Recent architectural shoots proved a big change from shooting flowers…..challenging yet fun!
What’s Different?
Photographing flowers is an organic process. To a large extent the flowers find their own rhythm and tumble through the frame.
Conversely photographing architecture requires a lot of lining up to ensure the image captures the same symmetry as the building itself. It’s a more technical approach. A wide angle lens instead of a macro lens is required.
The columns of the Clubhouse are a standout feature. The putting green gives context. And grounds the building giving tonal contrast to the otherwise light drenched interior.
Materials – The unique brick work is an interior as well as exterior feature. Timber features too and in the club room brings a mellow traditional atmosphere. It contrasts and compliments the overall contemporary aesthetic of the building. Both materials convey a sense of solidity and permeance. Flowers however have a transitory fleeting life.
What’s the Same?
Form – when photographing I’m often looking for a “letter of the alphabet”…..or some sort of geometric form (circles, semi-circles, rectangles). In the Clubhouse light fittings, coffee tables and planters are circular. Even the columns are circular, with their exquisite bespoke brickwork. So to with flowers the more form a bloom has, the stronger the composition becomes. Repeated forms create a more coherent design.
Form is further accentuated by colour and contrast.
Light – Regardless of what you’re shooting light is critical. Natural light is my preferred choice when shooting interiors and flowers – it imbues a tonal richness.
I’ve still to capture a mid-distant shot of the Clubhouse after sunset with the magic “blue light” of the sky behind it. Like flowers it’s a case of timing and waiting for the right moment. And being patient!!