theonlyD800inthehameau
Photography by theonlydeadheadinthehameau
Monday Window: The Church at St-Martial-sur-Isop
Posted on October 14, 2019
I’ve just heard about the #MondayWindow challenge that’s being hosted by Ludwig Keck.
Here is my initial contribution – a stained glass window high up on the wall of the old church in the nearby village of Saint-Martial-sur-Isop.
Three windows
Posted on June 26, 2019
While in the great cathedral of Cahors, my eye was drawn to these three stained glass windows and their juxtaposition with the curve of the dome
Stained Glass Monochrome
Posted on February 9, 2018
The main interest in photographs of stained glass usually lies in the vibrant colours.
However, a monochrome image, such as this one of a window in the church of Saint Cirq Lapopie, helps to accentuate the intricacy of the patterns that go to make up the overall effect.
52 Weeks Photo Challenge: Week 29 – Beautiful Colours
Posted on February 27, 2017
The colours in this stained glass window in the cathedral at Chartres are truly stunning:
52 Weeks Photo Challenge: Week 29 – Beautiful Colours
52 Weeks Photo Challenge: Week 9 – Patterns
Posted on October 3, 2016
The Girl That Deams Awake has set the topic of ‘Patterns’ for this week.
Most stained glass windows display overtly religious images. However, this example, to be found in the crypt of the medieval church in the French village of Gargilesse, is an interesting exception.
The geometric patterns remind me of Celtic designs (Celtic knots?). I’m also reliably informed – by Madame the quilter (a.k.a. The Best Girl Ever) – that there are very similar quilting patterns.
In another departure from tradition, the colours are far more subdued than in typical stained glass windows.
Weekly Photo Challenge: Morning
Posted on August 6, 2016
The morning sun shines through the east window of the church at Blond, in the Limousin region of France, casting this impressionistic image of the stained glass across the stone floor next to the altar.
Before & After: St Mary’s Church, Beverley
Posted on January 29, 2016
Another ecclesiastical subject this week. However, this time it’s an interior – of the nave and high altar of St Mary’s church in Beverley. A lot of people are aware that Beverley has a Minster (basically, a cathedral without a bishop) and you could be forgiven for assuming that this was it, given its monumental scale and rich decoration. However, it’s ‘just’ a Parish Church.
Before
This photograph looks down the main aisle of the church to the altar beyond the rood screen. Apart from the fact that it’s a bit wonky, it displays one of the most common ‘technical’ problems with photographing church interiors: the external light source, particularly when shining through a stained glass window.
After
The first thing – as ever – was to straighten and crop the image. The pews at the bottom of the original weren’t bringing much to the party and the columns on each side provided sufficient in the way of leading lines.
The bright sun shining through the windows high up on the right meant that some of the stonework of the columns on the left was blown out, while the ceiling between the two arches seen in the original was very dark. The latter I dealt with by the simple means of cropping it out (which also took care of the windows) and I applied a graduated filter effect on the left side of the image to claw back some of the detail that was lost in the original.
The second source of bright light was through the stained glass. I reduced the glare by moving the Highlights and Whites sliders all the way over to the left.
The image still had a ‘cold’ overall cast, so I boosted both Clarity and Vibrance, which gave a much warmer tone.
The key colours in the image are obviously blue, orange and yellow. Reducing the Luminance and boosting Saturation (a little) made these ‘pop’ a bit more as well as bringing out still further detail, especially in the painted ceiling.
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