Country Church – My photo of the year 2025

I have always found myself being drawn to churches.  Particularly small country churches.  I don’t really seek them out.  Mostly I just happen across them.

Nevertheless, I was out and about with a camera in the late afternoon of a Sunday in late August when I was  minded to visit a church that I had not entered for about 20 years.  All Saints, Buncton, West Sussex.  Close to the back escarpment of the South Downs. The church was built in the late 11c.

Just after the Norman invasion took place.  So obviously it’s in the Norman style.  Built in part with recycled material from nearby very derelict Roman buildings.  It has hardly changed since and is now a Grade 1 listed building.

Access.  Park your car in a layby on the adjacent lane.  Pass through a gap in the fence into woodland, following an unmade path.  Down a slope, across a little bridge, over a stream, up the slope on the other side.  After a few minutes exit the woodland into the graveyard.  Church ahead of you with fields of crops for neighbours.

Enter through a heavy wooden door on the north wall.  Pews to left and right.  Cut flowers ahead.  To the left, the alter in front of a large window.  The featured image.  More cut flowers either side of the altar.  The church and alter had been decorated that day for the morning service.  The congregation now long gone.  Just the flowers and altar dressings remained.

I was struck by the make do and mend rustic simplicity of the altar.  Nothing elaborate.  No trappings of Church wealth.  Just a powerful go anywhere symbol of the congregation’s faith.  I took a photograph.

When reviewing it at home, it was awful. Over-the-top crazy dynamic range.  It was shot in available light directly into the bright window that was behind the alter.  Definitely something for an HDR image.  I needed a plan.

I returned the same time the following Sunday.  Fortunately, a fresh alter set up for that morning’s service.  Camera on tripod, same difficult lighting set up.  Several bracketed shots taken.  Three suitable RAW  frames stitched together in Zoner Photo Studio.  After much faffing and tweaking I had created my very first HDR image.  I’m rather pleased with it.

Technical stuff. Camera – Fuji XT1 with 33 mm f/2.0 Fujinon lens.

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