Nativity creche at the Cathedral of St. Paul in St. Paul, Minnesota
Per the usual I'm afraid, it's been awhile since my last wave of blog posts. Another Christmas season has come and gone, and additional ideas for my church photography hobby are starting to manifest themselves. To celebrate a wonderful holiday season, scroll on and see a few of the churches that I visited over December 2016. Some of these places will be featured in full blog posts later. As always, stay tuned!
Chapel of the Immaculate Conception, Mundelein, Illinois
It seemed that all of my camera equipment either broke or slowed down in 2016 (taking church photos without a tripod is not as easy as you think!). To alleviate this problem, I finally purchased a DSLR camera (a refurbished Canon EOS Rebel T6, if you are curious) in December. The morning after ordering the camera however, I found myself in Mundelein, Illinois to buy some lamps and lucked into a beautiful "first snow" shoot at Mundelein Seminary. Thankfully, my old Nikon was up to the task for the day!
Left: Exterior of St. Peter Catholic Church, Ashton, Wisconsin
Right: Detail, Our Lady of Lourdes Grotto at St. Peter Catholic Church, Ashton, Wisconsin
The Canon Rebel arrived at my apartment in time for a holy hour at one of rural Madison's gorgeous churches. As you can tell above, a new camera promises no magic. I have a lot to learn as I move beyond my point-and-shoot cameras of years' past!
Sanctuary: St. Louis Catholic Church, St. Paul, Minnesota
On the third day of Christmas, I took my mother and sister for a day of exploration and yes, shopping, in St. Paul, Minnesota. While the Twin Cities may not be known for their Catholic heritage like other Midwestern cities are (Chicago or St. Louis, for example), there are plenty of magnificent churches to see!
St. Thomas More Catholic Church (formerly St. Luke), St. Paul, Minnesota
Nativity Creche: St. Thomas More Catholic Church (formerly St. Luke), St. Paul, Minnesota
Outdoor Nativity Scene: Cathedral of St. Paul, St. Paul, Minnesota
St. Agnes Catholic Church, St. Paul, Minnesota
Ss. Cyril & Methodius, Lemont, Illinois
Even a concert was cause for more church spelunking. After spending a night rocking out to the Polkaholics (try not to laugh when you see that!) and The Dyes in Chicago, a friend of mine led me to Ss. Cyril & Methodius for my first so-called "Suburban Polish Parish" visit! Read back in the blog archives for stories of my urban and rural Polish parish visits if you feel so inclined.
St. Joan of Arc Chapel, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Finally, to cap off a December of church chasing, I picked up another pal to introduce her to Milwaukee's churches large and small...
Detail, Nativity Stained Glass Window: St. Michael Catholic Church, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Sanctuary: Basilica of St. Josaphat, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Nativity Creche Detail: Old St. Mary's Catholic Church, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Happy New Year and I look forward to sharing more photos with you soon!
