Architectural Photography
Architectural Photography
Buildings and structures surround us, and
many architects pour their hearts and souls
into designing buildings that are interesting
to the casual observer. This may be why
architectural photography is so popular.
Austin City Hall, Austin, Texas. Because this building is new and modern looking, I used perspective distortion in my favor to accentuate the converging lines of the building. Using a tripod that sits just a few inches off the ground to shoot up at the building and a fairly wide angle of 18mm gave the image plenty of distortion, which makes it more interesting. A long shutter speed allowed the moving clouds to create a surreal blur in the sky. Shot with a Nikkor 18-55mm VR lens. ISO 200 at f/9 for 10 seconds.
Despite the fact that buildings are such familiar,
everyday sights, photographing them can
be technically challenging—especially when
you’re taking pictures of large or extremely
tall buildings. A number of different problems
can arise, the main one being perspective
distortion. Perspective distortion is when
the closest part of the subject appears irregularly
large and the farthest part of the subject
appears abnormally small. Think about
standing at the bottom of a skyscraper and
looking straight up to the top.
Professional architectural photographers
have special cameras that allow them to
correct for the distortion. Unfortunately, you
can’t make these types of adjustments in a
dSLR camera. You have to either fix the
image using software or work with the perspective
distortion to make a dynamic and
interesting image.
City of Austin Power Plant, Austin, Texas. I specifically chose a wide-angle setting to fit the building in the frame. I used a Nikkor 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 VR lens set to 18mm, ISO 100 at f/9 for 1/250 second, Active D-Lighting ON. I used a small aperture to ensure that everything in the photo was sharp.
Inspiration
Because buildings and architecture are all
around us, there are limitless possibilities to
shoot. Try looking for buildings with architectural
features that you may enjoy, such as
art deco, Gothic, or modern. The building
doesn’t necessarily have to be in tip-top
condition. Sometimes photographing a
building in a state of disrepair can give you
an excellent image.
Taking Architectural Pictures
Setup Practice Picture: For figure 7.9, I photographed the Barsana Dham
Hindu temple located near Austin, Texas. I decided to photograph this
building because it is so dissimilar from other architecture in Austin.
On Your Own: Buildings are literally everywhere, but that doesn’t mean
you have to photograph a huge skyscraper or giant structure. Even a
small bungalow can make an interesting architectural photograph.
Lighting Practice Picture: This picture was shot in the afternoon so the building
was lit entirely by the sun.
On Your Own: When shooting during the day, be sure the sun is facing
the side of the building you’re photographing to ensure a good exposure.
Shooting a backlit building can cause the sky to blow out when the
building is properly exposed, or when the sky is properly exposed the
building will appear too dark. Night is also a fantastic time to take
architectural shots because architects and landscape designers often use
lighting to create an entirely different look to a building at night.
Lens Practice Picture: For this photo, I used the Nikkor 18-55mm VR kit
lens zoomed to 18mm to be able to fit this rather large building in the
frame.
On Your Own: Generally, a wide-angle lens setting is used for close-up
architectural shots; when you can put some distance between you and
the structure you can zoom in a bit. A good wide-to-short telephoto
lens like the 18-55mm is a good choice to cover most architectural
shots.
Camera Settings Practice Picture: My camera was set to Aperture Priority and Matrix
metering. I chose these settings because I knew the bright sky would
fool the meter into underexposing the shadow on the building. Matrix
metering takes the whole scene into account and adjusts the exposure
so that you have less of a chance for blown-out highlights in a bright
sky. I also had the Active D-Lighting on and set to high to reduce some
of the contrast caused by the bright midday sun.
On Your Own: Oftentimes when shooting static objects like buildings
you can set up your camera and use the built-in light meter to
determine your settings and adjust them as you see fit. Be sure to take
into consideration the light source, especially when photographing at
night.
Exposure Practice Picture: ISO 100 at f/5 for 1/800 second.
On Your Own: Achieving a good depth of field is important in
architectural photography so using a rather small aperture is usually
advisable. Keep your ISO low for the best image quality.
Accessories A tripod is one of the best tools you can use for architectural photography.
Even in fairly bright sunlight, using a small aperture can
sometimes make for slow shutter speeds. A tripod keeps your images
sharp.
Buildings and structures surround us, and
many architects pour their hearts and souls
into designing buildings that are interesting
to the casual observer. This may be why
architectural photography is so popular.
Austin City Hall, Austin, Texas. Because this building is new and modern looking, I used perspective distortion in my favor to accentuate the converging lines of the building. Using a tripod that sits just a few inches off the ground to shoot up at the building and a fairly wide angle of 18mm gave the image plenty of distortion, which makes it more interesting. A long shutter speed allowed the moving clouds to create a surreal blur in the sky. Shot with a Nikkor 18-55mm VR lens. ISO 200 at f/9 for 10 seconds.
Despite the fact that buildings are such familiar,
everyday sights, photographing them can
be technically challenging—especially when
you’re taking pictures of large or extremely
tall buildings. A number of different problems
can arise, the main one being perspective
distortion. Perspective distortion is when
the closest part of the subject appears irregularly
large and the farthest part of the subject
appears abnormally small. Think about
standing at the bottom of a skyscraper and
looking straight up to the top.
Professional architectural photographers
have special cameras that allow them to
correct for the distortion. Unfortunately, you
can’t make these types of adjustments in a
dSLR camera. You have to either fix the
image using software or work with the perspective
distortion to make a dynamic and
interesting image.
City of Austin Power Plant, Austin, Texas. I specifically chose a wide-angle setting to fit the building in the frame. I used a Nikkor 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 VR lens set to 18mm, ISO 100 at f/9 for 1/250 second, Active D-Lighting ON. I used a small aperture to ensure that everything in the photo was sharp.
Inspiration
Because buildings and architecture are all
around us, there are limitless possibilities to
shoot. Try looking for buildings with architectural
features that you may enjoy, such as
art deco, Gothic, or modern. The building
doesn’t necessarily have to be in tip-top
condition. Sometimes photographing a
building in a state of disrepair can give you
an excellent image.
Taking Architectural Pictures
Setup Practice Picture: For figure 7.9, I photographed the Barsana Dham
Hindu temple located near Austin, Texas. I decided to photograph this
building because it is so dissimilar from other architecture in Austin.
On Your Own: Buildings are literally everywhere, but that doesn’t mean
you have to photograph a huge skyscraper or giant structure. Even a
small bungalow can make an interesting architectural photograph.
Lighting Practice Picture: This picture was shot in the afternoon so the building
was lit entirely by the sun.
On Your Own: When shooting during the day, be sure the sun is facing
the side of the building you’re photographing to ensure a good exposure.
Shooting a backlit building can cause the sky to blow out when the
building is properly exposed, or when the sky is properly exposed the
building will appear too dark. Night is also a fantastic time to take
architectural shots because architects and landscape designers often use
lighting to create an entirely different look to a building at night.
Lens Practice Picture: For this photo, I used the Nikkor 18-55mm VR kit
lens zoomed to 18mm to be able to fit this rather large building in the
frame.
On Your Own: Generally, a wide-angle lens setting is used for close-up
architectural shots; when you can put some distance between you and
the structure you can zoom in a bit. A good wide-to-short telephoto
lens like the 18-55mm is a good choice to cover most architectural
shots.
Camera Settings Practice Picture: My camera was set to Aperture Priority and Matrix
metering. I chose these settings because I knew the bright sky would
fool the meter into underexposing the shadow on the building. Matrix
metering takes the whole scene into account and adjusts the exposure
so that you have less of a chance for blown-out highlights in a bright
sky. I also had the Active D-Lighting on and set to high to reduce some
of the contrast caused by the bright midday sun.
On Your Own: Oftentimes when shooting static objects like buildings
you can set up your camera and use the built-in light meter to
determine your settings and adjust them as you see fit. Be sure to take
into consideration the light source, especially when photographing at
night.
Exposure Practice Picture: ISO 100 at f/5 for 1/800 second.
On Your Own: Achieving a good depth of field is important in
architectural photography so using a rather small aperture is usually
advisable. Keep your ISO low for the best image quality.
Accessories A tripod is one of the best tools you can use for architectural photography.
Even in fairly bright sunlight, using a small aperture can
sometimes make for slow shutter speeds. A tripod keeps your images
sharp.
เขียนโดย wut เมื่อ
06:58
0 ความคิดเห็น:
แสดงความคิดเห็น
สมัครสมาชิก ส่งความคิดเห็น [Atom]
<< หน้าแรก