The best view of Florence

The best view of Florence is at Piazzale Michelangelo, but this is NOT exactly a well-kept secret.   ;-)

I love to capture skyline photos when I travel, but it's not always easy to do.  Some cities just don't offer a good location for taking in the grand expanse of a place, but Florence Italy certainly does.

Prior to arriving here, I did some online research (as I always do before going somewhere) about Florence and it wasn't much of a time investment to figure out that Piazzale Michelangelo is the best view of town.  It's a hell of a climb, but it's well worth it.

So I set off quite a while before sunset and clambered up the fairly steep hill to get here.  My expectations were that I would find some folks here doing the same as me (or at least watching the sunset), but in reality this place is BUSY.  It was literally jam packed.  It's a big, wide plaza on the top of a hill, and there is a bar/restaurant and hordes of people.  Of course, I was there in late summer so that is at least partly responsible for the crowds, but nonetheless it was a madhouse.

At first I was concerned I wouldn't be able to find a good spot, but surprisingly I did, and quickly. Once I got settled, I stayed there for quite a while.  I was afraid to move actually, for fear of not getting another spot with a clear view.  While most of the people there were of the tourist variety (no tripod, iPhone or point and shoot camera - though I want to point out there is nothing wrong with that), there were some others like myself that had all the gear set up and ready to go.  I guess everyone got the message that this is THE spot for a skyline view.

While the sunset wasn't exactly magical, it's an incredible view of a beautiful city and one that I am very happy to have spent an evening capturing, even with my iPhone (yes, I still do that a LOT) and my point and shoot camera - not to mention my full frame Sony (which the above photo was captured with).  I try and cover my bases by using several cameras, LOL.  Besides, you can never take too many photos, right?

If you visit Florence, be sure and spend an evening up here catching the sunset.  You'll be very glad that you did!

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