Tag Archives: Oxford

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Exeter College Chapel – Evensong

My work commitments saw me singing evensong at Exeter College Chapel today, which provided the opportunity to carry out a quick planning visit and make some tentative arrangements with the chaplain.  While a truly stunning building, capturing a single window or single light is going to prove hugely demanding.  The chapel is exceptionally tall, with the windows reaching right up into the vaulted roof.  The suspended lighting masks partially several of the lights, although there is a very small organ loft at the west end that might afford a preferable view of the two lights that face directly east.

So stunning is this chapel that when eventually I photograph the stained glass, I will also attempt a ‘portrait’ of the chapel.

Exeter 01 (low res)

Dominic Price (2019)  Exeter College Chapel east end stained glass

Exeter 02 (low res)

Dominic Price (2019)  Exeter College Chapel

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St. Peter’s College Chapel

A series of unfortunate events resulted in my arrival at St. Peter’s College Chapel following no planning visit.  Consequently I was travelling with a much larger than normal selection of lenses and knew that I had been granted just ninety minutes access to the location.  Dating back to 1874, the Chapel (originally the parish church of St. Peter-le-Bailey) was pleasingly spacious and in uncluttered Gothic style, affording an open and clear line of sight to the imposing east window.

While I have permission from the College to photograph within the chapel today, I have not received permission to use the images as this has to come from the Bishop of Oxford: for every location a different and new obstacle!

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Dominic Price (2019) St. Peter’s College Chapel

However, just inside the chapel door within the south chancel, was an impressive Bossányi window.  Significantly, this was mounted only a meter or so above the floor allowing straightforward photography that would require no perspective control in post-production – this made a sensible starting point both for the photography and post-production.  Below shows one of the unedited photographs on the left and the completed image on the right, which necessitated just over ten hours of editing.  I am a little concerned about the intensity of the blues in my finished edit and wonder whether I have overdone this – perhaps I should have selected a longer exposure for those areas when piecing together the image?  Time will tell and I hope to have the chance to carry out a follow-up visit in a week or two.

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Unedited image (2019) The Head of Christ with birds – design [Ervin Bossányi, 1950 – St. Peter’s College Chapel]

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Dominic Price (2019) The Head of Christ with birds – design [Ervin Bossányi, 1950 – St. Peter’s College Chapel]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

With no restriction on my distance from the window, I was able to put to use my preferred lens, the Canon EF 85mm f/1.2L II USM, set to f/8.0.  The weather was not perfect, with light rain and rather heavier cloud cover than is ideal.  As a result, the 19 images necessitated slightly slower exposures than normal, ranging from 1/40 s to 2.0 s.

Hindsight is a wonderful thing, but I do now wish that I had split the window in half when photographing it.  The narrow nature of this single light is such that the edited image is little more than 4.5MP in resolution, however, had I captured the bottom half and top half separately, the resulting image could have been closer to 25MP in size.  Should time allow in the later part of my research, it would seem appropriate to revisit with this in mind.

The editing of the east window images is still to come, but the chapel featured a number of related items that were of interest, being home to a number of Bossányi’s designs.  Uniquely, his design process did not involve the production of a vidimus: rather than sketches, he produced miniature transparent designs made to scale.  These exquisite designs were freely drawn on Perspex, the density of colour being achieved by gluing coloured glass fragments to the reverse.  The chapel has presented these designs within light boxes, with the collection including four designs for Canterbury Cathedral; seven separate lights for Washington Cathedral, USA, and the central panel of the Rose Window for Michaelhouse School Chapel in KwaZulu Natal, South Africa.  This is a location I have passed thirty or forty times in my life, aware of the magnificent window, but never having the time to stop and visit.  The detail shows the Head of Christ and in his hand one black and one white bird: the artist’s unhesitating and unambiguous statement on racial equality.  Bossányi made a second version of this central light, because he was afraid that it might be destroyed in Apartheid South Africa.  That second light is stored in the vaults of the Victoria and Albert Museum.

St. Peter's - The Head of Christ (low res)

Dominic Price (2019) The Head of Christ with birds – design [Ervin Bossányi, 1950 – St. Peter’s College Chapel]

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St. Peter’s College Chapel – East Window

A weekend of leave afforded me the time to tackle the large East Window.  Unusually, this is the work of two artists: the original window dates back to 1874 and was designed by Henry Holiday, but in 1964 the five main lights were replaced by a John Hayward design, leaving the original tracery lights.  My original intention was to edit just the five lights, but the tracery is so exquisite I opted to start there and complete the entire window.

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Dominic Price (2019) East Window tracery: before & after five hours of editing, low resolution GIF  [Henry Holiday, 1874 – St. Peter’s College Chapel]

While I was able to stand a substantial distance back, occupying the doorway to the chapel, the large size of the window did not challenge my telephoto zoom anything like as much as I was expecting.  A total of 20 images were shot at 176 mm using the Canon EF 100-400 mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM lens, at an aperture of f/8.0 and exposure times ranging from 1/40 s to 2.0 s.  The significance of the distance between camera and window was that there was only a minor amount of converging verticals image distortion to correct – I was tempted to ignore the need for this work, but it would have frustrated me every time I looked at the finished image!

I am not especially keen on the juxtaposition of contemporary art with pre-Raphaelite stained glass, but do rather like Hayward’s work – the fine detail tells an incredible and detailed story.  The intricacy of the design is such that the removal of support bars is an impossibility – a blessed relief since the image represented over twenty hours of editing and the removal of 40 support bars would have comfortably doubled that time (to little visual effect).

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Dominic Price (2019) Life of St. Peter: Chavasse Memorial [John Hayward, 1964 – St. Peter’s College Chapel]

Patrick Reyntiens

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Nuffield College

MPatrick Reyntiens Catalogue of Stained Glassy request to photograph Nuffield College Chapel has been put forward for consideration at the next Chapel Committee meeting (at the end of April).

Hoping for success in this application, I have carried out as much background research as I can: it is a small chapel, not open to the public, so quality information and images are sparse.  However, the stained glass designed by John Piper and made by Patrick Reyntiens features in great detail within the fascinating publication Horner, L. (2013) Patrick Reyntiens Catalogue of Stained Glass. Bristol: Sansom & Company Ltd..

This large hardback book (350pp) is now out of print and is both costly and scarce.  However, it is definitive and well detailed often including vidimus in addition to photographs of the windows.  The author hopes that the book will inspire people to visit Reyntiens’ windows across the world.

The book has left me far better informed, knowing that the small attic chapel is home to four 2-light windows and a further 3-light window.  It does appear that lighting could be an issue as well as the visual presence of buildings in the background.   However, it seems unlikely that eight of line of sight are going to present difficulties.

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St. Peter’s College Chapel – Post-Production Visit

The final visit to each location allows me the time to compare the edited images with the actual windows.  Because the daylight colour temperature can vary so hugely, in reality these visits provide the chance to compare the relative tones and saturation of each image.  However, for the first time since starting this research, today afforded near identical weather and lighting conditions to the day I took the photographs (although my visit was almost three hours earlier).  As a result, I was able to carry out accurate and direct comparisons.

I was really pleased to discover that my edit of the Bossányi window was a perfect match to the installation in the south chancel.  Concerns I had had over the saturation of some of the blue hues was unfounded.

The edited five lights of the East Window were also very close to the appearance of the actual window.  However, the edited tracery lights were a stop or two darker than reality.  This may be in part due to the hour – although fairly overcast today, there is some evidence of direct light, and being three hours earlier than the time at which the photographs were taken, today the East Window will be subject to reather more light.  This will brighten and bleach the notable paler hues of the 140+ year old glass, when compared with the more intensely coloured new glass of the five main lights.  To that end, I am not going to re-edit any of the work from St. Peter’s College Chapel and will sign it off as ‘complete’.

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Wycliffe Hall Chapel – Post-Production Visit

Today’s bright yet overcast conditions were perfect for the photography of stained glass, but with no access lined up for another week or two, my only practical task was to colour-check the Wycliffe Hall images.  This was bound to prove difficult as the lighting was so very different from the blue skies and bright sunlight on the day that the photographs were taken.

Focusing first on the East Window, for the most part, colour and relative contrast were correct.  Yes, the saturation was a little lower today, but that is to be expected and I do not think that the difference could warrant re-editing.  The same could not be said for the West Window… John Wycliffe’s cloak is a decidedly awkward shade of warm grey lined in a contrasting red hue.  When backed by a clear blue sky and bright sunlight the cloak seemed closer to a true grey.  In today’s conditions, it was a definite mauve shade of grey, with the contrasting lining being somewhat subdued.

I have re-edited the image to reflect this, but am unsure which could be described as most true.  To that end, I will give the Hall the option of either version.  Looking at the animated GIF comparison below (2 second continuous loop), the differences are subtle, but to me, very important.

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Dominic Price (2019) John Wycliffe [Artist Unknown, 1896 – Wycliffe Hall Chapel] Animate GIF to illustrate the (subtle) differences between the initial edit and the re-edit that followed the post-production visit.

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Christ Church Cathedral

I was made to feel incredibly welcome on my planning visit, but for this visit the terms of my photography were understandably strict within one of Oxford’s largest tourist attractions.  I was not allowed to hinder the routine operation of the Cathedral, nor impede the tourists and most significantly must not slow the work of the restoration team.  Sadly the internal lighting would have to remain on throughout my work.

Thus far, this is the only site that has required copy of my Risk Assessment and with the visit involving access to the scaffolding, within a construction site, I had to meet all PPE requirements (safety helmet; high-visibility top; safety footwear).

Today was the first day of school holiday for me – my first chance in a little while to refocus upon my MA.  I could not start my work until after Holy Communion, which was due to end at about 8:10am.  Notwithstanding, I opted to arrive at the Porter’s Lodge some 25 minutes prior to that so that I could plan, quietly.  The weather was not entirely onside: just a few clouds and bright sunshine, so I was anxious about the severity of shadows that this would create, in addition to pools of light coming from the various plain glass windows.  Once issued with a ‘Contractor’s ID’, I headed to the Cathedral and wandered the site confirming sight lines etc., to the calming accompaniment of the Common Book of Prayer 1662 Communion Service.

I did steal a panoramic photograph and have now spent three hours trying to get this to display in reasonable quality as a scrollable image…  sadly no joy, even when using the full 75MP resolution!  I will endeavour to revisit this predicament.

Christ Church (low res) (3) Panorama 01

Dominic Price (2019) Christ Church Cathedral panorama

With Communion over, I was advised that I would have access to the scaffold for 45 minutes from 1pm – during the workers lunch break, to minimise movement and shake on the rig.  I had the Cathedral to myself until 10am… almost.  There were routine interruptions in the form of singing lessons for the choristers of Christ Church Cathedral School (where I spent a happy six months doing my PGCE placement some 26 years ago!), which precluded me being able to take some shots, but did allow me to focus on the surroundings.

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Dominic Price (2019) St. Frideswide stained glass painting with light

It soon became apparent that the Cathedral has a significant problem with spiders webs particularly in and around the smaller tracery lights and panels of the various windows.  They are an ever-present feature of stained glass photography and have cost me many hours of additional editing.  Whenever possible I avoid editing lights that are heavily cobwebbed, but this may prove impossible here.

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Cobwebs on a tracery light

By 10am, I could focus on some photography from the sacristy – an area high above the visiting tourists where they would not get in my way.  I also opted to take a few interior shots of the architecture.

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Dominic Price (2019) Christ Church College Cloister

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Dominic Price (2019) Christ Church Cathedral chancel vaulting

With camera battery nearly drained, I discovered to my horror that my spares were still docked in the charger at home! With Oxford now awash with tourists, progress across the city was not fast, but I still made it back to the Cathedral in time for my 1pm appointment.

Access to the top of the scaffold was via three ladders.  At each level it was quite a squeeze to fit myself, tripod and camera through the surprisingly small aperture.  The upper level looked pleasingly room-like and felt fairly stable, despite being some sixty feet up.

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Dominic Price (2019) Christ Church Cathedral restoration work – looking east toward my tripod and camera

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Dominic Price (2019) Christ Church Cathedral restoration work – looking west

The view from the top was worth the effort and afforded a superb view of the East Rose Window – revealing to my amazement that the bottom of the window is cropped by some trunking (not visible from the ground), which will require some careful editing.

Christ Church (low res) (3) Panorama

Dominic Price (2019) Christ Church Cathedral – view from the upper level of the restoration work scaffold

With over 400 images in the bag, I now have a mountain of editing ahead of me, but am welcome back whenever I like.

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Christ Church Cathedral – The Catherine Window

Catherine Windows postcard

The Catherine Window – postcard

The Catherine Window was the first I photographed on Wednesday.  Sadly this could not be captured appropriately in a single image as it was in part obscured by a sanctuary lamp hanging from the ceiling.

Designed by William Morris and executed by Edward Burne-Jones in 1878, it is also referred to as the Liddell Window, this features a central light of St. Catherine that was modelled upon the then dean’s daughter Edith Liddell (sister to Alice, the inspiration for Charles Dodgson’s work Alice in Wonderland).  St. Catherine is flanked on either side by angels: to the left representing Victory and to the right representing Sorrow.

I photographed separately each of the main lights as well as the three tracery lights that feature angels playing musical instruments.

All three of the tracery lights were heavily covered in cobwebs which added significant additional editing time.

For each of the three images below, 28 images were shot at 400mm using the Canon EF 100-400 mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM lens, at an aperture of f/8.0 and exposure times ranging from 1/500 s to 1.0 s.

Christ Church - Angel - pipe (low res)

Dominic Price (2019) The Catherine Window tracery light Angel (left) [Edward Burne-Jones, 1878 – Christ Church Cathedral]

Christ Church - Angel - cymbals (low res)

Dominic Price (2019) The Catherine Window tracery light Angel (right) [Edward Burne-Jones, 1878 – Christ Church Cathedral]

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Dominic Price (2019) The Catherine Window tracery light Angel (top) [Edward Burne-Jones, 1878 – Christ Church Cathedral]

I will tackle the more demanding main lights in a few days!

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Christ Church Cathedral – Vyner Memorial Window

Before a stained glass window is designed, preliminary sketches are produced.  The sketch below must be early in the process as it is significantly different from the Vyner Memorial Window in situ.

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Edward Burne-Jones (1871) Preliminary sketch of the Vyner Memorial Window, Lady Chapel, Christ Church Cathedral, Oxford

This window shares a frustration with The Catherine Window: it is obscured in part, but this time by a suspended hoop chandelier. Once again, this precludes the straightforward capture in a single image. Additionally, three of the four lower panels has dense foliage behind them, dramatically darkening their appearance on such a bright day.

My gaze was drawn to the only well-lit lower panel which featured another incarnation of Eunice and Timothy (previously photographed at the Chapel of St. Nicholas).  Interestingly, this features a very rare example of Burne-Jones’ initials on the wall just behind Eunice.  Being at head height, this would require little or no correction for converging verticals and featuring just one support bar, post-production work would not be too demanding.

The completed image was composed from 12 originals shot at 85mm using the Canon EF 85mm f/1.2L II USM, set to f/8.0, with an exposure times ranging from 1/160 s to 1/13 s.

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Dominic Price (2019) Panel from Vyner Memorial Window depicting Timothy & Eunice [Edward Burne-Jones, 1871 – Christ Church Cathedral]

Shot at 400mm using the Canon EF 100-400 mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM lens, there is a dramatically different theme to all of the tracery lights when compared with the early preliminary sketch:

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Dominic Price (2019) Tracery lights (right) from the Vyner Memorial Window [Edward Burne-Jones, 1871 – Christ Church Cathedral]

Christ Church tracery lights (1)

Dominic Price (2019) Tracery lights (left) from the Vyner Memorial Window [Edward Burne-Jones, 1871 – Christ Church Cathedral]

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Christ Church Cathedral – East Rose Window

From the top of the restoration work scaffold there was a perfect head-on view of the rose window which allowed for its capture without the need for any post-production correction of perspective.  More importantly, this afforded something not possible from floor level: a view of the window in its entirety, or so I thought…

Christ Church (low res) (3)

Dominic Price (2019) Christ Church Cathedral – view from the upper level of the restoration work scaffold

While necessitating only minimal post-production editing, the addition of a recent piece of pipework or trunking across part of the rose seems inconsiderate in the planning of such work.  A detailed look at the window also revealed, to my dismay, a latticework of support bars.  Every light was split in half by a radial bar and then further subdivided twice more, with a total of thirty-one support bars in the entire window – far more than is sensible to remove in editing.

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Dominic Price (2019) Detail of the East Rose Window – trunking ad support bars

I was intrigued that the design seemed not quite to fit in the available space – most noticeable in the text, with characters missing either in part or entirely.  I wonder if the tracery design differed from that which was finally produced?  The image below reveals a partially missing ‘T’ from the word UTERUM; the next light has a partially missing ‘R’ from REX and the third light has a completely absent ‘C’ from CHRISTE.

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Dominic Price (2019) Detail of the East Rose Window – cropped glass

For the completed image, I did go to the trouble of removing the support bar that halved the roundel,  but opted to leave all others in place having estimated that this would have added 15-20 hours of additional edit time.  This does grate with me, so should I revisit the editing of this window, an initial step will be to remove the support bars that cut across each of the ten angels.

Christ Church - East Rose (Low Res)

Dominic Price (2019) East Rose Window [Clayton & Bell, 1875 – Christ Church Cathedral, Oxford]

The rose depicts Christ the King surrounded by adoring angels.  The text surrounding the roundel comes from the Te Deum:

Tu rex gloriae christe
Tu patris sempiternus es filius
Tu ad liberandum suscepisti hominem non
horruisti virginis uterum

You, Christ, are the king of glory,
the eternal Son of the Father.
When you became man to set us free
you did not spurn the Virgin’s womb.

To produce this image, 21 photographs were taken at 214mm using the Canon EF 100-400 mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM lens, at an aperture of f/8.0 and exposure times ranging from 1/15 s to 4.0 s.