I’m pretty sure I wasn’t thinking any deep photographic thoughts when I framed this scene and shot the picture. I just saw the buildings, made a reasonably balanced composition, and moved on. But looking at this picture a year later, I really like it. While this picture might not be anything special to an experienced urban landscape photographer, it’s actually very different from how I typically make and post-process my photos. Let me explain.

When I got started making “serious photographs” about fifteen years ago, I shot multiple manually exposed HDR photos and combined them in post-production. That was during the over-processed HDR heyday starting around 2010. While my pictures weren’t overly garish compared to the norm, I mostly eliminated any shadows. That was one of the key tenets of HDR photography. If you look back at the early posts in this blog, you’ll find some examples.

Now look at this picture. It has shadows galore. Something I never would’ve done in the past. But tastes change, and I’ve realized over the years that shadows can be extremely important. This “accidental” photograph in the late afternoon emphasizes the dark areas—the negative space—more than usual, and I think it works. It’s the shadows and the touches of lit surfaces that make the image.

I want to make more photographs like this.

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