Auschwitz - Birkenau visit - January 2020 - Part 1

The thoughts and opinions in this blog are mine and mine alone. The details of the visit are recalled to the best of my ability.

In January 2020 I turned 60 years old. As part of my birthday celebrations my Son and Daughter arranged a trip to Krakow in Poland. As part of this trip we were going to fulfil two things on my lifetime bucket list. 

• A guided tour around Auschwitz Birkenau Concentration Camp.

• A Visit to the Salt Mine at Wieliczka (this will be the subject of a separate blog post).

We arrived in Krakow on Friday 17th of January after being diverted to Katowice because Krakow was fogged in. Finally arriving at our Air B&B in the Jewish Quarter of Krakow at about 20:00. It was cold and foggy but we decided to take a walk to the Main Square and grab something to eat. The walk was very atmospheric especially as the city still had it's Christmas illuminations on which looked fabulous in through the mist.

Krakow Main Square

After eating we headed back to the B&B to get a good nights rest as the following morning we were heading for Auschwitz.

Waking up on Saturday 18th (My Birthday) I looked out of the balcony window to see that the fog had lifted. It was still a little overcast but it was very cold. About 2 degs C. 

View across Krakow from the balcony of our Air B&B

After breakfast we walked to the meeting point to meet the minibus that had been booked through the company Escape2Poland . We boarded the minibus and began our 60 minute journey to the camps. During the journey the driver ran a DVD detailing the liberation of the camp. It was quite a hard-hitting DVD but it served to set the mood for the visit very well.

For me this visit was primarily a photography visit and consequently I had a list of shots that I definitely wanted to take. However as the visit progressed it became less about the photography and much more about the plight and fate of the prisoners held at the camp. Although I managed to get the shots I wanted each shot was taken with much more purpose and concern as I learned more and more of the history of the events that took place here.

Just before 10 o'clock we arrived in the car park on Auschwitz I and our driver explained that we could not take anything through the gates that was bigger than an A4 piece of paper. All bags, etc had to be left on the minibus. Initially I panicked as I had my camera bag with me. Thankfully cameras are allowed into the camps but they have to be carried out of their bags.

Auschwitz Main Entrance

We joined the queue and eventually passed through the admission area where we were searched and, of course, those people that didn't listen to the driver were relieved of the bags that didn't fit the entry criteria. These could be collected later.

Once through the admission area we met out guide for the tour. A very softly spoken Polish lady. We were issued with a radio receiver and ear-piece so that we could hear her as we progressed through the camp. Our guide spoke with such passion and emotion as she recounted the history of the camp that I couldn't help wondering if she had lost family to the Nazi regime.

First view of the camp

Like all photographers visiting the museum I wanted the classic shot of the entry gate "Albeit Macht Frei" (Work Will Set You Free). I readied the camera and became very excited as we approached the gate. I lifted the camera to my eye when the reality of where we were and what had happened here suddenly hit me. This was one of many such feelings that occured throughout the camp.

The main entrance and gate

It was impossible to get a completely clear shot of the gate due to the other visitors but I did manage to get a reasonable shot.

The infamous sign

After taking this shot I passed through the gate and under the sign. A shudder passed through me as I though of all those people that had passed through it before me.

It is not the intention of this blog post to detail each and every exhibition within the camp as there are many other websites, including the official Auschwitz website, that will do this far more adequately that I could hope to.

As I continued through the gates our guide explained how Auschwitcz I was originally a Polish Army barracks that was re-purposed by the Nazi's to become the infamous prison camp. Once in possession of this knowledge it becomes quite obvious.

Barrack Blocks

Barrack Blocks

As we began our walk around the camp we were told that there were 27 barrack blocks in the complex and several of them were used as exhibition halls. Nearly all of the exhibition halls were available to visit however Block 10 was not. This block was where 'The Angel of Death' Josef Mengele performed his hideous medical experiments on the prisoners including children. This restriction was understandable and, to be honest, I don't think I would have wanted to see inside that one anyway. Our guide also explained that there were certain areas where photography was forbidden and that she would inform us as and when we entered any such area.

We progressed and our guide explained the purpose of each block and gave examples of the activities that took place in the block recalled from evidence provided by survivors of the camp. Entering the first block the story began to unfold. The walls of the block featured images and photographs of the plight of the prisoners. Their stories from leaving their homes, through the transportation to the camp, to their eventual imprisonment, their torture and eventual deaths.

Fences

The day we visited, the outside temperature was around 3 degs C. Quite a mild January by Polish standards. At the time when the camp was in operation temperatures would drop to minus 20 C and below. The prisoners were rarely provided with fuel to heat the prison blocks despite the blocks having the original heaters used by the Polish soldiers stationed there. I was pretty cold in my modern fleece and jeans. Goodness knows what it must have been like to have been there in the depths of winter clothed only in light, striped, pajamas. We were also told how the prisoners were made to stand outside for long periods of time and then made to march to forced labour in the local factories to aid the Nazi war machine.

Between the blocks

Each exhibition hall told a different part of the story either in words and images or with physical materials. Whilst the words and images are harrowing in their own rights it is the physical exhibits that, for me, really brought the reality of the horrors home. It was these displays that brought the most reaction from the visitors and caused the most emotion in me.

Continuing through the museum each hall was more emotional than the previous. We saw the Zyklon B canisters used to gas the prisoners

Disgarded used Zyklon B canisters

We saw the Hall of Hair with two tons of human hair belonging to the female inmates, we saw the mountain of spectacles, the collection of Tallitots (Jewish prayer shawls). We saw the huge collection of prosthetic limbs, the hall of suitcases still with their owners names on them. We saw the piles of deportees shoes, hair brushes, shaving brushes and combs. We saw the enormous collection of kitchen utensils and pots and pans. Photography was forbidden in these areas due to the sensitive nature of the subject matter. Unfortunately this didn't deter some individuals using camera phones.

No explanation needed

As I said earlier, the visit became less about photography and more about the prisoners. In each of the exhibitions halls our guide explained what took place in that particular area and then followed it by an actual account given by a survivor. This brought more reality to being there in that moment. I won't attempt to recall their accounts here as I simply could not do them justice. 

We passed through the prison area where inmates were forced into cells in which they could neither stand nor sit then forced to march to work the following day. In one area we were told how inmates were starved to death by the Nazis so that they could study the effects of starvation or were given lethal injections. Inmates who had comitted offences or broken prison rules would quite often be put to death by shooting. So many were shot that a purpose built wall had to be constructed just outside the jail room. 

Reconstruction of the shooting wall

Roll Call Square

As our visit came to a conclusion we passed the collective gallows where prisoners were executed twelve at a time. Normally these would be those that were caught trying to escape or aiding others in trying to escape. We then saw the gallows that were built to execute the Camp Commandant, Rudolf HÖss, after the camp was liberated.

The gallows constructed to execute the Camp Commandant Rudolf HÖss

Finally we arrived at the site of the Gas Chamber and Crematorium I. We were asked not to take photographs inside the actual chamber, again totally understandable. It's quite a simple building from the outside. Basically on concrete block with chimney and an entrance door. 

The chimney at Crematorium I

However, the reality of what actually took place here beggars belief. As we entered the chamber I snapped the image below which is the last glimpse of the outside world the victims would have had before being put to death. (You have to imagine it without the visitors).

Last View

Walking up the corridor and entering the chamber a chill passed through me as I considered all that had gone on before. We spent a few minutes in the chamber which was lit by a simple dim bulb. When ready we moved out of the gas chamber and into the crematorium. The final destination for the victims. My thoughts turned to them; The old, the young, the disabled, the infirmed, THE REAL PEOPLE that had met their fate in this terrible place. Most visitors walked out in complete silence as they contemplated the dreadful things that occured on this exact spot seventy five years before.

We spent some time outside Gas Chamber I. Time to look across at the Nazi staff accommodation blocks 

Part of the accomodation block

And the beautiful house assigned to Camp Commandant Rudolf Hoss. To witness the stark differences between their lives and the lives of the inmates.

I have read many books and seen many documentaries about the Holocaust and the atrocities that took place under the Nazi regime but nothing can compare to visiting the Memorial Museum at Auschwitz and standing where some of these atrocities actually took place.

Part of an Electric Fence

We decided to visit the museum book shop and as we walked towards it I attempted to reconcile all that I had heard and seen during my visit. 

How can one group of human beings decide to exterminate another group of human beings simply because of their race?   

What gives any group of human being the right to exterminate another group of human beings?

The Nazi's didn't miss a trick! If it could be sold, melted down, re-purposed or reused then it was. The human hair, the suitcases, the pots and pans, the hair brushes, the shaving brushes, the jewellery, even the gold teeth were all used the help the Nazi war machine.

Of all of the exhibitions and exhibits in Auschwitz I museum the one I found most moving and most thought provoking was the Hall of Pots and Pans. For me this demonstrates Nazi cruelty in action. The Nazi's fooled the deportees by telling them they were simply being relocated and to pack their the things they would need for theiir new life. 

This they did in good faith when their fate had already been decided by the regime. To fill people with false hope in full knowledge that this hope was never real is mental and physical cruelty at its worst. To me the piles of pots and pans represented the deportees hopes and dreams for the future, for their new lives. This is my opinion and upset me the most.     

Auschwitz I was just the start of the Nazi killing machine. The beginning of The Final Solution. We left the bookshop and headed for the minibus so that we could travel to the biggest killing machine of all. The purpose built camp of Auschwitz II - Birkenau. We visit this in the next post.

   

 Return to Blogging. 

Hello again. It's been some considerable time since I last edited this blog. I've been very remiss in not maintaining my blog. There are many reasons for this but I won't go into them here. Suffice it to say that following this long absence I'm now back and I'm hoping to to return to regular blogging. 

As everyone is aware, 2020 has been an unusual year. The year started off fairly normally and I was thrilled when my children (25 & 28) informed me that I was being taken to Poland for my 60th birthday and that whilst there we would be visiting the Concentration Camp at Auschwitz. I appreciate that this is not everyone's cup of tea but for me it was fulfilling an ambition. More of this trip in a future post. 

Upon returning to the UK we carried on as normal but the Corona Virus was just around the corner and in March 2020 we were locked down by the UK government. The lockdown had a massive impact on business across the UK and the world. As I worked for Rolls-Royce our office wondered what the impact would be on our business. 

Unfortunately the impact was severe. As air travel was restricted across the world the demand for aero engines deminished and consequently the requirement for Rolls-Royce to maintain it's large workforce in Derby also deminished. As a consequence reductions were announced and my area was one of those to be reduced. As I was now 60 I decided to accept voluntary redundancy. So I July of 2020 I retired. A little earlier that was my original intention but there you go. 

So I'm now retired in a weird Covid filled world. Luckily photography can be quite a solitary hobby which fits in nicely with retirement in these strange times. So I've been getting out and about with my camera. Although I still love and practice Landscape Photography I have begun to venture into Wildlife and Natural History Photography. 

So whilst I will still be convering all of the things I get up to in thie blog such as new gear, new techniques, etc. I will also be convering the various nature reserves I visit and the things that can be seen there. 

I hope you will enjoy the forthcoming content, 

Cheers for now,

Chris.

Using the Nikon R1C1 Close-up Speedlight Commander Kit

A few months ago I was fortunate to pick up a second hand Nikon R1C1 Close-up Speedlight Commander Kit from Harrison Camera. I’d always wanted this kit for macro work but the price at £550+ is prohibitive.  However buying second hand brought the kit within my budget.

The kit comes complete in a carry case and contains;

2 x SB200 speedlights

1 x SU800 Speedlight commander

1 x Selection of adapter rings.

1 x Holder

Plus a selection of accessories.

The beauty of the R1C1 system is that it can be as simple or as complex as the user wants to make it.

For the purpose of this blog post I used the system in its simplest configuration as follows.

A suitable adapter ring was selected from the kit and attached to my 105mm f2.8 macro lens.

The SX-1 attachment ring was attached to the adapter and the two SB200 speedlights were attached to the attachment ring in a 9 o’clock 3 o’clock configuration.

The SU800 was placed in the hot shoe of my D800 and set to TTL. The SB200’s were switched on with one set to Ch1 Group A and the other set to Ch1 Group B.

In this configuration the camera looks after the exposure whilst the controls on the SU800 allows for the ratio between the two SB200’s to be adjusted by the simple press of a button. 

I’d got a few bedding plants in bloom in the garden so I decided that these would be good as a subject to try out the system. 

I set up my D800 on a tripod with my Nikon 105mm f2.8 macro lens. Although this lens is equipped with Virbration Reduction (VR) I knew from past exxperience that it is almost impossible to take sharp macro images using the camera hand held especiall when the R1C1 is fastnened to the front of the lens. 

Nikon D800 equipped with the R1C1 Close-Up flash system

 

 

 

 

 

 As I was using flash in TTL mode and the camera was on a solid tripod I knew I would be able to use a small aperture to gain a reasonable depth of field. I set the lens to f20 and the shutter speed to 1/200th sec. Using a cable release I took the images below. 

 

All in all I was extremely pleased with the performance of the entire system especially the way in which the individual speedlights could be controlled to either emilinate or introduce shadows. 

I'm looking forward to trying more macro photography as I get more involved with the R1C1 set up.

 

Shooting Through Stone

 Hi All,

Some years ago, during a visit to Tintagel, my son Ben picked up a sliver of polished stone which was on the path leading to the castle. The stone was quite small in size (approximately 1” wide and 2.5” long).

That piece of stone has lived with us for the last 10 years, sitting on the lounge windowsill occasionally getting dusted. In all that time I’d never noticed that the stone was actually transparent until one particular afternoon when the sun hit it and I was in a position to see a beautiful blue colour through its centre.

Now having seen the colour through the stone, how was I going to create photograph that would bring out the best of the colour?

Initially I thought I’d try to shoot it against the window with the natural light of the sun. I set up the camera and balanced the stone with a piece of blu-tack but I found I couldn’t control the light sufficiently to get a satisfactory image.  

Next my thoughts turned to using a strobe. At least with a strobe I can control the power either directly on the unit itself or remotely. I have a few different triggers available so I decided this was the way to go. 

I decided that I would use the strobe to illuminate the stone from beneath, mount the camera on the tripod using the 90 degree boom so that it was looking directly down on to the stone. The only problem I could foresee was how to stop the excess light from the strobe entering the lens. 

I resolved this by using a piece of A4 black card. I traced the outline of the stone onto the card with pencil then using a sharp craft knife I carefully cut the shape making sure I remained inboard of the lines ensuring that no direct strobe light would reach the sensor.

The final set up comprised a piece of A4 sized clear Perspex clamped to the dining room table. The black card was placed onto the Perspex and the stone placed flat on to the card over the cut-out.  

My SB-910 speed light was placed on top of a small box under the Perspex and positioned directly under the cut-out. The speed light was set to iTTL remote and a Nikon SU800 commander used to trigger it.

The first exposure was made using a flash set at ½ power which resulted in a very over exposed image with little or no detail in the stone. Four subsequent exposures were made decreasing the power of the flash until I achieved an exposure I was happy with. The final settings were 1 second @ f22 

Next time we're shooting macro shots of bedding plants with the Nikon R1C1 wireless close-up flash system.

Norbury Church in HDR

Hi All,

I've finally managed to get back out and about with my camera again.

This time I decided to visit The Old Manor House at Norbury near Ashbourne. This is a beautiful National Trust property. 

The Old Manor House

During my visit I took several photographs but at the time there was no access to the inside of the house which was disappointing. However in the grounds of the house was a fabulous church which was open to the public. 

 

Norbury Church

I wandered around the church looking for a shot and finally settled on a shot looking towards the alter taking in the stunning stained glass windows on either side and at the end. As you would expect it was incredibly dark inside the church depsite a few lights burning. Luckily I had bought my tripod with me so it was an ideal situation to shoot for HDR. 

The beaurty of HDR images is that they can capture all of the detail in the shadows and the highlights by combining three or more images taken at different exposures. For my HDR's I always use three images spaced 1 stop apart. To do this I take an initial exposure from which I decide where my starting point is going to be. Then I use the bracketing function to take three images. The first is at the correct exposure. Then I shoot 1 stop over exposed and 1 stop under exposed. (See Below).

1 Stop Under

Just Right

1 Stop Over

As you can see, the images above progress from too dark to too light. These are ideal to combine together to make an HDR image. There is no hard and fast rule for the spacing. Some photogbraphers combine many images 7,8,9 spaced 1, 2, or even 3 stops apart. Ultimately you have to do what's best for you. In my case it's 3 spaced at 1 stop.

Once I had got the images into to PC I then used a piece of software called Photomatix Essentials 4.0 to combine the images and edit them into an HDR image that suits me. 

The Final Image

As you can see the final combined HDR has detail in both the shadows and the highlights and brings out the quality of the spectacular stained glass windows. HDR's a great fun to create but it is incredibly easy to go too far and create an unreal and false looking image, However if that's the look you're going for then more power to you !!

On the next blog we're going to be shooting through stone.

Rowditch Restore

Hi All,

Apologies for the lack of posts in recent months. Sadly the back end of 2014 was particularly bad for me and as a result I had to curtail my blogging activities.  However I'm back in 2015 and hopefully this will be the first of many posts throughout this year. 

I recently had cause to collect together all of the family photographs from my mums house. There were lots of pictures but one particular on caught my eye. 

This is an image of my father at his place of work in Abbey Street in Derby. The company was called Rowditch Engineering and this, as far as I'm aware, is the only image of the engineering staff at the time. I'm not sure of the year but looking at my Dad (he's the one with the glasses 2nd from the right) it must have been around 1950.

Members of Rowditch Engineering circa 1950

As you can see, someone somewhere along the line has folded the picture in two causing it to be creased. I decided that this would be a good image to attempt some sort of photo restoration.

Bringing the image into Photoshop CS6 I began work. I used the Close Stamp tool and the spot healing brush over two separate layers to achieve the final result. I have to say the the Clone Stamp tool was the more useful of the two in this case.

Anyway this is the end result shown here with the clone and healing layers in CS6. 

All in all I'm pretty pleased with it.

Members of Rowditch Engineering final result 

Using a Variable Neutral Density Filter

Hi All,

In recent months I've really wanted to try some photography using a variable neutral density filter. I've read a lot about them in magazines but never actually purchased one even though I like the effect they give especially when photographing water. 

Finally I decided to purchase the Dorr 77mm ND4 - 400 from Harrison Cameras in Sheffield. 

The filter is nicely made and comes complete with a lens cap to fit over the filter and a carry case. The price was pretty reasonable too.

The Dorr 77mm Variable Neutral Density Filter

The next thing I needed was some form of running water. I'd heard of Lumsdale Falls near Matlock in Derbyshire but I'd never visited even though it's on my doorstep. 

On Friday  18th of April (Good Friday) I woke up to a beautiful day and this was too good an opportunity to miss. I packed the gear in the car and headed for Matlock. 

The Falls are about 1/4 of a mile from the school car park on Lumsdale Road so it wasn't too far to trek carrying my bag and tripod. 

Having never used a variable filter I realised there would be some degree of experimentation to do to find the right settings that would give me the type of shot I wanted. The filter gives up to 8 stops of variation which can result in a dramatic reduction in the amount of light entering the lens and consequently a dramatic lengthening of shutter speed. 

I took an initial shot of the falls without using the filter for reference. 

1/80th @ f4.0

I now set up the camera on a tripod and attached my cable release as I knew I was going to be trying some very long shutter speeds. I wanted a fairly low angle shot so that I could capture some foreground details. 

D300s, Nikon 24mm-120mm f4.0 with filter attached

I experimented with a few different speeds, apertures and filter settings. At one point I had the camera set at 30 seconds on f22 with the filter fully adjusted and although the image was correctly exposed it made the water almost too silky. 

In the end I settled for 5 seconds @ f16 with the filter set at 4 stops. This give me the images below.

5 seconds @ f16 with 4 stops of filter

5 seconds @ f16 with 4 stops of filter

For me this was the correct setting as it gave me the shots I was looking for. The water is smooth without being too silky. As always, beauty is in the eye of the beholder and these may not appeal to everyone but for me they were spot on.

Give a variable neutral density filter a try. it's money well spent in my opinion .

If you'd like to see the other images taken at Lumsdale Falls then check them out on my website.