
Seeing the Light! How Photographer Kim Smith Perfectly Captures the Architectural Experience
Photographer Kim Smith loves architecture that enriches the human experience. She revels in crafting striking imagery for those with whom she shares a kinship: architects, designers, builders, developers, hotels, and resorts. So, it’s no wonder that she and chief architect Marc Camens collaborate so well together — as his work is built on architectural principles that enhance homeowners’ lives while evoking beauty and emotional response.
“My goal is to make sure the original vision and the manifestation of the architecture is accurately conveyed through photography,” says Kim, who also has an educational background in interior design and architecture and previously worked at an architectural firm.
While her images of Camens’ work may look effortlessly stunning, there is much more than meets the eye to bring them to fruition — and much of that revolves around the importance of lighting and its unique alchemy of variables.
“We have to jump through a lot of hoops to create beautiful yet natural results in most cases,” she says. “Finding perfect light is possible, but it’s extremely rare and short-lived throughout the course of a day.”
Create the Perfect Lighting
The fact of the matter is that, when shooting architecturally significant homes, natural light generally doesn’t cut it. While the lighting in a space may look sublime to the human eye, a camera simply cannot pick up on the subtle nuances while filtering out other light pollution.
So, rather than spending hours attempting to refine images in post-production, Kim creates her own perfect lighting with strobes at each job site — especially for interiors and especially when none is available.
Here are three main reasons why Kim finds it necessary to find her own light:
- Even the most light-filled interiors are still quite dark compared to the outdoors. When trying to photograph a scene that includes amazing fenestrations and beautifully framed views through windows — which is nearly ubiquitous in every room and every home designed by Camens — supplemental lighting must be used to make the interior and exterior light levels match. That way, the view is preserved.
- Natural light often introduces “color pollution” into an interior — especially in the gorgeous Kiawah Island landscape. Daylight is blue. Light ricocheting off foliage is green. Incandescent lights are yellow-orange. All these color casts conflict in a space, warping the authentic hue of the finishes. Clean light provided by strobes is necessary to accurately convey colors.
- Natural light is often “flat” — meaning there’s no contrast between light and shadow and forms look two-dimensional rather than three-dimensional. To remedy this, it’s necessary to drop the exposure and subdue over-lit scenes, then strategically add strobes to create directional light and accentuate beautiful forms.
Capturing the Lifeblood of the Home
One of Camens’ guiding architectural principles is that light and flow dictate the energy of a home — and Kim makes sure that this very energy is palpable in every single image. You would never know supplemental lighting and strobes were used, because it all looks completely natural.
That said, sometimes the sun does come out to play — in all the right ways. At one property, Kim shares how the sun landed perfectly perpendicular to the living room and the outdoor lounge that looks out onto a golf course. These late-day shots deliver a beautiful, golden-hour light.
One of Camens’ guiding architectural principles is that light and flow dictate the energy of a home — and Kim makes sure that this very energy is palpable in every single image. You would never know supplemental lighting and strobes were used, because it all looks completely natural.
In another property, the abundance of fenestrations — especially in the living room —introduced the challenge to see the incredible detail of the space itself while also taking in the view through the windows. “Here, we had to strobe the spaces quite a bit,” says Kim. “We set the strobes outside to shoot light through the windows.” The result looks completely natural and daylit.
Because ceilings are very important to Camens as defining planes that delineate space, Kim also often uses a shift lens to capture this incredible architectural component.
Working with the Great Outdoors
While the lighting for the interiors of a home can be created, when Kim photographs the exterior, she is completely dependent on the whims of Mother Nature. The most magical lighting often happens in the early morning hours and later in the day at sunset.
The use of a drone likewise provides the opportunity for impressive aerial images that showcase a home’s statement-making architectural details while helping to demonstrate how each structure is nestled into its environment, designed specifically by Camens so its inhabitants can take in and be in awe of the natural surroundings.
Ultimately, by harnessing the power of light, Kim is able to captivatingly portray the architectural experience through the images she creates.
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To learn more about Charleston architecture photographer Kim Smith and see more examples from her portfolio, visit her website at kimsmithphoto.com.