Photographing Salisbury Cathedral

A history and the challenge of photographing Salisbury Cathedral.

A (very brief) history

Salisbury Cathedral is formally known as the Cathedral Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary and is regarded as a leading example of Early English architecture. Its main body was completed in 38 years, from 1220 to 1258. The cathedral's 123 metre spire has been the tallest in the United Kingdom since 1549 (when the even taller Lincoln Cathedral spire collapsed!).

Salisbury Cathedral Salisbury Cathedral under a high contrast sky.

Photoshop processing.

As can be seen in the following before/after presentation, a considerable amount of work was done in Lightroom and particularly in Photoshop to arrive at the finished image. The steps briefly:

  • Perspective correction

  • Exposure adjustment

  • Colour correction/enhancement

  • Contrast adjustments independently for foreground and sky.

I don’t intend to go into the image processing in great detail, there are so many ways to carry out the required steps and there’s a wealth of “how-to” articles and videos on the net. If anyone has a particular interest or request for a more detailed explanation, please let me know via the contact link.

Video settings

Please note: When viewing the above video, it appears to default to 240p resolution, which may look alright on a small screen but horrible on a larger screen. Click on the gear cog icon to select a higher resolution such as 1080p for the best viewing experience on a larger screen. ~KD.