Architectural Photography Almanac
A resource for working professional photographers and design industry professionals featuring news, commentary, equipment resources, and original articles
To make architectural photography your profession, you need to have more than just the skill to take beautiful photos. To make a living from it, you must be well aware of the value of your service. To build a viable practice as an architectural photographer, it’s important to know how to increase that value.
An APA reader asks: I was hired by a development company to photograph a handful of specific angles of a project that is completed. The images were delivered to the original developer client, and they are happy with them. I’ve already been paid for the job and figured it had been put to rest with everyone involved being happy.
Marty C. asks: “If I am photographing a building or a house with artwork on the walls and a magazine wants to publish the images, are there copyright concerns regarding the artwork on the walls?”
Excellent question, Marty. In short, there are certain considerations you should take into account when incorporating other creative works into your photographs.
If you’re a professional photographer, sooner or later you’ll come across the opportunity or be asked by a person/business (outside of one that initially hired you) for access to one or more of your photos for their marketing use. This is typically the first step in the process of licensing your work as a photographer.
One of the most common forms of Copyright Infringement we come across as photographers is our images being on certain social media accounts or pages without our permission. Oddly enough, when the issue is even politely brought to the attention of the infringing account, the photographer can sometimes receive indifferent or even rude pushback.
Dennis Radermacher — our 3D printing hero, and Project of the Week star — has constructed a bit of a different gift to the architectural photographer community today. Weighing the pros cons of working with an assistant, Dennis delves into the nitty-gritty of shooting solo and why it works best for his architectural photography workflow.
I recently received a call from Martijn Koetsier, a SEO expert with whom I have regular contact. In order to broaden his horizons, he had decided to spend a day every now and then this year with someone who does something completely different from him. Martijn wanted to know if he could join me on a shoot day.
After leaving the APAlmanac Architectural Photography Census open for almost six months in 2020, we are here to report the results. An incredible 1,259 professional architectural photographers from all over the world completed and contributed to the survey, which has provided an amazing cross section of how and why we’re working, where we struggle, where we succeed, and so much more.
Here at AP Almanac, we talk a lot about copyright infringement — and not without reason. Most clients have no idea that the photos you send them are not actually their property, and that they (in most cases) can’t just do whatever they want with the images. It’s so important to explain what your clients can and cannot do with the photos you’ve licensed to them so you don’t get questions like:
“Well, wait a minute, I paid for the photos – how do I not own them?
For those of us who came to photography after already working in another profession, we know how liberating a feeling it is to finally free yourself from your original job to pursue your passion. Why not take that a step further, and truly zero in and direct all your energy into what it is you enjoy most.
Every market is different. Architectural photographers in the USA will operate differently than those in Asia, and again differently than those based in Europe. That being said, there will also be many similarities. That is why it might be useful for you if I share my experiences in recruiting clients, from my first year in business up until now (my 7th year).
I am so proud to introduce The APAlmanac Contract Template. In over a decade of photographing architecture, I have talked to thousands of working photographers, whether it’s for a lunch, on an online forum, here on Apalmanac, or at workshops or conferences. Without fail, the conversation leads to our shared struggles of running a business in a largely independent field.
While it maybe wasn’t as great for backing up photos as it was for compressing them, Google Photos was a perfect platform to use as an easy-to-access online portfolio that was always in your pocket. I was using it extensively, not just for sharing the photos from photography trips with my friends, but also to send images to my clients for fast reviews before the final delivery.
It seems like more than ever, architectural photographers are battling copyright infringement, ignorance towards licensing, and confusion over usage rights — not to mention the dreaded “but this will be great exposure” remark.
On Wednesday, April 28th 2021 at 7:00 pm BST (2:00 pm EST) Mass Collective in collaboration with VIEW Pictures will be hosting an online talk discussing the importance of licensing and contracts in the photography business.
When I was a baby architecture writer, a thousand years ago, I remember spending what felt like the majority of my work time asking my editors who’d commissioned stories, or publicists who were pitching me projects, or architects who’d decided to see if I might want to write about something, to send me pictures.
In my (free to download) eBook The Value of Architectural Photography, I touched upon instruments our clients can use to increase the value of our work. I asked the following question: “Any time of the day, 24/7, someone who could be your next client can check your website. Your referential projects are always accessible and visible.
Hi everyone, Rob here! I just joined the APALMANAC writers rank and am really thrilled to be part of the team that makes this magnificent, unique platform come to life. My brief is to write about architectural photography with an emphasis on post-production, so in the future, I’ll bother you with color management, image blending, and all other kinds of topics you can think of that involve our production process.
So you’ve made the decision to pursue your passion for photographing architecture. Fantastic news! Your dreams of hopping from one beautiful building to another, capturing it as only you can, and getting paid for it are about to come true. But you’ve got one major problem – you don’t have any clients.
A few years ago, seasoned Amsterdam-based architectural photographer Rob Van Esch released a captivating eBook “Staying On Top of Current Architectural Photography Trends” which focused on the recent shifts in the way architecture is photographed.
Rob has written another thought-provoking book that we’re excited to share, “The Value of Architectural Photography, and How to Increase It.”
Rob van Esch
György Palkó
Brandon Vogts
Matthew Anderson
Lexi Taciak
Mike Kelley
Zvonimir Stamenov
Justin Szeremeta
Eva Hagberg