With the weather being dreich and grey, my camera group today visited St Giles Cathedral, on Edinburgh’s Royal Mile. The theme was Texture. Whether that’s the same theme as Textures, or something different, is maybe something to explore another day.

St Giles Cathedral is rich in textural detail, and my Panasonic Lumix 12-32mm lens was ideal. Long enough to pick out detail. Wide enough to capture the grandeur of the building. This shot – of a decorative screen in the west nave – was intended to pick out the multiple textures of the carved wood.

Oh, the textures are there. Subdued raking light picks out the surface relief of the carved oak – all the wee details of the oak leaves and acorns. The warmth of the light makes the gold leaf of the angels’ wings shine brightly and reveals the details of the carved feathers. The matte paint of the angels’ robes provides a counterpoint to the more obvious textures, a peaceful spot for the eye to rest. But my usual passion for symmetry has clashed with my intention to foreground the textural elements. Framed head-on, the story told by the three angels is about architecture, symmetry, and repetition. The photo captures how the scene looks, but it doesn’t invite us to lean in and explore the textures.

For all that, I’m satisfied with this image of a detail that many people pass by without even noticing. Cathedrals are full of details like that.