One of the oldest and finest town halls in Belgium, Bruges’ Stadhuis was built between 1376 and 1420. I am not interested in making postcard views of historic buildings. Instead I try to express their essence. For me, this building was steeped in history and grandeur. To say it was impressive would be an understatement. I took many photos of it during my two day stay in Bruges, but none of them expressed its character as much as this one. It took an act of nature to help me accomplish this goal. It was early morning, and the sun was just coming up behind the clouds. I positioned the sun behind one of the elegant statues that crown the building, and was awed by billowing backlit translucent streams of clouds exploding from that very point in the picture. In color, the sky was a deep blue, and there was a tinge of reflective coloration in the clouds as well. It was beautiful to look at, but it made the scene look too real. When I converted it to black and white, reality is replaced by symbolism – the clouds represent power and mystery, two of the qualities I sensed in the building itself. So black and white it is. It was worth visiting Bruges for just this moment.