Ave Maria Catholic Church, Florida

gnagel · Jan 8, 2019

During my road trip through Florida last month, I made sure to stop by the Ave Maria Catholic Church in Ave Maria...about 30 minutes from Naples. I visited this church back in 2012 while taking a similar trip. Back then, I had photographed very few places of worship, so I was content to capture just a few images...and I wasn't overly pleased with them. Since then, I've photographed more than 250 churches. I wanted to take this experience into the Ave Maria Catholic Church to improve upon the photographs from that past visit.

When I arrived, a mass was underway. After sitting through that mass (and I've sat through countless services in the quest to photograph churches), I thought the interior would soon clear. But, about 40 people remained in the church and conducted some kind of ongoing service with prayer and song. After another 45 minutes, the church interior finally cleared.

I quickly started shooting--because often times the lights go out shortly after a service ends. One individual was telling other people at the church that I was there to "film" the interior. I'm not sure why she was saying that, but everyone assumed I was there in some official capacity after that, so I had a well lit church all to myself for more than an hour!

1- This panoramic was captured during my last visit in 2012. Back then, I was shooting with a Nikon D700. But, the resolution was high as this is an 11 frame stitch.

2- The crucifix is suspended from the rear wall of the sanctuary and weighs 4,200 pounds. It measures 23 feet in height. The two shadows on either side of the cross represent the two criminals crucified with Christ or the three persons of the Holy Trinity: Father, Son and Holy Ghost.

3- This statue of the Infant of Prague was brought to Prague in 1628. It was found in the ruins of a church. The infant is the Patron Saint of vocations, family life and travelers.

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5- The front of the church displays sculptor Marton Varo's 30-foot-tall sculpture of the Annunciation, depicting the Archangel Gabriel greeting the Virgin Mary. It's carved in marble from Cave Michelangelo in Carrara, Italy. The 12 apostles are 18 inches tall and are fashioned from gilded-bronze colored gold.

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7- The 12 apostles are made of wood and range from 218-289 pounds and average 6 feet in height. They are surrounded by statues of Joseph and Mary.

8- Statue of Our Lady of Guadalupe

9- The baptismal weighs 3,500 pounds and was carved from a single block of white marble.

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11- Choir loft and pipe organ speakers at the rear of the church

Thanks for looking...
Glenn