Went out to photograph a park, and I came back with 4 churches to boot

I took off from home the other day, planning to do a photographic profile of Crowder Park, part of the Wake County Park system.

By the time I got home, not only had I photographed the park (a future post will be devoted to this), but I also stopped to do profiles of four churches I came across on the commute -- two on the way to the park, and two on the way home. As a bonus (to me, anyway), these churches were pretty close to each other.

Swift Creek Baptist Church

Probably my favorite of the four was Swift Creek Baptist Church, 9300 Penny Road, so I elected to lead the post with its photos. And when it came to picking my lead-off image, I was torn between the one you see at the top ... and the one immediately below. They're similar, but taken at slightly different spots -- and from slightly different vantage points relative to the ground. As you no doubt noticed, the primary difference is the amount (or lack) of tree foliage overlapping the church tower.

I liked the foliage's delicate kiss as illustrated in the lead-off image, which I composed while standing in a normal, upright position. But ... I also liked the lack of foliage ... and the modest clump of open blue sky ... enjoyed in the image below, which I took while crouched.

The church gathering hall (above) and a close up of its tower (below). 

Swift Creek Baptist was one of two the churches I visited that also have graveyards. The area near the entrance to its graveyard (above) is nicely landscaped and includes this bench and striking iron gate doors. To the left of this view is a modest memorial (first below) to what I'm presuming are former church members. Just outside the fence surrounding the graveyard (second below), one gets this vista of grave monuments, a tree and the church in the background. 

Above: I mentioned the nice landscaping, which includes a couple of flower beds, including this pink and white rose. 

Inside the graveyard, I came across the monuments seen in the image above and first five below. 

Above: The church's side features this white cross that faces the graveyard. 

As always, if you'd like to view a larger, sharper version of a photo, simply click on the image. This is particularly helpful for those of you who access the blog on a mobile device. To view full galleries of my shoots at Cary Alliance Church, Catawba Springs Christian Church, Fairview Baptist Church and Swift Creek Baptist Church, click on the link with the respective church names in this sentence.

Photo geek stuff: I shot all four churches with my Canon 6D and Tamron 28-300mm f/3.5-6.3 Di VC PZD lens. I took three slightly different exposures (one as metered, one 2/3 stop over and one 2/3 stop under metered), which I blended into a single frame in post-processing using Photomatix high-dynamic range (HDR) software. Most of the shots were taken at 100 ISO or close to 100 ISO and f/8, although in extremely shady areas I boosted the ISO to much higher levels. I used the shutter as my variable for the differing exposures for each composition.

Catawba Springs Christian Church

Catawba Springs Christian Church, 6801 Ten-Ten Road, Apex, is the other church I came across with an adjacent graveyard. This church, like Swift Creek Baptist, uses a light brown brick for its facade. It also has a community gathering building as well as an adjacent building and playground that appears to be connected to the church (this structure lacks signage in front to help verify, but it appears to be connected based on the fact that the parking lot in back is accessible to the church).

Above and below: A full perspective and sectioned look at Catawba Springs. A note on the front door of the church indicates that Sunday services are held in the larger, community building in the back, shown in the third photo below.

The backside of the community building (above), nicely landscaped with trees and shade. Below is the next-door structure not marked by signage but appearing to be associated with the church. Behind it is the playground (second photo below). 

 Above and below: Two shots taken inside the Catawba Springs church graveyard.

Fairview Baptist Church

I don't have too much to say about Fairview Baptist Church, 5608 Ten-Ten Road, that cannot be conveyed in the pictures that follow.

A look at the church from across Ten-Ten Road (above), from behind (first below) and from beyond its huge parking lot well behind the main structure and annex (second below). 

Above: A biblical reference imprinted on a door to the annex building.  

Most of the churches I visited have some recreational facilities. Fairview Baptist has the full outdoor basketball court and, behind it, an outdoor volleyball court (above), a soccer field (below) and a softball diamond (second below).  

Above: I wasn't sure what to make of these buses parked in the church's lot between the sanctuary and annex. 

Cary Alliance Church

Cary Alliance Church, 4108 Ten-Ten Road, was the most difficult of the churches to photograph this day because the sun was on the wrong side of all of the best angles for compositions.

My Favorite composition of the church (above) because of the detail reflected in its distinguished and massive glass facade. A wider perspective is shown below.   

Above: A look at the side of the church complex. 

Above, a bloom in the garden seen in the bottom left of the photo of the church side view (two above). The roadside sign (below), a view of the church (second below) as visitors reach the top of a snaking hill to reach the facilities from Ten-Ten Road and a closeup of the tower (third below). 

An area to relax (above) in a wooded area on the other side of the parking lot, a closeup of a window adorned inside with paper cutouts (below).