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by Carla DLM 

 

 

We live in a world that is rich in color. However, black and white images have a distinctive timelessness and magic. There are remarkable examples of black and white pictures in every photography category. Ansel Adams, Sebastiao Salgado,  Peter Lindbergh, Irving Penn, Albert Watson, Henri Cartier-Bresson, Alfred Stieglitz, Michael Kenna, Dorothea Lange - just a few names in the long list of master b/w photographers - are proof of this.

Architectural photography offers innumerable sources of inspiration. With the help of modern technology, it is now possible to create stunning and dramatic images of architecture at any time of the day and in diverse lighting conditions.

 

 

1x member Ahmed Thabet , an Egyptian doctor based in Kuwait, specializes in black and white architectural photography.  Ahmed didn't study photography professionally; however his splendid works radiate his passion for it. Ahmed started experimenting with photography as a hobby.

“l bought my first DSLR and I decided enough is enough ... since then photography became my passion and medicine became my source of income. I love architecture and urban exploration. I also love shapes and lines. As an Egyptian, I have passion for the pharaonic ancient civilization, which is basically a civilization of engineers. I believe this is where I get the love for architectural photography”, says Ahmed.

Ahmed likes to work in series using architecture very much like fashion photographers use models. For his latest series, called “Kuwait Trading Center”, he was inspired by old Arabian medieval swords, which are curved and have very wide blades. “For the composition of these series I took advantage of the distortion of an ultra wide lens. Then, using different tools in Photoshop l got the result I wanted”, he tells.

I particularly like how Ahmed captures different angles of a single subject and carefully puts them together in a series. Here are four photos of his series “Kuwait Trading Center”:

 

 

 

 

“In black and white architectural photography, we are inspired every day by mesmerizing works of brilliant photographers”, mentions Ahmed. “If I have to mention names, I will mention without doubts the Dutch international photographer Joel Tjintjelaar, and the Greek international photographer Julia Anna Gospodarou”. We are proud that both of them are also members of our 1X community. Here are some of their wonderful works:

 

 

 

The key to successful black and white photography is learning to see the world in monochrome. Photographers need to work around the fact that not all subjects are directly suitable for black and white. This is an art that is hard to master. However, doing it correctly and with passion, the result can be a delight to our eyes.

Here is a small selection from the 1X archives that fit perfectly in this category. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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