David Smith

World travelling Cameraman, former Social Worker, Dementia carer, Country Director of Feed the Children Tanzania, Dad to two boys, Northern born London based.

[GBX @GBX_Press]

🚨 JUST IN:

​BBC compiled evidence of over 160 Palestinian children in Gaza deliberately shot in the head by Israeli snipers.

​The reports state: "Israeli Jews are hunting children for entertainment."

[David Smith @digidavey]

https://t.co/RZ2LcWtvRH

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https://t.co/L4IhaqAa0j

[David Smith @digidavey]

UNDERGROUND CITIES OF THE PAST

In the texts of Zoroaster, it is said that for about three years the entire Earth was hit by a sudden and brief ice age. They were called the 'days of Malkush'. Several years before all this occurred, a deity, Ahura Mazda, offered the means of salvation. He said that if they wanted to save themselves, humans should organise themselves into underground cities until the frost wave had passed. Can there be any truth in this ancient tale?
..
What you see in the picture, is the mysterious 'Underground City' of Derinkuyu, Turkey. According to archaeologists, at least eight centuries before Christ (2,800 years ago at least) the core of that city already existed. We are talking about an entire city that could accommodate 20,000 people built 85 metres underground (!!).
...
Perhaps the city was expanded and reused in the Middle Ages (one notes religious structures that could not belong to the 'original version'). But after this brief hiatus, Derinkuyu was lost in the folds of history until 1963, when a man accidentally discovered a tunnel behind one of the walls of his house. The underground city is actually 18 stories deep, with wells, chapels, stables, schools and more, and is said to have been able to house up to 20,000 people.
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Over time, as modern technology allows us to explore the underground, we realise that the city of Derinkuyu is by no means an 'isolated case'. Vast underground networks and even entire cities have been found all over the world. In Egypt, the Giza plateau has a huge underground system that is a combination of caverns and man-made tunnels, as well as rivers and underground passages. In Guatemala, 800 kilometres of tunnels have been mapped under the Mayan pyramid complex of Tikal. In 1992, 24 artificial caves were discovered in China, showing incredible craftsmanship that would have involved excavating 36,000 cubic metres of stone. Archaeologists have uncovered thousands of Stone Age underground tunnels stretching across Europe, leaving researchers puzzled as to their original purpose.
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Today, we know that around 12,000 years ago, a brief and intense ice age affected humanity. Scientists call it the 'Younger Dryas', or 'Recent Dryas'. Are the 'Days of Malkush' and the 'Younger Dryas' the same thing? Conversely, from what, or from whom, did ancient people protect themselves by digging underground cities? Is it possible that ancient peoples, who theoretically did not even know iron and the wheel, were able to excavate these cities, for which we in the 21st century would take, at best, decades? What is our past hiding from us?

The article continues in the book:
HOMO RELOADED - The hidden history of the last 75,000 years
You can find a copy of the book at this link
https://t.co/UKPGWzBDdd

[David Smith @digidavey]

https://t.co/422TwVxX4U

[David Smith @digidavey]

I share with you this photo taken yesterday, I waited 3 years to take this photo... it's on all social networks in Brazil... picture that says more than a thousand words!
[photographer Brasileiro Marita Tapia]

[David Smith @digidavey]

📸Serhij Korowajnyj / FB
A photo that pulls at the heartstrings 💔
[Centrum Europy]

[David Smith @digidavey]

One of my most extraordinary and enchanting experiences was photographing fireflies in Japan. The hotaru season, which refers to fireflies in Japan, lasts from May to around July in different regions of the country. I chose Kyushu Island for its stunning natural beauty as my destination.

In these images, you can see hime-botaru, which are the synchronized fireflies that emit light dots. There are also Genji fireflies, which leave a long trail as their light gradually dims.

Fireflies are highly sensitive to ecological conditions. Unfortunately, their numbers have declined in recent years, making it increasingly challenging to find them. Sometimes, they only light up for a span of two or three days, and this information can only be found among local photographers.

To accomplish this project, I selected a few very dark locations, such as torii gates nestled in deep forests or vast bamboo forests. I arrived at each location well before 8-9 p.m., when the first fireflies begin to appear. I found the best composition, set up my cameras, and eagerly watched. Initially, only a few fireflies blinked slowly, rising from the leaves.

I felt like a child gazing at a Christmas tree for the first time in my life! It was incredibly thrilling and enchanting, akin to witnessing magic. At a certain moment, the fireflies synchronized and began blinking in unison. Yellow-green flashes illuminated the forest with a gentle glow, and for a few milliseconds, I glimpsed mystical shrines and the dreamlike bamboo forest.

It was akin to a meditative experience—being immersed in a deep, dark space surrounded by soft emerald light, if only for a few seconds!

As a fan of anime, particularly of Hayao Miyazaki, I drew inspiration from his works for this project. His films are always imbued with kindness and philosophical themes.

For this project, I utilized two cameras and two bodies. Essentially, from a single day's shoot, there would only be two images if you have two cameras. I used the Nikon Z 7 with a 58mm 1.4 Nikkor lens and the Nikon D850 with a 24-70 Nikkor 2.8 lens. It is crucial to have a wide-open aperture lens for capturing these scenes.

Moreover, you cannot leave your camera exposed for more than approximately 5 minutes, as it would result in numerous hot pixels. Therefore, each photo consists of 100-120 exposures, with each exposure lasting 20-25 seconds, merged into one long exposure using StarStax software, similar to creating star trails.

Ultimately, you see this "map" of fireflies rising in the forest. However, no single photograph can truly convey the feeling of witnessing fireflies with your own eyes.
[Daniel Kordan]

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Abandoned silk and stone villa 😳
[Abandoned Beauties]

[David Smith @digidavey]

This is the world's largest quartz crystal cluster on display. it was discovered in 1985 at the bottom of a 45 metre deep cave in the Otjua mine near Karibib in Namibia. It weighs 14,100 kg and took three years to excavate and remove
Read more: https://t.co/ttcaKQJg6f
[Sir David Attenborough Fandom]

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I can’t believe I never noticed this before!
[Celia Lisset Alvarez]

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Zaha Hadid Architect
[Wonderful Engineering Discoveries]

[David Smith @digidavey]

Horse and Foal made out of drift wood
[Mother Earth]

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"The love for all living creatures is the most noble attribute of man."
[Prakash Panda posted to Better Shop Around 🛍🛒]

[David Smith @digidavey]

Walked by this house in my neighborhood thrift store and wanted it so badly, but my daughter is not quite 3 and I couldn't justify buying something this elaborate just yet. (I've always wanted a Victorian style dollhouse, basically my entire childhood)

I left it there, came home and told my husband how wonderful it was. On his way into work he went back, bought it, and put it in the garage for me to find. I am obsessed!

It does need a little bit of love, but I think its in pretty decent shape. It also came with all of the furniture as well. *swoon!
[Hadi Muchtarom posted to🛒🛍 Better Shop Around]

[David Smith @digidavey]

There is a village in India called Antoli, in the Gujarat state, here a unique and unexpected story unfolded.

A young leopard would make its way from the wild to seek the company of a domesticated cow. The pair would stay together most of the night, an unlikely friendship in which somehow both found comfort.

As an audience developed, the wild cat, wary of humans, decreased the frequency of its visits until they stopped. No one knows why the cat reached out or why the cow was so comfortable around it.
[Sir David Attenborough Fandom]