Colored Glass and Light

I have enjoyed stained glass windows since I was a small boy. Sitting in church those pictures carried me far away from hard pews and boring sermons. They brought famous Bible stories to life and the colored beams of light moving on the surrounding walls were much more interesting than the stern faces of many in the congregation. To an amateur photographer they still exert a charm and fascination. Each presents technical trials of exposure and composition. In many churches tripods are not permitted adding to the challenge of obtaining a sharp image. Finally, most church windows are above eye level so photographs invariably suffer from some distortion. Nevertheless, I find the results be beautiful.

These images were taken in many different places. The small windows from the old Anglo-Saxon church in East Anglia are some of the simplest and oldest. Those from Europe are exactly what one expects to find in grand cathedrals and the beautiful windows from St. Mary’s Church in the Texas hill country are perhaps the most surprising discovery. I love the modern images from Australia and the very simple “Crown of Thorns” from Southminster Church just south of Houston. The later shows a different style where the “picture” is formed only from different glass shapes. This has none of the added painting and staining that is commonly used in traditional stained glass to accentuate the details. I hope you enjoy them as much as I do.