The Pantheon
Rome 2015
The Pantheon has always been a place of worship. Built in the first century A.D., it was a place to worship the pagan gods of Rome. Later, in the 7th century, it was given to Pope Boniface IV by the Byzantine Emperor Phocas and it has been a church ever since. It didn’t seem like a church with the crowds of tourists milling around but I noticed people using the Holy Water fonts as they blessed themselves entering and leaving.
I was keen to go to the Pantheon. I love shafts of light falling into darkness…ever since I accidentally caught one on film in Istanbul’s Valide Han years and years ago. There wasn’t enough contrast between the light falling from the hole in the ceiling and the dome. I remedied that in Photoshop…darkening the shadows, increasing the detail (use the clarity slider in Camera Raw) increasing the saturation on the columns and niches. Now, it looks like a place where you feel the presence of God.