For my fifth and final installment of this series, I just wanted to spend a little time writing about WHY architectural photography is important to me and HOW to make your work project your own viewpoint.



For me, buildings have souls and character and project distinct personalities. They are capable of changing the moods and feelings of the people who inhabit them and occupy them. Just think about the Stalinist architecture of eastern Europe...


or a cottage in the Cotswolds...


or an office of the Department of Motor Vehicles...


Each has a very distinct personality and I believe that they directly influence the moods of the people around them. Modernist architecture - which embodies the sense of optimism in the future that was such an important part of that time period - is my first love, for how it makes me feel. I literally get goosebumps when I'm in a beautiful mid-50s building. Trying to show others what I see and feel is like a game for me that I never get tired of playing (and since most people claim to HATE architecture from that time period, it's not small challenge). Attempting to find ways to get a visual medium to communicate non-visual emotions is a constant source of frustration and pleasure.

For me, it was the work of architectural photographers such as Ernie Braun and Julius Shulman who originally got me hooked on architectural photography.

Braun is known for photographing Eichler homes (modern homes built in planned developments in the 50s and 60s and consisting almost entirely of glass walls)...


Shulman is an icon for how he documented modernist architecture in Southern California throughout the 20th century.


Your own viewpoint
So the key to successful architectural photography, like any kind of photography, is to be passionate about what you're shooting. That will come through in the images. I can always tell when a photographer doesn't understand or appreciate a building they are shooting, because they fail to highlight the interesting parts of the building. The photos are bland and characterless - even when they are technically perfect. Don't just photograph a building. Photograph what it feels like to experience the building.



Back to Part IV - Basic Techniques