Virgin & Shadow Photo

Photographer’s Note

The seventh in a series of pictures taken in and around the church of Saint-Peter-De-La-Tour at Aulnay in Charente-Maritime.

The Church of St. Peter in Aulnay de Saintonge, Poitou, is regarded as one of the finest Romanesque churches in western France. Located in a peaceful setting overlooking a pasture at the edge of Aulnay village, its beautiful architecture is enhanced by an extensive, fascinating array of Romanesque sculpture inside and out.

Known in Latin as Aunedonacum, Aulnay's history begins in Roman times, when it was a small town along the road between the prominent ancient cities of Poitiers and Saintes. In the Middle Ages, the road continued to be used, especially as part of the pilgrimage route from Paris to Santiago de Compostela.

The first known church in Aulnay (of unknown date) was called St-Pierre-de-la-Tour, which was given to the Benedictine monks of St-Cyprien Abbey in Poitiers in the 11th century.

In the early 12th century, the church was transferred to the chapter of Poitiers Cathedral. Shortly thereafter it was rebuilt, most likely under the direction of Poitiers' canons, in about 1140 to 1170.

A few changes and restorations were made in later centuries, including the top half and spire of the tower (13th/14th century) and the reworking of the west façade (15th century).

The above information was extracted from an article on the Sacred Places web site. The full text of the article can be read here.

For French speakers, there is quite an extensive article about the church on the French Wikipedea site here.

robertosalguero, John_F_Kennedy, John_F_Kennedy, Budapestman, besnard, jlbrthnn, cunejo200, ChrisJ, saxo042, dareco, chinchini, amaryllis has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

robertosalguero (110) 2009-06-03 0:55

Hello Stephen,

The shadow make an interesting element in this composition. Without it the image would be more average. Nice light and point of view to capture the contrast of light and shadows. Details are sharp for an indoor image. Thanks.

Roberto

Budapestman (43344) 2009-06-03 1:25

Hi Stephen,
The brilliant lights provide ethereal mood to the photo. The shade standing out in the wall is a very good detail. The vertical composition spectacular, you handled the lights very well. Splendid architectural photo. Have a nice day!
George

John_F_Kennedy (32340) 2009-06-03 1:25

To find the right balance in light is not easy. You did it well here.
Best wishes,
Achim

wolf38 (13187) 2009-06-03 1:33

Hello Stephen. Here you show an example of the interior design of a church, very much succeeded. Composition, light and shade are in the best way presented. Also the multicolored Kirchenfenster is an important picture element. Compliment. Best regards, Wolfgang.

besnard (31362) 2009-06-03 1:41

Bonjour Stephen
Un joli cliché plein de calme et de tranquilité, lieu oblige. La belle luminosité met en valeur la statue et son ombre.
Merci pour le partage et bonne journée.
Nicole

jlbrthnn (39533) 2009-06-03 3:01

Bonjour Stephen,
J'imagine la fraicheur et l'agrément de visiter et de photographier cet intérieur. C'est un détail intéressant et fort bien mis en image. Bravo.
Bonne journée
Cordialement
Joël

cunejo200 (7243) 2009-06-03 4:49

Hello Stephen,
The interplay of light and shadow is most admireable. Good off-centering, Virgin Mary looks sharp and is shown well against the church interior, good details on the stained glass. Well done and my compliments.
Danilo

ChrisJ (70569) 2009-06-03 5:22

Hello Stephen

A well managed interior lighting shot, with what appear to be flash shadows, that don't actually hurt at all, & in fact enhance the mood & provide some fill. Good colour & sharpness. Tfs!

npecanhuk (15212) 2009-06-03 6:32

Hi Stephen!
Wonderful! A pretty simple composition but a superb manegement of light to capture the exact sensation each one of us would have by being there! Perfect inside picture! Sharpness, exposure and oclors are outstanding!
TFS - congratulations!
Best regards,
Neyvan

claire526 (1261) 2009-06-03 6:46

Bonjour Stephen,
Well seen interior of the church. I like the play of light and shadow here. Good colors and sharpness.
Cheers

darek1978 (11699) 2009-06-03 8:20

Hi Stephen,
Beautiful interior of the church. Excellent use of light and shadows. Also the sharpness is very good- I can see all the details of this interesting interior - pretty fine brightness and very well chosen POV.
Regards,
Darek

Fis2 (46747) 2009-06-03 12:00

Witaj Stephen!
Wonderful climate.
A very interesting place.
I like the light and shadow.
Well done.
Regards
Krzysztof

saxo042 (16590) 2009-06-03 12:01

Hi Stephen,
You have managed well here to achieve this very peaceful feeling here. The dominating shadow is excellently incorporated in your composition, along with the high window. A magnificient photo!
Kind regards
Gunnar

Silvio1953 (43458) 2009-06-03 12:31

Ciao Stephen, superb light, lovely composition with beautiful statue and nice flowers, very well done, ciao Silvio

dareco (17104) 2009-06-03 16:30

Fantastic lighting and lovely tones and detail. I love the shadows and the window is very pretty! TFS

chinchini (27947) 2009-06-04 1:27

Salut Stephen,
Ravi de découvrir la multitude d'images de l'Ouest France dont beaucoup se rapportant à l'architecture sacrée.
Ici, un cadrage parfait mettant en évidence l'ombre de la statue et le vitrail.
Excellente journée mon Ami
Pierre

amaryllis (18012) 2009-06-05 12:36

Bonjour Stephen
cette église avec son architecture extérieure est superbe, et là tu nous montres avec un excellent cadrage et une lumière la Vierge et l(enfant;
bien vu aussi pour les ombres
une excellente composition
juliette

Flavia (10202) 2009-06-06 21:12

Hi Roberto,

You didi a great job in such a difficult light conditions. Church interiors are not easy to photograph. The details here are very well rendered and you worked wonderful with the dark as well as the lighed areas. The Virgen Mary shadow adds a nce touch. Nice composition and framing.

Regards,

Flavia

windosil (830) 2009-06-30 2:46

HI, Stephen,
This beautiful peaceful place caught my attention among your random photos. I have been looking at it for ten minutes, lost in admiration of your skill as I realise how the main light source is placed to create the shadow in just the right place. Beautiful stone colour, too.
Thanks, Winifred