1. Be sensitive to the direction of light, as this can increase contrast, shadows, textures and reflections.
This can be overcome by using exposure compensation, or bracketing, shooting at different exposure levels and then merging the results in Photoshop.
2. Use a wide angle or fish-eye lens to frame the whole building and put it in its environment. If this is not possible, then taking several shots and stitching them together as a panorama, may be an alternative.
3. It isn't always about the exterior, however, remember to compensate for artificial lighting when moving inside. If light levels are low use a tripod with long exposure, or perhaps you could use supplementary lighting such as a diffuse flash. To stop highlights being blown out you could also use an ND graduated filter.
4. You could shoot a structure as a silhouette by positioning the subject between the camera and the sun. Expose for the sky, if the foreground is too light, darken it by using negative exposure compensation. Night shots can be very dramatic, but aim to retain some colour in the sky to add tone to the background and help illuminate detail. A tripod is essential since long exposure will be needed, to keep iso values as low as possible and retain clarity of detail, use as wide an aperture as possible.
5. Exciting architectural images can be taken in all weathers. A storm brewing over a church for example, will add drama and interest to a shot. Try revisiting a subject in different weather conditions to build up a portfolio of images.
6. Use reflections to add an extra dimension to your subject, windows, puddles, sunglasses and wet streets can all be utilised.
7. For inspiration research your building, and use a zoom lens to pick out focal points or architectural detail, try cropping in close for a frame filling abstract.
8. Play with perspective by standing close to a tall building and shooting straight up, using the distortion to add drama to the shot, or alternatively, stand back and include everyday objects such as cars, trees and people to give a sense of scale. Try to use a small aperture to retain detail or throw the foreground or background out of focus by using a large aperture.
9. Architecture is built on the principle of symmetry, to try and discover the centre of this symmetry, place your hand across your eyeline and compose your shot around the centre. Or alternatively, follow the principles of nature and include curves, shadows or reflections to soften the structure.
I tried to keep these guidelines in mind when taking architectural photographs on my Italy trip, particularly playing with perspective. Since I did not have a tilt-shift lens available to correct perspective I decided to emphasise this.
Taking this shot from close to the base of the pillar, it has made it appear taller, and wider at the base.
Source - digitalphotographyschool.com
1 comment:
Hi
A good series of comments which will help you to achieve a different approach with your work. As long as you can reference the work you are looking at and thinking about what it is of value you can see appearing in your photography.
Steve
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