THE PANTHEON

ROME

IMAGE NUMBER 1011

The Pantheon ("[temple] of all the gods") is a former Roman temple, now a church, in Rome on the site of an earlier temple commissioned by Marcus Agrippa during the reign of Augustus (27 BC – 14 AD). It was completed by the emperor Hadrian and probably dedicated about 126 AD. Its date of construction is uncertain, because Hadrian chose not to inscribe the new temple but rather to retain the inscription of Agrippa's older temple, which had burned down. The building is cylindrical with a portico of large granite Corinthian columns (eight in the first rank and two groups of four behind) under a pediment. A rectangular vestibule links the porch to the rotunda, which is under a coffered concrete dome, with a central opening (oculus) to the sky. Almost two thousand years after it was built, the Pantheon's dome is still the world's largest unreinforced concrete dome. The height to the oculus and the diameter of the interior circle are the same, 43 metres (142 ft).

TECHNICAL NOTES

The image was taken with a hand-held Phase One 645XF Camera at ISO 100. Exposure of 1/125th of a second and an aperture of f7.1. Schneider Kreuznach 45 mm lens with leaf shutter. The image was captured on a Phase One IQ3 100 megapixel digital back.

THE GATES OF PARADISE

THE BAPTISTERY, FLORENCE,

Image Number 155b & 155c

The bronze doors to the Baptistery in Florence created by  Lorenzo Ghiberti are recognized as a major masterpiece of the renaissance and were famous and influential from their unveiling. Ghiberti first became famous when as a 23-year-old he won the 1401 competition for the first set of bronze doors. 

To carry out this commission, he set up a large workshop in which many artists trained. When his first set of twenty-eight panels was complete, Ghiberti was commissioned to produce a second set for another doorway in the church, this time with scenes from the Old Testament, as originally intended for his first set. Instead of twenty-eight scenes, he produced ten rectangular scenes in a completely different style. They were more naturalistic, with perspective and a greater idealization of the subject. Michelangelo dubbed these scenes the "Gates of Paradise." 

 

BAPTISTERY CEILING


FLORENCE ITALY

Image Number 154

According to Dan Brown (The Inferno) legend proclaims that it is physically impossible, upon entering the Baptistry of San Giovanni, not to look up.  High overhead, the baptistry’s octagonal vault spans more than eighty feet from side to side. It glistens and shimmers as if made of smoldering coals. Its burnished amber-gold surface reflects the ambient light unevenly from more than a million tiny ungrouted mosaic pieces hand-cut from a glassy silica glaze -  arranged in six concentric rings in which scenes from the Bible are depicted.

TECHNICAL NOTES

The image was taken with a hand-held Phase One 645 Camera at ISO 200 and rested on a pew.  Exposure of 1/13th second and aperture F2.8.  45 mm Phase One lens.   The image was captured on a Phase One IQ180 80 megapixel digital back.  

THE MEDICI TOMBS, "DAWN AND DUSK" MICHELANGELO

FLORENCE ITALY

Image Number 153

omb of Lorenzo di Piero de' Medici with Dusk and Dawn.  Dawn takes no joy in the beauty and desirability of her powerful young body but wearily, painfully, drags herself awake almost like a dead body being dragged unwilling back to life.

TECHNICAL NOTES

The image was taken with a hand-held Phase One 645 Camera at ISO 3200. Exposure of 1/100th second and aperture F3.4.   45 mm Phase One lens.   The image was captured on a Phase One IQ180 80 megapixel digital back.  

MEDICI TOMBS, "NIGHT & DAY" MICHELANGELO

FLORENCE ITALY

Image Number 152

The tomb of Giuliano di Lorenzo de' Medici with Night and Day, carved by Michelangelo between 1520 and 1534.   The muscular body of "night" to the left reflects Michelangelo's habit of working from a male model even for his female nudes. In fact, several of the artist's sketches for Night, using a male model, are still preserved. 

TECHNICAL NOTES

The image was taken with a hand-held Phase One 645 Camera at ISO 3200. Exposure of 1/90th second and aperture F3.4.   45 mm Phase One lens.   The image was captured on a Phase One IQ180 80 megapixel digital back.  

MEDICI TOMBS, CEILING

FLORENCE ITALY

Image Number 151

In 1602 Grand Duke Ferdinando commissioned a splendid family vault for the Medici dynasty, so sumptuous that the rumor went round that the intention was to transfer the tomb of Jesus Christ from Jerusalem.  Six Medici Grand Dukes are buried in the Chapel.  Their wall tombs and sarcophagi, executed with artistry and costly materials, were the work of highly skilled craftsmen, but the gloomy pomp of the chapel has a chilling air about it, an indication that the heyday of Renaissance art came and went with the 16th century. 

TECHNICAL NOTES

The image was taken with a tripod-mounted Phase One 645 Camera at ISO 800. Exposure of 1/15th second and aperture F3.4.   45 mm Phase One lens.   The image was captured on a Phase One IQ180 80 megapixel digital back.  

WINESHOP, PIAZZA DEL DUOMO

FLORENCE ITALY

Image Number 150

Florence abounds in restaurants, trattorias and shops which maintain the appearance that they primarily serve a local population.  In some cases this is actually or partly true.

TECHNICAL NOTES

The image was taken with a tripod-mounted Phase One 645 Camera at ISO 800. Exposure of 1/250th second and aperture F2.8.   45 mm Phase One lens.   The image was captured on a Phase One IQ180 80 megapixel digital back.  

THE DOME OF THE DUOMO

FROM VIA DEL SERVI

Image Number 149

The cathedral complex, located in Piazza del Duomo, includes the Baptistery and Giotto's Campanile. The three buildings are part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site covering the historic centre of Florence and are a major attraction to tourists visiting the region of Tuscany. The basilica is one of Italy's largest churches, and until development of new structural materials in the modern era, the dome was the largest in the world. It remains the largest brick dome ever constructed.

TECHNICAL DETAILS

The image was taken with a tripod-mounted Phase One 645 Camera at ISO 35. Exposure of 30 seconds and aperture F16.   150mm Schneider Kreuznach lens.   The image was captured on a Phase One IQ180 80 megapixel digital back.  

THE DOME

FLORENCE ITALY

Image Number 148

The cathedral complex, located in Piazza del Duomo, includes the Baptistery and Giotto's Campanile. The three buildings are part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site covering the historic centre of Florence and are a major attraction to tourists visiting the region of Tuscany. The basilica is one of Italy's largest churches, and until development of new structural materials in the modern era, the dome was the largest in the world. It remains the largest brick dome ever constructed.

TECHNICAL NOTES

 The image was taken with a tripod-mounted Phase One 645 Camera at ISO 35. Exposure of 30 seconds and aperture F16.   150mm Schneider Kreuznach lens.   The image was captured on a Phase One IQ180 80 megapixel digital back.  

DUOMO 

FLORENCE ITALY

Image Number 147

The cathedral complex, located in Piazza del Duomo, includes the Baptistery and Giotto's Campanile. The three buildings are part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site covering the historic centre of Florence and are a major attraction to tourists visiting the region of Tuscany. The basilica is one of Italy's largest churches, and until development of new structural materials in the modern era, the dome was the largest in the world. It remains the largest brick dome ever constructed.

TECHNICAL DETAILS

The image was taken with a tripod-mounted Phase One 645 Camera at ISO 200. Exposure of 1/640th second and aperture F3.4.   45 mm Phase One lens.   The image was captured on a Phase One IQ180 80 megapixel digital back.  

DUOMO AFTER RAIN

FLORENCE ITALY

Image Number 146

The cathedral complex, located in Piazza del Duomo, includes the Baptistery and Giotto's Campanile. The three buildings are part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site covering the historic centre of Florence and are a major attraction to tourists visiting the region of Tuscany. The basilica is one of Italy's largest churches, and until development of new structural materials in the modern era, the dome was the largest in the world. It remains the largest brick dome ever constructed.

TECHNICAL NOTES

The image was taken with a tripod-mounted Phase One 645 Camera at ISO 35. Exposure of 1 second and aperture F4.5.   28 mm Schneider Kreuznach lens.   The image was captured on a Phase One IQ180 80 megapixel digital back.  

PIAZZA DEL DUOMO

FLORENCE, ITALY

Image Number 145

The Duomo of Florence was completed in 1436 with the dome engineered by Filippo Brunelleschi. The exterior of the basilica is faced with polychrome marble panels in various shades of green and pink bordered by white and has an elaborate 19th-century Gothic Revival façade by Emilio De Fabris.   

The Cathedral is encircled by a cobbled Piazza, crowded by day.  At midnight, in the rain it is very different.  This image was captured in early January 2013.

TECHNICAL NOTES

The image was taken with a tripod-mounted Phase One 645 Camera at ISO 35. Exposure of 4 seconds and aperture F4.8.   45 mm Phase One lens.   The image was captured on a Phase One IQ180 80 megapixel digital back.  

BICYCLES AT THE DUOMO

FLORENCE, ITALY

Image Number 144

The Duomo of Florence was completed in 1436 with the dome engineered by Filippo Brunelleschi. The exterior of the basilica is faced with polychrome marble panels in various shades of green and pink bordered by white and has an elaborate 19th-century Gothic Revival façade by Emilio De Fabris.  The cathedral complex, located in Piazza del Duomo, includes the Baptistery and Giotto's Campanile. The three buildings are part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site covering the historic centre of Florence. The basilica is one of Italy's largest churches, and until development of new structural materials in the modern era, the dome was the largest in the world. It remains the largest brick dome ever constructed.

TECHNICAL NOTES

The image was taken with a tripod-mounted Phase One 645 Camera at ISO 35. Exposure of 10 seconds and aperture F5.6.   45 mm Phase One lens.   The image was captured on a Phase One IQ180 80 megapixel digital back.  

TRATTORIA, FLORENCE

Image Number 143

Florence abounds in restaurants and trattorias which maintain the appearance that they primarily serve a local population.  In some cases this is actually true.

TECHNICAL NOTES

The image was taken with a tripod-mounted Phase One 645 Camera at ISO 800. Exposure of 1/400th second and aperture F2.8.   45 mm Phase One lens.   The image was captured on a Phase One IQ180 80 megapixel digital back.  

PRADA, FLORENCE

Image Number 142

Prada's shop window in Florence.  This image forms part of a matched set with similar images of shop windows by Chanel and others.  These images are ideal for mounting in miniature in bedrooms and small spaces.

TECHNICAL NOTES

The image was taken with a tripod-mounted Phase One 645 Camera at ISO 800. Exposure of 1/320th second and aperture F2.8.   45 mm Phase One lens.   The image was captured on a Phase One IQ180 80 megapixel digital back.  

PONTE VECCHIO

FLORENCE, ITALY

Image Number 141

The Ponte Vecchio is the oldest bridge in Florence. It is believed that a bridge already existed here during the Roman times. Its current appearance dates back to 1345 when it was built to replace a bridge which was destroyed by a flood. Houses were built on the bridge, a common practice in large European cities during the Middle Ages.
The Ponte Vecchio was the only bridge in Florence that survived the Second World War unscathed.

TECHNICAL NOTES

The image was taken with a tripod-mounted Phase One 645 Camera at ISO 35. Exposure of 1/250th second and aperture F2.8.   45 mm Phase One lens.   The image was captured on a Phase One IQ180 80 megapixel digital back.  

QUEUE AT THE DUOMO

FLORENCE ITALY

Image Number 140

The cathedral complex in Florence, located in Piazza del Duomo, includes the Baptistery and Giotto's Campanile. The three buildings are part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site covering the historic centre of Florence and are a major attraction to tourists visiting the region of Tuscany. The basilica is one of Italy's largest churches, and until development of new structural materials in the modern era, the dome was the largest in the world. It remains the largest brick dome ever constructed.

The queue outside the Duomo even at the "best" of times - in January in the rain - is two hours long.  This image was captured in early January 2013.

TECHNICAL NOTES

The image was taken with a tripod-mounted Phase One 645 Camera at ISO 35. Exposure of 1/40th second and aperture F13.   80 mm Schneider Kreuznach lens.   The image was captured on a Phase One IQ180 80 megapixel digital back.  

TRULLO IN A FIELD OF LETTUCE

COMMUNE OF CONSERVA, NEAR BARI, ITALY

Image Number 139

Conserva is a small commune near Bari on the East Coast of Italy.  Main produce is olives and citrus.

This image of a field of lettuce features a wonderful trullo farmhouse, vindicating that scenes as true as this still exist in Southern Italy - but they are becoming  hard to find.

TECHNICAL NOTES

The image was taken with a tripod-mounted Phase One 645 Camera at ISO 35. Exposure of 1/5th second and aperture F22.   150 mm Schneider Kreuznach lens.   The image was captured on a Phase One IQ180 80 megapixel digital back.  

OLIVES & RED LETTUCE

CONSERVA, NEAR BARI, ITALY

Image Number 138

Conserva is a small commune near Bari on the East Coast of Italy.  Main produce is olives and citrus.

TECHNICAL NOTES

The image was taken with a tripod-mounted Phase One 645 Camera at ISO 35. Exposure of 1/40th second and aperture F13.   80 mm Schneider Kreuznach lens.   The image was captured on a Phase One IQ180 80 megapixel digital back.  

FISHING BOATS, MONOPOLI 

APULIA, ITALY

Image Number 137

Monopoli is an Italian town and port, in Apulia. The town lies about 40 kilometres (25 miles) southeast of Bari on Italy's east coast. The town has important ancient and medieval links including one of Charles V's castles.  Alongside its modern port is a small and intact medieval fishing port.

TECHNICAL NOTES

The image was taken with a tripod-mounted Phase One 645 Camera at ISO 35. Exposure of 1/40th second and aperture F13.   80 mm Schneider Kreuznach lens.   The image was captured on a Phase One IQ180 80 megapixel digital back.