Old Mt. Zion Baptist Church, U.S. Highway 41, Dooly County, Georgia.
Returning from a trip to south Georgia with my friend, the distinguished artist and designer Michael Largent, we decided that, instead of taking Interstate 75, we would drive old U.S. Highway 41 to see what we could see.
It was a good call. We saw and photographed a number of interesting things. Among them was this simple and simply beautiful old church.
Probably built by a congregation of black people, it doesn't appear to have been used for regular services for some years, although it has been reasonably well maintained. The paint is not peeling, and there are no signs of disrepair. The tin roof is rusty, but one panel has been replaced in the not-too-distant past. Grass is growing through the pebbles in the parking lot, indicating little current use.
My guess is that it is only used these days for homecomings and special occasions, as witness the still-standing dinner-on-the-grounds tables.
One of the reasons for the beauty of this scene is its simplicity. Just an old building, overarching, bare-limbed trees, a green field in the background, all bathed in rich, late afternoon light filtered through threaded clouds.
Another reason is the composition. One of the rules of good composition is that the main subject should be facing into the center of the picture instead of away from it. That's a good general rule, but like all rules, sometimes works better if we break it. The eye is more effectively drawn to the church if it has to travel around the overall setting, at last arriving at the old structure.
The photo: Canon EOS 5D Classic with Canon 24-85mm USM lens.
Blog note: Running late this week. Sorry. This post should have appeared on Friday.
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Photography and text copyright 2025 David B.Jenkins.
I post Monday, Wednesday, and Friday unless life gets in the way.
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