The 8th Day | 06:48AM Jul 08, 2007
Today we return to Parsonsfield, and our abandoned Union Church. Of all the abandoned buildings I have explored, I must say this church really stands out. It wasn’t particularly interesting from the outside, normal architecture of the day, and even artifacts were relatively predictable. However, once inside I was finding myself seeing possible photographs everywhere. My best bet would be the combination of light, which was fantastic due to the prevalence of stained glass, and the inherit symbolism that one can find in any religious structure. This particular image is an excellent example of both those variables.
I knew I wanted to capture this scene from the minute I stepped foot inside the main chamber. My biggest problem was finding a vantage point that allowed me to include all the important elements in the frame. I ended climbing on a pew, and fully extended my tripod, but in the end I was able to compose the shot I had in mind. I knew I wanted the bible to appear in the foreground, the highlight to appear on the floor at the foot of the chairs, and the stained glass to fill the background.
Processing here consists of a tone mapped HDR file, created from five separate exposures, which was then imported into Photoshop for final edits. Once in the shop I worked selectively on color correction as well as improving contrast. As a final touch I de-saturated the colors a bit and added a minor vignette to further focus the viewer’s attention on the center of the frame.
Be sure to leave your thoughts. I would love to hear your opinions on not only the photography, but on the location and process as well.
I knew I wanted to capture this scene from the minute I stepped foot inside the main chamber. My biggest problem was finding a vantage point that allowed me to include all the important elements in the frame. I ended climbing on a pew, and fully extended my tripod, but in the end I was able to compose the shot I had in mind. I knew I wanted the bible to appear in the foreground, the highlight to appear on the floor at the foot of the chairs, and the stained glass to fill the background.
Processing here consists of a tone mapped HDR file, created from five separate exposures, which was then imported into Photoshop for final edits. Once in the shop I worked selectively on color correction as well as improving contrast. As a final touch I de-saturated the colors a bit and added a minor vignette to further focus the viewer’s attention on the center of the frame.
Be sure to leave your thoughts. I would love to hear your opinions on not only the photography, but on the location and process as well.
