Temple Square is the epicenter of the Mormon church. Religious subjects are, by their very nature, potentially larger than life. To make them work as expressive photographs, we must be able to convey some kind of spiritual presence. In this case, the massive backlighted clouds looming behind the Mormon spires do just that. The backlighting also abstracts the structures, removing detail, and leaving more to the imagination in the process. By including the foreground layer of spikes (the fence at lower left), I add a sense of depth. A cloud of steam coming from one of the buildings rises between that fence and the Mormon temple, providing additional atmospheric content. All of these elements, when taken together, make this image seem larger than life.

You will find more examples of spiritual travel imagery in Gallery Fifty Seven: Expressions of Faith ( http://www.pbase.com/pnd1/expressions_of_faith )