If you’ve ever browsed through the architectural section of a good bookshop you will, no doubt, have been bowled over by the variety of built structures there are in our world and the striking photographs that have been made of them. You may have marvelled at how sharp, precise, and beautifully executed the images looked. How did the photographers make the buildings look so good? How is it that the sun is always shining on them and they look so three-dimensional? Did the photographers require half a ton of large format equipment and a strong assistant to help carry it all?

In these lessons you’ll discover the answers. You’ll learn how to overcome most of the technical and practical problems in performing an architectural shoot so you’ll have more opportunity to concentrate on the creative aspects. You’ll also learn how to get the very best out of the gear you already own and advice on what equipment you might consider acquiring as you pursue your interest in architectural photography.

Drawing from his 30 years’ experience, Anthony Weller will take you from understanding the fundamentals of architectural photography right through to some specialised techniques. There’s also a host of tips along the way that he’ll share with you.

Week 1:
• What you need in your camera bag - essentials and desirables.
• We will discuss how to prepare for your architectural shoot - practical considerations.
• Getting it straight - techniques for dealing with converging verticals.
• What does a shift lens do?
• How to produce those face-on, elevational shots much loved by architects.

Week 2:
• Your first considerations when you arrive at your subject building and how to make a quick recce of the site.
• Another consideration is making sure you've got the timing right on the day for each elevation of your building.
• Composition - the theory - know the rules first and then learn when to break them.
• Composition - field techniques - choosing the right lens; making shadows work; using foreground interest or a frame within the frame to get depth; employing perspective tricks to guide the viewer into the picture.

Week 3:
• Shooting interiors - choice of lens; when to use supplementary lighting; get the colour balance right; special composition techniques for interiors.
• Night photography - knowing which buildings will make dramatic night shots and how you can often make a dull building look spectacular by shooting at night.

Week 4:
• In this lesson, we will discuss optimising your images - find out how to get the very best from your equipment using both field and computer techniques.
• Dealing with high brightness range images.
• We will also talk about how to enhance the skies in your images.
• Learn how to select and shoot striking architectural details and make eye-catching abstract compositions.

This course is open to any photographer who wishes to learn more about the practical, technical, and aesthetic techniques required to photograph buildings. Students should have a working knowledge of aperture and shutter speed, and be familiar with their equipment.