It was a chance meeting I met Celeste on a Sunday morning back in February. I was taking some photographs at Old Saint Joseph’s Church. She asked why I was taking photos and I replied “Well since the pope is a Jesuit and Old St. Joe’s is a Jesuit church… umm no reason really.” Turns out we were both members of Old St. Joes.
Anyway she told me that she was submitting a proposal to the Philadelphia Historic Commission to have frescoes in St. Augustine’s church designated as historic, but was having difficulty finding a photographer. We chatted a bit more and I was convinced I would volunteer my camera and me to help her out.
With a little coordination we met at St. Augustines on a Sunday in March. I hadn’t the opportunity to visit the church prior but having photographed hundreds of wedding I knew the lighting would be a challenge. I thought the best approach would be to set up a tripod and adjust the camera to a slow shutter speed so that the light would be absorbed much better and I would be able to maintain a low ISO.
As you can see the natural light points downward but the frescoes on the ceiling look kind of dark.
We met in between masses. I had less than 30 minutes to shoot! So I got started. I set the camera on the tripod without extending the legs. I was laying on the floor. Maybe I didn’t have to but I figured if Nicola Monachesi did it when he painted these frescoes, I could certainly do it for a few minutes myself!
The main ceiling fresco depicting Augustine in heaven.
As I hurried myself to take the photographs, the members of the church were entering for the next mass. No pressure! I continued on my way setting up under each painting and laying on the floor to focus and shoot.
Above the altar
In July of 2015 The Philadelphia Historical Commission unanimously certified the frescoes as historical. To learn more about St. Augustine’s and the importance of the designation you can follow this link.
A couple of interesting notes is the church was used in two movies shot in Philadelphia, The Sixth Sense and Shooter!