This week, I want to write about a photo I took some time ago. Well I did say that I wanted to get back to writing more about me and my photographs the other week, so here I am. And I am starting with an architectural photo, taken for a client architect.
This photo shows the interior of the new dome in Chideock Catholic Church in Dorset. The dome was in need of replacement, and the architect came up with this wonderfully detailed new dome, with a stunning tiled exterior and this even more stunning domed interior, which I feel priveleged to have been given the opportunity to photograph.
Here is the photo.
This is the interior of the new dome in Chideock Catholic Church, here in lovely Dorset.
And this is the church viewed from the gardens with the dome right there on the roof. Well of course it’s on the roof…..
Before the edit
This is the photo that I took. This is the unedited, RAW image from which the photo above was created.
Technical info
Equipment
- Canon 6D
- Canon 17-40mm lens
Camera settings
- 17mm focal length
- ISO3200
- Aperture – F8
- Shutter speed – 1/20th second.
- Camera handheld – more on that below.
- AV Mode
A word on the camera settings
The first photo I took was with these settings – ISO100, F8, 2 second exposure. Because I was taking the photo handheld lying on my back I needed a faster shutter speed to get a sharp photo. I pushed the ISO to 3200, giving me a shutter speed 1/20th second whilst keeping my favourite F8 aperture. Oh yes I used AV Mode, or aperture priority mode, to take the photo.
I had to take the photo handheld lying on my back as I wanted to get all the dome in and the walls on all four sides. And the only way to get it all in was to literally lie on my back with my camera resting on my face with my widest 17mm focal length.
And as you can see this photo is geometrically all over the place, which needed to be sorted.
If I were doing this again I would have taken the photo of just the dome with my camera on a tripod – I didn’t think to do that at the time though!
I find it remarkable that I got this photo with an ISO of 3200 with virtually no noise in the shadows. That is how good the now 7 year old Canon 6D still is, which proves one thing – no, you do not have to have the latest bells and whistles camera to get good photos.
But you do need to know the capabilities and limits of your camera, you need to know how far you can push things like the ISO and still get a nice, sharp photo. And also you need to be able to take photos with the camera resting on your face as you lie on a very cold, stone floor!
Processing – Lightroom
The distortion was fixed in Lightroom. It took me a while but I got there in the end, using the Transform panel. And all the rest of the processing was done in Lightroom. Well nearly all.
Photoshop
I used Photoshop to remove the black bits, which were from a leak some time before the works were completed.
And this is fine, I was taking the photos for the architect, as record photos of the works. This is how it looked when the works were completed.
Why this photo?
Well, a few reasons.
Firstly, I am going to share more of my photos with you, and tell you how I got them, and stuff that I hope you find interesting. I like this photo, and I hope that you do too.
Secondly, this was a very interesting place. The photo of the exterior of the church was taken from the garden side, which is actually the garden to a stunning country house I photographed for the architect a few years before. There is a private entrance from the grounds into a private section of the church would you believe.
This is why I love what I do, I get to photograph places I never would have seen, even though I have been driving past this church for many years.
So that is the photo of the new dome in a lovely old church here in Dorset. But while I have your attention I want to tell you what else I have to offer. Well one thing anyway. My podcast.
Yes I have my own photography podcast.
My splendid Photography Explained Podcast
Why not check out this recent podcast episode, Photography Explained Podcast Episode 114 – What Is A Histogram And How Can It Help Us When We Shoot?
Now I have to say that I enjoyed recording this episode, which came in at a whopping 15 minutes long. I thought it was going to be a quick and boring episode – far from it. And I learned some stuff too which is always good.
Get your question answered on my podcast.
If you have a question you would like me to answer get in touch. If you head over to my Photography Explained Podcast website you will see how you can do that, and find out lots more about my splendid podcast.
And for anything else, well I end every blog post with this message.
And my You Tube Channel
Yes I have my own You Tube Channel where I talk about each weeks blog post – check out the video for this blog post here.
Any questions get in touch via my website. It would be great to hear from you.
Cheers from me Rick
