David Stephenson
Heavenly Vaults: From Romanesque to Gothic in European Architecture catalogs dozens of vaulted ceilings. Each one, shot from a prone position below, is a masterpiece. The ability of humans with nothing but crude tools and sweat-labor to make some magnificent structures is mind-boggling. We have wildly advanced tools, equally advanced materials, education, software and more. Yet we can no longer product marvels like these simply because all of the above modern marvels makes the cost too prohibitive. What are essentially massive piles of carved stone outdo anything we create now for beauty, creativity and craftsmanship.
That being said, take your time looking through this book. Look at each image on its own. Flip through too fast and the images become alien and organic. The flutes, arches and buttresses become fungal gills grown from alien spores and the proportions dizzying and confusing.
http://www.davidstephensonart.com/vaults-2003-09/