The interior of Basilica, Esztergom Photo

Photographer’s Note

Basilica of the Blessed Virgin Mary taken into heaven and St Adalbert

Hungary's largest church and the seat of the Catholic Church in Hungary. The Classicist basilica houses a Renaissance masterpiece, the Bakócz Chapel. The Treasury's collection is extremely rich. The basilica is 118 metres long, 49 meteres wide, and 100 metres in height. Arches connect the two 57-metre towers on the left and right of the tympanum at the main entrance.
The visitor is welcomed in its immense interior laid in a Greek cross plan, with a single barrel-vaulted nave divided only by the transepts, and dominated by the huge crossing dome. Grey marble dominates the colours of the interior, lightened by white and gold decoration and red marble ornamentation. The high altarpiece is the world's largest oil painting on a single sheet of canvas.
The grounds of a medieval church were chosen for the site of the basilica. Built between 1822 and 1869 under four archbishops, it was designed by architects Pál Kühnel, János Packh, and finally József Hild. The basilica was inaugurated in 1856. Ferenc Liszt composed his Esztergom Mass for this occasion, and he personally conducted the orchestra at the celebration.
The cupola is open for to the public and offers a spectacular panorama. The church crypt is the final resting place for the dignitaries of the church in Hungary, including Cardinal József Mindszenty.

Esztergom

Esztergom is the birth and coronation place of the first Hungarian king, St Stephen; the city celebrated the 1000th year of its establishment in 1973. Its famous churches, its monuments and the natural beauty of the surrounding countryside make it an extremely popular tourist destination.
The favourable geographic location played a significant role in the development of the settlement. It stands at the meeting place of the mountains and the flatlands, at a crossing point of the Danube, and also at a crossroads of military and trade routes.

By the beginning of the 20th century Esztergom had grown into a significant cultural, intellectual and religious centre. It lost its status as the county seat in 1951, but has retained its role as religious centre to this day. The largest church in Hungary stands here, the basilica, which is linked to various ecclesiastical heritage. Some of these are preserved in the Cathedral Treasury (Főszékesegyházi Kincstár) and Museum of Christianity (Keresztény Múzeum).

The cultural and tourist programmes held here draw many visitors. Today Esztergom is one of Hungary's most significant tourist centres.
(Source:Vendégváró)

snunney, Sanderson-Brown, salvator, Cretense, Buin, jlbrthnn, danyy, dareco, jjcordier, leo61, mikolaj_kawa, danos, pablominto, jhm, berek, chrkont, xavshot, axiotea, jalab_temen has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

snunney (34610) 2008-07-31 2:06

Hello George,
A great capture of this magnificent interior. Great point of view with very pleasing light and good colours. The people add to the mood and give a sense of scale. Sharpness is excellent.

Sanderson-Brown (1697) 2008-07-31 2:15

Hi George,
Great pov, the lines bring the eye right down into the middle of the circle. I agree with teh pleasing light. Good work!
tfs
regards
paul

jasmis (50142) 2008-07-31 2:24

Superb classic view in amazing vertical frame.
Regards.

Gustaw (21670) 2008-07-31 3:22

Hi, my friend!
It is very interesting interior. I like your composition. It must be very beautiful church. I like many, many details.
Marek

salvator (18763) 2008-07-31 3:33

Hi George,
The use of light and the colors, the details seen look wonderful. The colors and the sharpness look wonderful.
Best regards. Salvator.

Cretense (55690) 2008-07-31 3:33

Hi George!

Excellent interior photography, amazing light managment, briliant colours and very good definition! The framing and composition are quite unusual, you left too much space for the floor, but it works very well, because the floor is really beautiful! Congratulations!

Hercules

Buin (37412) 2008-07-31 4:01

Hallo George!
A most impressive church and photo as well ... gorgeous! The vertical build up works very well here.
Greetings from unbearable hot and sticky Germany!
Frank

izmirli (3019) 2008-07-31 4:46

merhaba dear george
excellent details and composition.excellent basilica and colours.well done my friend.
best regards.
gürkan akçakır.

gildasjan (23645) 2008-07-31 6:13

Bonjour George
Très bonne intégration du premier plan sans couper les trois étoiles et belle restitution des couleurs de cet intérieur de basilique.Une image de qualité bien nette et bien exposée.
Bonne journée
Amicalement
Gildas

ifanik (20474) 2008-07-31 7:33

Hi my friend
Very beautifull interior with nice colours
Your photo is excellent my friend
Very nice note as well
Greetings from the hot Greece
Nick

jlbrthnn (37601) 2008-07-31 8:25

Hello George,
This basilica appears to be very quite enlightened, which facilitates much taken image. This photograph, very symmetrical is superb. Details and colors give a good impression of the richness of this monument. Cheer.
Have a nice day
Cordially
Joël

danyy (68492) 2008-07-31 13:42

Bonjour George,
un cadrage pas facile, il y a tant de belles choses de tous les côtés, on aurait de faire un panoramique.
Une capture parfaite des lumières qui révèlent pas mal de détails. Surtout ces orgues magnifiques.
Regards.
daniel.

dareco (17104) 2008-07-31 14:50

Magnificient architecture and artwork!!! The lighting, colors and detail are all superb! TFS and have a happy day!

jurek1951 (25896) 2008-07-31 21:04

Hi George,
Excellent shot of architecture,amazing light and contrast.Perfect quality and perspective. Great work,
Georg

jjcordier (24470) 2008-07-31 22:05

George
Une photo de très grande qualité, technique et esthétique.Belle composition avec une profondeur de champ parfaite et des couleurs superbes.
Amicalement
JJ

Graal (57647) 2008-08-01 0:00

Jó napot George,
beautiful interior of basilica, good composition and colours, fine glance on the organ and details. I like it.
Gr., Aleksander

hay_kes (28562) 2008-08-01 0:22

Hi George,
What a superb architectural view.Great Colours, light, symmetry and perspective.TFS.
Regards,
Have a nice weekend.

hAyAti

leo61 (43219) 2008-08-01 0:58

Hi George!
A fantastic interior image,well composed with this wonderful foreground.Colors and light are fantastic and I like the symetry.
Regards,Leo

mikolaj_kawa (29787) 2008-08-01 1:31

Hello George! Wonderful basilica, wonderful interior. Good picture. Perfect light, bright and sharp. Good capture. Well done!

danos (32198) 2008-08-01 4:49

Hello George,
nice and impressive the interior of the Basilica with a lot of visitors to admire it.The
colors and the light are tha main characteristics of the scene.Informative your note too.Well done.

Have a nice weekend,Danos

TopGeo (21639) 2008-08-01 5:12

Hi George Excellent point! The internal spaces of churches are the pictures that I like, as if I visit with the look the same moment! Here it impresses the POV and colours and clarity sharpness is excellent.Great work,Interesting FG.
tfs regards
Georgios

pablominto (40402) 2008-08-01 5:16

Hello George,

I like how you include the circle in the floor, it adds a lot of interest in the composition!
Excellent use of present light, sharp fine details and vivid colours...
Pleasant symmetry in capture of the fine interior!

Greetings,
Pablo -

amaryllis (17349) 2008-08-01 9:13

bonjour,
un tres bel interieur de cette basilique avec des couleurs superbes, des orgurs grandioses et de belles statues
une très bonne luminosité à l'interieur de celle-co
juliette

berek (28849) 2008-08-01 11:46

Hi George,
another magnificant view this great Basilica. clear picture good sharpness. have a nice evening.
Burak

jhm (82201) 2008-08-02 0:29

Hello George,

Very lovely interior picture certainly with the organ in background.
The use of light and the colors, the details are wonderful.
You wrote a very good note.
Very well done, TFS.

Have a nice weekendn,
John.

Silvio1953 (41438) 2008-08-02 4:22

Ciao George, splendid view of superb architecture with wonderful light and colors, great POV, very well done, ciao Silvio

zeca (20026) 2008-08-02 9:12

Hi George!
I like to visit churches and its always a nice opportunity to make some good photos. The difficult lights ususally work against us inside there, because I don´t use to carry out my tripod when traveling. But here, the light looks like plentiful and you found a very good POV, with nice framing on the floor details. Well done!
Regards,
Zeca

chrkont (3629) 2008-08-04 17:06

Hi George
Great interior shot. Very well balanced between the floor and the rest of your theme. I like the yellow color tone of the photo and the very sharp details too.
Thanks for sharing
Regards
Christos

xavshot (62257) 2008-08-06 12:29

Bonsoir George
superbe travail dans cette photo. La lumière est superbement maitrisée et le cadrage respectant la symétrie du lieu est remarquable. Bravo.
Xavier

Angshu (33551) 2008-08-08 1:02

Dear George
Fine details in this interior shot. The light managment is excellent with briliant colours. Like how you highlighted the floor in the FG & given so much space to show the beauty. Very good work!
Regards
Angshu

axiotea (16031) 2008-08-10 6:55

Hello George
The patterned floor is nice visual impact and a good starting point leading the eye to the impressive organ providing a beautiful BG. Plenty of details to look in a fine exposure!
Cheers
Marilyn