The Tube Photo | TrekEarth

Photographer’s Note

The dome of the State Capitol is 44 feet wide and rises 160 feet from a glass floor composed of 976 blocks of glass 5/8 to 3/4 of an inch thick. Seen from above the floor creates the optical illusion of an upside down dome. Above the inner dome the outer dome rises an additional 100 feet.

On the second level of the rotunda is a collection of portraits of past governors. Each is individually commissioned and represents an aspect of that governor. One has a plane in the background he enjoyed flying. (He died in that plane not long after his portrait was unveiled) Another shows one of the world's great bridge projects, the five mile Mackinac Bridge which was built under his term. And another interesting one is an unfinished portrait representing the failed re-election of that governor and therefore his feel that his business was unfinished.

Higher up are 8 Allegories representing various aspects of the state such as industry and nature. And finally completing the dome is the oculus with a night sky.

The arches here feature some of the impressive painting work I mentioned in my previous post. All the wood grain and marble lines are artificially created over less expensive pine and iron. Only the gold is the real thing.

And I'm not certain about this ceiling but it looks like it could be glass. Both legislative chambers have glass ceilings to allow light in from floors above and skylights. Since this was built before modern bright lighting as much glass was used to filter in as much light as possible.

Recently the Capitol finished a lengthy restoration that brought back much of this original beauty that was lost over the years to whitewashing. Now it appears much like it did when it was inaugurated 125 years starting a new trend in Capitol design.

In the workshop I posted the slightly different view. I liked the way the lighting was controlled in this one but preferred the view of the other so it was a toss up as to which to post.

Kenny10pin, timotey, elihesamian, snuggleaphagus, jhonny_blue, mdchachi, jhm, papagolf21, bertolucci, phi729, johnnyfive, kajenn, ma-tibou, digi-mom, taivo, cgrindahl, vascao, summer89, cmartos, ChrisJ, mikee, naxius, emercamaya, sarju has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

snuggleaphagus (4138) 2004-07-19 0:57

Your angle is so great. The colors going from darker to light gives your photo great depth and the "being there" feeling.
The portraits closser to the top of the dome remind me of the portaits in the Disney attraction Haunted mansion.

timotey (1926) 2004-07-19 2:20

A very impressive upside down point of vue of this beautiful place ! The higher you look, the brighter the light is. Astonishing !

elihesamian (26091) 2004-07-19 3:00

Excellent POV,Be careful about your neck:)))
Details are great,I have not seen before abot this place in this POV,thanks for sharing,Paul!
I like the way you composed this beautiful cieling & dome,from dark/warm tones in bottom towards bright part in top with a blue spot in center of luminance,You captured & controlled the light there perfectlly.
it's a great informative shot about that place(as the other your shot),alternate shot in workshop is interesting with your note,I like.
And,your composition really is perfect.
Thanks ,dear Paul!

carper (64962) 2004-07-19 3:13

Well Paul,
This is really art, Art of photographic, I really like the tube the great colours and the depth, and I can say, very good job you did.

c_kyr (1810) 2004-07-19 3:59

Very nice feel of the height Paul!
The colors are beautiful.
Thanks for sharing!

papagolf21 (56467) 2004-07-19 4:17

Belle réussite Paul d'avoir pu capturer ce dôme (lumières hautes et basses difficiles à maîtriser).
L'angle choisi est parfait pour donner cette impression de grandeur et de splendeur.
Beautiful success Paul to have been able to arrest this dome (high and low lights difficult to master).
The chosen angle is completed to give this impression of greatness and magnificence.

Laurence (0) 2004-07-19 5:27

Belle réussite... car techniquement très difficile à obtenir. Merci pour les infos détaillées.

jhm (82679) 2004-07-19 7:07

A splendid image, Paul, your angle is so great, a very impressive upside down point of view of this beautiful place, great work!

avis2avis (4242) 2004-07-19 7:42

A wonderful play with circles and lights. The rich brown and golden colors are adding to the effect. Could you please let us know the aperture and shutter speed.

jhonny_blue (4938) 2004-07-19 9:01

Fantastic shot and beautiful details of this dome ! Congratulations

Kenny10pin (19301) 2004-07-19 10:58

well seen, the details are near enough perfect, very well seen, just like a pro

bertolucci (11976) 2004-07-19 15:18

Wonderful capture Paul. The almost 'straight up' perspectice this shot offersus is dazzling. I love it how the eye is captivated and goes through the series of concentric cirkels while the light changes form warm to bright. And not one time but two times; the second time armed with the knowledge your exhaustive note provides us. Great stuff!

phi729 (2099) 2004-07-19 19:34

Hello Paul!

Continuation of the visit (this time, interior) of this superb Capitol!
Technically, the sets of light are rendered sumptuously. Exposition is well balanced (did you use a tripod?).
The angle of view off-center is seen very well: it permits to see the luxuriousness of the ornaments on the whole height of the dome. I like also the blue color of the star(?) forming the top of the dome.

Notes are very very rich and interesting: You are our guide, Paul ;-)

kajenn (2325) 2004-07-19 20:53

I've been inside S:t Peter's in Rome and S:t Paul's in London, Paul, and yet I'm surprised and overwhelmed by the view up the dome of your Capitol. It's an astonishing view and an excellent capture. You've certainly controlled the light from the bottom all the way to the top, rendering all the beautiful details. It's simply a magnificent building and you honor it well. Your POV is very well chosen, giving the height justice and also showing some of the portraits in a nice way. I understand your dilemma concerning which photo to post and my top choice would be this one, but one or two steps forward, so the circles would touch like in the WS. Your note is brilliant! A very good job - impeccably performed!

ma-tibou (4566) 2004-07-20 6:10

Ttès belle photo ,Le monument est très beau ,les détails ressortent magnifiquement bien, Merci pour les belles images.

harold (2271) 2004-07-20 7:34

Très très belle réalisation un cadrage bien soignée. De beaux détails Bravo Paul;

taivo (1840) 2004-07-20 13:06

What a splendid view. So rich in details and colours. The exposure is very well managed with a good, overall lighting. I also like the light-changing effects as you move higher..

cgrindahl (6109) 2004-07-20 19:02

You have this TE thing down pat Paul. You consistently give us quality images such as this beauty, together with the most informative notes. Applause is definitely in order!

You handled this challenging lighting remarkably well and then scanned your image to give us nicely rendered colors and good detail. I appreciate the off center PoV that allows us to see elements of each level as the eye moves up toward the top of the dome. My eyes are definitely happy with this confection. Good work.

vascao (192) 2004-07-21 22:09

Perfection achieved. What a perspective, what an angle! Colors are stunning, and the pic is highly detailed. A great note to complete. Congratulations, Paul, a masterpiece.

summer89 (5414) 2004-07-22 4:52

Great photo Paul.

I like the angle, curves and the colors tones.

Very well done

cmartos (6086) 2004-07-25 9:33

What an impressive inside view on this dome. Not obvious to capture with that complex lighting, it comes out very well IMO, details of the rotunda are very clear. I also like your angle, this assymetrycal view give more impact to the top, more depth and much majesty. Again an impressive view, splendid capture and very interesting and detailed note.

jrzufferey (7249) 2004-07-27 16:24

Belle image, mais surtout parfaite maîtrise de la lumière. La construction de l'image est parfaite et le monument très beau. Amicalement\jr

jean-marie (3088) 2004-08-05 2:04

L'angle est intéressant et l'équilibre de la lumière est impressionnant : ni trop, ni trop peu. du coup les détails ressortent comme il faut

ChrisJ (70299) 2004-08-11 2:57

Good architectural shot, with the concentric circles complimenting each other.

mikee (1983) 2004-08-16 2:36

Wonderful interior shot. I like the concentric circles with different levels of light, guiding the eye from bottom to top like a funnel. Good PoV and angle. You have rendered very well the magnificence of this structure. Well done. Great composition.

naxius (16679) 2004-08-18 6:04

Very nice shot you have posted Paul. It gives us a very good idea of the architecture of the capitol.
The colors are very warm and the DOF is good as well.
Alexandre

dawekato (1988) 2004-08-25 11:42

Great composition and good notes. Difficult lighting situation with extremes of light and dark. A graduated neutral density filter could help even out the exposure. You could try dodging and burning in pp or using darkening/lightening layers.

diasdosreis (220) 2004-10-15 13:04 [Comment]

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emercamaya (359) 2004-11-01 19:40

Hey. Nice work. My concept was not unique after all :) Although I took mine first!

Seriously, you made such a bautiful comment to my work and I thought of doing the same. Great work on the progression of curves and light. I like the detailed notes you've done, and also the comments you made on my Austin Dome, where you make some references to the architect. Cool!

[2]

joseelias (367) 2004-12-23 4:10

Great exposure control! Many details can be seen both in the dark as well bright areas. I like this composition better than the ws version to be true. This really seems to be great place and enjoyed your note.

sarju (5308) 2005-10-27 1:20

Hi Paul
I am happy that I went through old photos in your gallery .... each photo is quite a ride on its own ... and all of them have excellent notes to go along with them.
I am really impressed.
Sorry I do not have any suggestions about your photo right now .... but I did wanted to mention that it is quite a gallery you have here ..... and when it comes to writing notes .... you are jesus man
cheers .... sarju

Albrecht (11110) 2006-12-19 5:22

Hi Paul
Very good compo and POV and use of the natural light.
greetings Albrecht