Architectural photography is serious business and I will be the first to tell you that I am not an architectural photographer … unless the only requirement is that you take pictures of architecture. Taking construction progress photos is part of the process I go through on all of my projects, and since I’ve started writing posts on Life of an Architect where I publish pictures for 5,000 people (give or take) a day to look at, I have become even more aware and self-conscious of the photos I take. It doesn’t take long before you realize that a picture you stick on the internet is going to show up in a bunch of different places pretty quick … you just hope that it’s not on www. “sucky-architectural-photos” .com
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I have a really nice camera and some pretty serious lenses that I get to use and play around with. I’ve been lucky, on a few occasions, to take a picture that looks like someone who knew what they were doing actually took it. However, none of the images in today’s post fit that description. In fact, all the pictures on today’s post were taken with my iPhone, which is rapidly becoming one of the more important tools in my Jack Spade messenger bag. I thought it would be interesting to take a look at these picture and discuss how I got them to look the way they do … maybe even why I took them.
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This is the corner of the large modern infill project I have been working on for the last 2 years. Evey couple of months I take a picture of this same corner – the idea being that if I wanted to, I could eventually put together a montage of the entire evolution of this corner. I know, sounds boring to me too, it may never see the light of day.
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This is a detail shot of the exterior corner of that stainless steel curtain screen. I am constantly amazed at how good a job my camera phone does and since I already have it on me at all times, I don’t have to carry around another piece of equipment to document what I see/ find on my field visits.
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You might notice that a lot of these pictures are square – that’s because I have shared them on Instagram – an online photo sharing social media platform. It’s a way for me to let people (who are interested) know what I am doing and share some of the things I see when I am out on job sites. Instagram let’s me take my photos, edit, crop, rotate, tilt shift, etc. and then publish them to Twitter or the Life of an Architect Facebook page. It is a fun tool to play while sharing information with people at the same time.
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Here is another look at the same corner stainless steel curtain screen from above as seen on my Instagram site. People who follow me can comment, ask questions, tweet it, share it – all sorts of things. They can even let me know that they like the picture … positive reinforcement is always nice.
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Here is a screen capture of my Instagram page showing the last 15 photos I shared in a glimpse. If you have an Instagram acount, you are able to view this desktop interface by going to www.ink361.com. From here, you can look at your photos, follow other people sharing photos, comment, etc. from your desktop.
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Camera+ is another iPhone application that I’ve just started using … and so far I really like it. For $0.99, I am able to edit my photos in a fairly significant manner – as well as share them directly from the application. One thing that is particularly useful are the preset filters that you can apply to the image. I don’t really want this to turn into a product review for this phone application so I’ll just say if you take photos on your iPhone, this is a great application to have and use.
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This is a detail shot of the steel stair in the modern house. Eventually there will be a precast concrete tread that will sit down on top of the tray. I took this photo as part of the on-site documentation process, but I’d have to say that the picture turned out fairly evocative, certainly suitable for presentation of the concept on our website.
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This is the same stairwell, (again). My intent at the time I took this photos was to simply document construction progress. With my iPhone and a few applications I am able to use the same picture on the website – allowing this picture to do more positive work. To get this image, I applied a “cyanotype” filter and blurred everything except the stair treads since that was what I want the focus on.
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This is the landing at the top of those stairs – a gallery type of space on the top floor elevator lobby. I took this picture as a test to see how good my iPhone could handle what is basically an all white space … could I get any clarity and definition? Turned out great.
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Now this photo … this is a super crappy photo I took when I went out to check on the progress of a job where there was some flashing being installed under a capstone. I showed up on site at a time of day where the sun was blasting me in the face when I was trying to document what was going on with the workers. (I wanted to record where they were working, protection materials being used, precautionary measures being taken, etc.) Pretty bad photo right? Yeah … but I turned it into this picture below-
Same photo, just zoomed in, cropped it, and discarded the color information. Still not sure it’s a great photo but at least it holds my interest beyond the factual data I was trying to capture and record. I even sent this picture of to the client when I left the site so that they knew I was there just like I promised.
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I love this picture … other than cropping it I didn’t modify it one bit. This is actually a color photograph of the glass tiles being installed.
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Sometimes I am just using my camera to record images I want to recall later. It might be texture, or color, form or massing – whatever. I’m not doing anything special other than using my phone camera to record what I am incapable to describing in words to full effect. I am also able to share this with a client later when trying to describe that yes … lavender and khaki twill green do (in fact) look good together.
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This is an image I used when I was working out a design for my What to get an Architect for Christmas post … (you can go check out that post to see how it turned out). This is in my sketchbook and it was a simple matter to take my phone out and take a quick picture. I posted it to twitter and on my Life of an Architect Facebook page as a tease of the new post.
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Another application that I use is Diptic – which allows you to create photo montages. I have included a few images to show you how I have used it.
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This image is an overall picture of a decorative garden wall we designed and I included a close up picture on the bottom showing some detail. The time it took for me to assemble this montage was about 8 seconds.
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Another example of a Diptic photo montage – this one showing the mind-blowing awesomeness of Medium Density Overlay – otherwise known as MDO. In one image, I am able to convey the product (on the left), a side view showing what the material looks like (bottom right-hand corner), and how it was used (as a ceiling material with recessed lighting)
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It wasn’t that long ago that taking job site construction photos were simply photos that were a necessary part of the process. Once they were looked at, they were never looked at again. This is no longer the case – every picture has the potential for being a useful item with many possible uses. The camera on your phone is a powerful tool and with a slightest bit of efforts, you can get more with less – and look like you know what you’re doing in the process.
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Today’s post is written by Randy Deutsch, a nationally recognized leader in the advancement of BIM and IPD, he speaks & writes on their social implications on the AEC industry. BIM + Integrated Design is one of the the websites that Randy maintains and is a wonderful resource for all things related to Building Information Modeling.
I wanted to write a book—not about technology, or business models, but about architects … and charge $79 for it … in the worst recession architects have ever known.
I wanted to write a book about architects and how they’re adapting in a time of accelerating change in the design and construction industry.
While many were focused on BlogTour 2011 and Japanese erasers, I surreptitiously wanted to write about how architects are adjusting to the constantly evolving technologies and work processes and how they’re impacted by the advent of Building Information Modeling (BIM) into the workplace.
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BIM adoption and implementation are no longer the main challenge most firms are grappling with as they were a few years back. Today, it’s money. But it’s also the social implications of the technology and associated work processes on firm culture and workflow brought about by implementing BIM. (And money.)
Of the triumvirate of business, technology, and culture, culture was by far the least studied, analyzed, and frankly, exploited. It was also the least understood. So, using my sepia ink-filled Mont Blanc fountain pen, I set out to rectify this situation.
While many were gushing over lush photos of Giant Leopard Moths, the business and technology cases for BIM were made and largely accepted. It was about time that somebody made the cultural case for BIM. That’s what my book set out to do.
By the “cultural case” I mean human habits, social intelligence, and firm culture — these were taken for granted and were the last frontier for garnering the greatest gains from the technology and work processes. Human factors such as personal initiative, mutual respect, trust, human nature, ownership and authorship, comfort with work processes, workflow, impact of technology on design, work habits, preferences, identity and role, personality, legacy, collaboration and communication—all of these seemingly inconsequential peccadilloes impact the efficiency and effectiveness of your BIM efforts.
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Moving ahead, it will be increasingly necessary to align the attitudes, mindsets, and work habits of architects in order to continue – not only survive, but excel in this new environment. Helping architects and their firms thrive in this environment would be the purpose for, and focus of, my book.
So, until BIM use is ubiquitous, until BIM permanently enters the lexicon and architects start thinking in terms of BIM’s impact on all trades, until Bob Borson starts using it—until that day comes … architects with $79 and time on their hands will have this book to guide them.
This book originated with something I overheard. Charles Hardy, deputy director of the General Services Administration (GSA), put it bluntly when he said that “BIM is about ten percent technology and ninety percent sociology.” And yet to date, 90 percent of the focus in training, education, and media, has been on the innovative and admittedly visually appealing technology.
But 90 percent sociology? If that’s the case, why are we spending 90 percent of our time attending webinars, seminars, and conferences on the technology? Why are 90 percent of the websites, user groups, and blogs devoted to the software?
Think about it. If the difference between a successful BIM implementation, and a failed or even potentially catastrophic one, has as much or even more to do with the mindsets and attitudes of those who use it as it does the technologies and work process the technologies enable and require. But how will these necessary practical, attitudinal, and behavioral changes come about?
By threatening to discontinue beer Fridays?
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Perhaps we’re asking the right questions but focused on the wrong outcomes? That’s because it’s mastering the process—not the technology—that leads to exceptional results, both aesthetically and financially.
Where were the answers to my questions—ten in all—concerning what it is like to be an architect that works in a BIM environment?
- How is it different from the way we used to practice?
- How is the workflow changed—and what exactly is meant by “workflow”?
- What’s with all those large screens and monitors?
- What exactly is a Big Room or iRoom, and do I need to have one?
- What’s the difference between a BIM manager, an IT manager, and a CAD manager, or a BIM operator and a BIM coordinator?
- Who do I hire, who do I mentor, and exactly whom do I select to work in BIM? Is it necessarily the employee who excelled at CAD, or is CAD expertise a potential impediment?
- When will Bob’s T-Shirts for Architects introduce a “Bn” BIM Ninja t-shirt design?
- Is it true that BIM takes as much social intelligence as technical competence?
- What changes to the workplace should I expect?
- How will we share data among the parties involved?
This is where BIM and Integrated Design can help. By addressing these 9 pertinent (and 1 rather impertinent) questions and putting our acceptance and use of these new technologies back on track by making them manageable, understandable, and approachable in people terms.
Still not sold on BIM? Ask yourself this:
- Are you curious about BIM but would like the facts/know what impacts are involved—the full picture?
- Do you have the software but feel that you are not completely utilizing it—or are utilizing it less satisfactorily than you had hoped?
- Do you find yourself in transition between the old way of doing things and things to come?
- Are you already running with the technology—but have run into roadblocks, unexpected issues that you would like to resolve effectively, once and for all?
- Have you mastered BIM but would like to learn more about how others use this knowledge to leverage integrated design in practice?
- Do you perchance have $79 and some spare time on your hands?
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I would like to thank Randy for writing a post for me that brings up some important considerations for any firms currently thinking about BIM and how they have positioned themselves in the future marketplace. I have added an image of Randy’s very well received book just above. Just click on the picture above to be brought to Amazon where you can take a closer look for yourself.
Cheers
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