A river runs through it

A river runs through Paris, it’s a fact. Two rivers I should say because the Marne is the Seine’s tributary and it merges into it right at the beginning of the City in Ivry.

This picture has nothing to do with the film or book of the same name, and I won’t try and spin a yarn about fly fishing in the Seine. In fact, I strongly advise against that, even though water quality has gone up quite a bit recently. One can even spot fish in the shallow waters. The good news is that they haven’t all gone belly-up.

The picture was taken on a cold — yet bright — January day, from the Pont Neuf (New Bridge, although this is the City’s oldest standing bridge, it must have a been the newest in the 16th century when it was built).

Zooming in one can catch a glimpse of the Pont des Arts and the Louvre. In the back, the 1900 Grand Palais and way behind, the skyscrapers in La Défense, the business quarter west of the City. Left, one can see barges moored opposite the Louvre. There are worst places to be.

I really enjoy the sharpness of modern DSLR cameras and glass. The lens I used here isn’t particularly sharp though, it’s my favourite 24-70 mm zoom which I bought second-hand and without VR (Vibration-Reduction).

Even though I call it my “blurry lens that takes beautiful photos”, it still manages to catch birds flying at a distance, so much so that I keep thinking I have a speck of dust on my sensor even though I don’t.

I can’t care less for ultra-sharp pictures. In fact, this zoom is quite alright as it, I really love it (click link for pictures taken in the Isles of Scilly with that lens).