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Architectural Photography Urban Landscapes
Who uses architectural photos? Designers needing to capture inspiration
Firms needing to represent their work to future clients
Stylists who use these trends to style other things/themes
Home owners looking to sell their homes
Magazines looking to advertise their homes/home décor
items
Architecture lovers looking for unique artwork
Travelers wanting to capture their surroundings
What distinguishes architectural
photography? Classic = true Classic architectural photography focuses on accuracy –
horizontal and vertical planes are perfectly level in order to
underscore the quality of design and construction
Technical accuracy and quality is essential because these
images are often enlarged to enormous sizes
Classic arch. photography avoids wide angle views since
these distort the edges of the image and have light fall off
(like a vignette)
To achieve this, they only use top quality prime lenses (fixed
focal length lenses)
Straight lines are paramount (the most important)
In classic arch. photography, converging lines and tilted
buildings are the worst
Modern equipment used to compensate for some of these
issues are tilt and shift lenses (see youtube link)
What distinguishes architectural
photography? Contemporary= play Contemporary architectural photography allows for
perspectives that classic does not. Angled views, for
example, are allowed in contemporary arch. photography
Converging lines, too, are captured for effect
Telephoto lenses are still discouraged, but if they have to be
used, set them to the middle of their range (i.e.: around
35mm on our standard lens). This helps to minimize
distortion
Fisheye and action are also allowed; fisheye fully distorts the
lines while human action or traffic shows life beyond the
architecture
Main elements of this style Emphasis on shapes, textures, and form
Light and shadows are used to highlight these elements
It is essential to maintain accurate exposure in a variety of
light conditions, so auto WB won’t do it
Bracketing for more accurate HDR exposure is
recommended
Shooting RAW (test first) allows you to capture the most
information during the shoot
You need to decide on distortion or purity of representation in
each shot
Lens choices and consequences Classics use fixed focal length lenses (aka prime lenses) with
maximum aperture. These create an even image from centre
to corner with no light fall-off, so the entire image is evenly
light and distortion free.
Contemporary use prime as well, and sometimes wide
angles and fisheye
Zooms are discouraged in both styles because they distort
and limit the view
Shadows and textures The direction of light matters because this can increase
contrast, shadows, textures and reflections.
High levels of contrast can fool cameras into exposing the
scene incorrectly, but shooters can easily overcome this by
applying exposure compensation.
Reflections and glass Reflections add an extra dimension to architectural images
and allow the photographer to create a canvas on which the
building can be playfully distorted.
Urban environments are littered with a multitude of reflective
surfaces, so you’ll never have to look too far to practice, for
example: windows, water features, puddles and wet streets,
sunglasses, rivers and modern art
Buildings don’t move, but people
do
• To add some unique flair to your images, consider human traffic in the
context of the architecture
• To capture human traffic, you need a longer exposure and tripod or
steady hand
• This can lead to really neat photos, especially because the primary
subject doesn’t move
Inside and out Architectural photography isn’t restricted to the facia of a
building
Lots of classic work involves capturing the interior spaces
Oh, white balance White balance is essential in architectural photography.
Sunrise and sunset cast low colour temperatures meaning
mostly red-yellow hues.
Inside modern buildings, fluorescent lights are common, so
you may want to reduce the greenish effect by using a
warmer WB
Fully corrected WB with no colour variation can be desirable,
but in that circumstance perhaps full black and white would
be better
Often in arch. Photography, the colour casts add a mood and
style to the image, so use your discretion
Time of day Large structures cast shadows on sunny days (think of
airports with large windows)
Bright sunny days are effective for architectural photography
because of the sharp shadows and deep contrasts that are
cast are ideal for showing form, bringing out texture, and
giving strong colour.
When night falls When the sun goes down a new form of architectural
photographer can surface.
To shoot a structure as a silhouette during sunset, position
the architecture between yourself and the sun. Make sure the
flash is deactivated and expose for the sky.
If the foreground is too light set the exposure compensation
to a negative value to darken it. This effect can produce
particularly enigmatic results.
Night shots can be very dramatic and atmospheric too, but
remember to take them when there is still some light and
colour left in the sky as this adds tone to the backdrop and
help to illuminate details.
Use a wide aperture and long exposure, and if your camera
is supported you’ll be able to employ a low ISO to ensure
details aren’t depreciated by noise.
When night falls Dawn and dusk offer amazing light, and cast buildings in
such a way that they are hard to dislike
You need to consider where you want to be at dawn/dusk –
do you want the light on the buildings perhaps casting a
unique illumination, or behind the building adding to the
surrounding effect?
Urban nightscapes Cities look different at night
Night light can allow for light painting through longer
exposures and moving light/moving camera
Because of the long exposure required for these shots,
tripods or other support for the camera is essential
Weather or not Unlike other forms of photography, exciting architectural
images can be produced in all weathers. A church on a clear
day may strike the viewer as pleasant but maybe a bit bland,
revisit it when there’s a storm brewing overhead or a mist
rising from the damp earth and the results can be altogether
more intriguing.
By revisiting and shooting the same building in these various
weather conditions, photographer’s can produce a neat
portfolio of shots
Devil’s in the details Buildings of architectural merit usually include focal points so
try cropping in close on these for frame-filling abstracts.
You may want to shoot repeated artefacts that are littered
across the exterior, for example; intricate brickwork or
chequer board windows. Use a telephoto lens to zoom in
close and don’t forget a tripod to support those longer focal
lengths.
Perspective & distortion The average building is far taller than the tallest
photographer so there will inevitably be some element of
distortion in an architectural photo, but this can be employed
to create a source of tension within the frame.
Simply position yourself as near to the base of the building as
possible and shoot straight up.
If playing with perspective isn’t for you then stand further
back and add a sense of scale to your image by
incorporating everyday objects such as people, trees,
transport and benches, etc.
The Plan for this shoot Meet here during p5 and travel downtown in cars (I can take
six of you with me)
You will have to pay for parking in The Exchange District
Dress for the weather & for being outside for 2.5 hours (mitts,
hats, layers of cloths, winter jackets, warm boots/shoes)
At 3:30 (to be confirmed), we up with a local award winning
architect to get some background on how architects use
photography
Then, we wander in The Exchange District and around
looking for stuff you want to shoot
This will count as two classes
Shoot on Wednesday, process/production Thurs, class in lieu
Friday.
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