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Abandoned Pigeon Church: Forgive Us For Our Trespass
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Pulpit Views
Forgive Us Dear Lord For Our Transgressions...
Finding this abandoned church of worship was pretty easy. The exact location of this former house of worship would surprise many urban explorers. It's located right in the heart of a rather busy neighborhood surrounded by so many changes. I won't go into detail on the history of this place since it is quite a gem once inside. Let us begin on my mission to get inside this place of God.
It took me four scouting missions to finally realize that what I thought was the entrance was not actually the entrance until on my third scouting mission I realized there was the entrance on the other side staring me in the face. From then, I knew I had to explore this church on all days of the week; a Sunday. The day of rest and worship. The irony finally came to me while drafting this exploration report.
Upper Balcony View
Pulpit
Center of Religious Indoctrination aka Central bimah
Once inside this grand and former religious institution, I was joined by a different flock of congregants. They made their presence known cooing and flapping around my head as daylight began to trickle inside. I could already tell that these faithful pigeons had made it inside their home. Large quantities of pigeon feces were everywhere. It would take large and extensive renovations to fix this epic mess. The pigeons had already made a cozy home within the holes of the roof. Plaster and roofing materials had already come down in some places. Looking up you good see this church was a grand and beautiful house where many came to worship. The elaborate banister and ceiling tiles on the ground floor were intricate and symbolic. Seating numbers were etched in seating cushions.
Numbered Seating Arrangements
Once majestic ceiling.
Views from the middle of church seating.
One point of note was there was no awful graffiti as some abandoned churches have been desecrated by unmoved artists angering local and historical preservationists to no end. No piping or artifacts seemed to have been absconded with into the night. A large selection of religious texts was still on shelves and down in the basement many more were sitting unopened. As the many pictures showcasing this "church", I took no pictures of the basement. Why do you ask? Well, down in the basement I came across some rather large rodents scuttling around without fear. I quickly took some video and headed back up. No rodent was going to fight me for pictures.
Beautiful architecture.
Church selfie? Am I going to hell?
Much of the property stood as the day the doors were finally closed to the last of the faithful congregants. Drapes were still in place and religious texts covered in mounds of pigeon feces lay open with no one to read from them to the ears of the faithful. I would assume the sacred and most cherished prized possession of this institution was probably removed a long time ago. I certainly didn't look for it.
Where I like to sit in church most of the time.
When the religious literature puts you in a state of eternal slumber.
Seating pews gave phenomenal views all around wherever you sat for worship. The rounded seating gallery arrangement was added for the women.
In the end, only time will tell what happens to this property. The ravenous appetite of property developers will have to wait a little longer as the property deteriorates even further by the elements until demo day arrives. Let us forgive those who trespass against us...
For weeks, I had been orbiting the perimeter of the impending demolition of the Church of St. Michael and St. Edward, a once revered church in the heart of Fort Greene, like a moth drawn to a flame. The neighborhood, a patchwork of tight project housing, seemed indifferent to the fate of this historic edifice. The intel I had received suggested that entry was as simple as scaling a wooden fence, yet the timing had never felt right. Until one day, it did. With a mission in New Jersey looming, I knew it was now or never. The demolition was advancing at a startling pace, the church's twin steeples already reduced to rubble. The skeletal remains of timber beams and rusted steel frames peeked out from the ruins, a testament to the relentless march of progress. Summoning a surge of courage, I seized a moment of quiet in the bustling housing project and vaulted over the fence. My heart pounded in my chest as I slipped unnoticed into the church grounds. The once grand entrance now stood as
Not much I can say about this little gem nestled next to a bridge other than it is heavily polluted. A nice little fun exploration. The boiler and electrical rooms were neat little surprises. Sometimes you find various equipment from all over and even in some cases defunct factories or mills where you have already explored products right up in your face. I nearly went in through an open window but decided against it since I saw an opening while walking up the bridge surveying the property for any viable entrances. A full historical writeup when I reveal its true name. Enjoy!
When I first saw this bridge I knew I had to come back and shoot from various angles. I am glad I did because I am very proud of the aerial photo above. A dreamy water background with fall leaves still floating in the water. Giving it an almost star-like appearance against the vertical juxtaposition of the train bridge. A definite top fave for the year!
It was only four months ago I went to see the Pop Smoke mural in his hometown Canarsie Brooklyn neighborhood. Opinions on social media and the Internet were not favorable to that mural that went up in February. There were supposed to be three murals around the Flatlands area (80th Street and Flatlands, Rockaway Parkway and Conklin Avenue, 82nd Street and Flatlands Avenue) but only one was ever completed. Four months later with a posthumous debut album Shoot for the Stars, Aim for the Moon , a botched album cover art, new singles, a future deluxe album, and his alleged murderers arrested and charged, Pop Smoke's stardom and fan love have only been getting bigger. The new vibrant mural was undertaken by Hattas Public Murals . Woo! Update: You can see Pop Smoke Mural No. II here , Pop Smoke X Mural III , Sources: 1. Mahadevan, Tara, "Pop Smoke Tribute Mural Appears in His Brooklyn Neighborhood of Canarsie", July 9, 2020, Complex 2. Sacher, Andrew, "Pop Smoke honored w
EOS 600D/T3i synced with a gorgeous orange Yashinon 50mm. Click to enlarge pictures. A power house pairing. No benchwarmer 1:1.4 Yashica and a EOS T3i/600D. A Yashica Yashinon-DS 50mm 1:1.4 paired w/a EOS 600D. It really has a nice orange tint/glow that makes it magical in its appearance. Today, I shot a few indoor raw JPEG shots inside a doll house with Skylanders Spyro's Adventure and Skylanders Giants figurine characters. I shot at around ISO 800, f/16, neutral picture style, white fluorescent light, exposure compensation +1 and without a tripod. I realized today I need to purchase the MeFoto tripod right away. No editing was done to these photos. Straight from the belly of the EOS 600D. Shots wide open on this lens is incredibly sharp and rich in detail. I can't wait to repair the aperture ring and shoot at f/1.4. I can only dream when that heavenly day comes. Will be doing more testing throughout the week. This was only an indoor studio shot in my bas
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