1988 – The Western part of the Avenida Infante Dom Henrique in Monte Gordo, Portugal. © Mark Zanzig/zanzig.com
The story behind the image
The other day I stumbled upon this image. It shows the village of Monte Gordo, which is situated near the Spanish border in Portugal’s Algarve region. In fact, it’s the last village before the border. It’s one of my early shots, and it’s most certainly not beautiful by any means. However, it is a document in time.
Why is it a document in time? Because it shows Monte Gordo as it will never be again. This is the viewpoint of the western end of the Avenida Infante Dom Henrique. Basically it was a wide two-sided Avenida that was used as one huge parking lot for the visitors of the beach. I still remember how turned-off we were when we saw this. (It was pretty cool, though, to get a parking lot right next to the beach.)
A lot has happend to this place in the 34 years that have passed since I stood there and captured the scene. The last building (on the left) is still standing today as house number 64, but further buildings have been erected between that building and the camera location. The large Avenida has been turned into a pedestrian area, and the parking space appears to be more controlled today. I think this is a very positive development.
By the way, it’s funny to see our car, the white Mercedes-Benz standing there (it’s the fifth car from the right.)
The high resolution image
| Capture Date | Summer 1988 |
| Location | Monte Gordo, Portugal |
| Camera | Canon AE-1 Program |
| Image Source | Negative Film |
| Digital Image Source | EPSON Perfection 4870 Photo |
| Digital Image Source Format | TIFF, 24 bits/pixel, sRGB |
| Edited Image Format | JPEG, 24 bits/pixel, sRGB |
| Edited Image Dimensions | 7183 x 4728 Pixels |
| Copyright | © by Mark Zanzig/zanzig.com |
Zanzig.com Photo Hub 