The Church
A capture from our Dolomites trip last summer... With such a heavenly view, this church can definitely take you to the heavens ????! You won't believe it, ...
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A capture from our Dolomites trip last summer... With such a heavenly view, this church can definitely take you to the heavens ????! You won't believe it, but on top of this fantastic view that you see in this capture, we could also see a faint rainbow! But as it was very faint, it doesn't show up in the shot. Nevertheless, I love it! Do you?
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Jan, 2020Views
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Behind The Lens
Location
This photo, an image very close to my heart, was taken during our trip to the Dolomites in Italy. This is the Church of St. John near the town of Saint Magdalena in the Dolomitic regions of North Italy.Time
I shot this image a bit late in the evening. I remember getting anxious that i was late and drove as fast as I could to reach this location. Once I reached and parked the car, I could see a cloud cover behind the jagged peaks and that broke my heart. But then, as is often experienced in the mountains, if one perseveres long enough, one is presented with magical moments. So was the case for me, as the last lights of the setting sun pierced through the clouds one last time to create the magic for me.Lighting
Ideally, I wanted to shoot this image in the setting sun with soft golden light falling from the right side to create depth. And I think even though the clouds did sadden me for a few minutes, waiting for the right light was worthwhile. In fact, the patch cloud cover did enhance the lighting so much. So, if you are looking to shoot at this location, I would recommend either sunrise or sunset to get so soft light from the sides on the scene. And clouds can definitely be a blessing.Equipment
I shot this with the following equipment: Camera - Canon EOS 5D Mark III; Lens - Canon EF24-70mm f/4L IS USM; Tripod - Manfrotto 055CXPRO3 Tripod with 496RC2 head; Filters - Haida M10 Filter System and Red Diamond filtersInspiration
This is one image that I have always associated with the Dolomites. Ever since I saw the first image of the Church of St. John in front of the jagged Dolomitic peaks, I fell in love with the Dolomites. Over the years, I came to see several versions of the scene, captured by various photographers. But it always remained a dream for me to visit this place and capture the beauty of the vista with my own camera. And after years of waiting, the dream did come true and I am now proud to have the St. John's Church captured forever in this frame I call 'The Church'.Editing
Well, actually this image did not require a lot of processing. I captured two frames, a short exposure to capture the sunlight on the mountains and the foreground, and a long exposure to capture the cloud movements. These images were then merged in Photoshop and basic editing was done to get the correct contrast and white balance.In my camera bag
This image was shot with my Canon EOS 5D Mark III camera and the Canon EF24-70mm f/4L IS USM lens, with the help of the Manfrotto 055CXPRO3 Tripod with 496RC2 head and the Haida M10 Filter System and Red Diamond filters. These equipment are always in my bag, along with my other lenses - Canon EF50mm f/1.8 STM lens, Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6 IS USM lens, Samyang MF 14 mm f/2.8 lens for Canon and the newly acquired Canon EF 16-35mm f/2.8L II USM lens. Additionally, I always carry a small torch, a couple of clean towels/tissues for cleaning the lens and filters, extra memory cards, extra batteries and a pair of socks in my bag. 4.8 (48)Feedback
The major takeaway for me from this image was that when capturing landscapes especially in the mountains, patience is the primary requirement as the light can change frequently and one has to wait to capture the perfect light. So, if you are at any location and the light is not great, give it some time - it does take a few minutes for luck to change.
