I’m happy to be hosting round ten of Photo Roulette!
Round nine was hosted by Wes Nations on his blog Johnny Vagabond, and the theme was Water. My photo of Lake Louise in Banff National Park, Alberta, Canada, was chosen as the winner, so this makes me the happy host of round ten…
Wooohooo!
So, it is my privilege to choose this week’s theme.
Photo Roulette Round 10 theme is: URBAN
Let’s invite as many travel bloggers as possible to participate by TWEETING this page:
Here is my take on the theme as requested by Jeremy.
The travel photo roulette is the kind of fun and lighthearted competition that I love. I rarely enter photo contests, because I don’t believe that art is a sport. However, this is a great way for those of us in the travel and photography community, to get together and share some of our photographs and experiences from the road. Photographs are a unique way to communicate, they require no language, and bring us closer together in a way that all cultures can relate to. I’m a photographer first and blogger second, yet blogging has allowed me to communicate my vision with people all over the world, and that is one of the best parts of the internet as far as I’m concerned. Anything that can bring us closer together, make us feel like we want to learn about different cultures and countries, has to be good!
We live in a golden age of discovery, where the common person has a chance to explore the planet like never before. This is where the travel bloggers inspire me. Now it’s their turn to inspire us all with their photographic vision!
Rules
The contest runs from February 8 — February 15. Winner will be announced February 16.
The rules of the game are simple. The hosting blogger is the chosen winner of the previous week’s (7 days) game. The new host chooses a generic keyword or phrase that other bloggers submit photos to during the course of the week. Phrases can be as generic as ‘signs’ all the way to abstract thoughts like ‘religion’ and everything in between. At the end of the week, the hosting blogger chooses their favorite photo that fits the chosen phrase and moves it to the top of the post as the winning entry with direction to the new host’s site for the next round.
Readers can attempt to sway the author into picking a certain photo via comments, but the author(that’s me!) can ignore comments as they see fit. The game is repeated with the winner hosting the following week’s game and choosing a phrase for new photo submissions. The following is a list of the previously played rounds of the game and the hosting blogger for each. This list also doubles as a winner’s table as each topic host won the preceding round! Click the host’s link to go directly to that entry to see some stunning photographs from the chosen term/phrase!
- Nov 4-10, 2010 Living the Dream – “Animals”
- Nov 17-24, 2010 Skinny Backpacker – “Road Signs”
- Nov 29-Dec 6, 2010 Dream a Little Dream – “Street Art”
- Dec 8-Dec 15, 2010 Flashpacker HQ – “Festival”
- Dec 17-Dec 24, 2010 Over Yonderlust – “Landmarks”
- Dec 26-Jan 2, 2011 Don’t Ever Look Back – “Beaches”
- Jan 5-Jan 12, 2011 ThePlanetD – “Portraits”
- Jan 15-Jan 22, 2011 Travel with a Mate – “Motion”
- January 26th — February 3rd 2011 Johnny Vagabond – “Water”
The contest rules stress “No Photoshopping”, but consider that waived for this round. I want to see your artistic vision, to me computer editing of images is an integral part of the process, if that is what you wish to portray in your photos. I’ll be judging on the merits of the photograph, not on the photoshop skills, so you don’t need to be a photoshop expert to participate.
When submitting an image, please provide a brief description and location of where it was taken for captioning.
Those interested in playing please provide a hyperlink to a photo you’d like to submit in the comment section of this post and I will host it on this page.
I need the photos at 800 pixels wide MAXIMUM.
If you don’t see your entry here after 24 hours, then please resubmit the photo as a link to the PHOTO, not the page that hosts the photo and make sure it is the requested size.
This is very time consuming. I’m not able to do all the extra work like resizing images & trying to figure out how to get around non linkable images. Please do your part to help me!
Thanks!! :)
Since the winner has to host the next round, you have to be a blogger to participate.
*** Please make it easy for me to LINK to your PHOTO ***
Ok, let’s see what you’ve got!
Jeremy, from Living the Dream has submitted:

Philadelphia is one of my favorite urban environments, with the iconic LOVE sign nestled between tons of huge sky scrapers giving the city of brotherly love tons of character
Adam from Travels of Adam submitted:

This photo, though not my favorite, best represents my idea of what living in New York City as hipster is like. Taken from a window of the MoMA, Converse shoes reflected, a frost-covered tree and just a few lone people on the sidewalk. City life is wonderful, no?
Dustin from Skinny Backpacker submitted:

This was my favorite building to shoot in Prague. I don’t know the name of it, but it did more for me than the castles.
Christy from Ordinary Traveler submitted:

Sydney, Australia taken from Glebe Village.
Brendan van Son from Brendan’s Adventures submitted:

this is a photo taken of Valpo at sunrise done up with a 3 level HDR to give it a bit of a cartoon look
Leslie from Downtown Traveler submitted:

Here’s a photo I shot on my iPhone of midtown Manhattan after a snow storm
Cam from Traveling Canucks submitted:

The old Steam Clock in Gastown, Vancouver BC
Crystal of Storytelling Traveler submitted:

This image was taken in the old market of Cairo while on assignment for Special Olympics in 2007. This image leaps to mind when I ponder the word, “urban”. The cultural layers in this shot, taken from the hip at a terrible exposure, embody the richness found in so many urban settings. My colleague, the person they are staring at, is a tall, beautiful blond woman, an odditiy in this market.
Christine from christine|in|spain submitted:

Here is a shot of one of the alleys off of the famed Las Ramblas in Barcelona
Dan of Dan & Holly submitted:

I was bumming around the old part of town here in Knoxville and found this scene… made me laugh… and then look around to make sure he hadn’t come back.
Joseph of Fiy3ro submitted:

Chinatown and the Financial District in San Francisco….love the transition from small buildings to giant ones, almost like an evolution scale
Edwin (he doesn’t have a travel blog but I dig the photo, so here it is):

Urban Exposure
Keith of Velvet Escape submitted:

It was a sunny day and I was on a flight from Sydney to Brisbane. The plane took off and I was treated to this amazing view of Sydney Harbour
Katherina of The 100 Miles Highway submitted:

I took this picture with my lomo Diana F+ in La Boca, Buenos Aires
Evan from Evan and Rachel submitted:

This is Osaka as seen at dusk from the Umeda Sky building last October.
Mia from Four Days a Weeek submitted:

I reached out and touched the moon.
Enjoy more travel photos and stories:
Amazing photo! Ur pics always make me see the reality in a different way, much nicer way :)
Thanks for the invite Ken!! I will definitely participate. I just wish I hadn’t left my best photographs on my largest HD at home in Charlotte. In NYC, I only have a smaller HD with me and I think I am here till the contest ends. But I digress, this is a great contest and I will try to participate. HOW FUN!!
First off, congrats on winning round 9! Loved your photo and the new theme for round 10.
Caption: “Philadelphia is one of my favorite urban environments, with the iconic LOVE sign nestled between tons of huge sky scrapers giving the city of brotherly love tons of character”
http://a8.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs160.snc1/6000_567004681130_21902759_34594901_3183092_n.jpg
Hey Ken, can you share an example of your vision of Urban to start the contest off :)
okay, i’ll give photo roulette a go this time around…
http://www.flickr.com/photos/agroffman/4130261692/
Caption: This photo, though not my favorite, best represents my idea of what living in New York City as hipster is like. Taken from a window of the MoMA, Converse shoes reflected, a frost-covered tree and just a few lone people on the sidewalk. City life is wonderful, no?
Am I the first??? Awesomesauce!!
http://thetravellerworldguide.com/2011/02/my-entry-for-travel-photography-roulette-urban/
I’m in!
This was my favorite building to shoot in Prague. I don’t know the name of it, but it did more for me than the castles.
http://www.skinnybackpacker.com/storage/misc/roulette/10roulette%20urban.jpg
ouch, this is a hard one – we have so many! Okay, here is the one:
http://photobiblio.photoshelter.com/img-show/I0000_sYGdYLmccM
I know it is not everyone’s idea of ‘urban’ but if you have been to Sydney (or watched ‘Strictly Ballroom’) you will know this Coke Sign is actually a major urban icon! I like to think that ‘urban’ is not just high-rises and people rushing by. But that’s just me.
Here’s my contribution http://www.flickr.com/photos/40475392@N05/5428271069/. Sydney, Australia taken from Glebe Village.
Ooo Ken, you knew my weakness… I really wish I would have gotten into the water one last week. Anyways. I have to choose from a couple shot from Valparaiso… hmmm ok, this is a photo taken of Valpo at sunrise done up with a 3 level HDR to give it a bit of a cartoon look: http://www.facebook.com/geckosadventures?v=app_28134323652&ref=ts
*** Please make it easy for me to LINK to your PHOTO ***
–
Make it so that you are linking to a JPG that I can link to, or I won’t be able to use the image.
–
Brendan, your link contains no image!
–
ツ Thanks!!!
What a cool theme! And perfect for me, since I run the site DowntownTraveler.com ;) I don’t come close to your photo skills but I’d love to participate. Here’s a photo I shot on my iPhone of midtown Manhattan after a snow storm: http://www.flickr.com/photos/downtowntraveler/5395759292/in/set-72157625799173713/
I love your photography. The pic of Manhattan on this post is amazing!
Hey Ken,
Here is my submission – The old Steam Clock in Gastown, Vancouver BC
http://www.flickr.com/photos/camwears/4573751696/in/set-72157623979877878/
Here’s my entry:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/eurotriptips/5065407376/in/set-72157625002585253/
I tend to find it boring because it hasn’t much going on, but on the other hand I like it because it’s original.
http://www.blog.crystalstreet.net/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/STREET_EGYPT.jpg
This image was taken in the old market of Cairo while on assignment for Special Olympics in 2007. This image leaps to mind when I ponder the word, “urban”. The cultural layers in this shot, taken from the hip at a terrible exposure, embody the richness found in so many urban settings. My colleague, the person they are staring at, is a tall, beautiful blond woman, an odditiy in this market. Thanks!
Thanks for the invite, Ken! Here is a shot of one of the alleys off of the famed Las Ramblas in Barcelona. http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=48834656&l=c273176c64&id=15917061
Here’s my submission:
http://www.danandholly.com/wp-content/uploads/IMG_7386-2.jpg
I was bumming around the old part of town here in Knoxville and found this scene… made me laugh… and then look around to make sure he hadn’t come back.
Dan
Hey Ken, here’s my submission
Caption “Chinatown and the Financial District in San Francisco….love the transition from small buildings to giant ones, almost like an evolution scale”
http://fiy3ro.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/DSC04373.jpg
http://thetravellerworldguide.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/IMG_1757-copy-21.jpg
Hello Ken,
This is my “Urban Exposure”: http://www.flickr.com/photos/evannuil/5169465872/
Here you go. Caption: “It was a sunny day and I was on a flight from Sydney to Brisbane. The plane took off and I was treated to this amazing view of Sydney Harbour”.
http://www.thehappyexplorer.com/2010/06/sydney-harbour-from-the-air/
Sorry, me again. I just noticed that the others provided links from Flickr. Here’s the link of the same photo from Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/45812462@N05/4674536487/
Hi Ken,
Here’s my submission:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/100mileshighway/5429504840/
I took this picture with my lomo Diana F+ in La Boca, Buenos Aires.
Katherina
oops! sorry for the double entry… the first time it had said there was an error…
If you have copy protection on in Flickr, I can’t use the image! I need to be able to use the link to the PHOTO, not the page. So if you don’t see your photo here after 24 hrs of posting your link, it means I can’t find a usable link. Try hosting the photo on your blog instead of Flickr. Then re post the link.
–
Thanks!
Ok, here’s our submission! This is Osaka as seen at dusk from the Umeda Sky building last October.
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4036/5074824806_f4aa857a99_z.jpg
Ken, not sure if this will work. Not a photographer, but submitting for fun.
Four shots with the moon http://bit.ly/hpXRYH.
So true about what you wrote: Anything that can bring us closer together, make us feel like we want to learn about different cultures and countries, has to be good!
Great round of photos. Congratulations on your Lake Louise photo. Indeed a winner.
-Mia
Hi Ken…
This is my French take on Urban – ‘Vue du Cafe’
http://www.flickr.com/photos/47446040@N00/90871494/
Competition is getting tougher… Here we go.
This shot was taken in downdown Savannah, GA. I just love those old signs and when I saw this one, I had to capture it.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/19338987@N02/4960610183/in/set-72157624885235688/
Oh wow, that Sydney Harbor from the sky shot is fantastic!
Congrats on your win in round 9, and love the urban theme choice. Great photos so far, looks like it’s going to be another tough decision.
Here is our submission: http://www.hecktictravels.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/Salta_Colonial_Hotel.jpg
The Colonial Hotel in Salta, Argentina provides the backdrop for this vintage Coca-Cola billboard, a poignant symbol of urbanization that can be seen in all corners of the world.
Cheers!
Here is my urban photo – taken in Valencia, Spain
I love the mans face on the wall and if you stare at this photo forever you can pick up little images hidden everywhere.
http://www.travelyourself.ca/1/wp-content/gallery/spain-august-2009/dsc_0010.jpg
Here is my entry for this round – Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur
http://www.flickr.com/photos/magdabis/2589907352/sizes/l/in/set-72157605675688324/
p.s. let me know if for some reason you can’t access this photo. Flickr sometimes does funny things….
Here’s my submission:
http://jackandjilltravel.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/DSC_0070m.jpg
A graffiti taken on a random wall in Amsterdam.
Another great set of shots to compete with. My entry is a London telephone box in Autumn.
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/8737408/London%20phone%20box.JPG
Note – if you have any problems with the link, tweet me @lozula!
Here is my submission :
http://www.picsof.asia/wp-content/uploads/4355783147_bb343aafc9_b.jpg
The Erawan Shrine in Bangkok.
What fabulous photos above. It’s hard to compete but here’s an urban sight that interested me.
http://solotravelerblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/Old-and-New2.jpg
Located in the old city at the center of Valencia, modern is juxtaposed to historic. They seem to live almost symbiotically. One holding up the other. Which is carrying more weight I could not tell.
Museu Inhotim localizado em Brumadinho/Minas Gerais – Brasil
Museum located at Brumadinho / Minas Gerais – Brazil
http://s3.amazonaws.com/data.tumblr.com/tumblr_lfjh47pn801qg5lquo1_r2_1280.jpg?AWSAccessKeyId=0RYTHV9YYQ4W5Q3HQMG2&Expires=1297344036&Signature=d2QJU32pZZCcZKNB%2FGF1y1t3u58%3D
Some Great entries! Personally I love Adam’s, Dan’s and Christine’s photos the best! Good luck choosing, tough decision
La Défense Paris
http://s3.amazonaws.com/data.tumblr.com/tumblr_lf88eq8vFH1qg5lquo1_1280.jpg?AWSAccessKeyId=0RYTHV9YYQ4W5Q3HQMG2&Expires=1297355479&Signature=CLbQLQE9kW%2F0cDDxCoeTx4KqUnA%3D
Sorry people… I need the photos at 800 pixels wide MAXIMUM.
–
If you don’t see your entry here after 24 hours, then please resubmit the photo at a link to the PHOTO, not the page that hosts the photo and make sure it is the requested size.
–
This is very time consuming. I’m not able to do all the extra work like resizing images & trying to figure out how to get around non linkable images. Please do your part to help me!
–
Thanks!! :)
Here is my submission for the contest:
http://www.wanderingtrader.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/IMG_2446.jpg
This is the bridge in the newly redeveloped Puerto Madero in Buenos Aires.
Well if it’s “urban” we’re after, than we simply MUST have at least one quintessential “skyline nightscape”, no?
http://travelnlass.smugmug.com/Other/Private-Misc/15596949_Q3Ls8#1182657730_PycoK-A-LB
But his one with a bit of a twist. I mean, what could be more urban iconic that not one, but TWO Seattle Space Needle(s)? ;)
And nope, no photoshoppin’ here – just old school fiddlin’ with the manual controls on a (gasp!) f-i-l-m camera (creating a double exposure by cocking the shutter w/o advancing the film.) I only wish I could figure out how to do such tricks with my Lumix ZS3 digital – sigh…)
P.S. And Ken – I hear your pain. The link above is to the 800×547 version in my SmugMug private gallery (external links on so you should have no trouble grabbing it.) Do let me know if you have any grief and I’ll send it to you by email.
Here’s a lower quality version
http://thetravellerworldguide.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/IMG_1757-copy-22.jpg
Hey Ken, here’s one we took on the weekend just gone.
http://a7.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/168143_145800818813012_112047888854972_274913_3406280_n.jpg
“Melbourne Bike Share”
Berlin, Eberswalder Straße. Picture was taken on one of the first sunny days in 2011.
http://www.justtravelous.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/Berlin-404-21.jpg
People often forget that Spain was under an oppressive dictatorship for so long. This picture is Madrid outside the beautiful downtown…
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2693/4416381602_f594b5686d_z.jpg
Wow, such great competition and I’m late to the game :) Here’s an image from a recent trip to Tokyo. The picture represents everything I love and hate about urban Tokyo. The variety, the crowds, the light and the dark, but also the funneling effect of so many choices eventually making everything blur together and leading everyone in same direction.
http://www.toddswanderings.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/The-Tokyo-Funnel-Effect1.jpg
Phenomenal photos. Gives me some ideas for future trips.
Across the Street from the Moulin Rouge – Paris, France.
http://beersandbeans.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/Across-the-Street-from-the-Moulin-Rouge-Paris-800px-for-Roulette.jpg
Everyone in the crowd was trying to get their perfect picture of the famous Moulin Rouge. I turned around, noticed the rain clouds and fantastic light emerging from across the street and I knew that was my shot.
It reminds me of Paris, the crowd at the famous landmark, the way the rain bounced off the cobblestones and how everyone went running for cover. Everything is perfect in Paris – even the rain.
Some lovely shots here! And a great job of hosting this round, Ken — I know it’s a lot of work.
Here’s my entry. Caption “A wedding in downtown Hanoi” I love the fact that even in the middle of a modern, hectic city we still seek out the old places to commemorate our special moments.
http://johnnyvagabond.com/a-wedding-in-hanoi-vietnam/
direct link: http://johnnyvagabond.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/wedding-hanoi.jpg
Here’s my entry’ You don’t get many better skyscrapers than the ones down in Houston, Texas:
http://davewilsonphotography.com/2009/03/23/chevron_building/
Looks like I failed to follow the instructions by posting a link to the post containing the photo rather than the photo itself. Here’s where that link should have gone. Please disqualify me if I only get 1 chance to read the instructions :-)
http://davewilsonphotography.com/wp-content/images/main/2009_03/chevron_mono-1.jpg
Love this contest idea! :o)
This photo was taken in Seville, Spain on a super hot (40 °C!) evening. Clark had just lost his hat at the cathedral and we were both in poor spirits. We camped out for about a half hour to get the timing right. I think it was worth it. I hope you like it too!
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4075/4765853404_98c3a8d1e2_z.jpg
Cool contest! This is from my home, San Francisco, at dusk, the ever-present layer of fog hanging lightly over the skyline.
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4015/5149217543_0be7ca7acb_b.jpg
Congrats on winning the prior round – it truly is a fantastic photo and fit the theme well.
Here’s my submission for this urban round: http://www.surroundedbythesound.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/IMG_0364.jpg
Calcutta is gritty but romantic, exotic but refined, seedy but dreamy. This photo captures Calcutta’s retro urbanity and all of my feelings about Calcutta at once.
Here’s my submission……..
I am sorry. For some weird reason my link didn’t post. I hope it works this time.
Hi, please check my photo at http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-WuzwivFevVU/TViBtAtsSLI/AAAAAAAAAAc/BeFo-RX9toM/s1600/azrieli.jpg
The description is “Three towers of Azrieli Center, Tel Aviv, Israel”
Nancie, I need a link please.
–
Alexey, In order to participate, you have to provide a link to your blog please.
–
People who have submitted photos that are not linkable or of the right size, still have to resubmit their image links. If you have provided a link to your photo or page, and your photo is not displayed, please re read the rules and resubmit. Thanks! ㋡
My apologize. Link to my my blog http://alex6058.blogspot.com/
Please don’t be surprise by number of posts ;) I setup it day before my post here
Here you go.
http://tumblr.com/x4p14h5j4z
and here is the website version
http://www.rbeaven.com/#/portfolio/single-images/_untitled_
Cheers
RB
http://sunando.posterous.com/empire-state-of-mind
I think this fits with the urban theme of the competition. This is currently sized to 800pix width.
Cheers
Sunando
http://www.flickr.com/photos/sunandoroy/
Here is the resized photo 800 pixels wide.. cheers
http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g138/lbarrambide/IMG_2446.jpg
Richard, you submitted a slide show, that’s not gonna work. You also need to be a blogger. Sorry :(
Here’s a picture of Caribbean urban, from Oranjestad: http://www.twitpic.com/40012b
I HOPE these are the dimensions you wanted. I’m a photo rookie, so let me know if you need me to change it to make your life easier.
Here’s a picture of Caribbean urban, from Oranjestad: http://www.twitpic.com/40012b
I HOPE these are the dimensions you wanted. I’m a photo rookie, so let me know if you need me to change it to make your life easier.
Hi Ken! :) More and better amazing photos! Amazing to just look at it. I am submitting a gentle photo of my city, Seoul. It’s not a ‘wow’ look, but it shows really good side of Seoul.
Here we go! :)
http://www.flickr.com/photos/46058441@N08/5447372600/
Hi Ken, a modern architecture one here. An amazing building designed by the English Architect Lord Norman Foster, this building dominates one side of the main square in Nimes opposite the only fully preserved Roman temple in the world.
“http://kiff-backhouse.com/wp-content/uploads/IMG_7835-Edit_6-Edit_7-Edit_tonemapped_tonemappedx2-400×600.jpg”
Kiff, please check your link, I get this message:
Not Found
–
Apologies, but we were unable to find what you were looking for. Perhaps searching will help.
Great shots! I can’t wait to see who wins this round. it is getting tougher and tougher every week!
Ken, huge apologies AND I read the bit about checking your pictures aren’t blocked … but they were!
Here again but on Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/cbackhouse/5448700607/
Cant link to that… resubmit
I take it it’s too late to submit? :( Missed another one.
Can’t wait to see who the winner is.
-T
Very great shot, you had make a lot of beautiful picture !
I like pic of Valpo
Hello Ken,
I need you tell me what the program/software you use to work your fotos in HDR.
I love HDR and I try to get the same result, as you get in your pictures, but I didn´t get the effect so good.
I think you work in Tone Map a difrent way.
Thank you!!
Your header art is fab!
I am a photographer myself. and you did a great Job. Nice light usage and color schemes.
You have a breathing-taking photos. Very impressive! how I wish I could shoot like this photo. Keep up the good work.
Very great shot, you had make a lot of beautiful picture !
Urban style (if I call it right) of photos is my favorite one. Especially, if New York city is on this photos. All of them are awesome! Thanks for sharing your art with us through this blog.By the way, you’re writing beautiful although you say that you are a photographer first and blogger second.
Beautifull Picture
I love these pictures.
Let us work on taking some gorgeous ones in our upcoming trip to NYC.
https://ourfamilytravelblog.com