How to Photograph Buildings and Monuments

The Wrigley Building

Taking pictures of buildings and monuments is one of the fun things most of us like to do on vacation; however, it doesn't take most of us long to realize the difficulty of this task. Why does the perspective look wrong and buildings all look like the Leaning Tower of Pisa? How far away do I have to be to get the entire building? Do I need to get the entire building? What is the best time of day to shoot this monument? Architectural photographers may take weeks to plan how they will photograph an edifice. They also might use a crane or a helicopter to get the best angle and light. Read on to discover some tips on how to take better pictures of building and monuments WITHOUT a helicopter!

Things You'll Need

• Digital Camera
• Photo Editing Software

Instructions

1. 

   The first thing you have to grapple with is perspective. Notice how the towers of Notre Dame are kind of leaning to the left. This is caused by the perspective distortion of the lens. The wider the angle, the greater the distortion will be. This makes life tough since you will probably need a wide-angle lens to get the entire structure. Architectural photographers use view cameras in which the front element of the lens can be tilted to counter this distortion. SLR users can buy special wide-angle lenses that have tilt controls built into the front of the lens. These are expensive solutions, but the only way you can correct this during image capture.

2. 

   Digital camera users, however, can use image-editing programs like iPhoto to correct this distortion during postproduction. Simply adjust the image with the slider until it looks correct and save the image. The tower is now straighter, although some of the image has been cropped to account for the perspective change.

3. 

   Pictures of buildings can be static and boring. If you are taking pictures of a whole edifice, try to incorporate some other element to help "tell a story." This picture of the Trump Tower in Chicago during construction uses the light flare to draw your attention to the scaffolding to add some energy to the image.

4. 

   Use people to add life to your images. This is an image of the entry to the Béguinage in Bruges, Belgium. I was drawn to the entryway because of the significance of 1776 to all Americans. This was not to celebrate the USA, but instead to mark the opening of the Béguinage in Bruges. The young couple adds to this picture and reflects the tranquility of this space, which is for healing the sick and for prayer.

5. 

   Don't be scared to photograph the details of the structure. What is it that interests you about it? Not every picture needs to be of the complete structure. In this case I was fascinated by the window patterns and reflections. The buildings themselves are kind of boring, but the reflections are examples of modern architecture and the design they bring to the City of Chicago.

6. 

   Always try to make your picture tell a story. An open door always provides some sort of story, especially if it leads to another open door. A building can be simple in nature and yet have great architectural appeal. The old brickwork and simple sculpture over the door adds to the element of mystery in this image. Photographing structures of your travels can provide great memories if you take the time to plan them out. Photograph what you see; if you can't get the whole structure, take the image that is in front of you. Trust your own vision and compose carefully, since you may not be back that way again.

Resources

• Learn About the Beguinage