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Phil Douglis | all galleries >> Galleries >> Gallery Forty-Nine: Creating an echo with rhythm and pattern > San Felipe de Neri, Albuquerque, New Mexio, 2007
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06-NOV-2007

San Felipe de Neri, Albuquerque, New Mexio, 2007

Albuquerque's oldest church, San Felipe de Neri is made of adobe. Named after King Philip of Spain, the church has served the city under the flags of Spain, Mexico, the New Mexico Territory, the Confederacy, and the United States. I built this image around the contrasts in both the design of the crosses and the colors. One cross is starkly simple, the other more ornate. The adobe building, shot at sunset, is golden brown, the trim white, and the sky deep blue. What makes these contrasts work together? Geometric repetition. The crosses repeat vertical and horizontal thrusts. Three roofs repeat an inverted “v” shape, pulling the viewer’s eye through the image.

Leica V-Lux 1
1/500s f/6.3 at 21.3mm iso100 hide exif
Full EXIF Info
Date/Time06-Nov-2007 17:18:33
MakeLeica
ModelV-LUX 1
Flash UsedNo
Focal Length21.3 mm
Exposure Time1/500 sec
Aperturef/6.3
ISO Equivalent100
Exposure Bias-0.33
White Balance
Metering Modemulti spot (3)
JPEG Quality
Exposure Programprogram (2)
Focus Distance

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Phil Douglis30-Nov-2007 23:22
Thanks, Patricia. I think simplicity is at the heart of expressive photography. I try to hone my images down to the essentials, removing all distractions and irrelevant context. As for those repeating shapes, which I call rhythms, I use them as compositional structure. They glue the image together and lead the eye of the viewer through it.
Patricia Lay-Dorsey30-Nov-2007 22:14
I am struck by the simplicity of this image and how your pointing out the repetition of shapes helps me see what holds it together. There are also the vivid colors that work well against one another. Thank you for giving me another tool to use in my own work.
Phil Douglis25-Nov-2007 00:11
I think it is actually the Madonna and Child that stand in the shadow here, but the metaphor you pose here would remain the same. The church building itself represents an effort of a religious organization to proclaim its importance and institutional continuity, while the iconic religious figures hidden within the shadow are overwhelmed by scale, placement, and darkness.
Tim May24-Nov-2007 18:53
I am taken by the shadowed Christ - so often "structured" religion overshadows the heart of the faith.
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