City heights

[Chris Dodkin]

Photographer Andreas Schmidt captures the bright lights and towering architecture of London’s financial centre as it’s never been seen before.

In this series titled ‘The City’, Schmidt captures the seductive glamour of one of the world’s financial centres as he roams the streets of London after dark, stopping in places others may pass by and pondering the moment.

Although images of inherent beauty, these photographs are much more than this. 'The Spectacle of Illusion: The City', a book by Roy Exley (Hatje Cantz 2009), says this series “questions the role of photography and subsequently the role of the viewer of those photographs of architecture which often question the role of architecture”.

Andreas Schmidt is currently showing his work at France’s international photography festival ‘Les Rencontres d’Arles’ in an exhibition curated by Martin Parr which runs until Sunday

http://www.eyestorm.com/blog/cat/exhibition/post/Andreas-Schmidt/

 

[Pete Askew]

Thanks Chris. Love that shot of the Cherry Tree. Reminded me of some of the paintings of flowering trees by David Inshaw - the lighting think.

 

[Hamish Gill]

Nice find Chris!id be very interested to hear Darren's thoughts on these There was an episode of location location location on the other day where they were trying to find a house for a photographer and web designer ... didnt get to see much of thier work apat from a quick glimps at the photographers work as he hung some on the wall of his new house ... i really quite liked it and its added to my drive to get out and give it more of a go ... this does too!

 

[Darren Bradley]

There's not a lot of context in these photos and they are probably too abstract to be considered "architectural photography", but they are very nice, indeed. Next time I'm in London, I definitely plan to wander around the City at night. Thanks for sharing!

 

[Hamish Gill]

That's interesting you say that...
I've just been mulling over an idea regarding taking some photos of local architecture ...
I'll take some shots and get your thoughts, I'm hoping to encourage the viewer to see the everyday in a slighty different light ... I wonder if this is the goal of architectural photographers who take the more abstract approach?

 

[Darren Bradley]

I think the goal of every architectural photographer is to encourage people to see architecture in a different light - or at least it should be the goal. Granted, a lot of them take a very dry, documentary approach that bores me to tears. There are lots of different ways to approach arch photos, however. But architectural photography as a genre has its own set of rules and guidelines, as you know. So if you stray too far from them, you're really talking about art photography - and buildings just happen to be the subject, like flowers or manhole covers or industrial machinery could be...

What I try to do, personally speaking, is to convey the feeling of what it's like to be experiencing the building - the moods it projects, etc. Every space conveys emotion of some kind - capturing it is the challenge. I also try to emphasize (without distorting or exaggerating) features that I like. That can lead to photos that show abstract patterns, etc. But to me, the most critical part of architectural photography is maintaining the structural integrity of the building and abstracts can sometimes fall short in that regard.

Anyway, just my personal perspective...

 

[Hamish Gill]

Makes a lot of sense to me mate!
I think im possibly going to be crossing the line to abstract with what I have in mind ...
Be good to hear your thoughts when (if) I post

 

[Darren Bradley]

I look forward to seeing them, Hamish!