies in Emeq HaEla

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In January it was kalaniot (red anemones) in bloom, now in April it’s poppies. I am always happy to take you exploring nature sites in Israel. This photo was taken in Emeq HaEla.

Poppies Emeq HaEla

The technical details – the photo was taken with a Nikon digital SLR camera in the afternoon (ISO 200, 35mm, F10 at 1/250 sec). Clicking on the image will display it larger.

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Photographs on this website are © Shmuel Browns (unless marked otherwise) – if you are interested in buying or using one of my photos for your own project please contact me.

Photo of the Week – Sinkholes at Dead Sea

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I was guiding yesterday at Masada and Ein Gedi and talked about the changes in the levels of the Dead Sea and the occurrence of sinkholes along the shoreline. We stopped to take a look at some sinkholes closeup and I took these two photographs of a blue sinkhole and a photo of salt patterns at the edge of the sea. The Dead Sea is a unique location and it is fascinating to photograph there. You can also see another post of sinkhole photos here.

Blue sinkholeSalt patternsSinkhole

The technical details – the photos were taken with a Nikon 5300 digital SLR camera yesterday early afternoon (first photo at  ISO 360, 18mm, F11 at 1/500 sec). Clicking on the image will display it larger.

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Photographs on this website are © Shmuel Browns (unless marked otherwise) – if you are interested in buying or using one of my photos for your own project please contact me.

Photo of the Week – Judean Desert

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Among deserts, the Judean desert is considered relatively small, spanning only 1,500 square kilometers, but it includes many fascinating nature reserves, historic sites and monasteries that make it an interesting and unique place to visit. An area bordered by cliffs on both sides it is a desert with running water and in one place geothermal springs. If you are into photography its primeval panoramas make it a special place to photograph. As your guide I’ll take you there to explore.

DSC_0536

The technical details – this photo was taken in the afternoon with my Nikon D90 digital SLR camera in February 2013 (ISO 200, 52mm, F11 at 1/400 sec). Clicking on the image will display it larger.

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Photographs on this website are © Shmuel Browns (unless marked otherwise) – if you are interested in buying or using one of my photos for your own project please contact me.

Lupines at Tel Socho

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To visit Israel enables experiencing where kings and prophets walked. Today just out of Jerusalem along highway <375> are the remains of towns in Judea mentioned in the Bible/Prophets: Lachish, Azeka, Shaarayim, Adullam, Socho.

Tel Socho

Today was a beautiful day as we drove to Tel Socho, a hill containing the buried remains of the city, covered by a spring carpet of purple lupines, yellow daisies, mustard flowers and more.

In the time of King Saul, the Philistines encamped in the Elah valley in the territory of Judah between Sokho and Azekah after their defeat at Mikhmas, putting forth Goliath as their champion (1 Samuel 17:1). Almost everyone knows the story, how young David slew the giant Goliath with a slingshot and a smooth river stone and the Philistine army was routed. Today there was a family visiting the tel and the daughter, studying the Prophets for her bat mitzvah, was retelling the story. And I was taking photographs of the flowers.

Field of LupinesRabbi Antigonus of Sokho, mentioned in the Mishna, Ethics of the Fathers (Pirkei Avot 1:3), likely came from another town of the same name south of Hebron.

Photo of the Week – Meron synagogue

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A less visited site on Meron than the well-known tomb of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, are the ruins of a late 3rd century CE synagogue in the basilica style (a large rectangular room divided by two rows of columns) which survived an earthquake in 306 CE, but was severely damaged or destroyed by another earthquake in 409 CE. Only the façade is still standing with three openings, inside are the remains of the bases of the columns that once stood. According to a local legend, when the cracked lintel above the central doorway falls, the Messiah will come. I’ve visited this ancient synagogue 3 times over the years in different seasons, February, April and September and taken photographs of it.

Meron synagogue February almond blossoms

The technical details – the photo above was taken last week with a Nikon 5300 digital SLR camera  (ISO 1600, 27mm, F14 at 1/2000 sec).

Below are two earlier images. Clicking on the images will display them larger.

Meron synagogue April

Meron synagogue September

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Photographs on this website are © Shmuel Browns (unless marked otherwise) – if you are interested in buying or using one of my photos for your own project please contact me.