Rodney Campbell's Blog

I’d booked something a little extra special for our visit to the Colosseum. Once a month on a certain day and time the online ticket office releases limited tickets for some special guided tours including one of the Underground and the newly opened 4th and 5th levels of the Colosseum.

The Pit

NIKON D750 + 28.0-300.0 mm f/3.5-5.6 @ 28 mm, 1/30 sec at f/8, ISO 450

I managed to snag tickets for all of us on an early morning session for the 75 minute guided tour in english. The tour was actually very interesting and you get to see and go to many places the normal public entry ticket cant (which only has access to the first and second levels).

Note: These photographs (especially the wider shots) look much better when larger. To see larger versions in an inline overlay slideshow gallery viewer click any of the images.

NIKON D750 + 28.0-300.0 mm f/3.5-5.6 @ 28 mm, 1/30 sec at f/5.6, ISO 400

Tiered

NIKON D750 + 28.0-300.0 mm f/3.5-5.6 @ 122 mm, 1/125 sec at f/5.6, ISO 400

The Underground

NIKON D750 + 28.0-300.0 mm f/3.5-5.6 @ 180 mm, 1/200 sec at f/8, ISO 5000

NIKON D750 + 28.0-300.0 mm f/3.5-5.6 @ 72 mm, 1/80 sec at f/8, ISO 250

This handheld stitched panorama was taken from an open terrace on the third level which has a view which looks outside the Colosseum. This is the view looking primarily west of the Arch of Constantine, the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill.

Roman Forum

NIKON D750 + 28.0-300.0 mm f/3.5-5.6 @ 28 mm, 1/40 sec at f/8, ISO 100 x 9 Frames

We’re on our way up to the fourth and fifth rings so we’re looking down the steps to the third level below.

The Third Ring

NIKON D750 + 28.0-300.0 mm f/3.5-5.6 @ 44 mm, 1/50 sec at f/8, ISO 500

I had prebooked our entrance tickets to the Colosseum online before we had left Australia.

Colosseum

NIKON D750 + 13.0 mm f/2.8 @ 13 mm, 1/1000 sec at f/4, ISO 100

Note: These photographs (especially the wider shots) look much better when larger. To see larger versions in an inline overlay slideshow gallery viewer click any of the images.

We had an entry timeslot first thing (8:30AM) on our first morning in Rome and we had no idea really how important it would be to book in advance. The Colosseum, together with the Palatine (the ticket is valid for both) is the most visited monument in Italy. Even on this rainy grey day in the middle of winter in Rome the queues to purchase entry were large. A queue out in the rain we were thankfully able to skip.

Colosssal

NIKON D750 + 13.0 mm f/2.8 @ 13 mm, 1/320 sec at f/4, ISO 100

Inside the building is pretty damn incredible as expected. It’s perhaps not quite as large as I was expecting (the arena floor size) but still amazing construction for something built nearly two thousand years ago.

Looking Through

NIKON D750 + 13.0 mm f/2.8 @ 13 mm, 1/200 sec at f/4, ISO 100

The Arena

NIKON D750 + 13.0 mm f/2.8 @ 13 mm, 1/250 sec at f/4, ISO 100

and of course my girls enjoying the rain 🙂 – which thankfully actually held off for most of the time we were outdoors here.

NIKON D750 + 28.0-300.0 mm f/3.5-5.6 @ 32 mm, 1/30 sec at f/5.6, ISO 360

We’d arrived in Rome late in the afternoon on a drizzling raining day. We were to be staying right near the famous Spanish Steps in the heart of the shopping district in the city. Although to be fair essentially the entire inner city area of Rome is one giant shopping district with stores and restaurants open all day and night.

We had a fixed price car pre-booked to drive us to our accommodation which was good because he gave us a bit of a guided tour on the way in and drove via a number of the major sights.

NIKON D750 + 28.0-300.0 mm f/3.5-5.6 @ 85 mm, 1/100 sec at f/5.6, ISO 3600

The roads and streets are BUSY here in Rome. You’d think this packed throng is on a pedestrian only street but all these streets are for vehicles as well. They simply just slowly beep and barge their way through the crowds. I really am surprised people aren’t just run down here in Rome.

Note: These photographs (especially the wider shots) look much better when larger. To see larger versions in an inline overlay slideshow gallery viewer click any of the images.

NIKON D750 + 28.0-300.0 mm f/3.5-5.6 @ 28 mm, 1/30 sec at f/5.6, ISO 1600

All the streets here in the heart of Rome basically stay this way each day we were here from around midday through to 8PM or later at night. It appears to be a mixture of tourists, shoppers and locals which pack all the streets.

I had to wait till later at night to go out with my tripod and take some shots sans the insane crowds.

Spanish Steps

NIKON D750 + 16.0-35.0 mm f/4.0 @ 16 mm, 1/1 sec at f/8, ISO 100

Our three bedroom apartment up on the third floor of our building was literally less than 100m from the Spanish steps.

Christmas in Rome

NIKON D750 + 16.0-35.0 mm f/4.0 @ 35 mm, 1/2 sec at f/8, ISO 100

and if you are patient and wait a really long time you can get the street almost empty of people and cars :).

Via del Babuino

NIKON D750 + 16.0-35.0 mm f/4.0 @ 35 mm, 1 sec at f/11, ISO 100

This is the morning view from our hotel in Munich.

NIKON D750 + 28.0-300.0 mm f/3.5-5.6 @ 210 mm, 1/250 sec at f/5.6, ISO 10000

First an earlier foggy, rainy grey morning and then the view on the morning we were leaving Germany.

What you see is the steeple of the New Town Hall at Marienplatz which is right next to the twin towers of the Frauenkirche.

It’s a bit of a mixed blessing having great views of all these fine steeples. The view is lovely however the constant ringing of the various bells in the city every half an hour whilst lovely and charming at first does end up getting a bit much 🙂

Steeples

NIKON D750 + 28.0-300.0 mm f/3.5-5.6 @ 210 mm, 1/250 sec at f/7.1, ISO 560

Too much… probably… It was time to go if we were going to get back not too much after dark. So it was time to get back on the cog train down the mountain to Garmish and then on the DB regional train back to Munich.

Goc Line

NIKON D750 + 28.0-300.0 mm f/3.5-5.6 @ 28 mm, 1/60 sec at f/5.6, ISO 100

Sections

NIKON D750 + 28.0-300.0 mm f/3.5-5.6 @ 56 mm, 1/200 sec at f/8, ISO 100

Note: These photographs (especially the wider shots) look much better when larger. To see larger versions in an inline overlay slideshow gallery viewer click any of the images.

NIKON D750 + 28.0-300.0 mm f/3.5-5.6 @ 92 mm, 1/100 sec at f/5.6, ISO 100

In the Shadows

NIKON D750 + 28.0-300.0 mm f/3.5-5.6 @ 65 mm, 1/125 sec at f/5.6, ISO 500

NIKON D750 + 28.0-300.0 mm f/3.5-5.6 @ 90 mm, 1/100 sec at f/8, ISO 125