The Nave, a photo from Staffordshire, England

Photographer's Note

A delve into my archives for a series of pictures featuring Lichfield Cathedral in Staffordshire, United Kingdom.

Some words about the cathedral from Wikipedia:

The cathedral is dedicated to St Chad and Saint Mary. Its internal length is 113 metres (370 feet), and the breadth of the nave is 21metres (68 feet). The central spire is 77metres (252 feet) high and the western spires are about 58metres (190 feet).

The stone is sandstone and came from a quarry on the south side of Lichfield. The walls of the nave lean outwards slightly, due to the weight of stone used in the ceiling vaulting; some 200–300 tons of which was removed during renovation work to prevent the walls leaning further.

It was built on the site of a wooden Anglo Saxon church, which in its turn had been replaced by Norman cathedral built in stone. Building of the present Gothic cathedral was begun in 1195. It was completed by the building of the Lady Chapel in the 1330s. The Choir dates from 1200, the Transepts from 1220 to 1240 and the Nave was started in 1260. The octagonal Chapter House, which was completed in 1249 and is one of the most beautiful parts of the Cathedral with some charming stone carvings, houses an exhibition of the cathedral's greatest treasure, the Lichfield Gospels, an 8th-century illuminated manuscript.

Lichfield suffered severe damage during the English Civil War in which all of the stained glass was destroyed. In spite of this the windows of the Lady Chapel contain some of the finest medieval Flemish painted glass in existence. Dating from the 1530s it came from the Abbey of Herkenrode in Belgium, in 1801, having been purchased by Brooke Boothby when that abbey was dissolved during the Napoleonic Wars. It was sold on to the cathedral for the same price. There are also some fine windows by Betton and Evans (1819), and many fine late 19th century windows, particularly those by Charles Eamer Kempe.

The cathedral also suffered extensive damage to its fabric. Repairs to the damage caused by the Civil War were not fully completed until the nineteenth century.

pajaran, ikeharel, Fis2, ChrisJ, Lidka, papagolf21, pierrefonds, abmdsudi, PiotrF, macjake, jhm, mcmtanyel has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

jemaflor (148180) 2017-11-28 23:59

Salut Stephen,
Superbe cette vue avec cet alignement de colonne, bon effet desymétrie dans le cadrage, bonne gestion de la lumière.

dkmurphys (79209) 2017-11-29 0:05

Good morning,
A fine interior capture from this impressive cathedral. I like the lines from this image. Good work.

Daniel

lousat (139960) 2017-11-29 0:27

Hi Steph,a very busy composition,the vertical lines of the architechtures are fantastic! A perfect capture of the interior of Lichfield cathedral in a great symmetry as i like and very sharp too despite the difficult light,lovely! Have a nice day and thanks,Luciano

Nicou (193814) 2017-11-29 0:58

Hello

grandiose image de l'intérieur de cette église quelle vue quel cadrage et effet sur ces colonnes ces arches tout ce fond avec l'autel en fond et la lumière sueprbe.
Bravo et amitié
Nicou

Fis2 (171877) 2017-11-29 1:00

Witaj Stephen!
Beautiful gothic interior.
Excellent frame and perspective.
I like colors and light.
Well done.
Nice day.

ChrisJ (172408) 2017-11-29 1:04

Salut Stephen,

I like the textures created by the overlapping columns of this impressive Gothic cathedral. Good sharpness and the aisle towards the altar adds linear perspective. Tfs!

Lidka (527) 2017-11-29 1:12

Dear Stephen!
Fantastic nave, fantastic church, wonderful architecture.
Ideal symmetry. Perfect cut.
Good contrast and sharpness. Good DOF.
Marvelous lightness and colours.
Original take. Very original.
Well done!

papagolf21 (152607) 2017-11-29 2:39

Bonjour, cher Stephen,
C'est la première fois que je vois l'intérieur de cet édifice religieux.
L'aspect monumental et la richesse architecturale sont des atouts majeurs dans cette composition.
Amitiés.
Philippe

pierrefonds (115488) 2017-11-29 4:17

Hi Stephen,

The length of the nave is creating depth. The point of view is showing the details of the architecture of the interior of the cathedral. The surrounding light has a good effect on the colors. Have a nice day.

Pierre

abmdsudi (95869) 2017-11-29 4:34

Hi Stephen
Enchanting shot empowered by mass of close vertical lines balanced by the horizontal and curvy lines creating so much impact to this enormous interior! Indeed the design is so unique that, sincerely I have never seen like this before. We can only imagine how much work & time went into this and your narrative is useful not only can we appreciate this capture but learn about our world as well, thank you, Congrats.
Warm regards

pajaran (117001) 2017-11-29 4:54

Dobar dan.
Lep pogled, interesantan i dobar tekst ...
Lepo pokazan enterijer, dobra perspektiva i kontrast, lepe boje.
Lep enterijer Katedrale i detalji.
Zelim vam lep dan, sve najbolje.
Paja.

Good day.
Nice view, interesting and good text ...
Beautifully displayed interior, good perspective and contrast, beautiful colors.
Nice interior cathedral and details.
I wish you a nice day, all the best.

Sergiom (117241) 2017-11-29 6:30

Bonjour Stephen,

Cette composition est vraiment très impressionnante. Il faut dire que cette cathédrale est grandiose. Les murs sont très hauts et l'ensemble est très profond. Superbe.

Amicalement

Serge

Gigidusud (21679) 2017-11-29 12:13

Hello Stephen,
Très jolie photo de cette cathédrale avec une très bon cadrage. Une belle symétrie et une bonne gestion de la lumière. Superbe!
Amicalement,
Gigi

PiotrF (55934) 2017-11-29 16:57

Hello Stephen,
A very nice view of the interior of Lichfield Cathedra.
Beautiful picture with good details, good composition and nice colours.
Good work, fine presentation.
Regards
Piotr

rychem (72187) 2017-11-29 21:04

Great photo of the Gothic church interrior, the pillars give the impression that there is hanging a pleated curtain of heavy material, excellent quality and management of light
regards Ryszard

emka (158744) 2017-11-29 23:59

Hello Stephen

Awesome interior of this cathedral. Fantastic vaults and columns. Superb presentation, excellent light and sharpness. I have visited quite many famous Gothic cathedrals in England - Ely and York were my favorites.

Kind regrad s Malgo

carlo62 (81265) 2017-11-30 0:05

Ciao Stephen
il tuo taglio e la tua inquadratura hanno messo in bellissima evidenza tutte quelle magnifiche linee verticali che si accavallano l'una sull'altra creando un gioco fantastico.
Saluti
Carlo

macjake (98544) 2017-11-30 0:37

Hi Stephen
wow, this is quite the scene, makes a strong visual impact right away. the age of this Cathedral is amazing into itself! no wonder it took so long to build, just look at this place. love your choice of composition, it full frame, it doesn't have any dead spaces or empty spaces. packed a punch for sure. cheers
Craig

holmertz (103584) 2017-11-30 2:09

Hello Stephen,
There are many architectural features here whose names in English I don't remember, but the possibly hundreds of vertical lines make a great impression. It's like walking through a clearing in a petrified forest. Far away we see the light. You found a good position for this photo, slightly elevated it seems, and you handled the light very well.
Kind regards,
Gert

jhm (211738) 2017-11-30 4:40

Hello Stephen,

You chose a wonderful angle with depth and perspective.
Also a pleasant interior picture with all the arches.
A wonderful architecture.
Sharpness and clarity are perfect done.
An excellent composition too.
Very well done, TFS.

Best regards,
John.

BennyV (34772) 2017-11-30 4:57

Hello Stephen

Well composed and finely balanced interior shot, Stephen. Beautifully realized picture. Congratulations.

Benny

Cricri (176) 2017-11-30 9:49

Hello Stephen
Impressionnante architecture, excellent cadrage, profondeur, netteté et lumière super bien gérée de haut en bas, superbe
belle soirée
cricri

gervaso (28387) 2017-12-01 3:33

Hello, Stephen!

Very nice capture of the wonderful interior of this cathedral! Everything looks quite imposing here, and the architectural details were captured with very good light and sharpness! Beautiful composition! Very good job!

ikeharel (114535) 2017-12-02 6:34

Hello Stephen,
A fantastic effect with the multitude of tall arches in the church's hall.
Placed the POV well in symmetry, and the rows of chairs added to the good sense of depth in the scene.
Beautiful photo, bravo.
Ike

mcmtanyel (69165) 2017-12-15 21:04

Hello Stephen,
This is a lovely interior photo with lots and lots of repeating patterns. What a grand cathedral!
Regards,
MT