Photos of Wieliczka Salt Mine
About Wieliczka Salt Mine
The Wieliczka Salt Mine sits just outside Kraków, and people have been getting salt out of this ground since Neolithic times. The process has evolved over time at first it was collected by boiling off the brine that came up naturally, then later by digging for it. This is more than just a tour through a historic mine, the miners also built things while they were down there. Over centuries they carved chapels and statues straight out of the rock salt, and the biggest of them, St Kinga's Chapel, is a full sized church deep underground with intricate wall reliefs cut into the salt, a floor chiselled to look like tiles, and chandeliers strung with salt crystal. The salt itself surprises people. It is not white. Most of it is grey and green and appears to be ordinary rock until light catches it and it turns translucent. The tourist route winds through timber framed chambers and past still brine lakes, as it slowly leads you down to 135 m. Make sure to bring your widest lens. You'll have to shoot the chapel from the balcony at the entrance if you want to get the whole room, then work at floor level to highlight all the carvings and the chandeliers. It's fun to experiment with using the lakes for reflections of the lit ceilings above them. Conditions down within the tunnels and chambers will be a challenge. Most of it is dark, using a flash is not allowed, tripods are restricted, and you may need a separate photo permit on top of your ticket. The only way to explore the mine is with a guided tour that you will have to stay with, so no waiting for just the right reflection or all the people to clear. Using fast glass and having a steady hand will be quite useful here. (Wieliczka, Lesser Poland, Poland)
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