EASTER - APRIL 20, 2025
Photographs from the week ending April 20, 2025, Easter Sunday
I celebrated Easter Sunday at Peace Lutheran Church, McMurray, Pennsylvania. (Peace Lutheran Church) and the service was livestreamed and is available on their youtube channel. I arrived early, the youth made breakfast for everyone and it was nice to socialize and to look around at the decorations. I captured some images that I'll share below.
Birth of Jesus. Stained Glass and Easter Service Flowers. Steven C. Morreale (2025)
Entering the sanctuary, on the right is the window closest to the altar, it depicts in stained glass the birth of Jesus Christ. The lighting difference between the window and the interior didn't allow me to expose both equally. Here's another image that shows the flowers a little bit better. In retrospect, I could have made these images better, but I was going too fast, a habit I am still working on altering in my photography.
EXAMINATION - Birth of Jesus Stained Glass. Steven C. Morreale (2025)
In the past I was asked to photograph the stained glass of the church and the images were edited to remove the window frames. The Pastor's wife created a wonderful educational display from the captured images. I photographed the individual stained glass display explanations about a year ago. I figured now is a good time to share those that are relevant to my current captures. This one is about the glass window depicting the Birth of Jesus.
Resurrection of Jesus. Stained Glass and Easter Service Flowers. Steven C. Morreale (2025)
Entering the sanctuary, on the left is the window closest to the altar, it depicts in stained glass the resurrection of Jesus Christ. In processing this image, I used a graduated density filter more than once to get the exposure for both the flowers and the the stained glass to something more appealing to my eye. In retrospect, I would have approached this differently. These images I think are good beginnings to start the story of this series of captures. The Birth of Jesus Christ and the Salvation of the World through his passover sacrifice of his own life for the forgiveness of sins and his resurrection. This version shows the slide on the wall announcing this time of celebration, Christ is Risen! In another version I focus just on the window and the flowers.
EXAMINATION - Resurrection of Jesus Stained Glass. Steven C. Morreale (2025)
The stained glass examination and explanation of the Resurrection of Jesus.
EASTER CHURCH. Steven C. Morreale (2025)
The Church decorations on Easter morning. Members of the congregation beginning to gather.
PREPARING THE EASTER SERVICE SLIDES. Steven C. Morreale (2025)
Capturing with ambient light, one must contend with low-light conditions. One way to create an exposure in lower light is to open the aperture up, in this case to f2.8. However, an issue presents itself, distance to subject and more than one subject at different distances and focal lengths. The narrow depth of field is shown in this capture. One church member is out of focus and the other is in focus. It bothers me a bit, but the energy captured I think saves this image.
Portraits - Father and Son 1. Steven C. Morreale (2025)
I was asked to capture a portrait of a father and son, members of our congregation. Finding the right background can be a challenge. In retrospect, a little more time doing that would have improved this capture. I tried with the next version but still didn't get it right.
Portraits - Father and Son 2. Steven C. Morreale (2025)
This father and son portrait, should have had the green grass or distant evergreen behind them, with the sun acting as a hair light. I knew better and as I was figuring it out, I stepped into a thorn brush that was piercing my legs, so these are the images that I was able to get with my efforts cut short by pain. I am bothered by the roof being in the image as well, as I was trying to get it out of my composition, ouch, I was in the brushes! I'll have to scope out the area again and see if we could have done better at a different location on the side of the church without harsh sunlight and perhaps more greenery for the distant background, which with a narrow depth of field would create a pleasing bokkeh effect, flattering to the portrait.
SANCTUARY FLOWERS 1. Steven C. Morreale (2025)
Some of the beautiful flowers members donated for the beautification of the sanctuary for our Easter service.
SANCTUARY FLOWERS 2. Steven C. Morreale (2025)
More of the beautiful flowers members donated for the beautification of the sanctuary for our Easter service. The prominent one is a white Easter Lily, one of my favorites!
SANCTUARY FLOWERS 3. Steven C. Morreale (2025)
The flowers in the sanctuary on the right side of the church.
SANCTUARY FLOWERS 4. Steven C. Morreale (2025)
The flowers in the sanctuary on the left side of the church.
SANCTUARY FLOWERS 5. Steven C. Morreale (2025)
The flowers in the sanctuary at the altar, about a dozen white Easter Lillies. I was informed that many of these will be planted around the church.
Easter Altar 1. Steven C. Morreale (2025)
Easter Altar from the left side of the church.
Easter Altar 2. Steven C. Morreale (2025)
Easter Altar from the middle of the church.
Easter Worship 1. Steven C. Morreale (2025)
Easter Worship service.
Easter Worship 2. Steven C. Morreale (2025)
Easter Worship service.
Easter Worship 3. Steven C. Morreale (2025)
Congregation at Easter Worship service. The Prayer of the Church. The congregation brings up anything or anyone they would like the whole church to pray to God about together.
Easter Worship 4. Steven C. Morreale (2025)
Congregation at Easter Worship service. The Prayer of the Church.
Easter Worship 5. Steven C. Morreale (2025)
The prayer of the church.
After church services, I visited the grave of one of my ancestors, James Dinsmore, Sr. at Upper Buffalo Presbyterian Church Cemetery. It's a short drive, past Washington, Pennsylvania in beautiful farm land and rolling hills. Gorgeous day. My ancestor was born April 26, 1742 and died on April 20, 1817, he served in the U.S. Revolutionary War, a Second Lieutenant December 10, 1777 according to records. His second son, who is also my ancestor, James Dinsmore (Jr.) was born on March 4, 1782. On his birthday, I visited this cemetery in the early spring of 2025. While I visited in March, I noticed that my ancestor needed a new flag at their grave and I ordered one along with a Revolutionary War veteran marker to hold the flag.
James Dinsmore (Sr.) April 20, 2025. Steven C. Morreale (2025)
In a few days it will be 283 years since my ancestor was born and it was 208 years since he passed away on April 20th, which was this year the date for Easter Sunday. A fitting time to place a flag to honor his life. James Dinsmore Sr. was the first elder at Bethel (later Bethany) Presbyterian Church, in the area that is now Bridgeville, Pennsylvania. Around 1795 he moved his family to where he is now laid to rest. There he was also an active member of that church as an elder. At that area there was a christian revival in the mid 1800's. His son, James Jr. apparently didn't drink any alchohol and is credited with having the first alcohol-free barn raising. James, Jr's son is also quoted as saying like his father he had never had any alcohol or tobacco in his whole life either. I must admit, those are traits and practices that I have never ascribed to following. However it is fascinating that their descendant, my mother's paternal grandmother, and her husband were very pious people. I have a story my mother shared about her grandmother in a video linked on this site to my youtube channel. It's a cute one, of my mother imitating and repeating her grandmother's use of the Lord's name in vain while working in the kitchen. It adorably shocked and horrified her grandmother, who was trying to scold her and found out she was the actual source of the undesired behavior.
Dooley - Dying Breed. Steven C. Morreale (2025)
I put a skull mask and a hat on a mannequinn. The mask is a pretty close copy of one that I owned since the 1970's, which later in life turned out to be the mask worn by the unofficial mascot of Emory University named Dooley. The hat is from Dying Breed Supply Company, a hat and t-shirt company one of my dear doctor friends sons started. The mannequin is a female that was used for modeling wet suits for my parent's online website business MAKE IT YOURS! back in the early 2000's they sold many things especially AquaSphere swim masks, and wetsuits and things. I was in medical school at Emory University at that time, and I had also been into scuba diving. Their IronMan triathalon swim goggles were really fantastic for swimming eye protection, they covered the eyes with a perfect seal! I love how well the eye coloring on the mannequin held up over all this time and it shows through the mask in this captured image. I was just having some fun.
Smoking Beauty. Steven C. Morreale (2025)
I recently joined a Cigar Lounge called "Trial and Error" in Bridgeville, Pennsylvania. They had this unique hand carved pipe for sale. I had to buy it, because it reminded me of visiting with my maternal grandfather, who smoked pipes and he had some interesting carved pipes he had collected over the years. Apparently with use the stone used to make this pipe will start to change color and become darker and darker over time. Here it is still "virgin" and pure white. I don't advise anyone to take up smoking, but I do enjoy a cigar at times, and I may enjoy an aromatic pipe sometime in the future, as I sit with a friend or make a new friend and chat about whatever comes to mind, or just sit alone and contemplate life and everything abstract.
Abstract Light. Steven C. Morreale (2025)
Abstract light. I was playing with my camera and some lights, I couldn't capture what I was aiming for initially and eventually made an artistic out of focus image that I just wanted to save for later to remind me of the whole endeavor and that moment of time in my life. Here it is. Have fun!