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Sinking ship
A reflection often leads me to a contemplation. That’s what happened to me today at the Berlin Reichstag.
At the shore of river Spree in Berlin are mounted plates to commemorate those who had been killed when trying to reach freedom. When photographing a reflection in a window front of the Berlin House of Representatives this reflection appeared slightly tilted and looked like a sinking ship.
Was the death of these people now pointless ?
What is the point of an overpopulated Reichstag, where the groups in dispute have lost fundamental commonalities and goals ?
Reflection or consideration: past and future in a window reflection ? Fall of the building Reichstag ? © Julian Köpke -
Is this a photography ?
My conference schedule allowed me a walk through the Berlin Tiergarten Park in the morning. Of course, with a cam handy. While I was sitting on the shore of the Landwehr Canal, I let myself be carried away by the waves.
The waves made the reflections of the trees and bushes softly tremble. The resulting reflections became like paintings.
Reflections © Julian Köpke The processing was carried out only with regard to brightness and colors. Lab colors were used. Light-dark-contrasts were given by the waves.
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Port cranes in Heilbronn
Cranes have always fascinated me. When I was a little boy, I could watch her work for hours. When I arrived at the garden exhibition in Heilbronn, I initially only had eyes for the two harbour cranes that were unloading the cargo of sand from a ship.
The old cranes look historic, but were still in service. I especially liked their green and yellow and the many ropes with which the shovel from the boom reached into the ship to pack the goods.
Harbour cranes Heilbronn © Julian Köpke 
Harbour cranes Heilbronn © Julian Köpke -
End of the world
On a ball there is no such thing like an end or a beginning. Before the discovery of America the region we traveled to today was called „End of the world“ or „Finistère“ in French. The Atlantic Ocean shows its wild side here.
On our way from Camaret-sur-Mer to Pointe du Raz we came through many old villages of Brittany. St. Nic is such a place, where you can find a pretty church building.
Èglise St. Nic © Julian Köpke Coming form Douarnenez you first reach Point du Van in westerly direction. The church is consecrated to shipwreckers.
Église Pointe du Van © Julian Köpke 
Église Pointe du Van © Julian Köpke Within sight of the western wall you can perceive a small lighthouse.
Sailing boat and lighthouse © Julian Köpke After a short drive, first in a southerly direction and then in a westerly direction, you reach Pointe du Raz. At low tide the is a strong current in southern direction. The water is visibly swirled between the rocks. At this point, where the world ended 528 years ago, you can easily imagine a wild Ocean.
Our journey to Brittany now has come to its end.
See more images in my album.
Pointe du Raz © Julian Köpke -
Anchor at Camaret-sur-Mer
Camaret-sur-Mer is a place with a long history, which tells the former economic and military importance. Cabaret has been also the most important lobster port in France. The place is located on a peninsula of strategic importance for the security of Brest. The peninsula was therefore coveted by Great Britain and Spain in their fight against France.
The Vauban tower bears witness to France’s fight against the conquerors. I took the following image with my tripod in front an old warehouse of the former shipyard.
La tour Vauban Camaret-sur-Mer © Julian Köpke The civil shipwrecks show the decline of fishing in the region. You can’t find warships here.
Shipwrecks in Camaret-sur-Mer © Julian Köpke 
Èpaves à la port de Camaret-sur-Mer © Julian Köpke 
Épaves à Camaret-sur-Mer © Julian Köpke All ships are damaged, by time, by economic ruin. This is where they found their last port.
Épaves à Camaret-sur-Mer © Julian Köpke Where is our final anchor point ? Will it be interesting to look at us ?
Anchor and Moon à Camaret-sur-Mer © Julian Köpke See also my album „Camaret-sur-Mer„.
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Impressions of Brittany
Every morning I photograph the rocks on the beach from our window. The atmospheric conditions change greatly whenever I look outside. The impression made by the rocks changes with the change of the atmosphere.
Coastline at sunrise in Camaret-sur-Mer © Julian Köpke Only next morning the rocks look completely different. There is alway a painterly impression the light induces.
Morning light © Julian Köpke Higher tide the next morning.
L' aube à Camaret-sur-Mer © Julian Köpke See also my album „Camaret-sur-Mer„.
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Bonjour Bretagne
Since a car ride from Nantes to Caen more than 40 years ago I associate Brittany with clouds and fog. This time everything is different. The coolness of the country surrounded by the Atlantic refreshes us wonderfully after the heat wave in Heidelberg and Paris.
Traveling and painting was a great pleasure for me back then. How fantastic it is when every morning a painted landscape appears.
Bonjour breton © Julian Köpke See also my album „Camaret-sur-Mer„.
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Flying into Paris by train
I love to look out of a train window. So many photo opportunities passing by – and no chance to capture one of them.
With my iPhone App „Slow Shutter“ on our way to Bretagne via Paris sitting in a TGV (train a grande vitesse) going at 300 km/h I shot this series of images. The GPS tags are approaching Paris clearly. The result is a motion blur image dominated by horizontal lines.
Oh: above 300 km/h the internet connectivity decreases its speed. What irony !
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Leipzig 2.0
Second journey to Leipzig. Half way stop at Schloss Seehof in Memmelsdorf. Finest square architecture. Splendid water cascade.
Cascade Schloss Seehof Bamberg Castle Gardens © Julian Köpke Leipzig has been a town since round about 1200. Many places were reconstructed after destruction during socialist dictatorship. The horrible blast of the Pauliner Church in 1967 lead to a beautiful and appealing reconstruction after 1989.
Leipzig Paulinum © Julian Köpke -
Stuttgart Television Tower
You never know in advance what it means to return to the place of childhood. On top of a 217m high television tower physically overlooking the years I spent near a forest in Stuttgart Gablenberg there was a feeling of returning or being at home.
A few memories to the first visit to this tower mixed with the fantastic view. My daughters had invited me to this evening as their birthday present to me. The waiter is friendly and brings us as a special exception a white tablecloth to celebrate the day. So it’s fun to get to know the carefreeness.
We enjoy delicious local food while the sun is getting lower and lower. Occasionally I feel a touch of fear of heights. Our table stands directly at the window with a view of the city.
Nevertheless, we go up to the higher viewing platforms to look and take pictures. Suddenly many other photographers appear out of nowhere and we take many pictures of the view and a spectacular sunset.
Green Stuttgart seen from Television Tower © Julian Köpke It’s still light when we left. The landmark of the city can be photographed in a variety of compositions. Here is just one of my many:
Stuttgart Television Tower (Fernsehturm) © Julian Köpke
