Temple of Olympian Zeus, a photo from Attiki, Attica

Photographer's Note

Click here or on the image to see the large version.

If Athens hadn't so many famous ancient monuments, these ruins would be a landmark of the city. Despite only a small part of the temple is left - not much more than 15 of the original 104 columns, - the monument is still imposing and although it appears quite big seen from the top of the Acropolis, it is still a surprise when seen closely.

An earlier temple also dedicated to Zeus, the king of the Greek gods, who resided in the Olympus, built here around 550 AC, but it was demolished in 520 BC to give place to this colossal temple that aimed to be the greatest temple of the Greek world, surpassing its contemporaries of Hera in Samos and of Artemis in Ephesus, the latter being one of the 7 Wonders of the Ancient World. However, the works stopped 10 years later, when the dictator that ordered the construction was overthrown. The Seleucid emperor Antiochus IV, retook the works with changes in design in 174 BC, but they stopped again 10 years later, when Antiochus died. The partly built temple suffer much damage when the Roman general Sulla sacked Athens in 86 BC. A lukewarm attempt to finish the temple happened some decades later, during the time of the first Roman emperor, Augustus, but the temple was only finished by another famous and great builder Roman emperor, Hadrian in the early 2nd century AC, more than 6 centuries after the first construction works. However, the temple's glory was short-lived, as it was badly damaged in the same barbarian raid of 267 AC that destroyed the Stoa of Attalos.

About the photo:

The image is a stitch of 3 vertical shots. I don't remember why I wanted shots suitable to stitch, as there is plenty of space to get all the temple in just one shot without even using a very short focal length or a slanted POV, but I am glad I did it because this way I got a higher definition image (not needed to TE, of course), with an aspect ratio suitable for posting as panorama here.

I would like to have been able to use another POV that included the Acropolis and perhaps the Arch of Hadrian, another monument contemporary of the finishing of the temple that is now in one of the corners of the park that surrounds the temple, but I would be shooting against a low sun, so I didn't even tried. You may see how that POV is great by looking at these posts of Danos and Cretense.

I posting two complementary views as WS: #1, #2. I'll try to remember to post another two WS's with a view of the temple from the Acropolis. I have also a post with a view of the temple from the Acropolis.

Location of the POV (latitude, longitude): 37.9697,23.7335

Hellas, Longroute, ciakgiak, Emile, xuaxo, Didi, jusninasirun, danos, shevchenko, crckt, adores, jmcl, jwmunro, Silversnow, denisn72, Docarmo, aliabazari has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

Hellas (7123) 2009-11-06 21:42

Hi Jose!

Very happy of seeing you were here in last July!

You did a very good work around the Temple and I am sure you enjoyed it!
The first as well as the WS are all great. Each included the moon as you wanted and be sure I like it!

Best regards,
Athanasios.

COSTANTINO (117940) 2009-11-06 22:12

Ciao Jose,

Bellissimo monumento di Athene,
che tu hai realizato benissimo,
Complimenti,
e cari saluti,

buon weekend

Costantino

Selmik (3641) 2009-11-06 22:18

Hi Jose,
attractive composition with contrasting colors, sharp details and light. Excellent job with stitching photos to panorama view.
Have a good weekend,
Mike

Graal (103040) 2009-11-06 23:15

Hi Jose,
nice serie from Athens. Good shot and presentation with the panoramic format. I like the contrast of colours and moon accent on the sky. large version is superb also. I like it.
Gr., Aleksander

Longroute (19600) 2009-11-07 0:41

A very good and interesting composition. This temple with its golden colour stands out wonderfully from the sky. The light is so warm and the clarity excellent.
I like the format, thanks to the stitching!
So essential and so expressive.
A very good work.

Best regards,
Donato

ciakgiak (30) 2009-11-07 4:44

Ciao Jose,
la bellissima architettura del tempio � fortemente enfatizzata dalla splendida luce che colpisce le colonne donando loro un caldo colore che risalta piacevolmente sul cielo azzurro.
Una stupenda immagine che nella large version diventa spettacolare. Un caro abbraccio, buon WE.
Giorgio

Emile (20352) 2009-11-07 8:23

Hola Jos�.
Muy buena foto captada con estupenda iluminacion, con la luz perfecta del d韆 para tomarla desde el POV que usaste, tiene muy buenos detalles y los colores, definicion y marco estan muy buenos. Tus dos WS son excelentes tambi閚 pero me gusta mas el que tiene personas ya que le dan escala a este monumento.
Carlos (coco) te dedico su ultima foto.
Un fuerte abrazo y te deseo a ti y tu familia un buen fin de semana.

pajaran (117233) 2009-11-07 12:24

Pozdrav.
Novo saznanje, dobar tekst, majstorska fotografija.
Uspesan vikend, Paja.

xuaxo (6854) 2009-11-07 12:27

Ol� Stego,
De repente faz lembrar o templo em 蓈ora.
A foto est� bem feita e gosto da luz. Mas acho que este monumento n鉶 "precisava" (se � que posso dizer assim) deste formato t鉶 panor鈓ico. Digamos que como est� no WS1 seria "suficiente".
Mas em geral gosto das tr阺 fotos. E da luazinha ao canto ;-)
Bom fim de semana.
F.

Didi (61591) 2009-11-07 19:23

Salut Jos�
Bel 閏lairage en ce d閎ut de soir閑, la version pano permet d'appr閏ier le d閠ail des colonnes avec la lune en prime.
Amiti閟

jusninasirun (17529) 2009-11-07 21:41

Hi Jose: Good choice to show us in wide panorama against the spotless sky. The details of these pillars with fine lighting is beautiful and contrasting well in the frame. Well seen and captured - thanks for sharing. Best regards. Jusni

danos (110407) 2009-11-08 8:28

Ol� Jose,
very nice presentation of the ruins of the Temple of Olympian Zeus,especially in the LV with the great details,the clarity and the sharpness of the scene.Complementary the two WS from different POV, as mine and Hercules ones.Thanks for the mention of my shot to your presentation, as for your informative note.Well done.

Have a nice afternoon,Danos

shevchenko (20560) 2009-11-08 21:46

Hi Jose,
Interesting composition to show the remnant of the temple, remained columns are standing straight on the original location, impressive view with including the moon, nice blue sky and soft sunlight, distinct photos, well done.
Ally

John_F_Kennedy (43797) 2009-11-09 0:39

Hello Jose,
Very good point of view and very nice architectural capture. Beautiful light in the panaorama view, well done.
Best wishes,
Achim

zeynepe (0) 2009-11-09 9:15

Hi Jose,
Thanks for showing Athen's historic side with your perfect technique.I was there in 2003 but at that time I wasn't interested in photography unfortunately,so it's nice to see these splendid places with you camera.
Berke says "hi" to you !
Um abra鏾,
Zeynep

mikolaj_kawa (0) 2009-11-10 3:57

Ola Jose! Amazing temple, wonderful columns, excellent ruins. Good capture, very good composition. Superb panorama. Saude!

pablominto (53746) 2009-11-11 23:48

Hello Jose,

The outstanding ruin is a real eye-catcher against the blue sky!
The pleasant colours rendered by the fine light makes a fine contrast to the blue backdrop, the scene is well framed with pin sharp details...
One can feel the breath of days gone by..!

Greetings,
Pablo -

coco (30439) 2009-11-12 12:55

Hola Jose.

Primero de todo respondo una pregunta que me hiciste: no hice la otra foto panor醡ica porque no quer韆 perder las dimensiones de la misma. Supongo que el encanto que pod韆 tener la foto ven韆 tambi閚 dado por sus dimensiones.

En todo caso, nos centramos en la foto de aqu�: un muy buen trabajo con la composici髇 y un mejor trabajo con la exposici髇.
La versi髇 grande de la foto es genial.

Un saludo.
Carlos.

PD: buen montaje con las tres fotos

jhm (211738) 2009-11-13 4:11

Hello Jos�,

Good choice to show us in wide panorama against the spotless sky. The details of these pillars with fine lighting is beautiful and contrasting well in the frame.
Excellent composition, the view is peaceful and beautiful.
Very well done, TFS.

Have a nice weekend,
John.

Bluejeans (64251) 2009-11-13 14:20

Oi Jos� ,
Est醩 profissional nas colagens :), lindos detalhes nestas colunas , gostei muito da lua no alto , boas cores, parab閚s!!
Um abra鏾 Gon鏰lo

Bom fim de semana

crckt (7222) 2009-11-15 5:38

Hi Jose,
As usual, excellent note and great shot to go with it. Like the colors, sharpness and the large version does justice to the shot.
Well done,
Shaeri

adores (46979) 2009-11-16 15:13

Ol� Jos�!
Mais uma boa panoramica!
Gosto muito desta, especialmente pela luz reflectida nas ru韓as e, mais uma vez, a lua l� no alto. Com este pov evitaste quase todas as constru珲es mais modernas l� ao fundo, destacando bem as ru韓as. Ficou 髉tima!

jmcl (14535) 2009-12-02 10:25

Hi Jose,

Hope this note finds you and yours well.

Wonderful image .. the tone of pillars is wonderful .. they seem to rise from the surrounding Earth .. great light .. love the moon .. especially in the large version .. very nice.

take care,

John

emilbo (22616) 2009-12-02 13:46

Ol� Jose,
Merveilleux panoramique, et encore plus beau en grand format avec la lune en prime. Le temple, du moins ce qu'il en reste, est bien mis en valeur par le bel 閏lairage de fin de journ閑. Une photo de grande classe et beau contraste de couleurs avec le ciel.
F閘icitations!... et bonne soir閑,
Amicalement,
Emilius

batalay (41261) 2009-12-04 21:02

Hello Jos�,

Especially with the large version, this is a wonder to behold. Your well researched note brings the temple into historical perspective. What history these stones have witnessed, if they could only speak!

Warm regards to the family,

Bulent

jwmunro (286) 2009-12-07 15:07

Hello Jose -

This is very nice with the warm side light lighting the temple. The moon is an extra element to the scene and helps with the clear sky. If this is a stitch it is un-noticeable to me. What I like about this image is the light and show it gives definition to the ruins.
Well done!

Thank you for sharing.

John

Silversnow (2319) 2009-12-08 11:18

Simply magnificent, an instant favorite :)
The simple composition of this sunset-lit landmark, I love to take panoramas like this, and the higher definition shows the moon you had the great inspiration to include :)

denisn72 (8314) 2009-12-23 18:27

Hi Jose,
A very sharp picture and the light is excellent too! Excellent contrasts and colours. The moon is an interesting bonus to the composition, The note is very informative. Weel done!
Season's greetings!
Denis!

AiresSantos (56155) 2009-12-27 0:02

Ola Jos�
Uma foto muito bonita do Templo de Zeus
As cores e a definicao estao excelentes
Continuacao de boas festas
Um abraco Amigo
Aires

ilDottore (5252) 2010-01-08 14:37

Ola Jose,
Wonderful panoramic picture.
I especially like here vivid colours and this special mystical atmosphere.
Even in ruins this temple can inspire people's imagination.
Good shot, indeed!
Best Regards
Chris

Docarmo (9767) 2010-06-24 21:57

Ol� Jos�,
Como sempre, excelente qualidade, com nitidez e luz impec醰eis. Gosto do formato panor鈓ico, pois d� id閕a do que circunda o monumento. E tamb閙 acho que ficou mais art韘tico.
Parab閚s!
Docarmo
P.S.: s� hoje vi tua entrada no outro lado ;-)

Fis2 (172115) 2014-08-01 9:09

Witaj Jose!
Beautiful ruins!
Good frame, colors and light.
Photo has climate.
Have a nice weekend
Krzysztof

macjake (98544) 2014-08-04 13:49

Hi Jose
really glad you added in the WS photos. I enjoy seeing the different compositions and angles.

my favorite part of this photo is actually the colors in the skyline. Love the various tones of blue from top to bottom.

excellent colors and overall exposure, thanks for this triple post :)
cheers
craig

aliabazari (23429) 2014-10-04 22:08

Hi Jose
Nice shot, good composition. Well performed. Thanks for sharing