I’ve had a bit of time recently to review some more images of the Salt Lake City Capitol Building. It really is a cool work of architecture, and it doesn’t hurt that it’s surrounded by the Wasatch Mountains. This is such an iconic building to shoot in Salt Lake that it takes (in my opinion) quite a bit to make the image stand out. As with any iconic location, I think there are several things that can separate an image from the pack:
1. Great light. There’s no sustitute for jaw-dropping light. Some have asked how I create a certain glow in many of my images. The answer? I don’t create it. I capture it. It is entirely impossible to duplicate the magic of Mother Nature. Yes, you can get close with a good image and a host of photoshop knowledge, but you will never match the real deal. That is why exceptional light will always separate the good, from the unforgettable.
The Salt Lake City Capitol Buidling at Dusk
The Salt Lake City Capitol Building revels in late evening sunset light.
The Salt Lake City Capitol Buidling at Dusk
The Salt Lake City Capitol Building revels in late evening sunset light.
2. Unusual Weather Conditions. This kind of falls into (nearly) the same boat as great light. Strive to capture that icon (whichever it may be) in conditions never before seen by anyone else. Keep an eye on the weather, and do your best to understand how it will compliment the image you have in mind.
The Salt Lake City Capitol Building sits below an unusually thick winter fogbank and spectacular sunset.
The Salt Lake City Capitol Building sits below an unusually thick winter fogbank.
3. Unique Angle. Look for an angle that hasn’t been shot before. Whether that’s above, below, behind, in front…whatever. Take advantage of the uninteresting shooting times to scout potential locations for that five-star morning or evening. The image below was shot from a roof-top of a large building along the foothills of SLC. I was fortunate to be up there shooting another project, and took advantage of this new angle on the Capitol Building.
The Salt Lake City Capitol Building with Antelope Island in the background.
4. Attention to Detail. Perhaps there’s a part of an icon that speaks to you moreso than anyone else. And perhaps, that particular part of the icon will become iconic in and of itself.
A close look at the dome of the Salt Lake City Capitol Building
Tags: Landscape Photography Tips Utah, Landscape Photography Utah, Salt Lake City, Salt Lake City Architecture Photos, Salt Lake City Capitol Building, Salt Lake City Capitol Building Sunset, Tips for Iconic Photography
Thanks for the composition tips. Always needed! I’m not much of an architecture picture taker, which is kind of weird because that’s what I studied my first year out of high school. I still love architecture, I just don’t shoot it much. But the techniques definitely apply to nature’s as well.
Have you taken any/many of the “new” library (not so new now)?
-scott c
Simply incredible!
Thanks Steve and Scott–I do have several images of the library floating around. I’ll try and post them up in a future blog post.
poze profesionale…
[...]Salt Lake City Capitol Building Continued: How to Differentiate Iconic Images « In Focus with Adam Barker[...]…