Welcome to the blog for S. Smith Photography
Hello and welcome to the image blog for S. Smith Photography! I am getting ready for a very exciting project: A documentation in images of a religious pilgrimage to Portugal and Spain with the Canons Regular of St. John Cantius, a religious community based in Chicago, Illinois. In preparation, I wanted to give viewers of my blog some highlights of my work in the past six months:
The Resurrection: Stained glass window of The Resurrection from St. Ann Catholic Church, West Palm Beach, Florida
I was given permission to shoot at length at St. Ann Catholic Church back in March of this year. This is one of the many beautiful stained glass images I got from that shoot, which was also was used in my Easter card this year.
Our Lady of Częstochowa - holy card front
This icon of Our Lady of Częstochowa is part of Our Lady’s altar at St. John Cantius Church in Chicago, Illinois. It was brought from Poland in 1917, and installed in the altar on the occasion of the parish’s silver jubilee. In 1997, new crowns were fashioned from precious metals and jewels donated by parishoners. The crowns were blessed by Pope John Paul II in a private audience (italic text from “Art and Architecture of St. John Cantius – A Tour in Photographs“ by Biretta Books). This is actually a composite of two images. I took one image of the faces, and one image of the clothes and merged them together digitally. In this way you can get a real impression of what this beautiful icon truly looks like.
Our Lady of Częstochowa - holy card back
Detail of front and back of Our Lady of Częstochowa holy card
St. Dominic recieves the Holy Rosary from Our Lady, from a window at St. John Cantius Church in Chicago, Illinois
Procession of the Most Holy Sacrament of the Altar, Corpus Christi Sunday, Church of the Ascension, Chicago, Illinois
Our Lady of Fatima, from a side altar at the Basillica of Our Lady of Sorrows, Chicago, Illinois
Baptism at Church of the Ascension, Chicago, Illinois - June, 2010
Portrait work: Monsignor Gilles Wach, STD, Founder and Prior General of the Institute of Christ the King Sovereign Priest
Monsignor R. Michael Schmitz, STD, JCL preaches on the External Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, at the Shrine of Christ the King in Chicago, Illinois
from the External Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, at the Shrine of Christ the King in Chicago, Illinois
"Domine non sum dignus" - from the External Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, at the Shrine of Christ the King in Chicago, Illinois
Some of the Canons Regular of St. John Cantius pray the Holy Rosary on the feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, August 15, 2010
Br. Robin Kwan, SJC under the funeral pall while the Litany of Saints is chanted during his final profession of religious vows on the feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary at St. John Cantius Church, Chicago, Illinois
The afternoon light against the high altar of St. John Cantius during Vespers on the feast of the Assumption.
Resurrexit Sicut Dixit!
Portrait work: Jonathan Ryan, Concert Organist
As always, beautiful work!!
September 8, 2010 at 3:51 pm
It is wonderful to follow the pilgrims on this historical liturgical conference in Fatima, September, 2010
The photos are wonderful! My only hope would be that you would document more of the people’s response on the trip as well as the local people and countryside. The experience of not only the masses being celebrated, which are beautiful.
Thanks
September 9, 2010 at 8:15 pm
Thank you for your comment Ann. I definitely consider this a learning trip. Right now I’m learning to capture a Mass every day for ten days! I have brought along a audio recorder so i can get impressions from the pilgrims which is something I very much want to include in the experience.
Thanks!
September 9, 2010 at 9:50 pm
SJC Church does exactly what a church ought to…lift your heart and soul up to Heaven. Your talents with photography are superb. You did a lot of good work with focus; there were no “fuzzy” parts.
Why is that brother under a funeral pall?
September 16, 2010 at 12:08 am
Sean,
Thank you for your kind comment. I reply to your last statement concerning the use of the funeral pall. The brother in question was not dead. He is taking his final profession of religious vows in this picture. He answers three questions
posed to him by his superior, then lays prostrate on the floor in front of the altar. His brothers come and lay the pall over him while the congregation chants the litany of saints. He lays under the pall until the litany is over. In this way it is
very clearly illustrated to all attending that this person is “dying to the world” to be raised up into a new life of a professed religious, and that those attending are calling all the saints to pray and watch over this newly professed religious.
September 16, 2010 at 8:16 pm