Architectural Photos during Travel

 So sorry, but wanted to make this a weekly series. Unfortunately the distraction of a new photo editing platform (read that brand new big computer) got me distracted. 

This week I wanted to talk briefly about photographing architecture while traveling. We usually think of that photographing street scenes with buildings as we explore a new city. For me, being over in Europe I see so many different types of architecture and colors that I usually don’t see in the US. 

For example, my wife and I had the opportunity to visit my daughter in Copenhagen Denmark while she was on her semester abroad. While visiting her we got to play tourist and of course, I go to play photographer. What I’ve loved walking around European towns is the stark different in architecture, incorporation of water by many city streets, and in Denmark the bold colors that they use. 

The shot above is a typical Denmark shot. This same shot exists all over the internet. So why take it? Because not all travel photography is about art. In this case, I just loved what I saw and I wanted to be sure that I captured it.  It may be a typical shot but it’s MY version of the typical shot and this hangs in my daughter’s room.  This is especially important to me because when she and her husband come home to visit, they see an image that reminds them both of the country they first met! 

However, that doesn’t mean that all photographs of buildings while traveling have to be documentary. Sometimes, even while being in a crowded square, you can find something interesting to shoot, sometimes it just takes the right lens and the right perspective. 

So imagine coming off of a Viking river boat cruise down the Rhein River to Strasbourg France. Walking through the town with our Tour group I see yet again the mixture of water, architecture, and beautiful intense color. It just seems to be typical in many European cities. So much history, how old do you imagine those building are and what it must be like to live in an apartment over these beautiful cities. 

 So what happens when walking though the main square of a city like Strasbourg you see this beautiful church (one did I mention it was Sunday)? The square was crowded with people and I really wanted to capture this gorgeous architecture. 

The challenge, all the people. Nothing ruins travel photographs more than a bunch of tourists and townspeople hanging around when I want to capture architecture.  Asking them all to leave so I can capture images was just not an opinion (NOTE: this is a joke, I love interacting with locals that I meet). 

However, as much as I was kidding above, I did want to capture the special architecture without people just wandering in the image. While waiting for Beth and Tim, fellow passengers that Melba and I met and became friends with during the trip (and continue to remain in touch), I had an idea. I’m sure it looked odd to passerby’s but I felt comfortable I’d get the image I wanted. 

It’s all about perspective. This church had beautiful arches at the doorways. The first doorway I saw was of course how people accessed the inside. However what I noticed was that there was another entrance just further down this side that was architecturally identical, and it was closed so no one was near it. 

I quickly put on my wide angle lens and got down on my back and shot the scene looking up. With that lens I was able to show off that beautiful archway in a very different way.  I chose to make it a very symmetrical shot because that’s what caught my eye and that’s what I wanted to remember. This remained as my Facebook background for some time. 

Enjoy your week!