Gothic Walk, a photo from Basse-Normandie, North

Photographer's Note

Yet another attempt to give a different view of a wildly familiar landmark - Mont Saint Michel. I took lots of pictures of the mount with the famous monastery looming over the beaches and fields - one of the most beautiful sights I've seen, but way over represented on TE. This is a shot from inside the monastery, with some of the many stairs you have to climb to reach the top. The monastery was built over many centuries, but the bulk of the building was done between 1200-1400, and is a great example of the gothic style. I chose this photo because it represented the mood and feel of the place - dark, mystic and mysterious. This is a place which invites exploration and contemplation of the hard life of the monks who lived here.

Emile, siolaw, PixelTerror, wilkinsonsg, nwoehnl, pasternak, weswang, john_c, peter1892 has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

Emile (20345) 2006-06-15 0:31

The man give your picture a mysterious sense especially with his rare head. Nice B&W picture with very good perspective, interesting the way you were able to play with shadows and light, good POV and sharpness.
Good work Alvin, well done.

branley (3681) 2006-06-15 1:37

Hi Alvin,

not always easy to get a different shot of a famous landmark but you've done very well with this one. It's a fine composition with great sharpness, light and detail. Good capture.

Regards

Stephen

siolaw (35731) 2006-06-15 2:22

Hi Alvin, A good B&W compo with the two flights of stairs giving a graphical effect, fine silouhette of the man and good framing with the gothic arch fitting the title too...
Well done
Laurent

Fis2 (65944) 2006-06-15 3:14

Witaj Alvin!
I like the your composition. Curious architecture. Interesting light and frame. The black and white increase this emotion.
Regards
Krzysztof

drago (4826) 2006-06-15 6:21

Alvin hi,
you're absolutely right,MSM is the perfect place to get lost and turn back in time.I'm looking forward to go back there with my digital equipment!!
Regards
Panagiotis
P.S The B&W fits perfect with the subject

kensimage (8557) 2006-06-15 11:26

Well, Alvin, this is something really different from you! I'm glad to see you're branching out from your usual niche (which you do so well, but there's a big world of phographic possibilities out there...) You managed the light really well, and having a man on the stairs was a good idea, to humanize this cold stone place. One small suggestion: perhaps you could have waited until he was a few steps higher, for an even better composition. Cool stuff. Regards, Ken.

Ann75 (0) 2006-06-15 13:18

Hello Alvin,

I like the fact that you try and gives us different views of the popular landmarks of France. I love this one with the view up the stairs leading into the light. The addition of a person on the stairs is definitely a plus. This is an awesome photo for B&W and the details come out so beautiful. Great composition that creates such a great mood and feeling of the place!

Greetings,
Ann

wilkinsonsg (8646) 2006-06-15 14:39

Excellent POV and B&W treatment - well seen :)

nwoehnl (122) 2006-06-15 16:19

A beautifully framed and presented view from your France trip, Alvin. The arches spanning above the upward flight of stairs establish a good rhythmic structure, and the silhouetted person is very well included. A judicious, if a bit obvious, choice to present this one in b&w and enhance the built-in eerieness. Nice.

pasternak (15127) 2006-06-15 17:52

Hi Alvin,

A strange and omnious photo I´d say... At least very unusual for Mont St Michel... Yes, I know these stairs, been there twice, thousands of tourists go up and down every day, but this one seems definitely not to be one of them...

Very moody picture, B&W works very good here.
Thanks for sharing
Alexander

weswang (18223) 2006-06-15 20:07

Hi Alvin, You have well played the light and PoV in this picture to show the clear contrast of the stairs, the silhouette view of the pedestrian with the steps of the stair as the background. Good perspective view and nice capture of the mystic mood.

john_c (24658) 2006-06-17 12:26

Hi Alvin,
Well, I see you made it to France...You have indeed captured the mysterious ambience of this place. I like the lighting level and the position of the man in the scene. This could be from Phantom Of The Opera. The POV is well chosen, as the viewer contemplates with the walker the dark stairs leading to the light. Well done.
John

PixelTerror (96880) 2006-06-18 16:54

Hi Alvin,
I like here the bottom up angle with curvy perspective, the architectural elements to be seen and the inclusion of the person, we share that there are not so many persons in our photos. I also appreciate that you tried such a different photo in such a place. Just the overall impression is dark on my screen.
Have a nice day,
Jean-Yves

greg64g (11193) 2006-06-19 3:20

Hi Alvin

So you had decided to visit one of the most beautiful place in France. the abbey is great and you managed a nice picture, you catch the mood of the place.
well done, i hope to see more piture from the mont .
cheers
greg

PJE (20676) 2006-06-22 17:12

Alvin nice reflective backlighting in this scene. The archway and steps together make a very nice setting in this photo. Add to that the person stepping up into the scene makes this a winning photo in my estimation. Thanks for sharing..I like it!

keribar (43841) 2006-06-23 1:04

Hello Alvin,

Excellent vertical rendition of the stairs leading to the Mt St: Michel. I also enjoy the BW desaturation. We have the same camera and lens. ( A little bit heavy combination if you want to keep around your neck all day long )
I wish you a very good week-end - Izzet

donluicu (24676) 2006-06-28 4:59

Hi Alvin
the spirit wanted in this image is very well given...
i like the vertical framing, and the human presence...
Did you go in the upper cathedral??

regards

peter1892 (1681) 2006-07-07 10:07

Great shot - the use of the archway as a frame is good, I really like the dark areas & the mysterious atmosphere created by this B&W image. It has a wonderful mood. the human presence is also good as it provides a sense of scale.