The Illuminating Lens

Old Sheldon Church Ruins – South Carolina – Day 4 – 2021

I had seen images of an interesting old church in the SC Lowcountry on the internet so I did some research and found the Old Sheldon Church.  It was just a little out of our way so we decided to make a stop there before the long drive back home!

It is a bit off the beaten path and is only marked by a historic marker and a small sign.  But we located it, parked on the side of the road, and grabbed our gear.  I decided to primarily use my Infrared converted Nikon Z6 with my new Nikon Z 14-24mm lens.    This was the perfect place for infrared in Black & White as well as Super Color.  The only regular color image I took is above!

Church Ruins and Grounds from the Front Gate

 

Some Details from Wikipedia

The ruins lie among majestic oaks and scattered graves. Inside the ruins of the church lie the remains of Colonel William Bull, who “greatly assisted General Oglethorpe in establishing the physical layout of Savannah, Georgia. Bull surveyed the land in 1733 to form the basic grid pattern of the streets and squares.” The ruins proved to be a popular site in the Lowcountry for photographers and wedding ceremonies in contemporary times. As of October 2015, the Old Sheldon ruins are not available to the public for hosting wedding ceremonies; however, an annual service is held the second Sunday after Easter.

Our Visit

According to some of my photographer friends, the ruins used to be open but due to some people’s carelessness and disrespect for this old historic church, a metal fence was erected around the entire structure.

So, as always, I either worked with the obstruction or worked around it!

A Gravestone and the Church – Super Color (590nm) Infrared

 

I quickly realized that if I got down low and stuck the lens through the bars of the fence, I could get some pretty interesting images.

I got a little sun flare by getting down low and using the ruins to create the flare.

 

As I walked around the structure I tried different angles.

Black & White Infrared

There were a number of ornately carved crypts inside the fence so I wanted to include them in some of my images.

Some of the crypts in the churchyard. Black & White Infrared
A higher view over the crypts.

The fence did make things difficult but with some contortion, I was able to get some images I liked!

A low view through the fence – Super Color Infrared

 

We needed to get on our way for that long drive back to the Tampa area so I took one last image at the gate, loaded up my gear and we hit the road.

Old Hand Water Pump just inside the gate

 

This was our final stop in South Carolina bringing to an end a fun few days of exploring, shooting, and eating!   If you are in the SC Lowcountry I recommend a respectful stop at the Old Sheldon Church ruins.

For larger versions of these images please click on the image or for these and additional images please visit my gallery:  Old Sheldon Church Ruins

My next post will be about my short visit to the Valley of Fire State Park in Nevada on my way to Death Valley, the big adventure!

That is all for now.

Lynn

Lynn Wiezycki

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