I am an architectural photographer and construction photographer. As well as photographing construction sites I also photograph construction products.

In this post I will give you 11 reasons how I can help you get the construction product photos that you need.

1. My photography experience and professional qualifications.
2. My construction experience and professional qualifications.
3. I am a current CSCS card holder.
4. I have all my own PPE.
5. I am equipped to take photographs on live construction sites.
6. I am able to access any part of a construction site.
7. I have equipment to allow me to photograph unusual angles and viewpoints.
8. I create technically correct photos.
9. I get construction.
10. I understand the needs of manufacturers and suppliers of products.
11. Here are 12 examples of my construction product photography.

I will go into a bit more detail on each point – if you are already convinced though please get in touch.

Construction sites are unique environments, and construction product photography normally takes place on live construction sites. Over the years I have refined my photography gear and image capture workflow to allow me to work quickly and efficiently on live construction sites.

And when I get to a site I know the drill – site induction, things not being as they should be, works behind programme – all that stuff that happens on a daily basis on construction sites.

Lets get into that little lot in a but more detail.

1 – My photography experience and qualifications.

I am an Associate member of the British Institute of Professional Photography. This means that I have a reached a high professional standard of photography. All the images reviewed by the photographic industry export panel were architectural photos taken and processed by me.

The BIPP defines Associate Membership on their website as

“A high standard of craftsmanship, including the use of light, composition, Image framing and cropping.  Demonstration of good ability in preparing files for print. Increased knowledge for output including the correct choice of printing media.”

And I have well over 30 years of experience as an amateur, hobbyist and professional photograher.

2 – My construction experience and qualifications.

I am a chartered builder, having the designation MCIOB – Member of the Chartered Institute of Building, I have over 30 years of site based construction experience starting as a site labourer and moving up to Project Manager with all the bits inbetween.

So these two things on their own make me very well qualified to photograph construction products for you.

3 – I am a current CSCS Managerial and Professional card holder.

This means that I can demonstrate my competency and training to safely work on construction sites. I am as well versed, qualified and indeed familiar with construction sites as any other contractor working on site.

4 – I have my own PPE

I turn up on site ready to go. There might be site specific things that I do not have but I am prepared for all conventional construction sites.

This saves the site team time and gets me on site more quickly.

5 – I am equipped to take photographs on live construction sites.

My gear has envolved over the years to a set up that allows me to work quickly, efficiently and without getting in the way (too much!). So no turning up with endless gear getting in the way!

6 – I am able to access any part of a construction site.

All my gear fits in a backpack leaving two hands free for climbing ladders and just getting about quickly and efficiently.

I would say 50% of the photos I take on site are with me squeezed into a corner! So you can put me anywhere on a construction site and I will be just fine.

7 – I have equipment to allow me to photograph unusual angles and viewpoints.

High viewpoints, low viewpoints, from a pole held out 4m horizontally – I can get shots from different and unusual angles that give my photos an edge.

And I can also photograph things others without this gear cannot capture.

8 – I create technically correct photos.

I take technically correct photos. I am talking here about the correct colours which is so important for specific products in what can often be rubbish lighting. I also ensure that all verticals and horizontals are all nice and correct. And of course that the image is nice and sharp.

I do all the image processing myself using Lightroom and Photoshop.

And you can see 12 examples of my construction product photography work in this blog post – just keep going you are not far off the first image!

9 – I understand construction.

If you commission me to photograph your construction product you can be assured that I will understand what you need. I will also know the context of your product and the importance of how it fits into the construction process.

And I will be completely happy and comfortable working on a live construction site.

This means that the risk to you as a client is minimal – I have always managed to get round problems on site to get the images clients want.

10 – I understand the needs of manufacturers and suppliers of products.

Most importantly my vast experience in photography and construction give me an understanding of all aspects of the construction process and the bits that get put together to somehow create these marvellous structures and spaces.

I have dealt with numerous suppliers over the years and photographed some iconic construction products including Dulux paint, Catnic lintels and Rockwool insulation.

11 – Enough about me – here are some examples of my work

Here are 12 photos of construction products. The proof of the pudding if you like!

1 – Marshalls paving at Bournemouth University

I was commissioned to photograph the paving that had been laid as part of a major project at Bournemouth University. Marshalls is a big name in construction. The project involved the remodelling of the central circulation space, providing a new, clear, uncluttered pedestrian access route through the centre of the campus.

One of the issues of a product shoot such as this is that the location is an open one, open to students, staff and members of the public. I had to gain permission from the University to photograph the paving, on the condition that there were no recognisable people in the shots.

Now there are various ways of achieving this;

• Take long exposures, blurring people and blurring the odd face
• Take multiple photographs of the same scene and then using the magic of Photoshop make them all disappear
• Take the photographs when no-one is there.

Which is what I did. Take the photographs when no-one was there that is.

There are pros and cons to this.

The early morning sun produces shadows which restrict the area being photographed, which is not a good thing. It really depends on the space.

On the plus side the morning sun raking across a scene is great for bringing out the textures in materials.

2 – Render by KRend.

This is the case study showing one of the images I submitted to the client.

http://www.k-rend.co.uk/projects/silicone-thin-coat/silicone-tc-15-lilliput

I was commissioned directly by KRend to photograph these stylish new houses in Poole, as well as a nursey in Portsmouth. The two shoots were completely different, but of the same product for the same client.

KRend is the UKs largest independent silicone coloured renders manufacturer.

It might sound easy photographing render but there is quite a lot more to it than meets the eye. The render was white, so had to appear white. Which on large flat areas is no mean feat, needing all the technical image capture excellence that my Canon 6D gives me. That and some precision image processing in Lightroom and an amount of tidying up in Photoshop.

The images looked great and the client was delighted – a good job all round.

3 – Catnic lintels

Another big name on the construction product market is Catnic, who make lintels. For those non-technical people those are the things that sit over the windows and take the weight of the wall above. I photographed the Acheson Construction site at Corfe Castle, where a new Doctors surgery was being constructed. The image featured on this page is one of my creative mages, with a dark overall image with the colours removed apart from the orange in the Catnic label on a lintol on the construction site. I also selectively brightened the label on the lintol.

As well as conventional product photographs, I try to provide the client with alternative, creative images wherever possible

This is the kind of work I really enjoy, getting in and amongst it all on site – it takes me back to my first job after leaving school!

4 – Rockwool insulation and over cladding system

Another big name, and a massive construction site. Rockwool. I was commissioned by Wildwood PR to photograph the Rockwool products being installed as over cladding on enormous tower blocks in Portsmouth.

The product in question was the insulation, which was fitted within the Metsec cladding system before being covered with a waterproof membrane, boarding and the external cladding panels.

This was a truly enormous construction refurbishment project, with Keepmoat being the main contractor.

On this shoot, I produced a wide variety of images, including a big panoramic picture of the entire rear elevation from ground level. The picture on this page was photographed from a first-floor car park, and shows the before and during views, and also gives an idea of the scale of the project.

5 – Dulux Pyroshield paint

Now a tricky thing to photograph is paint. White paint on plastered walls. Hmmmm. Tricky one. The manufacturer of the paint was Dulux. I know another huge name in the construction industry, well decorating of any kind of building anywhere market really.

Quote from the Dulux Decorator Centre website

“Pyroshield Durable Matt from Dulux Trade is a water-based flame retardant finish that upgrades substrates of fire classification from Class 3 to Class 0 (tested to BS476, parts 6 and 7).”

Another complication with this shoot was that it was on stairs in occupied tenanted blocks in Dorset. Bearing in mind I like to use my tripod for every commercial image I take this was certainly a challenge. Both in terms of the space available and people wanting to get by!

Thankfully for me these things are routine challenges which I deal with on a weekly basis.

6 – Sports hall flooring at Bournemouth University by Gerflor

More specialist product photography. Gerflor flooring. This floor was installed as part of the overall refurbishment of sportBU, the fitness centre at the Talbot Campus of Bournemouth University. The refurbishment was carried out by Kier Construction. This picture was taken from a scissor lift, which was carefully driven in through a conveniently placed fire door right by the corner with level access externally. The scissor lift drove over protective ply placed on the recently laid and marked sports hall flooring.

Taking photographs in circumstances like this is challenging, as I had this one opportunity to take this picture, immediately after completion of the refurbishment when a scissor lift was booked to carry out other repairs. I managed to get access to take this picture before the lift was driven off site and the hall put back into full use.

And I learned all about the complexities of marking a sports hall floor properly!

7 – Elliott UK modular buildings

Yes, modular buildings. Well they are products. And ones that are surprisingly common these days as people try to provide additional space cheaply, quickly but to a high standard.

I was commissioned to photograph three new sites with modular buildings provided by Elliott UK. The picture I have included is a branding shot. A crisp, simple picture with the Elliott logo on one of their recently completed modular buildings.

Branding is very important in product photography, and one of the things I like to do is exclude everything but a part of the product and the branding – the name and the logo.

8 – BASF Walltite sprayed insulation

Now this was an interesting shoot. Walltite Spray Foam Insulation by BASF. A construction site in Poole. The insulation was being sprayed under the felt before being enclosed with plasterboard.

This was a stunning new development, and I managed to capture a picture of the insulation with a view through one of the window openings towards the sea. I was trying with this shot to place the product in it’s context, which was being built into a luxury house with a sea view.

The original image had a brick and some other debris on the floor, which were still in the original images included on this web page, but which I have since removed. I would not dream of issuing an image like that to a client these days!!

But all shoots provide new learning and things that help me develop and improve the quality of my commercial photography work.

9 – Kingsway anti-ligature doors installed in a hospital.

This image is from a commercial shoot where I photographed some specialist doors on a live construction site. This was a construction product shoot for the company Kingsway, “Experts in door sets and hardware for mental health”.

Product shoots on live construction sites can be challenging, and always take longer than intended! The main contractor on this hospital extension was Brymor Construction.

I was commissioned by the manufacturer of these specialist door sets to photograph the doors just before completion of construction works, which was also immediately before the building went live. Once the refurbished building was handed over to the client access would not be possible. The time constraints at the end of a construction project often dictate what I can photograph and when I can photograph for the client.

This picture shows both one of the products in detail, the door handle, as well as the range of products in the context of the corridor in which all these doors and frames have been installed.

10 – Roof tiles at Chideock Catholic Church

This is a detail shot if ever there was one, and the only picture on this page taken with my Canon 100-400mm lens (long since retired). I was commissioned by the architect Andrew Stone to photograph the new dome to Chideock Church. This stunning church is in a fantastic location in West Dorset, which was an absolute pleasure to photograph. The interior of the new dome was stunning, but the tiles made a fantastic, abstract, graphic picture.

The shoot was of the new dome, but this detail shot was an important one, as the tiles were specifically designed for this location. Such an important detail.

When I am carrying out construction product shoots I always try to include detail shots of the products, as well as images showing them in their context, as well as pictures from different angles and views.

11 – Tobermore paving

Paving is a great subject to photograph. Normally I am asked to photograph paving soon after completion of a construction site. I am lucky to get to see construction sites not long after completion, often when the premises are occupied and in use, which is always great to see. Buildings are about the people who use them, and there is nothing better than seeing this.

This picture was taken at a site recently completed by Junnel Homes. The paving, manufactured by Tobermore, forms the access into this lovely, small housing development, and the individual driveways.

This kind of product photography needs good weather, so once I have been commissioned I basically wait for sunny weather. Another issue I have to contend with is the time of day, especially in the winter, as I need the photographs to make the best use of the sunshine without having shadows on the paving.

12 – More paving by Tobermore

I have also included this image taken at a holiday home in Kent where the paving was used to form the driveways to individual holiday homes.

Related reading

If you found this post interesting and helpful I would like to refer you to some other related posts.

Construction Photography Advice and Guidelines for Clients

How to commission architectural photography

73 Great examples of My Construction Photography in Hampshire

51 great examples of my construction photography in Dorset

How to become a construction photographer

Construction Photography Gear: 13 Items I Can’t Live Without

Construction time lapse photography: What, how & when?

Checklist: 70 essential steps to great architectural photos

Summary

Thanks for reading this post, please get in touch if you require any help in getting photos of your construction product.

Rick McEvoy MCIOB, ABIPP

#construction #constructionproduct #constructionproductphotography #productphotography #constructionphotography