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Matinee: 'London Architecture'
25 May 2024
Saturday matinees long ago let us escape from the ordinary world to the island of the Swiss Family Robinson or the mutinous decks of the Bounty. Why not, we thought, escape the usual fare here with Saturday matinees of our favorite photography films?
So we're pleased to present the 554th in our series of Saturday matinees today: London Architecture.
In this 2:09 video, Mark Iandolo wanders around London in the spring of 2022 with his Sony a7R ii. The brief liner notes reveal he used two lenses: a Tamron 17-28mm f2.8 and a Sony 50mm f1.8.
This is a video, shot in 8-bit 4:2:0 "mostly on a tripod" then edited and color graded in DaVinci Resolve.
But it works as a slide show as well.
We had the feeling it was chronologically walking us not just through London but one whole day.
What struck us on this journey was the oldest problem in architectural photography. Converging verticals.
Traditionally, photographers kept their verticals parallel by using a view camera whose lens plane and film plane are independent of each other and can correct the convergence when the camera is pointed up or down.
Then came the tilt-shift lens for smaller cameras. And today almost every image editing software offers some kind of perspective control.
But there is a line you dare not cross in straightening verticals.
Iandolo's piece shows some verticals straightened and some converged. Since it's a video, we presume he worked this out on the tripod. To get some of these shots he had to abandon the grail of straight verticals.
And we're glad he did. They turn out to be the more dramatic angles.
That's the line. Fix the disturbing small convergence. Admire the dramatic large one.
Iandolo has specialized in documentary, architectural and lifestyle photography since 2015, traveling to three continents to photograph in 30 countries for an array of clients.
His photographs have been recognized by The Nature Conservancy, United Nations, PBS, Fujifilm, Fodor's Travel and Beautiful Destinations. In 2017, three of his photographs were chosen for the Nature Conservancy's Top 100 Photos. In addition, his written works have been published by the United Nations, Huffington Post, San Diego Times, Houston Chronicle, Austin Statesman, Oregonian and Passion Passport.
He received a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Notre Dame and an MBA from DePaul University and is currently based in Florida and London.