Otto Berkeley
Tectonic
Although it was built in the early 1950s as part of a landmark modernist housing project, Berthold Lubetkin's constructivist staircase inside what is now known as Bevin Court still possesses an incredible space-age quality. Post-war budgetary constraints severely limited the project while Lubetkin was working as part of the architecture practice Tecton, but there's a subtlety and elegance in the final design which give it remarkable impact, and which, besides adding to the location's historical and architectural significance, also make it a surreal scene to photograph.
I visited Bevin Court on a day with mixed weather conditions, when dark clouds seemed to be adding a sinister tone to the shadows inside the building's cylindrical hall, but with occasional bursts of intense sunshine also lighting up the beautiful rich red surface along the underside of the central three-armed staircase. With hindsight, these were the ideal conditions for me to shoot the location in, as my idea for this image from the outset was a muted blue in the shadows that could offset the vibrant warm colour running through the centre of the frame.
Blending multiple exposures via luminosity masking in Photoshop, I used darker exposures to tone down the highlights, and brighter exposures to recover the details along the edge of the walls and in particular along the staircase's balustrade. I then used the Pen Tool to create a selection of the underside to the staircase, as well as the surrounding curved edges of the hall. This allowed me to cleanly blend in and alternate brighter and darker exposures, emphasising the contrast between the parts of the ascending floors that remained hidden in the shadows and the parts where vivid late-afternoon sunlight was falling.
Using the selections I'd created, I was then also able to selectively edit the separate portions of the image. A brighter exposure set to Soft Light was incorporated to bring out the contrast along the underside of the staircase, as well as a hint of magenta via a Colour Balance layer for a slightly moodier shade of red. Next, I applied a combination of Hue/Saturation, Selective Colour and a Gradient Map adjustments to the surrounding parts of the hall for a shade of blue that would complement the dominant red, as well as a soft, pale yellow where the sun was striking the edges of the building's interior. Dipping into Silver Efex Pro and setting the adjustments to Luminosity, I used local control points to amplify the whites and to add further emphasis to the dramatic light that was illuminating portions of the hall, and finally, I used Colour Efex Pro's Pro Contrast and Darken/Lighten Centre filters for a hint of extra definition to the staircase and to add a gentle vignette around the edge of the frame.
The final result plays up the drama and innovation behind the building's design, but hopefully preserves its spirit and character, which were shaped by Lubetkin's ethos that "Nothing is too good for ordinary people."
You can also connect with me on Facebook, 500px, Google+ and Instagram.
Tectonic
Although it was built in the early 1950s as part of a landmark modernist housing project, Berthold Lubetkin's constructivist staircase inside what is now known as Bevin Court still possesses an incredible space-age quality. Post-war budgetary constraints severely limited the project while Lubetkin was working as part of the architecture practice Tecton, but there's a subtlety and elegance in the final design which give it remarkable impact, and which, besides adding to the location's historical and architectural significance, also make it a surreal scene to photograph.
I visited Bevin Court on a day with mixed weather conditions, when dark clouds seemed to be adding a sinister tone to the shadows inside the building's cylindrical hall, but with occasional bursts of intense sunshine also lighting up the beautiful rich red surface along the underside of the central three-armed staircase. With hindsight, these were the ideal conditions for me to shoot the location in, as my idea for this image from the outset was a muted blue in the shadows that could offset the vibrant warm colour running through the centre of the frame.
Blending multiple exposures via luminosity masking in Photoshop, I used darker exposures to tone down the highlights, and brighter exposures to recover the details along the edge of the walls and in particular along the staircase's balustrade. I then used the Pen Tool to create a selection of the underside to the staircase, as well as the surrounding curved edges of the hall. This allowed me to cleanly blend in and alternate brighter and darker exposures, emphasising the contrast between the parts of the ascending floors that remained hidden in the shadows and the parts where vivid late-afternoon sunlight was falling.
Using the selections I'd created, I was then also able to selectively edit the separate portions of the image. A brighter exposure set to Soft Light was incorporated to bring out the contrast along the underside of the staircase, as well as a hint of magenta via a Colour Balance layer for a slightly moodier shade of red. Next, I applied a combination of Hue/Saturation, Selective Colour and a Gradient Map adjustments to the surrounding parts of the hall for a shade of blue that would complement the dominant red, as well as a soft, pale yellow where the sun was striking the edges of the building's interior. Dipping into Silver Efex Pro and setting the adjustments to Luminosity, I used local control points to amplify the whites and to add further emphasis to the dramatic light that was illuminating portions of the hall, and finally, I used Colour Efex Pro's Pro Contrast and Darken/Lighten Centre filters for a hint of extra definition to the staircase and to add a gentle vignette around the edge of the frame.
The final result plays up the drama and innovation behind the building's design, but hopefully preserves its spirit and character, which were shaped by Lubetkin's ethos that "Nothing is too good for ordinary people."
You can also connect with me on Facebook, 500px, Google+ and Instagram.