Someone once suggested that "Countless unseen details are often the difference between the mediocre and the magnificent." When I teach photography, this is one of my many mantras: what helps our work rise above all of the billions of photos being taken is our close attention to details and our true understanding of what those details are.
This photo is not presented as an example of the "magnificence" but this detail of the Cathedral of the Madeleine in Salt Lake City is. If you look at a broader view (click), you will will find that while the figure of Jesus is the centerpiece of the this facade of the cathedral, it is only one small part.
And I can assure you that the architects and sculptors did not intend for this statue to be seen with a telephoto lens attached to a high resolution camera as you are seeing it.
So why are the edges of the pages of the book so carefully rendered? And why is there so much detail in the face and hands of Christ that would not be seen from a distance?
The answer is simple: these were all done in a quest to create something that was truly magnificent.
So I'm indulging in my architectural detail fetish today, this time with a shot of the Utah state capitol dome. Tomorrow maybe I'll have a turkey photo given that it is Thanksgiving here in the USA.
Given that I talked a bit about the Ceiling of the Sistine Chapel yesterday, I thought I'd post my one and only photo of the ceiling, "accidentally" taken in 2004. Photography is not allowed, but in the crowded and somewhat chaotic chapel, my camera somehow went off. And this is what I ended up with.
It's no secret that I have a penchant for architectural details. On the morning I visited St. Cecelia Cathedral in Omaha, I was well aware of the fact that have hundreds of church exterior and interior photos. And so, even though I had my camera with me as I walked in and around this beautiful cathedral, I had decided that I wasn't going to take any photographs.
Given all the retrospectives of the Kennedy assassination on the 50th anniversary, I thought it would be appropriate to post a photo I took while visiting Dallas a few years ago. This is the Texas Book Repository from which Oswald shot Kennedy. 50 years ago I was only nine years old but, like many of my generation, there are many things that I remember from those days in November. . . . 
I haven't quite exhausted my small collection of exterior details of the Codington County Court House. But I think I'll hold at three for now. Maybe I'll make a triptych. . .
I spent 10 minutes looking for worthy details surrounding the door of the Codington County Court House. They weren't hard to find.
This is a photo of some of the excellent architectural detail work surrounding the south door of the Codington County Court House in Watertown, South Dakota. While our LATI photo students were photographing interior details, I stepped out to get these details, knowing that the strong, angular morning light would help dramatize them.
I won't say much about this photo though I will suggest that this is an example of HDR (high dynamic range) photography doing what it is supposed to do: allow the camera to render the complete tonality of a scene that varies from very dark to very bright.
When I walked into the Utah State Capitol building at 8am a couple days ago, I didn't know what to expect. It was, of course, architecturally impressive. But I was even more impressed by the fact that I had the place to myself. The dominant feature of the interior of the capitol is the white and gray marble that decorates it and though this photo started out in full color, I chose black and white to help you see this.