The summer of 2025 is almost over already but I still have some pictures to show you that hopefully bring back that summer vibe. Back in June I've been visiting the small Italian island of Elba for the very first time. Elba is best reached by car via a ferry boat from the mainland. The obvious route starts in the city of Piombino and ends in Ponteferraio, the biggest city of the island. The boat trip takes about 1 hour. Piombino can be reached by train as well but navigating to all the tiny locations and little towns of Elba is really difficult or just impossible without a car. There are busses from Ponteferraio to certain beaches and a selection of little towns across the island but of course not to all of them.

1/228 s, f/2.2, ISO 20, 65 mm, iPhone 12 Pro Max

So getting to the island and navigating across it can be a bit challenging especially during the summer months. Everything is small, old, even a bit dated and parking space is limited. What you get back in return are beautifully tiny beaches all across the often rocky coastlines and some really beautiful, quiet little towns that have managed to ignore the existence of just too many tourists in the hot season.

1/6579 s, f/1.6, ISO 32, 26 mm, iPhone 12 Pro Max

The whole island feels charming, like a little time capsule. The streets, the towns and houses, the bars and cafes, even the people seem to neglect the passing of the past 40 or 50 years, everything feels a bit like Italy of the 1950s, the 1960s and the 1970s. So if you're spoiled by mass tourism in Spain come to Italy, come to Elba. Here the world still feels ok.

1/1206 s, f/2.2, ISO 20, 65 mm, iPhone 12 Pro Max

In terms of photographic opportunities I have to say that I was struggling a bit this time. I'm used to vibrant cities, to a lot of different, often vivacious corners, with viewing angles that completely change every minute and therefore a never ending chance to take new and interesting photos. In that regard Elba is different. Towns are small and not all parts are really exciting. A lot of Elba is about the outdoors, about hiking, mountain biking and swimming. So beach life became a big part of the photos I brought back home. I rediscovered snorkeling there as the ocean water is so inviting in its pure and crystal clear form. There are little fish everywhere that are clever enough to not bump into you but that are always nearby and without too much respect for us humans. So I strongly suggest to you to get one of these snorkeling kits there and enjoy the very accessible underwater life of Elba. You're going to miss much of the fascination of the island without a goggle and a snorkel.

1/1946 s, f/2.2, ISO 20, 65 mm, iPhone 12 Pro Max

Also interesting to discover are the remnants of the industrial past of Elba. There are several iron mines across the island which are open to the public these days. Some of them even have some small museums, others are just rusting steel diggers, conveyer belts, silos and tanks in the harsh sun and surrounded by the near seawater. A fascinating contrast to the often so idyllic views of the always green island.

1/2137 s, f/2.2, ISO 20, 65 mm, iPhone 12 Pro Max

The photos I took this season are mainly shot with the remarkable camera app called mood.camera on my iPhone. The subtle filtering of that app in combination with the completely independent processing pipeline provides this slightly vintage look of these images. You can read more about the technicalities of that app over at cogmodo.com, my still new outlet for all things that are more technical and scientific and therefore not immediately image related. For this beach series I've used a slightly tweaked version of an in app filter called "Calypso" which is mainly responsible for these vintage hues of the blues and yellows.

1/2320 s, f/2.2, ISO 20, 65 mm, iPhone 12 Pro Max