As regular readers of my blog will know the beautiful Mediterranean island of Corsica is one of my favourite places and the laid back, pretty, seaside town of L’Ile Rousse is one of my favourite towns.

This week’s travel snap is of a charming backstreet just a couple of minutes’ walk from the beach; the perfect place to find a great restaurant, souvenir or ice cream after a hard day’s sunbathing!

As with last week’s snap this is an HDR image but this time I’ve chosen to go for a less subtle but what I hope is a more artistic approach. Again I’d really value your feedback – good or bad, as I know HDR photography is not everyone’s cup of tea! See the unaltered and uncropped original on Flickr.

If anyone would like to find out more about HDR photography why not join me and the twitter friends I’ve made at ‘togchat’. Held every Wednesday at 8am and 8pm BST simply check out the tweets using #togchat. If you want to join the chat simply add #togchat to your tweets. There’s a different photographic theme each week and next week, Wednesday 2nd May, is HDR photography. You can also find the group on Flickr and submit photos for critique and questions about HDR photography there too.

There’s a great photography post doing the rounds at the moment called ’7 Super Shots’. HostelBookers.com put out the call to select 7 of your favourite photographs, one for each of the following categories, then tag 5 bloggers that you would like to take part. I was really pleased when Anja nominated me. So here are my 7 shots…

1. A photo that…takes my breath away

The pretty seaside town of L’Ile Rousse, Corsica and the stunning beach – the colour of the sea took my breath away the first time I saw it and no matter how often I return it still does. A shot taken in the other direction featured in my ‘ Travel snap of the week’ recently so check it out if you’d like to know a more about L’Ile Rousse.

2. A photo that…makes me laugh or smile

These wonderful children in The Gambia always make me smile when I visit their school in Brikama. Read about my last visit in ‘My dairy from the smiling coast of Africa.’

3. A photo that…makes me dream

Calvi beach (also in Corsica) with a back drop of pine trees and the mountains beyond – I regularly dream of being back in Corsica!

4. A photo that…makes me think

I took this photograph while on a photographic assignment in Senegal. Whenever I look at it I wonder what she was thinking. I think she looks sad. My guide did speak to her to ask if it was OK to take a few photos before I barged into her home.  I do hope she didn’t mind the intrusion too much. I felt frustrated that all I could do was smile and thank her in English or French without knowing whether she understood a word of what I was saying.

As a travel photographer you often find your self intruding in people’s lives. When is it OK and when are you crossing the line?

5. A photo that…makes my mouth water

Cupcakes topped with strawberries and cream, in Brighton, England. Delicious!

6. A photo that…tells a story

This statue in memory of the end of slavery is a poignant reminder of the tragic past of Gorée Island just off the coast of Dakar, Senegal. Once a transportation post for slaves leaving Africa it is now a very beautiful little island with pretty pastel painted buildings and flower filled streets plus a museum about slavery. A ‘must see’ when visiting Dakar. More of my photos from Senegal are on Flickr.

7. A photo that…I am most proud of (aka my worthy of National Geographic shot)

This is a tough one! My favourite photograph changes regularly and I’ve already posted a few in my weekly ‘Travel snap’ features. Not wanting to repeat myself here’s another one of my favourites shots of a street in Mindelo on the island of São Vicente in Cape Verde.

Thanks again Anja for nominating me. There are lots of  bloggers’ I’d like to pass this on too but I better limit this to 5 as requested!

So I’m asking the following to share their ’7 Super Shots’ with us.

Suzanne, The Travel Bunny

Cynthia, Hapidayz

Abu, A Visual Journey

Andrew, Andrew Graeme Gould Photography

Greg, Wanders & Wonders

This week’s picture post is of one of my favourite beaches, L’Ile Rousse in northern Corsica. For those of you who follow me on twitter you might recognise it as my background image, but what makes it such a wonderful beach?

As you can see it has soft white sand, the clearest of water and a gently sloping seabed. I have waded in up to my neck here and still being able to see my feet as if looking through glass. Every time I have visited this beach it has never been anything other than beautiful and calm.

What you can’t see in this photo is the wonderful town of L’Ile Rousse itself. Just off the beach is the town square surrounded by charming cafés and restaurants where you can sit in the shade of one hundred year old plane trees and watch the world go by. The parish church over looks the square in front of which giant date palms provide shade for the occasional game of petanque.

Leading off from here are a number of lovely little cobbled streets running parallel to the coast where you’ll find a traditional covered market, more wonderful restaurants, a few souvenir shops and some stylish boutiques. Yet more great restaurants can be found on the beach itself.

The town square plays host to numerous events throughout the year including Fête de La Musique held every 21st June (which is the day I took this photograph last year).

See more of my photos of L’Ile Rousse on Flickr.

Another glorious day and I’m off to L’Ile Rousse, a laid back coastal town about 11 miles from Calvi with a beautiful sandy beach set against a back drop of the La Balagne mountains.

Parking near the train station the walk into town offers a lovely view of the beach. I’m here to photograph the town and start by exploring the cobbled streets near the beach filled with numerous enticing restaurants and interesting little shops, as well as the usual seaside postcard and souvenir outlets and a charming covered market.

The smell of fresh fruits greets me as I wonder from stall to stall, stopping a while by the honey as the stall holder insists that I try every single variety of honey he has (and there are quite a few) followed by a rather delicious glass of mead. Having purchased my favourite pot made by bees that have fed on the marquis (the wild herbs growing over much of Corsica), I move on past stalls of cured meats, fresh fish, oils and local cheeses. Tempting, but it’s back to the beach for me. The water is the clearest blue I’ve ever seen and so inviting but instead of swimming I try to capture its beauty with my camera.

That evening, I dine with friends in one of the many fabulous restaurants here. As we are finishing our meal a choir gathers outside and bursts into song! It is World Music Day after all – a tradition started in Paris in the 80s known as Fête de la Musique where concerts are held across France to celebrate the summer solstice every 21st June.

The original idea was that amateur and professional musicians perform in the streets all-night. Two conditions sanctioned by the official Fête de la Musique organization in Paris are that all concerts must be free to the public, and all performers donate their time for free. World Music Day is now celebrated around the globe and in fact I first heard of it while travelling in Africa.

Before dusk a concert starts in L’Ile Rousse’s town square – musicians of all ages entertain locals and tourists alike into the early hours. Luckily my friends’ son has no school tomorrow!

There is also a free concert going on in Calvi tonight to celebrate Fête de La Musique and to mark the start of the annual Calvi Jazz Festival.

Back in Algajola another concert is still in full swing under the arcade close to my hotel and I am tempted to join in the celebrations but I have an early start in the morning. Luckily in my hotel room the noise is unobtrusive and I easily fall asleep, dreaming of another wonderful day in Corsica.

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