New Calvary - Day 75

52 years ago Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. came to Norfolk Virginia to preach at his friend Rev. Milton Reid's installation as pastor of New Calvary Baptist Church. Milton Reid was a well known early Virginia civil rights activist. Dr. King was scheduled to return to preach again at New Calvary Baptist in early April 1968 but postponed the visit to go to Memphis to support the sanitation workers strike where he was assassinated on April 4, 1968. New Calvary Baptist is located at the corner of Calvert St. and Virginia Beach Blvd. in Norfolk Virginia. In the background of this photo can be seen historic First Calvary Baptist Church, just to the left out of the frame is the historic Attucks Theater.

Burton Parish - Day 54

Bruton Parish Church, Williamsburg Virginia established 1674.

Kölner Dom - Day 37

2 years ago this week we were in Germany for Christmas markets. Here is Cologne Cathedral the fourth-tallest church building in the world at 516 ft.

Duke Chapel - Day 27

Peaceful - Day 113 #CY365

I often walk through the churchyard in Downtown Norfolk's St. Paul Episcopal Church. The oldest parts of the current building dates to 1737 but other church buildings occupied the site for years before. It is a peaceful oasis in an otherwise busy downtown, Canon G15, 1/30 sec @ f/8.0, ISO 100.

Cling - Day 101 #CY365

Water droplets cling to this yellow pansy near the old Victorian era fountain at Norfolk Virginia's St. Paul's Church. iPhone 5s, Camera+ App

Arched - Day 85 #CY365

This stained glass window featuring Gabriel's Horn in the center is framed by an arched casing. The bright gold horn is also found atop the church's steeple which was the tallest point in the City in the later half of the 19th century. The Freemason Street Baptist Church is one of three buildings in Norfolk Virginia designed by Thomas U. Walter who was famous for his design of the dome for the U.S. Capital Building. The church was completed in May 1850 in a revival of the style known as "Perpendicular Gothic." This Victorian period revival style was characterized by its reliance on decoration and ornamentation rather than structure. Canon 5D Mark II, 1/250 sec @ f/2.8, ISO 400, 50mm prime lens.

Twilight Chapel

The Chapel at the Barry Robinson Center was built in 1933 as part of the James Barry Robinson Home For Boys, an orphanage and school. The chapel is a beautiful sight just after sunset with its holiday lights aglow. Taken with a Canon G10, f5, 1s (tripod), ISO 200, 40mm equivalent. Post processed with Photomatrix Pro 3.1 blended exposures.

St. Mary's at Night

The Basilica of St. Mary of the Immaculate Conception is located in downtown Norfolk. Built in 1858, its clock marks the time of my early morning photo. Canon 5D Mark II, 1 second exposure @ f/4, ISO 100, 45mm focal length.

Wet Plate

I continue my "Norfolk at Night" month with a picture I took this morning before sunrise and in the rain. At the intersection of West Olney Road and Stockley Gardens in Norfolk Virginia, sits Christ and St. Luke's Church. The long narrow building of rough-faced random ashlar in the English Perpendicular Gothic Revival style was completed in 1910. It is a spectacular building with a congregation that traces its roots in Norfolk back to 1637.

It wasn't raining as I drove to the Ghent neighborhood to take the picture. Just about the time I got the tripod setup, down came the rain. I kept wiping the lens off and trying to shield it from the rain but when I got home tonight and downloaded the images, I found the one with the water spots to be the most interesting. I developed the photo in Lightroom 5 using the Analog Efex Pro plug-in from Google and chose a wet plate camera type to give it an old photo look. A few tweaks with the sliders and you get the image I wanted to share with you. I hope you like it. Canon G15, 4 second exposure @ f/8.0, ISO 80.

Twilight Steeple

Yesterday's photo featured the morning sky and the shiloutte of Norfolk's First Baptist Church. Tonight it's the nearby Freemason Street Baptist Church against a twilight sky. Grabriel's Horn is the weather vane at the top the steeple. Thomas U. Walter, the architect for the U.S. Capital dome designed the Gothic Revival building, which is now on the National Historical Register. Canon G15, 1/5 sec @ f/2.8, ISO 400.

Morning Contrails

A beautiful Norfolk Virginia morning with contrails from the east coast air corridor high above the shiloutte of First Baptist Church. This church is one of my all time favorite Norfolk buildings with its highly ornamented Romanesque Revival style. While you can't tell from this picture the pink granite ashlar and limestone trim are spectacular. This 1906 architectural masterpiece is the work of Chattanooga architect Rueben Harrison Hunt. iPhone 5, Camera+ App.

Field of Flags

The "Field of Flags" remembering those Americans who have given their lives in Iraq and Afghanistan. The field is on display in front of the Eastern Shore Chapel on Laskin Road in Virginia Beach, Virginia. One flag for each life lost. Canon ELPH 110, 1/60 sec @ f/5.9, ISO 640 with flash.

Spring Show

- Robert and his preschool class preforming at the Kempsville Presbyterian Church Preschool's Spring show entitled "Jammin' for JESUS!" There's just pure joy in watching ten classes of 4 and 5 year olds sing and dance. Preschool teacher's and assistance are truly God's angels on earth. Canon 7D, 1/500 sec @ f/2.8, ISO 1600, 70-200 zoom at 200mm.

Gabriel's Horn

Inside the new chapel at Norfolk's Freemason Street Baptist Church is this stained glass window featuring Gabriel's Horn in the center. The bright gold horn is also found atop the church's steeple which was the tallest point in the City in the later half of the 19th century. Gabriel's Horn refers to the tradition identifying the Archangel Gabriel as the angel who blows the horn to announce Judgment Day. Canon 5D Mark II, 1/250 sec @ f/2.8, ISO 400, 50mm prime lens.

What a Set of Pipes

- Now that's what I call a great set of pipes. The pipe organ at Freemason Street Baptist Church in Norfolk, Virginia. Canon 5D Mark II, 1/8 sec @ f/5.6, ISO 400, 50mm prime lens.

Perpendicular Gothic

- The Freemason Street Baptist Church is one of three buildings in Norfolk Virginia designed by Thomas U. Walter who was famous for his design of the dome for the U.S. Capital Building. The church was completed in May 1850 in a revival of the style known as "Perpendicular Gothic." This Victorian period revival style was characterized by its reliance on decoration and ornamentation rather than structure. I made my first visit to the interior of the church today and was struck by its beauty. This photo shows the side aisle under the overhead gallery with the east facing stained glass windows. The large Gothic windows with the simple single colors is really unusual for a church of this period. Canon 5D Mark II, 1/500 sec @ f/5.6, ISO 400, 50mm prime lens.

Nimmo

- Nimmo United Methodist Church in Virginia Beach, Virginia was built in 1791. The original structure still stands as the sanctuary, although it has undergone many changes over the years. It is the oldest surviving Methodist Church in continuous use in Virginia. Around 1840, the balcony was added as a slave gallery. It survives today as the only remaining structure directly related to the period of slavery in Princess Anne County, now part of modern day Virginia Beach. Records show that in 1846 Nimmo had 170 white members and 42 "colored members." During the civil war Nimmo used to house Union troops and as a hospital. Some of these troops left initials and names of their sweethearts carved into the posts supporting the balcony. Information from the church website. Canon G11, 1/250 sec @ f/7.1, ISO 100

Grace

- Looking across the labyrinth just inside the Grace Cathedral in San Francisco. Stained glass windows pour brightly colored light across the naive and north aisle. To left is a sculpture of St. Francis by Beniamino Bufano. Canon G11, 1/8 sec @ f/4.5, ISO 400.

New Calvary & MLK, Jr.

- Forty-five years ago Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. came to Norfolk Virginia to preach at his friend Rev. Milton Reid's installation as pastor of New Calvary Baptist Church. Milton Reid who passed away last month was a well known early Virginia civil rights activist. Dr. King was scheduled to return to preach again at New Calvary Baptist in early April 1968 but postponed the visit to go to Memphis to support the sanitation workers strike where he was assassinated on April 4, 1968. New Calvary Baptist is located at the corner of Calvert St. and Virginia Beach Blvd. in Norfolk Virginia. In the background of this photo can be seen historic First Calvary Baptist Church, just to the left out of the frame is the historic Attucks Theater. Canon G11, 1/250 sec @ f/8.0, ISO 200, converted to B&W in Adobe Lightroom 3.Several years ago I listened to the audio version of The Autobiography of Martin Luther King, Jr. (1998), ed. Clayborne Carson. I highly recommend this version read by LeVar Burton in a Grammy Award winning performance which also contains recordings of many speeches and famous oratory of Dr. King. A must listen for anyone who is a student of leadership.