Architecture Photography & Retouching

Introduction (2:45)

Meet Tony Roslund and receive a training series overview, covering a high level view of what you will learn throughout this architectural photography course.

Body & Lenses (5:29)

Receive an in depth breakdown of the complete gear kit that Tony uses for all of his commercial architecture photography productions. In this section, learn why he uses a specific camera body and array of lenses for his shoots to achieve best results on set and in post

Lens Accessories (3:16)

In this section, look at a variety of accessories to control light in architectural photography with a lens hood, adaptor ring, and filters.

Tethering (3:15)

Learn to build an efficient and mobile tethering system with portability, efficiency and redundancy

Lighting (3:44)

Learn the advantages of using a minimal lighting kit that provides efficiency and impact within constrained architectural environments.

Tripods & Bags (3:38)

In this photography workshop, hear Tony’s rationale on investing in a high quality tripod and head system to achieve maximum flexibility for shot composition while maintaining rock solid captures for smooth compositing in post.

Tilt Shift Lens (5:38)

Before production begins, go on location and with Tony’s mobile photography kit. Learn the process and benefits of using a Tilt Shift lens. Through a series of comparisons, learn the differences between using a tripod head vs. tilt shift lens. Learn to create compelling exterior captures, how to avoid perspective distortion (the keystone effect) and how to avoid sacrificing composition in your architectural photography.

Pre-Production Checklist (2:49)

Receive an inside look at Tony’s personal pre-production checklist for architectural photography. Learn how to formulate a plan before entering complex and demanding professional environments with a range of practical considerations. Shooting within professional, active corporate environments presents all kinds of challenges that can inhibit and even sink productions. With great tips and best practices, arm yourself with knowledge to maximize your success.

Composition (2:14)

Tony gives specific insight on what to look for when you scout a location to achieve the best shot composition possible on production day. From lighting placement, reflection issues, staging of furniture, to background subject placement, consider the technical challenges before the day of your shoot.

On Location (8:12)

Go on location with Tony Roslund and Barry MacKenzie, and observe as they visit through various spaces of a commercial building. Listen as they brainstorm creative ideas and challenges.

Shot List (3:26)

In addition to the practical and technical challenges, as well as ongoing creative considerations - learn how to develop a shot list to maximize your time and profitability.

Business Strategies (4:43)

Explore the opportunity within commercial architecture as it relates to prospective clients within the market and usage of your captured images. Receive insight into getting a start within the market and leave a lasting impression with small investment marketing material.

Pricing & Cost Sharing (3:52)

Receive inside information to give you an edge in pricing yourself within the market of Commercial Architecture Photography. From the number of images to capture on a production, to pricing your day rate, to innovating ways to maximize your profitably regardless of the client’s size or budget.

Conversation with the Architect (7:42)

Observe as Tony sits with a leading design principle, discussing what the architectural firm would like to see captured during an architectural design shoot.

Main Workspace Breakdown (6:41)

With pre-production complete, go on location to capture the first image in a commercial environment. Receive a high level summary of the gear setup before taking the first shot.

Setup (7:08)

Begin taking a series of test captures, getting a feel for composition, staging, and lighting for the image, utilizing the strengths and variety of the gear that Tony presented in earlier lessons.

Staging (3:56)

Learn how to properly stage furniture within an image to support perspective, interest, and overall balance in the composition.

Polarizers (6:08)

Work with a polarizer filter to isolate and eliminate unwanted lighting reflections and hot spots within the composition while controlling color cast. Adjust the composition using tilt shift.

Lighting (8:57)

Utilize the mobile lighting kit to quickly and efficiently balance the overall exposure and help eliminate unwanted color casts in camera. Manipulate camera settings to achieve the proper exposure and bracket different exposures to be composited in retouching.

Background Subjects (4:16)

Strategically place background subjects to provide both motion and balanced visual imagery to be composited in post.

Main Lobby Setup (6:10)

With one space captured, move on to a brighter, more complex lobby space. Begin to navigate the complexity of multiple lighting sources and people moving through the scene. Analyze the various challenges and characteristics of the space to create a plan for the final composition.

Exposure Bracketing (6:07)

Create a base exposure, then Isolate different areas of the composition and capture multiple exposures to be composited later in post. Adjust some staging to create uniformity and symmetry. Manipulate the environment and use a polarizer to control lighting. Learn how to read the lighting scenario and shoot for post to ultimately achieve a balanced final composite.

Background Subjects (10:10)

Learn how to capture planned and unplanned background subjects, providing options for compositing later in retouching.

Meeting Nook Setup (8:52)

Build on your knowledge gained in the first 2 spaces and apply them in a challenging, more confined room. When 1 point perspective is unavailable, adjust composition, and develop a plan with a unique feature.

Lighting (4:52)

Test through captures to achieve proper exposure employing your mobile lighting kit.

Exposure Bracketing (3:59)

Watch as Tony divides the room into segments, bracketing different exposure to create the proper balance for compositing in post.

Pink Room Setup (6:53)

In this fourth space, navigate complex spatial geometry, glass reflections, and a variety of color casts and light intensities to create a compelling final composite. Begin to employ all of the techniques while problem solving in the most challenging environment yet.

Staging (9:55)

Adjust furniture, office items, and camera positioning, tripod and tilt shift, to achieve balance and clean perspective lines, while navigating extremely confined spaces.

Exposure Bracketing (5:40)

With a complex space and a myriad of lighting intensities, reinforce the importance of exposure bracketing. Utilize the advantage of shooting at a higher ISO and varying shutter speeds and their relationship to aperture.. Iterate through multiple exposures, to be composited in post to achieve a final balanced image.

Lighting (6:56)

With exposure bracketing complete, tackle various focal points of the image by using the mobile lighting kit, eliminating troublesome hot spots. Learn to balance ambient lighting with strobes.

Background Subjects (7:16)

Place background subjects into various points of interest to add story elements and interest to the composition. Observe where to draw the line in problem solving making acceptable compromises that don’t sacrifice overall quality.

Orange Room Setup (4:10)

Transition to a different workspace with new angles, reflections, and color casts. Identify specific problem areas; develop a plan around lens selection, camera position, basic staging, lighting, and the kind of exposures needed to create the final composite image.

Staging (4:39)

Observe Tony and Barry reposition existing furniture within the space to achieve a more pleasing composition

Lighting (5:46)

With composition and general lighting managed, learn to balance the overall ambient light with bouncing strobes in specific, targeted areas to create balance and effect.

Background Subjects (11:29)

Position a variety of background subjects on right, center, and left of frame to create interest, motion and a sense of balance. Create balanced exposures for compositing, bouncing strobe lighting in targeted locations that integrate with the ambient light of the scene. Learn to improvise with propping, subjects, and lighting fixtures.

Green Room Setup (7:08)

Transition to a new space with significant challenges. From color contamination, multiple unwanted reflections, a unique room shape, and spatial constraints; observe Tony and Barry devise a fresh plan with solutions to create a compelling final composition.

Staging (6:41)

Eliminate distractions and open up a space through rearranging and eliminating unwanted furniture. Create balance and a plan for background subjects as well as prep for handling the lighting for the room

Exposure Bracketing (7:45)

Block out various unwanted sources of light and subsequent reflections on the co-working space glass. Bracket a series of exposures to build towards a clean, sharp exposure, free of reflection distortion and distractions.

Lighting (7:23)

Focus on strobe lighting for inside the co-working space to add definition and interest to the office furniture as well as eliminating unwanted hotspots caused by location lighting.

Background Subjects (6:55)

With bracketing for most of the composition complete, focus on a central story placing background subjects in the co-working space, then enhance with subjects positioned on the periphery of the frame. After background subjects are captured, bracket the final portions of the exterior that will be composited in post, with an additional moving subject for interest.

Exterior Setup (6:02)

With the interiors of the Wexford building captured, move outside to prepare for an exterior image. With daylight fading fast, watch as Tony and Barry quickly lay out a plan and adapt to the ambient shifting light.

Lighting (6:01)

Utilize strobe lighting to highlight specific accent points of the building, mixing ambient with strobe lighting. Navigate the complexities of outdoor shooting, with dusk quickly approaching.

Exposure Bracketing (7:03)

Watch as Tony iterates through different exposure brackets to catch the ideal sky reflections for the building’s exterior. Utilize long exposure to capture car lights for added interest. Pay attention to lighting and building detail to accentuate, for the final composition.

Retouching Introduction (3:33)

With production now complete, shift focus as Tony sets up the retouching, post-production portion of the series. Receive an overview of philosophy, workflow, and approach as Tony introduces, retouchist, Barry MacKenzie, who will guide you through the compositing and color control work.

Main Workspace Layer Stacks (3:49)

Walk through the process of importing, aligning, and organizing multiple exposures to begin the compositing of multiple layers into a final finished image. Begin with the Main Workspace

Compositing (16:03)

Composite and blend multiple exposures to bring all of the elements together, into one image. Utilize a variety of masking techniques to cut in the best pieces onto the base exposure.

Color Correction (5:20)

With all of the compositing pieces in place, blend the various components together. Control color contamination throughout the image, bringing it into a cleaner, more uniform state.

Color Layers (9:49)

With compositing and general color balance in place, begin to develop the creative aspects of color within the image through corrective and intelligent moves. Keep organized and develop layer structures that can be adjusted when handed off to another retoucher.

Final Color (11:29)

Continue to move through the process of refining color. From previous sections of honing from very broad areas, to now controlling very specific aspects of the image in a targeted way. Refine target areas by cutting paths to have extremely precise control over color within the image. Utilize gradients to blend and hone the dimension and focus of your imagery.

Cleanup (12:37)

With global and targeted color correction complete, move onto retouching unwanted, distracting elements within the image and prepare it for Tony’s final pass.

Tony's Pass (14:43)

After Barry’s compositing, color, and retouching work, watch as Tony brings the finishing touches to the Main Workspace image.

Main Lobby Compositing (9:57)

With the next image, move at a more rapid pace, compositing multiple exposures and subjects to create a base composition for the Main Lobby. Working through multiple exposures, create a clean composite with balance across the entire image.

Color Correction (3:20)

Work to eliminate multiple color casts within a complex lighting scenario from the Main Lobby

Color Layers (13:15)

Continue to build up color within the composite, balancing and blending exposures, fixing casts, and enhancing saturation in more targeted ways. With pre-existing paths cut, add additional paths to create clean separation for particular elements within the image to control and manipulate color for a better overall composite.

Final Color (11:28)

Control unwanted artifacting and continue to eliminate color casts within specific, targeted areas of the composite image. After the initial global correction, work iteratively within targeted areas across layers, step back and asses color across the whole image and dial everything into balance.

Cleanup (6:48)

With a the majority of color work complete, learn how to retouch quickly and efficiently to remove blemishes and distractions within the image. Utilize a markup layer to lay out a plan for retouching. Work seamlessly with the patch tool, clone stamp, and healing brush tool. Prepare the image for Tony’s final pass.

Tony's Pass Part l (14:03)

Watch as Tony breaks down Barry’s compositing, color, and retouching work, emphasizing all of the elements that work and highlighting the areas that can be improved.

Tony's Pass Part Two (11:40)

Develop an eye for applying the final touches of depth, color balance, skin tone, contrast, and overall balance in the composite.. Apply the final touches for a clean, beautiful deliverable image for the Main Lobby.

Meeting Nook Compositing (3:23)

Continue to move at an accelerated pace with Barry, as you learn to apply the best practices in compositing multiple exposures for the Meeting Nook image.

Final Color (9:00)

Leverage the power and precision of using paths to create masks. With Barry’s pre-cut paths, observe how to quickly and accurately fix color contamination while making global but precise creative decisions. Create a markup layer for quick cleanup and prep a non-destructive layer system, for Tony’s final pass.

Cleanup (4:33)

Work quickly to clean up an assortment of distractions from sensor dust to removing fixtures. Prep the image for Tony’s final touches.

Tony's Pass (7:31)

Walk through a quick summary of Barry’s retouching work and learn how to identify potential problem areas with Tony, as he applies his final color manipulations to the image. Learn how to use Photoshop’s lens correction tool to make subtle adjustments to composition and perspective. Apply Tony’s sharpening action to give final polish to the Meeting Nook image.

Pink Room Compositing (10:55)

Perhaps the most challenging space to capture on location, work with Barry to create an accurate composite from multiple exposures, navigating a variety of reflections and color casts across a variety of surfaces. Use gradients to build up the exposures and add dimension and focus. Apply masking throughout the image to composite multiple layers into a clean base. Determine which exposure brackets solve exposure hot-spots. Composite background subjects into constrained spaces.

Final Color (12:02)

With compositing complete, move onto controlling various color casts throughout the image working in global and targeted areas to create dimension, balance, and depth. Learn what the power of pre-cut paths will do as you manipulate color throughout the image. Add additional path work to control casts. Use the scouting image of the Pink Room, for color reference.

Cleanup Part l (13:11)

Continue to follow the same workflow with Barry as he identifies the cleanup and retouching areas by creating a markup layer. Retouch distractions and remaining reflections with a blend of the patch, clone stamp, and healing brush tools.

Cleanup Part ll (10:14)

Finalize the retouching and cleanup. Create a frosted door to hid distractions in an office and replace some conference room blinds with a cleaner set.

Tony's Pass (17:14)

Follow Tony as he brings the final nuance, color balance, and finishing detail to the Pink Room Image

Orange Room Compositing (7:52)

Watch as Barry quickly builds the composite for a the Orange Room - with complex angles, color casts, and reflections. Composite multiple background subjects balance story and interest with the architects desire for motion.

Final Color (8:25)

Create balance and depth in blending the exposures by continuing to control color contamination.

Cleanup (12:13)

Retouch glass reflections, wall fixtures, floor blemishes, and other distraction to create a more focused image. Prepare and organize multiple layers for Tony’s final retouch.

Tony's Pass (19:14)

As in previous rooms, watch as Tony critiques Barry’s work, moving the composite from 80% complete to the final image. Balance global and targeted color, with tweaks to control color contamination, warming skin tone, and specifically targeting a challenging wallpaper pattern. Utilize a 3rd party plugin to create a complex mask with ease. Finish with a rewarding final composite of the Orange Room image.

Green Room Retouching Breakdown (3:46)

After multiple rooms with a variety of challenges, watch as Barry gives a high level summary, breaking down the completed final composite of the Green Room.

Exterior Compositing (19:50)

For the final image of this training series, learn Barry’s approach to capturing an exterior image. Build up the image for an exterior, utilizing multiple exposures to accentuate different aspects of the building and surrounding grounds.

Final Color (9:35)

Balance color across the image, managing strobes and ambient light, accenting the magic hour exposures. Bring vibrancy and detail into specific areas of detail designed for emphasis by the architect.

Cleanup (9:57)

Replace windows, remove distracting background elements, and cleanup blemishes on a global and targeted scale for exterior of the Wexford building.

Tony's Pass (14:02)

Follow Tony as he applies his final pass to the last image in this Commercial Architecture Photography training series. Apply separation, dimension, color, contrast, depth and interest in his final pass of the exterior. For finishing touches, apply the long exposure elements and apply a complete blacktop, street replacement. Finish with sharpening and color toning to put the image over the top and complete the series of images with the Exterior composite.