Architectural Photography

Keep the lines true

• Prefer getting verticals right in camera; heavy perspective correction can introduce moiré and artefacts.
• Use a rectilinear lens (little barrel/pincushion) so walls stay straight — though very wide angles stretch objects toward the edges.
• A tilt-shift lens is ideal: Shift corrects converging verticals without tilting the camera.

Interiors

A 24mm is a good interior choice — close to natural scale. Remember wide-angle lenses make near objects look large and distant ones small; longer lenses do the opposite. A laser distance measure helps place the camera precisely.

Light & timing

• Understand how light strikes the building through the day and across the year — architects design for light, so plan around it.
• Shoot early in the day for clean detail and to avoid harsh mid-day light.
• Night frames: use exposure bracketing (wide range) for accurate lighting, then blend.

Approach

Architectural work can also be documentary/historical. Photographers worth studying: Berenice Abbott, Max Dupain, David Moore, Eugène Atget, Frederick Evans, Wolfgang Sievers, Iwao Yamawaki, John Gollings, Andy Marshall.

Consolidated from notes: 14 Apr 2021 John Swainston - Architectural photography