Once upon a time, whenever I’d watch a movie, I was focused on who the characters were and what the plot was about.
Now, I also look a lot at the cinematography, because if beautiful cinematography isn’t a complementary course in filmmaking and learning about light that’s going to help me with my interiors and architectural photography, I don’t know what is.
Architectural photographer Simon Devitt has worked with an array of publishers making heaps of thoughtful, beautiful, books over the past 25 years. His newest publication “Cape to Bluff” will be released in late November. The gorgeous book peers into the architecture of Aotearoa, New Zealand.
Introduction
In my previous article on beginning your journey into architectural filmmaking, we weighed the pros and cons of delving into offering video services to your clients. If you’ve decided that pursuing motion work is indeed the direction that you want to follow, let’s now identify and explore the initial steps you need to take in order to execute your first architectural video.
A few weeks ago, my colleague Kyrre Sundal wrote a post sharing his favorite architecture-based youtube channels. One of those channels was that of Stewart Hicks. I wanted to hone in on one of Stewart’s videos that I particularly like – as it applies directly to photography and is pretty thought-provoking.
Last year my fellow writer, Veeral, put together a fantastic article entitled, ‘Getting Started in Architectural Filmmaking’ which focused on the new opportunities the medium provides and showcases some beautiful examples of videos that take a more sophisticated and minimalist approach to capturing architectural space.
As an architectural photographer, you also have a great interest in architecture itself. If you are not a trained architect, it’s a good idea to further your knowledge and understanding of architectural theory and ideas, to better understand architects and what they find important in their building design.
I think in any metropolitan area, the old 80/20 rule applies to the uniqueness of its home builders. For a majority of them, they seem extremely similar with design elements that show up in new builds over and over again. The other side of that coin though, are custom home builders willing to be different.
Yacht photography is one of those glittery niches relating to architecture and design photography that I often catch myself daydreaming about. I grew up on the Chesapeake Bay and spent almost every waking moment on the water, which is probably where my deep intrigue for this sort of project stems from.
I was recently introduced to a very interesting and eerie photo book project that is a collaboration between architectural photographer Adam Reynolds and fine art photographer Jeanine Michna-Bales – aptly named COUNTDOWN.
Adam – who in addition to his client-commissioned architectural photography work – has photographed past projects like documenting Isreal’s bomb shelters.
Last month Louis Vuitton’s creative director, Nicolas Ghesquière, unveiled his 2023 Cruise Collection at one of America’s most iconic architectural locations, the Salk Institute designed by the legendary architect, Louis Kahn. The first event of its kind to be hosted at the Salk Institute, the building’s travertine courtyard was converted into a temporary runway for the event.
This edition of Story of an Image takes us to central China to photograph a large-scale mixed-use development designed by global architects, Woods Bagot. We ended up staying on site for four and a half days to capture this skyline-defining project.
While much of the world is learning to live with the virus, China is continuing to pursue its zero-COVID policy which has seen varying levels of lockdowns across the vast country. None more severe than the one taking place in Shanghai right now, where nearly all of its 26 million residents remain stuck at home in a lockdown that has made headlines across the globe.
It is the escape scene at the end of Shawshank Redemption. Andy Dufresne stands in the rain, his arms outstretched, looking up into the night sky with the camera rising up above him as the music crescendos. Do you see it? It is cinematic moments like these that can become indelibly imprinted in our minds and both consciously and subconsciously influence and inspire our artistic choices and our communication of visual ideas.
Last year I wrote an article entitled, Architecture Versus Photography as a Profession: 5 Takeaways a Year After the Transition that summarized some of my initial observations between working as an architect and then a photographer. Since then, several of my architect friends and former colleagues have told me that they felt the article leaned a bit towards photography as my preferred profession.
This edition of Story of an Image keeps us here in Shanghai and takes a look at a building that people seem to either love or hate: Tian An 1000 Trees designed by London-based Heatherwick Studio. This is the story of an image that was actually taken while on assignment to film the project.
As architectural photographers, we are not wanting for options to get our work recognized. Awards for architectural photography are abundant, with new contests seemingly popping up each year.
Last year was the first year that I decided to submit some of my work to these competitions.
Behind-the-scenes content is some of the most enjoyable and informative to consume in my opinion. I love seeing how other photographers go about their business and find this is a great way to quickly pick up new ways of working that I may be able to incorporate into my own work.
I absolutely love cruise vacations! For me, it’s the type of trip where I can mentally check out and worry about little to nothing at all. You have the ability to do as much or as little as you’d like, and on most cruise lines, the guests are treated like royalty.
Like all of you, I am constantly trying to push myself to improve as a photographer. Honing our craft is paramount to our continued success and part of the fun of our profession. With that in mind, this year I am looking forward to sharing ideas and techniques that have aided me in my ongoing pursuit of perfection.
Images play a major role in defining how we come to know architecture and interiorspaces. Because photography is pivotal in understanding the built environment, choosing a professional to photograph your project is a most important consideration. -ASMP & AIA from their collaborative “Commissioning Architectural Photography” guide
If you’re an architectural photographer looking to have an excellent new year of jobs with good client experiences, communication, and expectations, we have an awesome tool for you!
