Hi there my Hivean friends and followers!
Welcome to my Architectural Photography series where I introduce you to interesting buildings that I get to visit on my travels. The past few episodes of the series were dedicated to remarkable pieces of Krakow architecture because this beautiful Polish city has been our temporary home for a couple of months already and my today´s post will show you yet another impressive architectural gem of the city - the renowned St. Bernard´s Church.
First of all, I would like to explain why the photos of this remarkable piece of Baroque architecture are in b&w. The reason is actually very simple - the weather was so bad on the day when I was photographing the church that after several vain photo editing attempts, I decided to put the photos in b&w to give them this somewhat classic monochrome look at least.
Now something about the church itself. Located on the Bernardynska Street in Krakow, facing the famous Wawel Castle, the St. Bernard´s Church was built in the 15th century, originally in the Gothic architectural style. The church also served as a monastery and refugee for those who wanted to follow the teachings of St. Francis of Assisi, a renowned Italian friar, preacher, mystic and the founder of the Franciscan Order.
Later on, during the Swedish Siege of Krakow in the 1650s, the church was completely destroyed and it had to be rebuilt. In the following decades, the church was built again but this time in the Baroque architectural style and it has kept this appearance since then. The church has 3 naves and a massive, beautifully decorated front side dominated by two towers. I haven´t been inside yet but from what I read in some online articles about the church, its interiors are also very impressive. In the past, a cemetery was adjacent to the building but it was demolished in the 19th century. The St. Bernard´s Church is also home to several highly regarded sculptures, statues, paintings and other artsy artifacts.
I hope that you enjoyed this episode of my Architectural Photography series and that you also learned something new from this post. Honestly, I really wish the photos were colorful, taken against the blue sky, but we had mostly bad and cloudy weather in the past few weeks here so it is what it is. However, warm and sunny days are finally expected in the days and weeks to come so hopefully, I will have better light conditions for my future photo shootings of the stunning Krakow architecture :)
I am happy to submit this post to the Architecture+Design community, a great and dedicated community for all fans of architecture and design run by our amazing Hivers @discoveringarni and @storiesoferne.
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I actually like it in monochrome!
I hope you get to go in, it will not disappoint. I loved the Baroque altars were stunning and the golden glow was rich rather than gaudy looking. Enjoy! I can hardly wait to see pictures!
Oh so you have been inside? Nice! I am definitely going to visit the church again, I want to take better pictures of it, this magnificent building simply deserves it :) I will make sure to go inside too then, thank you!
Yes! I think it was 2015, or maybe a few months later. It was just renovated and everything was fresh-looking, perhaps that is why it looked so amazing. :) I think you will love it. I also loved the stained glass!
You've hit the mark with this monochrome presentation. The architecture of the temple stands out in your photographs and the Gothic and Baroque styles are beautifully presented. By the way, I don't like that temples used to have a cemetery :( and that's gloomy, but it's good that St. Bernard's Church served for the work of San Francisco de Asís: D
Thanks @phortun for sharing this gem architecture of Krakow.
Thank you for your kind feedback, I can see you really checked the photos out and read that text :) I really value such active and careful readers. Another beautiful Krakow church coming soon and this time even with photos of the interiors so stay tuned ;)
Sure, I'll be vigilant. Because by reading you learn a lot. Thanks @phortun.
Hello @phortun, just dropping by to congratulate you. Continue to inspire us with your creative architectural photography and exploration!
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Wow, thank you so much guys! Means a lot. I will try to make something for your community every week :) Tt´s been fun.
The monochrome photographs you took look stunning by the way. It emphasized the details so I guess the lack of blue sky was a blessing in disguise. Interesting to know that its architectural style wasn't Baroque originally.
Do they hold holy masses there now? Or group gatherings are still prohibited?
Thank you Arni. I know that b&w fits some architecture photos quite nice, it really makes the details stand out, I am just not sure if this was the case but I didn´t have many options anyway :D Well, I just checked and yes, holy masses are held in this church, every day actually... Now in the pandemic, churches in Poland are still open but their capacity has been reduced greatly.
There's a certain magic in the air when capturing monochromatic photographs of interesting subjects but, most importantly, of architecture! The weather might not be suitable for the camera but, its black and white effect has given that sacred building a professional aesthetic (as if the current atmosphere was fine). Thanks a lot, @phortun for showcasing this impressive gem of Gothic/Baroque architecture!
Aww, thank you for such a nice feedback again Erne, it really means a lot coming from an architecture expert like you :) Actually, that reminds me that I already made a b&w architectural photo collection a few years ago. In this case, I put the photos in monochrome to make them look a bit spooky as it was a Halloween special :)
Would love to experience more of your amazing collections! Keep up your awesome publications of architectural photography in this community!
Thank you, will do :)
Brutally honest lol! It happens a lot when coloured ones look bland and dull, just run for monochrome.
The church seems massive and aesthetically appealing.
Great post, have a lovely week:)
Haha that´s what I usually do when colored photos turn out bad or dull :D Glad you still enjoyed them though! Thanks for stopping by and have a great week too :)
Thank you for touring century old architectures in you place. History was absolutely amazing!
Hey, thanks for stopping by, I am glad you liked this post :) Yeah, Krakow is very rich in terms of history and beautiful architecture. Stay tuned for more :)
It looks great in monochrome so surreal it really brings out the detail of the building great job love it.
Thank you my friend! Means a lot :)
My pleasure @phortun 👍
Pretty nice architecture on this one. I never tried the monochrome approach but it works quite well here. ^^
Well, those who live in Thailand (or in some other tropical paradise) don´t need to use the monochrome because they never get dull photos :D Just kidding, thanks for checking the shots out :)
Haha well it works well for portraits and architecture, although even the streets and temples here are quite coloful. You may have a point, but do not underastimate my dull photo taking skills. 😀
That looks very captivating, It indeed is wonderful example of Baroque architecture.
Keep posting, keep flourishing!
Thanks man, I am really happy to see such a positive feedback from the members of the Architecture & Design community :) I will try to contribute more often.
Looking foreword to see more from you.
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