Lutheran Church, Birkenfeld

Comment, ratings appreciated on nice old church--some layering in PS

Nice addition to your sharp collection of photos.

Brian, thanks for your comments. When I shot this, it wasn't the best light--very, very harsh winter sun. Softening this helped mitigate the harsh light.

The composition of this image is good. IMHO the PS dark layering is not adding anything extra to the image in fact it is visually squeezing the image specially in the upper part of the frame. There is diagonal light coming naturally and the effect of which is not going with the dark halo in the upper part of the frame. Leaving it as such would make it look more natural. The light is hard and casting shadows. However shadows have detail. I think framing the passage to the church in the fore ground leads the eye of the viewer to the main subject. Nicely composed. Very pleasing result in the end.

 

Kind regards.

what is causing the cross shadow on the left hand of the door?

Good question, Knicki. The light is coming almost straight down. It must be something in the roof?

Knick, look at this: http://www.photo.net/photodb/photo?photo_id=3191775

And this: http://www.photo.net/photodb/photo?photo_id=3191771.

Apparently, it's the cross we see just above the door. At first, I thought the cross was cut-out from the surrounding wood, but it's free standing cross, according to the picture linked on this comment, and the woodwork which appears to suround it is actually 5 or 10 feet behind it.

Thanks Doug, teach me not to explore the folders a bit more.

 

I dont know why but for me the shadow is overly confusing for me with the cross up in the rafter area.

makes it a bit more interesting, to me, but I can see what you mean.

Zafar, thanks for your lucid critiques of several of my photos. The burning in at the top is too heavy-handed. I'll go back and try it again, since this is part of a series on churches and various religious iconography that I plan to show at some point. Thanks again for your comments.

 

Doug, thanks for walking Knicki through the cross shadow bit. Strangely, the cross is painted darker than the rest of the church--why, I'm not sure. I like the shadow of the cross very much. Thank Knicki and Doug for your comments.