The Cathedral Basilica (Saint Louis):

Last week I had the opportunity to take a tour of the Cathedral Basilica.  I've been to the Cathedral on two or three other occassions but every time it was for a huge event and I never really spent the time exploring the various "Chapels" around the Nave and Altar.  It is an absolute treasure to Saint Louis and to the catholic faith.  Obviously, being bestowed the "Basilica" rank is a huge confirmation of its magnificence but as they say a picture or in this case pictures are worth a thousand words.  (Remember, at any time, click on the image and you will be able to view it full size on your monitor).  I only took one image of the outside of the cathedral because the light was horrible when I was there.  I'll have to plan a trip back and document the exterior of this fantastic structure some other time when the light and sky is more favorable.   

Cathedral Facts:

• Construction was completed in 1988, 76 years after it began.
• There are 83,000 square feet or almost 2 acres of mosaic tesserae (tile).
• There are 41Million tesserae using over 8000 shades of color.
• 46,410 square feet of granite flooring.
• 2 Stained Glass Rose Windows manufactured by Tiffany and Company.
• Numerous marble statues (Saint Therese, Saint Anne, Saint Vincent De Paul, The Four Apostles and the Kneeling Angels)
• 63 marble pillars with distinct capitals on the top of each.
• 4 chapels (All Souls, Blessed Sacrament, All Saints, and Our Ladys Chapel)
• 4 magnificent arches at the intersection of the naive (Arch of Triumph, Arch of Creation, Arch of Sanctification, and Arch of Judgement)
• 3 Lunette's or half moon shaped sections featuring Passover, Last Supper and the Faithful.
• An amazing Baldacchino or canopy supported by 14 columns over the altar helps paritioners inside experience the dome above the cathedral.

HDR Imagery:

The Narthex or entrance to the cathedral is a just a preview of the glory inside.  It features ten scenes depicting the life of Patron Saint King Louis IX of France.   

Once inside the nave, the cathedral is absolutely breathtaking.   

As you walk toward the alter and look back, you see where you entered and the first of the rose windows.   

As you walk toward the alter and pass under the great dome of the cathedral the view straight up is fantastic.   

The altar and baldacchino are incredible.  If you look in the lower corners you will see the two icons of a minor basilica.  In the lower left is the Tintinnabulum or bell and the conopeum which is a large umbrella composed of red and yellow stripes.  In ancient times they were used in papal cavalcades to the cathedral.  If our savior on the cross needs an introduction you should probably stop reading now and go to church!   

The All Saints Chapel is one of two Tiffany designed Italian style chapels featuring triptychs of saints and half lunettes.   

The Our Lady's Chapel features Triptychs depicting the life of the Blessed Virgin.   

The Blessed Virgin:   

The domes and arches at the intersection of the naives was spectacular.  There are depictions of the history of the City of Saint Louis all over the cathedral.   

The nave to the right as you are looking at the altar.  I believe the mosaic on the ceiling is depicting the resurrected Christ.   

The West Transept was equally incredible featuring the fires of the pentecost.   

The patron saint King Louis IX has his own marble statue in the cathedral.  The marble is amazing....   

The view from behind the main altar and baldacchino was pretty spectacular.  This image almost looks 3D.  each of the 14 columns is completely different.   

The ambulatory leading to the Blessed Sacrament Chapel is red depicting Christs Blood.  I didn't get many images of the chapel due to it being closed for an event.   

The entrance to the Blessed Sacrement Chapel has two huge iron gates that were on an exhibit at the St. Louis Worlds Fair in 1904.  They add a cool sense of security to the Chapel.   

The All Souls Chapel is above the resting place of past and future parish cardinals.  It is distinctly different or more conservative than the other chapels with its walls being primarily marble with no mosaic.  The custom is to hang the cardinals Galero (red tasseled hat) from the ceiling until it disintegrates.   

The main altar, baldacchino and dome featuring the 12 apostles.   

If you would like to see all the images I captured, click Here:   

I had an amazing time spending time in the Basilica Cathedral.  I cannot wait to go back and capture some more "detailed" images of the mosaics and relics in this cherished place.  A person could spend a lifetime studying the detail and underlying meaning of every mosaic and architectural feature in this holyist of places and it would not be a waste of time.    

 

Photographers Notes:

Capturing images in low light in a Cathedral is difficult but obviously not impossible.  Capturing bracketed images for HDR can be daunting, especially since all of these were taken hand-held since tripods were not allowed.  I didn't spend a lot of time talking about the settings of each of these images because the only change made to the camera was the focal length of the Nikkor 24-70mm lens and I lived at 24mm almost the entire time.  Camera settings were Aperature Priority, ISO3200, f/4.0, full scene matrix metering, Auto-Focus (Lock not continuous) and RAW to tweak later.  I was moving fast and keeping up with a group so lens changes and goofing around with the camera was not possible.  You have to have good handheld technique, compose it fast, compose it accurate, squeeze off a few rounds, and get out.  The photog version of a SEAL team.   If you want to shoot your own cathedral / church images, here are some tips:  

1. Loose the iPhone:  This is no job for your iPhone, Blackberry, or point and shoot camera for that matter.  I'm not saying you can't do it but you would need some serious support.  If you had a little tripod for your phone you might be able to pull off single images but why would you want to?
2. Lights Out:  This should go without saying but unless you are getting a shot of another shooter and you need fill for portraits, turn off the flash!  All those tiles are just going to light up like a Christmas tree and blast specular highlights in your face.  This is especially important if there is a request for no-flash photography.
3. High ISO:  Here is the bad news.  If your camera cannot pull off 3200 or 6400 ISO with minimal noise your images are going to suffer.  Lotsa red and green grainy dots are in your future without a good camera.  I am lucky to own the D3S so I shot all of these images at 3200 ISO.
4. Fast Glass Good but not Mandatory:  Fast glass would help a little but because you want some decent depth of field, you are going to be around f/4.0 or f/5.6 for most of these shots so having the new 24mm f/1.4 isn't going to be that much of a help.  Good glass is an advantage.  I shot the Nikkor 24-70 mm lens here because I was on a tour and didn't know what I was going to shoot.
5. Compose the sensor flat to your subject.  I don't have a tilt shift so I have to be cautious.  If you don't compose with your sensor flat to the wall, its going to have that tapered towering skyscraper effect.  As you can see from the images above, most have perfectly square lines.  This was no accident.  Square lines = good composition.
6. Compose big:  Leave a little space for cropping and lens correction.  When moving fast your going to screw up your composition.  If you leave room to crop, rotate square, and tilt/lens correct for vertical or non-flat sensor to wall composition then you can fix it with photoshop / lightroom without losing all of the subject.
7. Good handheld technique:  Tighten up the camera strap, twist it around your arm, wrap yourself around the camera, press it tight to your face, compose, exhale halfway and fire.  I like to rest the D3S on my shoulder using a Kirk Super Grip for added stability.  This badboy + an L bracket for your camera is about $250.00 but worth its weight in great images. 
   

   Super Grip

   Practice your low shutter handheld technique.  I can shoot down to 1/10 to 1/5th depending on the day with my technique.  Lay off the wine the night before if you want to be rock steady. 

8. Brace yourself:  In just about every image I am using features to help stabilize my shots.  At a minimum I am using my good handheld techniqe and leaning against a pillar or wall.  Often I actually rest the camera on something or push the action grip (it has little rubber nubs) against the wall and my face for added support.  If your church allows it, use a tripod.  If not, don't be an A-hole and follow the rules.  If you break the rules enough, it forces people to make rash decisions and not allow photography at all.
9. Take pictures but listen to your tour guide.  As you can see from the above post, there are several great cathedral architectural terms I learned on this shoot.  Before now, I had no idea what a Tesserae, Narthex, Lunette, Baldacchino or a Cinquefoil was.  If you stay engaged with your tour guide, ask questions, and smile at her every once in a while, your tour is going to last longer and go to places that it normally does not.
10. Be respectful:  If there is an event, mass, etc going on or your tour guide is talking quietly with a group, don' t just rip off 9 bracketed images in the middle of it all.  The D3S in burst mode sounds like a freakin' sub-machine gun in a marble and mosaic covered cathedral!
11. Donate:  Toss some coin in that donation box.  How do you think they maintain that beautiful subject you just shot!

Until the next theft!  Enjoy!