This is the view when you get through the Mont Blanc tunnel passing from France into Italy and stop off for a coffee at a gorgeous little place called "Auberge de la Maison" at Entrèves. The sheer scale of Mont Blanc is overwhelming and I've included some foreground elements to try and give you a sense of just how huge this mountain is (4,700-ish metres).

I won't mention just how good the jambon cru (I don't remember the name in English sorry!) is in Italy...

http://www.alwyngreer.com/temp/aoste-valley01.jpg
17-35mm @ 17mm, manual exposure, spot metered, 1/90th@ f/13

http://www.alwyngreer.com/temp/aoste-valley02.jpg
17-35mm @ 17mm, manual exposure, spot metered, 1/45th@ f/16

Hmm...just looking at these again the second pic looks to be about half a stop out. Guess I'll have to go back again... :)

Is that you I the deck chair then ? :D


How the hell do you know its half a stop out ?? :confused:

Nice pics anyway ;) :)

LOL no, not me in the deck chair...the guy was giving me some dodgy looks though!

Going by the tone of the mountain in the distance I'd say it's a third or a half a stop from what it looked like in reality. Check it against the tone in the top pic which is correct.

Is that the road from Chamonix down to Cormayeur?;)

I seem to recognise the glacier from almost that angle, although there was a lot more snow last time I was there :D

Ah, thanks to Google Earth and Autoroute I can see where the first pic was taken:D

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/0803/CharlieWhiskey/MontBlanc.jpg

It is indeed on the road to Cormayeur! After the exit from the tunnel you come down the windy bit and there is a turn off to the village of Entrèves. We usually stop there for a coffee break as Mrs Sti-Frenchie gets claustrophobic in the MB Tunnel -- it's the only time I ever hear her urging me to go quicker (but I can't) -- and the air is such a breath of fresh air it is good to fill your lungs with it after the long trek through the tunnel. Nice spot with Google earth, I must give that a whirl!

How do you get Google Earth to do that?

It's the Adjust Tilt slider to the right of the cursor at the bottom of the screen, it's the best bit! :D

You can then fly through the scene :)