As part of our temple tour, we visited Wat Phra Singh in the old city centre of Chiang Mai, Thailand. It was originally built in 1345 to house the remains of a king, and has been extended and improved over the centuries since. The Wihan Luang (pictured below) is one of the first buildings you encounter as you enter the gates. It's an impressively detailed building, guarded by Singhs - Thai lions that look more like serpents or dragons.

Like all Buddhist temples in Thailand, it is ridiculously ornate and dripping with gold leaf. And while I admire the artistry and visual beauty, I do find myself a little conflicted around the moral aspects of this. There's so much poverty in Thailand, and people give everything they have to their Buddhist temples. It seems a bit perverse to me that their templates should drip with gold, while the people starve in the hopes of achieving enlightenment.

The murals and carvings are exquisitely detailed, and I was lucky enough to be able watch one of the artists at work, touching up an old window shade. Thankfully, they had air-conditioning inside. It was 42°c in the shade, and I was beginning to look like melted wax.

These photographs were taken with my Canon EOS 5D Mark IV and the extraordinary Canon EF 35mm f/1.4 II.

Equipment used

Camera

Canon EOS 5D Mark IV

Lens

Canon 35 mm f/1.4 L II USM

About the photographer

I'm Alex Nichol. I'm an amateur photographer from the North of England. For me, photography is a way to share what I love most about the world. That includes everything, from family and friends, to wild animals and breathtaking places... or maybe just how the sun twinkles on a weed in my back garden. It's all fair game.

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