Basilica di San Vitale, Ravenna, Italia
May 31, 2019 16:45:11 #
For many years, Ravenna has been on my "bucket" list. This city, population 160,000, is 66 miles south of Venice on the Adriatic coast. It contains eight of the 845 cultural World Heritage sites. These churches, baptistries and mausoleums contain what is probably the greatest collection of Byzantine mosaics in the world (since many of Constantinople's are gone.)
I have chosen the Basilica di San Vitale to begin my posting. Ravenna had been the capital of the western Roman empire in the 400s after Constantine had moved the capital to Byzantium/Constantinople.
Construction of the church began in 527 AD when Ravenna was ruled by the invading Ostrogoths. Justinian's army re-conquered it in 576 AD. Most of its mosaics date from the 500s.
I searched and could find no Ravenna postings on UHH, so hopefully these will introduce a fascinating subject to viewers.
Notes: 1. no flash is allowed in most Italian churches. These were shot handheld with ISOs usually in the 20,000 range. The UHH thumbnails leave much to be desired. Please download for a more enjoyable look.
2. The extensive use of gold mosaics makes tuning interesting.
I have chosen the Basilica di San Vitale to begin my posting. Ravenna had been the capital of the western Roman empire in the 400s after Constantine had moved the capital to Byzantium/Constantinople.
Construction of the church began in 527 AD when Ravenna was ruled by the invading Ostrogoths. Justinian's army re-conquered it in 576 AD. Most of its mosaics date from the 500s.
I searched and could find no Ravenna postings on UHH, so hopefully these will introduce a fascinating subject to viewers.
Notes: 1. no flash is allowed in most Italian churches. These were shot handheld with ISOs usually in the 20,000 range. The UHH thumbnails leave much to be desired. Please download for a more enjoyable look.
2. The extensive use of gold mosaics makes tuning interesting.
(Download)
(Download)
(Download)
Theodora
(Download)
Justinian
(Download)
(Download)
(Download)
The Labyrinth Leads You to the Center of the Dome
(Download)
The Dome
(Download)
(Download)
May 31, 2019 16:55:35 #
May 31, 2019 17:06:45 #
petercbrandt
Loc: New York City, Manhattan
nice detail, at 20,000 iso so little grain /noise or camera shake !
May 31, 2019 17:13:38 #
You did a good job on these. Download really helps. The church seems overly ornate, at least for my taste.
May 31, 2019 18:19:18 #
May 31, 2019 18:20:29 #
May 31, 2019 18:22:01 #
petercbrandt wrote:
nice detail, at 20,000 iso so little grain /noise or camera shake !
You triggered a thought, Peter. Maybe mosaics are a good subject for high ISO since they are by definition "grainy". Thanks.
May 31, 2019 18:24:10 #
NMGal wrote:
You did a good job on these. Download really helps. The church seems overly ornate, at least for my taste.
Many thanks, NM. Ornate is easy to find in Italian churches, but these are in a league of their own. It's as if they were not going to stop until they filled every nook and cranny.
May 31, 2019 18:25:01 #
dancers wrote:
what an amazing place.
Definitely...and so were the other Ravenna sites. Thanks for looking.
Jun 1, 2019 06:52:09 #
Jun 1, 2019 07:05:43 #
Jun 1, 2019 07:24:22 #
steve49 wrote:
Great look at the church. So many beautiful corners of old Europe!
Thanks, Steve. This one is a bit off the beaten path. We were there in early May and the crowds were small.
Jun 1, 2019 07:24:52 #
joehel2 wrote:
Wonderful set, Dave. Thanks for sharing it.
My pleasure, Joe. Thanks for commenting.
Jun 1, 2019 07:37:10 #
Jun 1, 2019 07:51:16 #
WOW! What amazing testament to the history of mankind. I would like to see more. Thanks for sharing them with us! Did you use an in-camera HDR setting for these?
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