I lost count of how many churches there were in Perissa, but you can take it from me there are a lot!

There’s one ‘big’ church in the town though that obviously stands on the site of some ancient place of worship.

Like all Greek churches the simple blue and white exterior hides a wonderfully decorated interior. For some reason the local priest wasn’t too happy about me taking photographs inside, so here are just a few images of the outside.

The bell tower

Main body of the church

Pillars from a previous building – these are approximately 6 feet below the present ground level

Detail from one of the pillars showing the head of a bull – the bull was a powerful Minoan symbol. It seems likely the Minoan civilisation on Crete was destroyed in 366 BC when the volcano at Thira erupted forming the present caldera.

The big church dominates the Perissa skyline and can be plainly seen looking back into the town from the seafront.

I have just a few touristy after dark shots to share with you and the odd word of wisdom.

We all take our camera on holiday with us and love to shoot on the beach, or when we’re visiting towns and tourist places. But many of us are disappointed with the photographs we take after dark. Perhaps I can help shed a little light.

Modern cameras, particularly those of the digital variety, have in-built low light capabilities. If your camera has this kind of facility make use of it, but try to support your camera to decrease shake/wobble. Use a tripod if you have one, or a small bean-bag to rest your camera on. Wall and table tops work well too, but make sure you rest the camera near the edge so you don’t end up photographing your prop. Then let the camera do the work and you’ll be fine.

But what if you don’t have a low-light setting? Your camera will try to suggest using flash and this is a big mistake unless your subject is pretty close. Small cameras do not have powerful enough flash units to light a subject more than a few feet away so the likihood is your image will be underexposed. Try this instead.

Take control of your camera; switch off the flash. Use the aperture priority setting if you have one, and select an aperture of f5.6 or above. This will give you a reasonable depth of field so your subject and surrounding area will be in focus.

Steady your camera as suggested above; tripods, gorilla pods, bean bags, window clamps and other props are available quite cheaply if you know where to look.

Use the self-timer to further reduce camera shake, then press the shutter button and let the camera make the exposure.

If you have no method of supporting your camera you can still get away with after-dark shots, but use your body wisely. Hold your camera in both hands and tuck your elbows against your sides. Take a breath, breathe out slowly and hold your breath, then press the shutter. Some movement may still occur, but you may be surprised how good your photograph will look.

These are all hand-held and although not perfect, I suggest they are probably acceptable as holiday photos.

Have a go at some low-light shots – you may surprise yourself with the results.