From the apparent chaos of the previous post to the quiet serenity behind the closed doors.

This is where I ate breakfast each morning while on the Matera workshop.

The rooms we stayed in were equally intriguing, luxurious and relaxing…the best nights sleepI have had in ages.

Cave dwelling is a great way to travel. Very similar in fact to the Coopber Pedy dugouts – total silence, constant temperature but with spectacular views.

There were some real challenges photographing in Italy. Lots of things I had never had to deal with before.

Matera town was a case in point – a hotchpotch of rooftops and staircases mingled together, doors, windows and alleyways appearing and disappearing in all directions.

Telling that story was sometimes difficult but here I have tried to use the zig-zag lines of the roof tops and the staircases as a composition.

Placing people in strategic places within the photo was another element that is a bit foreign to Flinders Ranges landscapes.

The whole point of this sabbatical though was to learn photographic composition and design..something I am keen to add to my longer workshops.

An ancient Italian city without churches…not possible, and Matera, the town where I spent a week on a photographic workshop in June has many – mostly hidden away in the caverns and tunnels that make up this remarkable town.

The most visible is the church of San Pietro Caveoso along the ravine at Matera, and it dates back to 1218. 

It has been rebuilt many times over the centuries, and lost many of its original structural characteristics. 

It was totally restructured during the 17th century, when the present façade and the bell-tower were built.

The rocky outcrop behind dominates the Sasso Caveoso. Inside the rock itself there are churches connected by an inner passageway that forms a single church complex.

There’s much to be fascinated by here just in architecture, art and history even if religion isn’t the focus.

This photo, and indeed all those taken in Europe were with either a Fuji X100 or the Fuji X-Pro, both of which I had written about earlier.

F2.8, ISO 6400, shutter 1/20th sec. No tripod was used but the camera was rested on the top of a wall.