French Pantheon
I shot this wide to show how big the French Pantheon is by using people as a scale to measure by.
I shot this wide to show how big the French Pantheon is by using people as a scale to measure by.
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Jun, 2016Views
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Awards
Zenith Award
Member Selection Award
Superb Composition
Top Choice
Outstanding Creativity
Absolute Masterpiece
Peer Award
Magnificent Capture
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Behind The Lens
Location
I took this while on a trip to the Pantheon in Paris a few years back. As you can see it's a massive building wanted to show the scale of the inside of this place compared to humans so I stood back, squatted down and put the camera on its side on the floor and began clicking. I'm not a professional. I've only taken one class and that was years ago, so I have to sort of guess as I go along. Therefore, it took a few shots to find a frame I was satisfied with.Time
As far as I can recall, it was about midday or so on an overcast day. I just remember trying to speak French at the ticket booth and the guy in the booth totally called me out as an American based on my southern accent.Lighting
Lighting was a bit tricky because a good bit of it comes in through windows and small strategically placed lights. Since I didn't have a lot of experience with lighting, I had to try several different f-stop and shutter settings to get something I was satisfied with. Considering I had to shoot it blind because the camera was on the floor, it took several attempts to get the right mix of angle and lighting to come up with something I was satisfied with. Even then, it took a little touching up in Photoshop, but remarkably not much more than adjusting the shadows and highlights, contrast and getting the gold trim to shine like it did in person.Equipment
It was taken with a Nikon D60, with an 18-55mm lens.Inspiration
As, I mentioned before, I was just amazed by the scale of this magnificent building and wanted to capture it so I could have something to show folks back home. When you stand far enough back, the people look like ants wandering around in this grand, temple-like hill.Editing
Even after several attempts and finally finding a shot I was satisfied, it took a little touching up in Photoshop to really get it right. I mainly worked on the shadows, highlights and contrast to find the right balance. I mainly wanted the richness of building's architecture and how its design played with shadows to be the focus. The people were just there for scale so I felt it was better to leave them somewhat in the shadows. I did lighten the mid-tones a little and adjusted the yellows to make the gold trim to shine like it did in person.In my camera bag
I now carry a Nikon D5300 with an 18-55mm lens, a 300mm lens, a 400mm lens and a well-worn flash that I got for about $100 on ebay (but works realy well with my cameras). I work for a newspaper and have to take my own pictures on a lot of assignments, so my equipment gets a lot of wear and tear on a daily basis.Feedback
Just be willing to try to spend some time trying different light settings on the camera and waiting for people to start moving into the right place. Then just shoot several shots quickly to get a variety of positions. Also, be prepared for the possibility that you won't get the camera positioning right the first time. It will take a couple of attempts to figure out the right angle against the floor. Start at a 45 degree angle. Take some shots at the angle as well as from a few degrees in either direction.
