Picture of the Day - August 26, 2009

The Roman Colosseum at night

Photo courtesy of Pietro Ricciardi.              (Click on the photo for a larger view) The citizens of ancient Rome spent much of their leisure time at the Colosseum enjoying an array of macabre spectacles that usually featured professional gladiators taking on condemned prisoners, wild beasts and other gladiators in what is best described as "extreme fighting" taken to the ultimate level. The thousands of spectators and Roman officials who regularly packed the stadium loved a good "death match", and rarely were they ever disappointed. Today, most folks find the "games" that took place within the walls of the Colosseum to be quite distasteful and inhumane to say the least, but that doesn't prevent them from being fascinated with the beautiful structure and its macabre history. Many thousands of tourists visit Rome each year, and the ruins of the Colosseum are the first stop on the itinerary for a great many of them. Photographer Pietro Ricciardi captured this amazing nighttime image of the Roman Colosseum with the following camera and settings: Camera: Fuji FinePix S9500 Focal length: 6mm Exposure time: 3.7 seconds Aperture: f/2.8 ISO: 80   Visitor Comments... Name: George Fleming Town: San Diego, CA Lovely image. The lighting was superb.     Name: Gordon Brugman Town: Gatlinburg, TN A fine image, Mr. Ricciardi. The composition gives a really good idea of the Colosseum's size and grandeur.     Name: Trina Wolfe Town: Houma, LA I have seen the Colosseum in person, and during my visit I was blown away by the immensity of both the structure itself and the description of the events that took place there so many centuries ago. These ruins stand today as both a symbol of what man can achieve in terms of ingenuity and architecture and how depraved he can become if allowed to do so. This is an absolutely wonderful photograph of one of history's most intriguing structures. Thanks for sharing!     Name: Al Henningberg Town: Oakburn, Manitoba, Canada Amazing photo!!!   Comment on today's picture  |  View previous "Pictures Of The Day"  |  Submit a photo Why I publish the "Picture Of The Day"