The Cross

Posted by Ian Bramham (Manchester, United Kingdom) on 26 August 2008 in Landscape & Rural and Portfolio.

This is the first of many photos that I took while on holiday with my family in France....it's a photo taken near La Chapelle de Valentine high up in the Auvergne mountains overlooking the Vallée de la Santoire .

I'm posting a photo of the Chapel itself tomorrow.

For purchasing high quality archival prints of any of these photos you can send me an email by clicking here or by going to MY NEW WEBSITE where prices are listed in the gallery sections under each individual photo.
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Links to the websites of other photographers whose work I love and who have all helped me enormously over a long period of time. I find the work of all 3 to be inspirational.

Hugo Poon
John Leech
Ian Smith

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Comments (32)

Ted from South Wales, United Kingdom

Welcome back!
Great shot and richness of tone.

26 Aug 2008 5:58am

@Ted: Thanks Ted!

Mirko Herzner from Mühlheim am Main, Germany

Back with one of the most stunning shots I have seen at your blog so far. Wow! This is so impressive. No need to speak about toning but still: perfect! Good to have you back on Am3.

26 Aug 2008 6:29am

@Mirko Herzner: Thanks very much Mirko....it's great to be back.

dj.tigersprout from San Bruno, CA, United States

dreamy and dramatic!! stunning imagery here -- and the most subtly evocative shot i have seen from you in terms of an enigmatic, mysterious, even magical underlying theme! a true marvel! fantastic everything! bravo!! and welcome back!!

26 Aug 2008 6:33am

@dj.tigersprout: Thanks very much!....this was a lovely spot to take a few photos.

Ana Lúcia from Leiria, Portugal

Welcome back Ian! I love this shot! Impressive sky and black and white was an excellent choice.

26 Aug 2008 6:43am

@Ana Lúcia: Thanks Ana!

Margie from Auckland, New Zealand

Nice to have you back, Ian. A very powerful image, I've looked and looked...and looked again. Really great shot.

26 Aug 2008 6:43am

@Margie: Thanks Margie!

peter from sønderborg, Denmark

This is an instant eye catcher. Crisp and contrasty with the cross perfectly placed as a dominant element.

26 Aug 2008 7:05am

@peter: Thanks Peter...it was a dramatic spot.

Peter Mannfolk from Landskrona, Sweden

Marvelous, I´ve been missing your posts lately, so wellcome back! /Peter

26 Aug 2008 9:17am

@Peter Mannfolk: Thanks Peter....that's a lovely thing to say.

Catalin from Bucharest, Romania

Nice b&w, very good and sharp frame. I like that litlle cloud very much.

26 Aug 2008 9:59am

@Catalin: Thanks very much Catalin!

Behrooz Sangani from Tehran, Iran

Glad to see you back, Ian. Amazing shot!

26 Aug 2008 10:34am

@Behrooz Sangani: Thanks very much Behrooz!

Vink from Côte d'Azur- French riviera, France

So nice ! Superb !

26 Aug 2008 10:58am

@Vink: Thanks Vink!

Alfredo J. Martiz J. from Panama City, Panama

Welcome back, composition, subject and contrast are fantastic, looking forward to see the photo of the chapel!

26 Aug 2008 11:01am

@Alfredo J. Martiz J.: Thanks Alfredo!...I hope you aren't dissapointed by the photo of the chapel tomorrow.

paulski from Muncie, IN, United States

welcom back; a gorgeous b/w landscape here. the composition is superb...

26 Aug 2008 11:31am

@paulski: Thanks very much Paulski!

Michael Skorulski from Cigel, Slovakia

A very beautiful and rather mystical landscape.

26 Aug 2008 11:53am

@Michael Skorulski: Thanks Michael...the Auvergne is a truly beautiful part of France!

Bill Ault from GBA, Canada

As everyone says welcome back and what a great shot to return with!

26 Aug 2008 12:28pm

@Bill Ault: Thanks Bill...that's very kind of you!

Viewfinder from Bradenton, United States

Dramatic and visually pleasing; I like your use of wide-angle to catch so much of this scene.

26 Aug 2008 12:41pm

@Viewfinder: Thanks Glenn....as you know, this Sigma 10-20 lens is my favourite for landscape photos.

Laurie from New Jersey, United States

Powerful image. Well done.

26 Aug 2008 12:44pm

@Laurie: Thanks Laurie!

IanSmith from London, United Kingdom

Great shot Ian! Truly awesome composition.
Good to see you posting again, its part of my daily routine to check what new images you have captured.

26 Aug 2008 12:56pm

@IanSmith: Thanks very much Ian...it's great to hear from you. Im really pleased that you like the composition. I nearly filled two 4GB memory cards in the 2 weeks we were away so although a lot of them are family photos I'm hopeful that there will be a few images that will be good enough to use here on the blog.

dan from France

Very beautiful image of France, thus!
Beautiful atmosphere which goes completed in this simple decoration(set) with, in addition, a small cloud in the good place.

26 Aug 2008 2:10pm

@dan: Thanks Dan....the Auvergne is a beautiful place!

yz from Budapest, Hungary

Fantastic composition: the cross, the cloud and the figure: just perfect.

26 Aug 2008 2:25pm

@yz: Thanks yz!

Paolo from Udine, Italy

How much did you pay to get that bunch of clouds in that particular position? Great dynamic and beautiful shot

26 Aug 2008 2:33pm

@Paolo: Thanks Paolo...sometimes you just get lucky :-)

Rui from Leiria, Portugal

Wow. Fantastic image. The processing applied creates a dramatic apperance, that works very well. Stunning

26 Aug 2008 4:27pm

@Rui: Thanks very much Rui!

kdl212 from Brooklyn, United States

killer composition. I'm wondering why the sky goes from black to light so quickly. Is this natural coloring, or post-processing?

26 Aug 2008 7:48pm

@kdl212: Thanks!....in answer to your question this was a very simple conversion using Photoshop CS3. The original photo was taken using an extreme wide angle lens and photographs taken with it often show a variation in the colour of skies from deep blue furthest from the sun to a very pale blue or clear sky closer to the sun.

The bluest parts of the sky on this photo are the deep black parts.

Sun.~ from Tehran, Iran

Fabulous....

26 Aug 2008 8:24pm

@Sun.~: Thanks Sun!

Putter from Belgium

Marvellous shot!

26 Aug 2008 8:45pm

@Putter: Thanks Putter!

Stefan from Thiersee, Austria

Fantastic, great image!

26 Aug 2008 9:59pm

@Stefan: Thanks Stefan!

Guillermina from Buenos Aires, Argentina

Wow, Ian! It's been a while since I last stopped by. I'm impressed to see how your photos have taken such a dramatic feel to them... You've certainly become an extremist of black and white! Good for you, you do it greatly, really!

27 Aug 2008 12:55am