590 - The Bosphorus
Sometimes it feels like the universe throws the dart at the map for you. If you asked me a year ago where I thought I’d be today, the last place on my mind would have been Turkey.
But here I was. In the backseat of a brown, semi-faded minivan, cruising down the DO20 away from Istanbul Airport. Unfamiliar sounds blasted from the speakers, and a massive reg flag fluttered on the distant hillside. The realization that I was in a foreign country was slowly beginning to sink in. The seat squeaked loudly as I uncomfortably shifted my body weight.
I was a little nervous, I’m not going to lie. For me, Turkey has always existed as a “blank” space in my mind. I’d never had a good reason to look into it, and I rarely (if ever) saw it referenced in the media. As far as what lay ahead for me, I had no idea.
I looked to my left and caught Alara’s eye. A rosy smile peaked across her face that eased my tension. She was the reason I was here.
Conversely to me, her entire identity had been shaped by this country. She was born and raised Turkish, but immigrated to the United States when she was just two years old. Her family had won the immigration lottery, and they’d seized the opportunity.
Oddly enough, they probably felt the same way when they first set foot in the United States. What lay ahead, they had no idea.
Needless to say, I was beyond excited. It'd been a slow year for me in adventure photography, as I'd been trying my hand at real estate / business photography. It’s been a moderate success, but it’s cast a bit of a dark shadow on my view of the artform.
I don’t like anybody telling me how to do whatever this is. So when Alara asked me if I wanted to fly out to Turkey, meet her family, and explore the land, I jumped aboard like a fish out of water. It was time for a change.
Our plan was to spend a couple days in Istanbul, then a couple days in Hürriyet, a rural town on the west coast of Turkey. The goal was to get a feel for both the city and the countryside. And of course, to take an immeasurably large amount of photos.
As we drove nearer into the city, buildings consumed our van like a crumb. Life bustled around us as cats jumped across signs, bikes weaved through traffic, and fish was fried right out on the open streets.
My stomach let out a low grumble as our van inched to a stop. We’d arrived.
It was roughly 2AM back home, but 9AM here in Istanbul. The plan was to gulp some tea, eat some kabobs, and site-see until I collapsed. The last time I’d pulled an all-nighter was 10 years ago back in college, so it couldn't be too hard right?
Alara had the home-field advantage, as she’d landed a week earlier than me, and had time to acclimate to the jet lag. I was running on pure, unadulterated excitement. And caffeine.
The first site we decided to hit was a Turkish classic- The Galata Tower. A beautiful piece of architecture that invaded the Istanbul skyline like an arrow in the night. (Or day.)
“The Eye of Istanbul"
Taken with Sony a7rIII + Sigma 100-400mm f/5-6.3
[ISO 1000 ~ 178.6mm ~ f/5.6 ~ 1/6400s]
(Want a Print? Get one here.)
Architecture photography has been a focus for me the past year- and I enjoyed the simplicity of that composition. But I felt like I could take it one step further. Lean into the busyness of the skyline even more. For that, I’d need some height.
The neat thing about Turkey is that if you’re a citizen, you get free entrance to all the sites and around town. The un-neat thing about Turkey is that if you’re a tourist, you end up paying a premium for all the sites around town.
Like this tower, for example. Which costs ~ $30 USD for anyone but Turkish citizens to enter. It also takes roughly 30 minutes to see. Add in three more “sites” a day, and suddenly you’re dropping a hundo per day just on exploring the basics.
Which is insane- seeing as this is roughly the same price as a trip to the Metropolitan Art Museum in New York or Yosemite National Park in California- which are multi-day experiences.
But… we had a hack. Since Alara’s brother was a citizen, I could (potentially) pose as him to circumnavigate the premium. I’d just have to use his app ID, and master a few Turkish words to make myself seem legit.
Annnnnnd it worked- a bit. The cashier 100% knew I wasn’t Turkish. Especially because whenever she said something I just replied “Teşekkürler!” (Thank You!)
But she didn’t care enough to make a fuss about it. We were in.
The view from the top of the tower was stunning:
“Founded 1923'"
Taken with Sony a7rIII + Sigma 100-400mm f/5-6.3
[ISO 400 ~ 105mm ~ f/13 ~ 1/800s]
(Want a Print? Get one here.)
Notice how I incorporated more of the frenzied buildings into my shot? What a beauty.
I also managed to snag this bad boy on the way out, which falls back into middle ground in terms of building pattern complexity:
“Mo Mosque Mo Problems"
Taken with Sony a7rIII + Sigma 100-400mm f/5-6.3
[ISO 1000 ~ 400mm ~ f/6.3 ~ 1/6400s]
(Want a Print? Get one here.)
A small, medium, and large. I’ll take it.
The rest of the day was spent exploring, until the drowsiness finally hit me like a brick wall around 6PM. I’d traversed through the American night, all the way to the Turkish dusk. It was time for a real deep sleep. But I got one last photo on the way out:
“Cigarettes and Burkas"
Taken with Sony a7rIII + Sony 24-105mm f/4
[ISO 1250 ~ 72mm ~ f/4 ~ 1/2500s]
(Want a Print? Get one here.)
A Turkish couple perfectly framed in the dimly lit streets. Oh what a dream…
I’m on a mission to explore as much as humanely possible.
Want to see my progress? Check out the Adventure Map.
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