Convicts Church, a photo from Tasmania, East

Photographer's Note

Port Arthur Prison,Tasmania was established in 1830 as a timber camp that used prisoners as convict labor. Only three years later it became a punishment station for repeat offenders.

Port Arthur's timber and stone church, constructed in 1836-37 is a lasting tribute to its convict builders.

The Church was a mandatory part of convict life in Port Arthur. Prisoners and guards attended church every Sunday.

Built on high ground to overlook the convict settlement, the church could accommodate over one thousand souls at its services.

The church was never consecrated, due to its use by prisoners of different denominations, but was representative of the authorities’ goal to reform the convict population through religion.

The church was destroyed by fire in 1884 and has undergone repeated conservation work throughout the 20th century.

http://www.portarthur.org.au/

mehrdad-t, delpeoples has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

snunney (130967) 2013-12-20 7:22

Hello Les,
The purple filter brings an eerie feel to the composition heightening the mood no end. The point of view shows the church now apparently in ruin to good effect. I like the framing offered by the fence, which brings a touch of graphism to the whole.

mehrdad-t (4710) 2013-12-20 7:25 [Comment]

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photoray (13981) 2013-12-20 18:52

Howdy Les,

Interesting classical church architecture more reminiscent of early Gothic times than the 19th century. I am intrigued by the multiple colored block construction.
Though not a fan of the purple tone used.

Well done,
Cheers,
Ray

subhendu_bagchi (26091) 2013-12-24 1:36

wow, what a nice presentation! I like it a lot. Dreamy colour tone. Nice sharp details. A very good composition. Tfs.
S

delpeoples (60326) 2013-12-26 19:56

Dear Les

Port Arthur is the one place in Tasmania I refuse to go. It's just too spooky. Even driving near it freaked me out. And your photo illustrates why. I like the purple filter, the post production certainly brings out the eeriness of this haunted town, and even in more recent years, tragic town. I love the details and the slight grain too.

I hope you and your family are now recovering from a wonderful Christmas and wish you all every happiness for the New Year. Hopefully we'll see you in Parra next year?

Hugs
Lisa