belfry full moon

Visualizaton is the single most important factor in photography.
In my mind’s eye, I visualize how a particular…sight and feeling will appear in print. If it excites me, there is a good chance it will make a good photograph. It is an intuitive sense, an ability that comes from a lot of practice.

– Ansel Adams

I was on a walkabout in the Fernwood neighbourhood during a full moon. Coming upon the Belfry Theatre, I could see what I wanted to achieve. Visualizing it was one thing. Having the perfect conditions to achieve it was entirely different. My vision didn’t just involve the Belfry Theatre and the moon, it needed some clouds to diffuse the moon’s lighting. I suppose you could say that it’s been fortuitous that the weather has been rather rainy lately. 

At the next full moon, as the moon was a waxing gibbous, I would go out and look at the night sky. And return home saying “not quite”. But when the conditions aligned, I was out there in a flash.

The Belfry Theatre was built in 1886-1887 as a church, which use ended in 1971. The belfry tower, the romanesque arch of large windows, and its gothic windows all make for a stunning image in black and white. Add in the full moon and wispy clouds and you feel like there is something just a little bit eerie. All that was missing was a ghost in the belfry. But wait? Isn’t that a ghost we see there after all?