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LETTER OF THE WEEK
I enjoyed reading the Architecture special. Architects create some of the most breathtaking sights in our world, and it is naturally a hugely satisfying subject for photography.
I do wonder about certain common geeky obsessions we photographers can have, often going to great lengths and expense. One is the ubiquitous slow exposure of water and skies. Another is the idea that ‘proper’ architectural photographs should have converging verticals eliminated. Why? Converging verticals are just that: perspective. Perspective is natural. If you look up at a big building with your God-given lenses you will see just that. I was looking at the examples of ‘corrected’ photos and found myself thinking, ‘Am I the only one who thinks that looks totally distorted?’
I wouldn’t go as far as to say vertical correction should never be used. Wideangle lenses in particular can obviously exaggerate and distort perspective, but if you make verticals actually vertical, the tops of buildings look expanded and to me it looks blatantly odd. If you were creating a technical drawing, yes you would make perpendicular verticals. But if you are making a work of art, unless going specifically for a strong graphic or abstract approach, surely it would often be good to look for beauty in perspective?
There are other useful options which weren’t mentioned in the advice given. Two of the best ways to achieve natural-looking verticals, are to either shoot with a 50mm from further away; or to use a decent rectilinear wideangle (much cheaper than a tilt-shift!) in portrait orientation if you want to capture the top of tall buildings, keeping the camera pointing roughly towards the horizon and then crop any excess foreground afterwards. Obviously you may sacrifice a bit of resolution, but with modern megapixels and a decent lens, you won’t really notice.
Your AP Award to Ros and Martin Billingham back in February reminded me of the role played by Victor Blackman and Amateur Photographer. Perhaps you are all too young to remember? Vic, like most photographers at that time, had had many camera bags and with each new one he hoped that he had found the ultimate solution. His enthusiasm for the new Billingham System 1 and 2 bags led me to seek a stockist.
I found Keith Johnson Photographic on the edge of Soho and bought a System 2 bag – which I still have. I decided that the System 1 was just too big for me. My bag would accommodate a lot of kit and most of it would be easily accessible, which was a point that Victor Blackman emphasised. In fact I found that it would accommodate too much kit! As I have got older, I have rationalised what I carry in it. I now th
