Bere Regis, Dorset: St John Baptist church

A large church, impressive both inside and outside. The exterior is faced with a mixture of stone, brick and knapped flint.

This photo was taken in the chancel, looking westwards. The church was a cruciform pre-conquest building (about 1050), but little elements of this initial phase remain; many later elements were added until the 16th century.

The nave roof (about 1500) is described in Pevsner's "Dorset" as "The finest timber roof of Dorset". The large font, visible at the back below the stained glass window, is Norman.

There is a lot to enjoy here.


Photographic note: in order to capture the detail of this scene, from dark timber roof to the brightness of the stained glass windows, I used three exposure-bracketed photos; this gave me four extra "stops" to play with.