The Chapel, a photo from Basse-Normandie, North

Photographer's Note

The ruined chapel at Mont-Saint-Michel. Even on a dreary day, Mont-Saint-Michel overwhelms the senses. Geographically, the Mont is a rocky tidal islet, roughly one kilometre from the north coast at the mouth of the Couesnon River near Avranches. Celebrated for its Benedictine Abbey, there are small houses and shops on the lowest level. The abbey church crowns the islet, standing some 240 feet (73m) above sea level. The first chapel here was founded in 708 by Aubert, Bishop of Avranches.

The Mont was previously connected to the mainland by a natural land bridge that was submerged part of the day, much like its British counterpart, Mount St. Michael in Cornwall. However, its tidal island nature has been altered by centuries of polderization of coastal flats and canalising of the Couesnon River, preventing the tide from scouring silt. There are currently plans to remove the causeway and replace it with a bridge and shuttle.

Today the Mont is a World Heritage Site. My shots of the main, typical view of the Mont are too poor to post, as there are so many classical gems on TE already, so I offer the old chapel.

besnard, kessi, sleon, feather, LamCam, asajernigan, carper, Tue, leonorkuhn, TopGeo, Cricri, Fis2, xavshot, Zelanda, Graal, jafadabret, atus, Henryk_Bilor, Photo65Net, papagolf21, John_F_Kennedy, jhm, riclopes, gneufeld, bertolucci, cherryripe, imrek, Emile, pablominto, IgorDeleze, dareco oznaczył to zdjęcie jeko użyteczne

Critiques | Translate

snunney (130967) 2007-07-24 7:59

Hello John,
This is a very nice composition of this old chapel with good pov and excellent balance. The tones and textures are very well captured. Good work.

besnard (59196) 2007-07-24 8:01

Bonjour John
Ce n'est pas loin de chez moi et tu me fais découvrir une chapelle que je ne connais pas. C'est bien présenté, bien saisi, bien décalé sur le côté, bref du bon travail comme d'habitude.
Merci pour le partage et bon aprčs-midi.
Nicole

kessi (16) 2007-07-24 8:10

Wow, John. I love the angle you took the chapel at. It brings out those beautiful colours of the various stone layers to where the sea reaches. The sky looks striking and its colours harmonize so well with the brickwork.

I think you created a wonderful image.

Regards,
Irmgard

sleon (9402) 2007-07-24 8:18

HI John
The grey day here has given a marvellous atmosphere. Your pov looking up at the chapel gives a dramatic feel and the subtle shades of the rock stand out against the almost monotone grey surroundings. The expo and compo are excellent though the image to me looks a bit grainy - I'm not sure if this is due to the 400 ISO or just the compression?
Regards, Susanna

ndb1958 (9289) 2007-07-24 8:19

Hi John,
I love it if a photo has something of a painting. This looks quite like an aquarell. Even more than the focus of the rocks and the building (beautiful!) I like the "painted background and the sad grey sky.
Nino

feather (51130) 2007-07-24 8:35

You chose a wonderful POV so that we look up at the chapel. You captured excellent detail in the rocks and the brickwork. The grey sky complements the image and apart from the orange lichen it in almost monotone. Well done
Kath

LamCam (3717) 2007-07-24 8:35

Hello John
I really like your POV which emphasises the way the chapel is perched on the rock.
The island and strip of mud 'anchor' the composition well and you have made great use of the limited light.
Best Wishes Maggie

SecularJesus (22) 2007-07-24 8:36

I don't know who deserves more credit you or whoever decided to build it in that spot ;)

Excellent capture, I love the exposure and the tones in the image. The perspective is nice too.

testmaniac (13508) 2007-07-24 8:57

Hello John,

Very nice shot on this place!
Excellent POV,DOF, colors and sharpness!

TFS

Philip

asajernigan (21427) 2007-07-24 9:43

John,
Great composition and POV showing us the chapel and how it is perched over the water. The cloudy skies set an atmosphere of mystery and times gone by.
TFS,
Asa

leo61 (0) 2007-07-24 9:55

Hi John!
With these colors and the grey sky this image has a mystic atmosphere.A very well composed shot,looking a bit like a painting.The little mountan in the distance gives a perfect balance and I like the arrangement of rocks in the foreground.
Regards,Leo

carper (96) 2007-07-24 9:59

very nice John
good photo, fine contrast good details, I think this was an ideal place to use a super wide lens like the canon 10-22, for a better perspective,But even that I like the good photojob you did here, good atmosphere to, well done.
gr. jaap

P-S-I-G (25536) 2007-07-24 9:59

Hello John,
Very good shot !
I like the exposure. Great composition with the rocks.
Great work.
Best regards,
Fabrice

leonorkuhn (16237) 2007-07-24 10:25

Hi John,

Powerful image with the stone chapel built on large rocks. The cloudy weather and the ruins give a nostalgic atmosphere. Very good POV and details.

Cheers
Leonor

Tue (91658) 2007-07-24 10:47

Hej John,
Fantastic view with an excellent composition. The rocks are so beautiful and so are also their colours. I think the overcast sky nicely fits the ruins. The calm water helps to enhance the atmosphere. Well done!
Regards,
Lars

dkeus31 (27739) 2007-07-24 11:05

hello John,
A good composition well placing the church at a strong point.
sky is only average, but that's not your fault ;o)
regards
didier

grandklaus (423) 2007-07-24 11:16

nice shot that make me think about history , that make me feel the rough conditions of living on this coast ( when summer and the tourists are gone ) so mineral , so strong
BRAVO !

vincz (19113) 2007-07-24 11:26

Excellent POV. You really caught the true spirit of northern Brittany here with this chapel on a rock at low tide, the grey sky and the orange lichens. I like very much this picture. Great work!

Fis2 (169847) 2007-07-24 11:36

Witaj John!
The Chapel make impression. Very curious place. I like the frame and colors. Photo has climate.
Regards
Krzysztof

TopGeo (38220) 2007-07-24 11:38

Hello John,Excellent strong shot!
This is a very nice composition of this old chapel with good pov and excellent balance Your captured excellent detail in the rocks and the old brick-making chapel. Excellent DOF, colors and sharpness!
Bravo Georgios

Cricri (176) 2007-07-24 11:43

Bonsoir John,
j'aime la présentation, les détails des pierres, leurs couleurs, et ce ciel gris qui donne une atmosphére particuliére et agréable a cette composition, compliment
friendship
cricri

xavshot (69835) 2007-07-24 11:43

Bonsoir John
j'aime beaucoup l'ambiance de ta photo : un ciel chargé permet de donner beaucoup de relief aux teintes. Le cadrage est également bien vu
Xavier

gilou530 (34) 2007-07-24 12:17

hello john
colors and a fantastic environment of this coast under a stormy sky, a perfect framing, cheer
friendships
gilbert

Zelanda (5692) 2007-07-24 14:13

Hola John,
Precioso lugar y excelente encuadre con mucha profundidad y buen contraste de colores.
Gran POV.
Saludos
Ros

chrisnet (23062) 2007-07-24 14:43

Hello John,
This chapel is well framed with these beautiful rocks in the foreground, good management of the lighting, good work.
Regards
Christian

danyy (0) 2007-07-24 14:43

Bonjour John,
une photo qui donne beaucoup d'impact ŕ ce coin pittoresque et presque désolé. Dommage que le rendu du ciel ne soit pas un plus nuancé, mais je ne considčre pas cela comme un défaut.
Jolie prise, j'aime ce genre de paysage.
All the best.
Daniel.

Ann75 (0) 2007-07-24 23:10

Hi John,

Great shot of this lovely chapel that seems to be part of the rocks. Great POV with wonderful lighting, an amazing view, great colours and details! Great composition that you have captured beautifully. Fantastic work, John!

Greetings,
Ann

Graal (103040) 2007-07-24 23:52

Hi John,
beautiful chapel on the top of hill, fine composition with stones and sea in BG. Interesting note. Good work.
Gr., Aleksander

PixelTerror (0) 2007-07-25 2:47

Hi John,
Lovely chapel and good pov on your image resulting in a dynamic upwards framing, despite difficult details of the chapel are well rendered, you could possibly work a bit on the sky to make it a bit darker and more dramatic.
Have a nice day,
jean-Yves

hdl (7035) 2007-07-25 4:15

Hi John. Great shot; the pov and framing is perfect here. The greyish colours make it look like it was taken in Scotland.

jafadabret (56501) 2007-07-25 6:03

John, c'est sűr cette chapelle est moins connue que le Mont Saint Michel mais elle est superbe. Elle semble se fondre avec le rocher qui la porte. L'architecture est en symbiose avec la nature. Excellente photo.
Jacques

Cormac (26565) 2007-07-25 7:09

Great shot John! Mont St. Michel is a wonderful place, and the sense of history is quite overwhelming there. This shot captures that sense of being ancient, permanent, almost like a nature part of the landscape. Great work!

atus (15878) 2007-07-25 8:58

Hi John,
very well composed and framed shot of this small chapel, captured from a very good pov. The low light is well managed and the layers of the rock are very nice. Nice one!
Tfs and best wishes.
Attila

Henryk_Bilor (20803) 2007-07-25 9:34

Hi John
Excellent capture of this chapel. Great point of view and light. Good and interesting.
Regards

Photo65Net (43144) 2007-07-25 10:52

John,
Amazing chapel you caught in this one.
The ruined architecture works well with the soft tones you used.
I like that a lot,
Regards,
JB.

PJE (20758) 2007-07-25 20:46

John thanks for this most unusual photo. I have this theory that before you left for France you took notice of all places in France that were already featured on this site and then you headed out to find your own unique photo contributions. Just a thought that I am sure crossed your mind.

The weather befits the rugged setting and the ruins on this rock have a timeless appeal that makes me really appreciate the results you found with your camera. I will have to say excellent work and thanks for sharing.

coco (30439) 2007-07-25 23:14

Hi John.

Great composition and very nice landscape. It works very well and the chapel at the right makes a more enjoyable composition.

Regards.

AiresSantos (56155) 2007-07-25 23:19

Hi John,
Very nice composition with soft colours. Gorgeous view of this small chapel. Excellent sharpness and textures
TFS and greetings
Aires

papagolf21 (152605) 2007-07-26 1:01

Bonjour, cher John,
Cadrage excellent pour donner vie ŕ cet édifice religieux, qui semble perdu au milieu des roches et de la mer retirée.
Une trčs bonne composition.
Félicitations pour cette trčs belle réalisation.
Amitiés.
Philippe

crhieatt (5347) 2007-07-26 1:06

John,
Fantastic view of this ruined chapel, moulded into the top of some beautiful rock; it's a wonderful "uplifting" composition. Dull day? well perhaps it is, but you've worked around that to produce an image which wins by composition and detail.

One drawback, the image is quite grainy; I don't know why that should be so, but it is!

Great work all the same.
Regards
Colin

John_F_Kennedy (43797) 2007-07-26 3:40

A lovely composition with attractive colours! The photo gives the feeling of loneliness.
Best wishes,
Achim

jhm (211734) 2007-07-26 3:56

Hello John,

You speak about so many classical gems on TE already, but these picture can absolutely together with the other jewels picture can showed.
This is a very nice composition of this small chapel above on the rocks, very well composition and nice colours.
Thanks for sharing.

Have a nice day,
John.

riclopes (35577) 2007-07-26 5:48

Olá John, and I'm glad to see a diferent one of this famous place. I didn't know this view at all. In spite of the dull weather, the result is excellent and with a rather attractive and dramatic atmosphere, common in most images from here. The source of light seems to come from behind the chapel, which enhances its impressive sillouette high above the ground and against the sky. Nice to see your gallery, again :)
Ricardo

poulinp (4528) 2007-07-26 10:11

Hi John.

This is a beautiful shot, very well composed. A nice diagonal brings us to the chapel. I just supposed you played with the original light, because there is no shadow and you were in backlight!? That's probably why you got some grain. Anyway, good shot and good post-processing (I think! ;-) )

gneufeld (15890) 2007-07-26 12:36

Hi John,
Great image here that almost evokes a spiritual sense of intrigue and mystery given the dreary day. The Abbey is obviously a place of quiet solitude so this image does it perfect justice. Great shot, John, and thanks for sharing. Gerald

bertolucci (14052) 2007-07-27 4:23

Hi John, a beautiful rendition of this old and remote chapel. I like the way the eroded rocks lead the eye to it. There's a great sense of loneliness and strength here.
Thanx for sharing, I was here long ago but don't think I saw this little gem.
Have a fine weekend,
Bert

Stepan (27210) 2007-07-27 10:26

Beautiful soft light... That's finally an unusual post about the Mount and I like it. You captured the mood of the place. Impressive.
Stéphane

anesugur (18789) 2007-07-27 14:46

Hi John,
What a great shot with excellent colors, details and beautiful POV.
Very good work.
Have a nice weekend. Uğur

cam (9043) 2007-07-27 18:17

Hi John
A diferent view of this monument ,a different angle,a fresh perspective.
You had to fight a difficult situation here with the sun facing you,even through the clouds.Your PP created noise in the sky,along the burned sky around the sun.On the whole,you got the best of a bad situation.
A little tilt,I feel that the church is leaning towards the water.
Have a good WE
Charles

Budapestman (82620) 2007-07-28 4:28

Hi John,
This is great, I like the splendid composition and the romantic atmosphere, the soft lights are beautiful. Details are very fine, fascinating image, indeed. Its so than a romantic painting. Have a nice weekend
George

Steft (6109) 2007-07-28 9:43

Mont-Saint-Michel? I have been there once. It is so very beautiful (but there are always so many tourists). Nice that we see something different than the usual shots. I can't remember this chappel.
The photo has beautful, mysterious atmosphere. I see a bit of noice or some grainy spots, but that often happens with small sizes. Apart from that, the photo is perfect.
TFS,
Stef

jmcl (14535) 2007-07-28 22:33

Hi John,

The empty starkness you have presented the chapel presiding over is incredibly evocative combined with the old bricks themselves .. wonderful composition .. the soft silvery tones of the water play into the feel a great deal as well .. wonderful and thoughtful image.

take care,

John

cherryripe (21033) 2007-07-29 0:07

Hi John
Attractive photos can be taken when the weather is bad and this shows it. The extra sharpness of the rocks and chapel and background noise make it seem painting-like. The band of orange colour adds a nice splash of colour.
Regards
Nikki

maphoto (8082) 2007-07-29 14:15

Very nice picture John and beautiful site, the Chapel is gorgeous there, excellent low point of view, well seen !

imrek (4) 2007-07-31 7:00

Hi John,
fine light and great pastel colours, the composition is superb...well done!!!
regards,
imre

Emile (20352) 2007-08-01 16:21

Hola John.
Amazing composition with the old chapel in on a grey day. The brown tones of the rocks below the chapel and the chapel it self give a nice color contrast to your shot. Good POV.
Well done.
TFS.
Best regards.

pablominto (53746) 2007-08-03 0:45

Hello John,
An interesting location for this house of worship!
Interesting point of view showing how well the architecture is integrated in the landscape...
A well balanced composition with good details!
Greetings,
Pablo -

Davidwh (3662) 2007-08-03 9:45

Hi John,
Its been a while.....good to hear from you.Your selection of images from france are just great.You caught this one in lovely light....nice and soft and you did well to keep the contrast up.A lovely composition with the chapel to right and open space and island to left.The touch of colour of the rocks an added bonus.Take care and TFS.
Regards, David

IgorDeleze (585) 2007-08-13 0:28

Hello John,
There's not a lot of light in this shot, but the grey tones fit very well with the subject.
Perfectly composed.
Greeitngs.
Igor
PS : I come back ;-)

jean11-3 (2799) 2007-08-31 13:35

A beautiful composition John.The details of the rocks and the chapel contrast really well with the flat sea and sky.
The colours are lovely.You would have no idea that you are so close to the busy attraction of Mont Saint Michel. I must admit that on our visits to this little island, I have never seen this chapel.
Excellent notes, thanks.
Regards Jean.

dareco (17136) 2007-09-20 6:51

I was looking threw your gallery and fell in love with this beautiful old chapel. I like the detail in this picture. The colors are great. TFS

Hellas (7123) 2008-05-30 3:51

Fantastic frame!
I like your portfolio, John! I like your creations!
The details are great as well as the colours, especially that brown-coffee just beneath the chapel. The texture of the rocks and the masonry of the chapel are exciting.
Thanks for sharing.
Greetings from Greece,
Athanasios.