Löbau

Löbau between residential areas and mountains

In Löbau, dense red roof areas alternate with more open built-up areas in which large buildings take up significantly more space. The view over the city extends to the surrounding heights. This means that a sequence of images can show both the small-scale center and the shape of the larger urban space.

Different city scales in Upper Lusatia

Via Löbau, residential areas can be referred to the heights behind it. The same mountain ridge helps to recognize the line of sight between narrower and wider city views.

The gaps between the houses reveal how tightly built the place is. An inner courtyard opens up the roof structure, a treetop covers part of it, and a wide street separates two blocks. Anyone who looks at the photo can follow these gaps and get a clearer picture than if they tried to identify each building individually. A particularly suitable view for a city portrait is one in which the view from a clearly visible roof can move on to the neighboring streets.

What becomes visible on the edge of town

On the edge of town, several scales come together in a small section. On one side there are individual buildings with gardens and driveways. On the other hand, a single open area sometimes takes up as much space as several streets. This change can be shown in the picture over a common edge. A section in which the border between the two areas remains visible even when displayed narrowly is suitable for a website. The motif then retains its local reference even in the mobile view.

Recognize the shape of the valley area

The location in a valley is made clear in the aerial photo by the lateral boundaries. A nearby slope pushes forward in front of a distant one, and the valley floor opens up in between. If the section is too narrow, it can easily give the impression of a flat surface. A shot with a bit of a slope at the edge of the image preserves the context. Orientation is particularly successful when there is also a familiar size comparison, such as a street or a house. The eye can then better assess the depth between the individual landscape levels.

The distribution of blue tones

If you browse through the 12 aerial photos, you can stay at shot 4 and shot 1 for a comparison. In the first excerpt, shades of blue play a smaller role. In the second shot, blue areas take up more space. Blue can extend over a large contiguous area or only appear in individual parts. What also counts for the effect is whether these areas extend to the edge of the picture or surround the main subject.

For Shot 12 and Shot 1, the same day is noted in the image files, December 18, 2020. The recording times recorded are about 7 minutes apart. The exposure time was 1/120 second for the first of the images mentioned and 1/200 second for the second.

Prepare a cityscape for readers

For a city history, it can be informative to place the aerial photograph next to a street view. In one picture the roof is the reliable reference point, in the other it is often the entrance or the facade. The transition is best achieved via a corner, a square or a visible junction. An aerial photographer can take this connection into account when taking photos. In the printed photo series, a brief note about which side of the street the next photo was taken from is often enough.

Related motifs in the aerial photo archive

If you are looking for related motifs, you can start with Bischofswerda. Bischofswerda appears in the photographs under a wide sky. It's worth taking a second look at Bautzen. In Bautzen, towers, roofs and larger assemblies are staggered above the lower terrain.