Church of the Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer

Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer, Saint Marys of the Sea, is in the Camargue region on the Mediterranean coast of France. Originally, it was a fishing and farming village. The church was built over a three hundred year period beginning in the 9th century. By the time we arrived here, our group had visited several ancient churches. For the most part, they were not only places of worship but tourist destinations, and I had mixed feelings about that. In this particular instance, I had strong reservations about intruding --even though quietly and out of her sight -- into this woman's spiritual experience. However, I rationalized that portraying what I saw in a respectful way might even be a good thing.

Nikon Coolpix P7000, ISO 200, f/3.5, five-exposure HDR at 1 EV intervals, zoom at 28mm equivalent

processing highlights

• Nik Silver Efex
• Topaz Simplify -- saved watercolor preset
• four black & white layers -- two saved Fractalius presets (Multiply blend mode, 69% opacity; Divide, 80%); Alien Skin Snap Art saved Line Art preset, Multiply, 51%; Simplify saved edges preset, Multiply, 46%
• Snap Art -- saved watercolor wash preset, Color blend mode, 17%
• Red Giant Knoll Light Factory, 50%, masked
• Photo Filter adjustment layer -- Deep Yellow
• copy of the Snap Art watercolor wash layer -- masked, Color blend mode, 35%
• gradient vignette

Very effective image! I understand your sensitivity about intruding but I believe having the woman present adds the human feeling to what you describe as usual tourist destinations. This is intimate and truly invokes a spiritual quietness and not a tourist destination. The added light rays add to mood. I like the subtle blue in the roof beams contrasting with the browns and grays of the rest of the image. Excellent composition and processing, as usual! Although you are very generous in describing your workflow, I think your success is your unique application of these programs. We can try to copy but your images are uniquely identifiable :tinysmile_shy_t:!

Nancy has said it all well. yes, that woman keeps this from being just another touristy room. There is something sacred about the person and the lighting. Well done.

You did a good job of shooting five images. The darks and lights add to the solitude and sacred moment. I think it is respectful and very well done.

I also agree with Nancy. The inclusion of the woman adds so much to the composition and shows that it is used as a place of worship and not just an ancient building. Excellent processing, as always.

Beautiful glow from the window! Beautiful muted colors. Excellent perspective and composition. I agree with all that having the woman in the chapel adds to the sense of place. As always, beautifully processed. This one is a real winner.

Dennis,

Greetings. A very engaging image. Your painterly processing is just right for this quiet scene. It's interesting to me how the light holds my interest even without detail. I find myself wanting to squint to see what's there.

My daughter & I passed through Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer last summer but didn't stop at the church (on the hunt for flamingos ;-)... Thanks for posting.

Cheers,

-Michael-

A lot of technical work went into this image... An indication of your success here is that your technique does not overwhelm the image. Nicely done!

Congratulations on the win. This is a wonderful image, which captures the feeling of a small chapel.