Can architecture be done in colour? That is - I seem to feel that most of it is BW?

Is this for the usual BW reasons? Focus on lines and shapes and all that?

I only picked some of my own color examples here: :-)





You can see a lot more in color from other photographers here at 1X.

But often BW enhances the impact of geometric structures, that's right.

It always depends .....as Peter said, if you have strong geometric shapes or strong graphic elements the impact in BW is often stronger - see an example here :

On the other hand I'm always for coloured architectural shots as the colour is often an essential part of the design of the building - see here, without colour it would be IMO a poor shot :

An interesting compare you can see here :



I'm unsure sure which one is stronger ....

The one in colour for me - without hesitating.

Colored is my vote too,, ???

But

because maybe Colored Picture is Bigger than the BW???,,, :-)

Eric

For me it's also just a feeling - While processing a picture I have mostly a lead to B/W or toned feeling, but some just feel right in color.
What I can say the more complex the motiv, the higher the chance I go for B/W, but color can be very powerful also for architecture in my eyes.
In case of my abandoned architecture motifs, I mostly prefer colors, on the modern side here some examples which surely also would work in color,
but in my eyes were stronger in color:

The BW for me in the last instance - mainly because the clouds can be seen.

I guess this is all just theoretical. Since I am in a sunny and clean air environment now - I am going to go for colour. I already shot some graffiti in EIR that should (I hope) look cool..

For me, there is no photography domain which always needs a specific treatment.
I shoot architecture in BW and in color :
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2747/4308455339_761d82d8c0.jpg (for BW)
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4047/4327811880_48911dab49.jpg (for color).

Thanks for sharing this information.

In the "old days" (pre-digital and when most professional architecture photographers were using view cameras), b/w film and development offered something essential that color films did not: the ability to see naturally (without adding lights) into the shadows while carrying tone in the highlights.

With proper exposure and development, large format films provided something akin to HDR in today's digital world, and that was *very* important to architects and other clients of architectural photographers.

So there is a tradition of b/w architectural photography that, I think, influences our perception today.

I also think there is a great separation between "artistic" architectural photography here on 1X.com and what I was describing above: the technical need for detail on both the shadows and the highlights while still creating a compelling image.