The Art of Architectural Photography
There is a magic component to any art form, in my opinion. There is the skill of getting on pointe for the dancer or drawing a head conceived by the portraitist or taking a photograph that depicts what the photographer wants to convey. But to lift the skilled to a level of genius there is an often undefined magic that the artist adds to the work to elevate it above all others. This fantastic quality greatly appeals to me. As far back as I can remember, the magic that was combined with skill became the reality of the art. The intangible ingredient that heightens the truly great from the good (By the way, being a "good" artist is no easy task: many never achieve that status!) is, perhaps, instinctual for the genius who can bring it to life.
When I was a small child, Walt Disney's Fantasia had a profound effect on me. It actually characterized the magic in art for my young, evolving aesthetic. Today I see some fantastic images through my lens and I usually file them away for my own enjoyment. Once in a while, the architecture of a place, its mood and this special ingredient intersect to create the feelings about art that began when I was a child in a darkened theater watching flowers dance on dew drops. Having dinner recently in the Lake Palace Hotel in Udaipur, I gazed out into the night and saw, in effect, a fantasy double exposure by way of reflections. The lights, table's candle and arches of the restaurant were superimposed on the dark, light rippled water, while the City Palace glowed across the lake: magic.
