
Union Station is the ground transportation hub of Washington, D.C. that provides local, regional and interstate routes for trains and buses. This train station was designed by architect Daniel Burnham and opened in 1907. At the time, the main hall was the largest room ever built. Thirty-six roman legionnaire statues stand guard in the barrel-vaulted main hall with its 255 octagonal gilded coffers of Beaux-arts style architecture. It has undergone extensive restoration in recent years including the reinforcement of the 96-foot high ceiling with steel frames. Among other things, the external restoration included the application of 120,000 sheets of 23-karat gold leafing.
It’s hard not to feel a sense of awe as you first walk into the space. I knew I had to attempt a VAST photo to convey the grandeur of the space, the beauty in the ceiling, as well as the noble statues along the balcony. This proved to be the most challenging of my projects for access, logistics to take the photo, and post-processing. Thankful for solid equipment, I never doubted that my setup, mounted to a railing over open space, would hold firm as I shot more than 1000 photos over the course of two hours. Of the 59 input images, each was a composite of multiple focal planes as well as of multiple exposures for greater tonal range.
After I got home, I wasn’t sure if I’d be able to pull it all together. Simply put, panoramic stitching with focus-stacking on architectural subjects doesn’t work. The process in itself creates parallax errors, the very thing you are trying to avoid when approaching this type of project. Sheer stubbornness and borderline obsession drove me for more than 200 hours of meticulous work to produce the final seamless image down to the pixel level. This ultra-high-resolution photo maintains focus from the Roman legionnaire statue directly in front of me to the one on the farthest wall.
You wouldn’t know by this photo that more than 100,000 people pass through Union Station on a daily basis. By the time I made it to the bottom row it was almost 9:00 at night, long after rush hour ended. I have a great feeling of reverence as I contemplate the quiet solitude of the Roman legionnaires standing guard over this magnificent space day and night for over 100 years. It’s no surprise that Union Station is regarded is one of America’s civic architectural treasures.
Date & Time | June 19, 2018: 6:50pm - 8:45pm |
Location | Main Hall at Union Station, Washington, D.C. |
Coordinates | 38.897642, -77.006146 |
Focal Length | 90mm |
Aperture | f/13 |
Shutter | 0.6 sec - 5 sec |
ISO | 100 |
Num of Exposures | 59 |
VAST photos are the highest resolution photos ever made.
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Total Pixels | 2,128,032,024 px |
Width | 52,412 px |
Height | 40,602 px |
Aspect Ratio | 1.29 : 1 |
Date & Time | June 19, 2018: 6:50pm - 8:45pm |
Location | Main Hall at Union Station, Washington, D.C. |
Coordinates | 38.897642, -77.006146 |
Focal Length | 90mm |
Aperture | f/13 |
Shutter | 0.6 sec - 5 sec |
ISO | 100 |
Num of Exposures | 59 |
Here are some rough guidelines for this specific photo: