Being a pro architectural photographer - what does it take, could you do it? Business & skills

Things to know if you want a job as a pro architectural photographer. Photography, business skills and what doing the work really entails. Keith looks at the work and how it is changing.
The video follows on from two articles Keith wrote, covering many aspects of professional architectural photography.
The business - lots more photos
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The technical side
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[@jbairdexp]

"Let the technology changes pick of your competitors, not you". A great statement. That aside, a really interesting look at being an architectural photographer.

[@KeithCooper]

Thanks - something which first occurred to me after a couple of years of pro work [~2006] and delivering a talk, for one of the UK pro organisations, about the importance of colour management - at least half of the audience dismissed it as irrelevant/expensive stuff, just to sell kit ;-) Interestingly enough the pro organisations, led by people inside the castle, seem to have been quite mixed in how they adapted to the changes... Still not seeing any as relevant to my own business if I'm honest...

[@manilamartin1001]

Well said. I started my career documenting art for artists and galleries, learning to use the gear to get what the client needs is definitely the most important task. This makes me miss my Sinar p2 4x5 camera. I enjoyed this video a lot.

[@KeithCooper]

Thanks - glad it was of interest!

[@Interbeing_CDN]

Thanks Keith for sharing your experience and wisdom.Having been an entrepreneur for many years, marketing is truly the key to success, and networking is a major part of that. I believe that your advice regarding having a honest interest in this type of photography, as with most genres of photography, and vocations in general, it is essential for long term success. My daytime job is healthcare, and many people come into the field because of the opportunities and good pay, rather than a desire to give of themselves in serving others, and once working in the industry, they find themselves dissatisfied and unfulfilled, which makes the work seem like drudgery.

[@KeithCooper]

Thanks - it's that interest which can enable you to find just that little bit more reward in what seems a dull bit of work. Almost anyone can be shown how to take great photos of award winning architecture ;-)

[@markflanagan521]

Hi Keith, I was asked to photograph the Guggenheim museum Bilbao and i was delighted and honoured to do so. I then handed the iPhone back, to the thrilled happy couple😀😀😉

[@KeithCooper]

Yes, great when the architect has done some of the hard work for you ;-) :-) One on my 'to see' list still...

[@grahamjones9888]

As an Architect I watched this with more than a passing interest. Your words at the end are good advice for any photographer irrespective of what you photograph - have an interest in what you are photographing.

[@KeithCooper]

Thanks - glad it was of interest

[@alexlford]

Great videos - love the direction and open approach

[@KeithCooper]

Thanks - glad it was of interest!

[@petermiller2188]

Great video. Thank you.

[@KeithCooper]

Thanks!

[@a3hindawi]

Thanks

[@KeithCooper]

Thanks - appreciated

[@christianbauermeister6266]

Thanks Keith - very good advice. I followed you for quite some time (excellent videos all along) and today… I subscribed 😊👍📸

[@KeithCooper]

Thanks - glad it was of interest!

[@hemantpatil7558]

Very well said 🙏

[@KeithCooper]

Thamks

[@kevins8575]

You seem to have made a very interesting image of a boring building. Would the ibis high resolution capability be particularly useful in architectural photography?

[@KeithCooper]

Yes - it's one area where it can really help. Boring buildings are what pay the bills - I was photographing empty fields last week... ;-)

[@thomaseriksson6256]

Thank you a good video

[@KeithCooper]

Thank you too

[@qccanales8610]

I also do wharehouses and foctory photos and Ai is helping me a lot! errasing stuff and adding some little details (plants for example). One time I had to change the whole sky, cloudy for sunny. Client only wants straigh out photos, no "artistic" proposals. Clean, straight, bright photos.

[@KeithCooper]

Yes - not many uses here, but I can see the potential

[@rtdg4419]

A quick question. The 4X5 in the background, is it a Kodak Master View or Calumet CC 400? Thank you for the video and your thoughts about achitectural photography.

[@KeithCooper]

Thanks - It's an MPP 5x4 See here, an experiment with it a few years ago [with digital] www.northlight-images.co.uk/canon-mpp-view-camera-adapter/

[@rtdg4419]

@@KeithCooper Thanks. I was shooting 35mm film and a friend sold me the Calumet CC400, which looks the same as your MPP 5X4, and I learned large format with it. Later sold it and replaced it with a Sinar F2, which I have enjoyed a great deal. Currently I am using Canon mirrorless cameras. I may look at an adaptor for the Sinar but I am also considering the Cambo Actus as it is smaller, to better fit with the full frame mirrorless cameras. I am not a great fan of the tilt and shift lenses, although I can appreciate them to a degree, because I have been spoiled with the movements available on my Sinar. Being able to do a rise and shift at the same time, or a swing and tilt at the same time, and being able to do it with both the lens and the film planes is really advantageous when compared to their 35rmm digital equivalents.

[@KeithCooper]

Ah, this is why I only ever refer to tilt with a direction [polar] as opposed to swing+tilt [cartesian] - it's also why I only ever refer to shift + direction, so your rise and shift is just diagonal shift. Interestingly enough I've been testing the new Fujifilm 30mm tilt/shift lens, where if you use the lens bracket, you are using sensor shift/tilt. Not so dissimilar in some aspects ;-)

[@oneeyedphotographer]

I hate straightening photographs, I am likely to thrown one out that fix it. I quite like your shed, I'm happy photographing them. I shot the same whether I have a TS lens on the camera or not. I can crop later. If I don't have the width I want, I consider again whether I can do something. I shoot for me, a lot of my photos are black and white. I have a book, written by Norman McGrath. I have also seen an interview of Shannon McGraph, a Melbourne (Australia) architectural photograph. I one hour video, taught a lot.

[@KeithCooper]

Thanks, but as a working architectural photographer it's what the client wants which counts ;-)

[@deakzoltan2714]

Hello Keith, may I ask you for some advice? I was thinking about getting a "budget" shift lens, which would be a used 28mm f/3.5. For about the same amount of money, I can also buy a used ultra wide angle lens, eg. a 17mm or 20mm prime or use my existing UWA zoom (18-35/3.5-4.5) for free. 😄 I found out that lightroom has a list of lens, from where I can pick my lens, and the distorsion will be compensated perfectly. So than what I am left with is the perspective correction. How do you think the 17-20mm range with post correction would compete against the 28mm shift lens? My feeling is, the 28mm isn't wide enough in many cases, and an 18mm would be able to capture the subject with enough space around it to make the perspective correction in post. I would lose some resolution, but would have the image, wheras with 28mm I might not be able to cover the subject with the smaller angle of view? Is my assumption correct? Thanks. :)

[@KeithCooper]

Yes, correction is a usable option. It has a few drawbacks, but it costs less See here: www.northlight-images.co.uk/fixing-converging-verticals-without-a-shift-lens/

[@deakzoltan2714]

@@KeithCooper Thanks Keith.

[@davidharris4062]

What you said at approx 15.00, a lot of that can be done on Revit

[@KeithCooper]

Yes - at the moment* I've not seen one which didn't look a render to me However, I've a very critical eye and of course, the software only gets better over time. Given how many people have been fooled by obvious 'artist's impressions' in the past, it's a lower bar for many ;-) *late 2022, last time I looked...

[@paololarocca7684]

Hi Keith, I photographed quite a lot a church interiors lately, it's almost becoming a project, just because I enjoy it and I find it has good challenges such as low light with no tripod, high dynamic range, etc.....sometimes I straighten verticals completely in post, sometimes I deliberately leave a small tilt because I feel it looks more natural, does this make sense? could it be that in very tall interiors completely straight verticals can look a bit unnatural ?

[@KeithCooper]

If it's for yourself - leave it at what you like the best ;-) For commercial work this is something I'll discuss with clients and sometimes produce a few different versions. The single point perspective shot in the video is a quite extreme example. I also have the luxury of a tripod with goes to 8 metres, so sometimes a higher viewpoint can help

[@paololarocca7684]

very good point that of the viewpoint height....

[@KeithCooper]

Yes, it can also reduce the impact of the foreground in wide views - I often use it in front of buildings with car parks, where going up 3-4 metres will reduce the impact of the parked cars, whilst not high enough to look like an aerial shot. see here www.northlight-images.co.uk/megamast-a-28-foot-camera-tripodstand-review/ This is one for when I finally get round to doing videos from other than my office or kitchen ;-) BTW The mast actually paid for itself by revealing some damage to my house, which was then repaired before it became serious!

[@thecinemafox5531]

I’ve been practicing for a while and have a decent portfolio(I think haha), how do you go about reaching out to new clients? Email? Social media? I have a few ideas I’ve seen from others but I wanted to hear your perspective on how you go about it

[@KeithCooper]

I still use a lot of direct contact, meeting people at business events. I phone people up. Real face to face networking - Lots of photographers are truly hopeless at this ;-) :-) Social media is nowhere near as direct or useful as some would like to think- remember that people who make the real decisions often don't use it for anything work related. It's about getting to see and know real people. People buy from other people - that's why I've always ignored IG. FB is not for business to business. Stuff here is of no use either - that's not why I make the videos though LI can be useful for finding who you need to talk to

[@KeithCooper]

I'll have a short video addressing some of this later this week - thanks for asking...

[@thecinemafox5531]

@@KeithCooper cool, yeah face to face is definitely something I struggle with haha. Thanks for such a detailed response! Love your work and videos

[@ibp2007]

Keith, you missed the most important aspect of success. LUCK. Assuming everything equal with your colleagues and competitors. And you can make your own luck but there will be a ‘moment’. Obviously you will have to work harder than everyone else. Be competitive on price. Also being able to work with people at all levels. Remembering to be humble. You are just doing a job.

[@KeithCooper]

Ah, I've always thought that fortune favours the prepared mind... ;-) I've never really believed in working harder - more 'better'. But yes, some people do just happen to get a bit of good fortune - that happens everywhere