Grandview Heights Aquatic Centre by HCMA Architecture + Design. Image © Ema Peter Photography

In Focus is Archinect's recurring series dedicated to profiling the photographers who help capture architecture and who make the work of architects look that much better. In this series, we ask: What is their relationship to architecture? How do they work? What kind of equipment do they use? What obstacles have they encountered when working on these projects? 

For this installment, Archinect chats with Bulgarian-born, Vancouver-based interior and architectural photographer, Ema Peter. A well-seasoned architectural photographer, Peter's detailed approach to capturing buildings has deemed her a household name in the architecture community. She has worked with the industry's most celebrated architects who praise her intuitive approach to photography. By blending her passions of photojournalism and architecture, Peter creates stunning visual narratives through light and shadow. Being a woman in the industry, she has learned to push through as an artist by challenging the mundane and taking risks. A true force, Peter stresses the value in understanding the usual in order to uncover the beauty in the unusual. 

What is your relationship to architecture?

When I was a kid, I grew up in Eastern Europe, in Bulgaria. We had these Russian legos that I used to play with, and I used to spend hours building these buildings. If you asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up, I would’ve said an architect or an actress. 

What's your relationship to photography? How did that come about?

My dad is actually a film camera man, so I grew up in a darkroom. When I was 5 years old, my first job was helping him prep film. Every night, he would black out the windows in the kitchen, and he would print photos. So this process of photography was really ingrained in me. Soon, I knew I wanted to be a photojournalist. As a child, my dad would travel for work, so we traveled with him when he was filming. I had a really fun childhood watching him film and watching him photograph. So you can imagine my eye as a child constantly looking at photographs. 

Do you remember the first photograph you took?

I was really young. I was 6 years old, and we went with my dad to an old Bulgarian village. There were these people at work there, and as a child seeing the people who lived there, they lived like they did 100 years ago. I remember these photos, their faces and hands, everything there was quite striking to me as a child, and this is where I continued my interest in wanting to become a photojournalist. 

Where did you study?

I have a photojournalistic education and studied at the National Academy of Film and Arts in Bulgaria and then proceeded to get my Masters in photojournalism. It was amazing because at this time, incredible situations were happening in Bulgaria. 

How did growing up in Bulgaria and studying in Bulgaria shape you as a photographer?

I mean, there was the fall of the communist regime which my parents actively participated in; as a part of the art community, they were super against the regime. Then as a student, I was fighting against the socialist party, and we were on the streets with the people. We could experience the spirit of the nation on the streets, and we were capturing this in black and white film. This was pretty spectacular, to be honest, and this prompted me to apply to Magnum Photo Agency which is one of the top photo agencies in the world. 

What happened after you applied? So many big names have come from that photo agency; was there a lot of pressure working there? 

I wanted to do photojournalism so badly, and the fact that I was accepted to be there for 6 months, was amazing. They accepted a group of us, and we were all these different people with nationalities thrown into Paris. None of us really spoke French, but we learned so much. We worked in the photo archives, and one of the things we did was sort through images of the best photographers in the world. On top of that, being in Paris and walking around, I could just see the architecture! 

Is this where your love for architecture grew? In Paris?

Actually, my uncle lived in Paris, and he was an architect. He took me to all of Le Corbusier's houses. So for me, this love of architecture slowly had me move away from photojournalism. It was in those moments, I saw what Corbusier did in an era where the rest of the Parisian architects were doing the same thing over and over again. This was the moment that I completely fell in love with modern architecture. You know, some of Corbusier's houses have these different levels in them, and to see how different people were moved through these levels, and I thought, "Wow!" The scale of the people with the building was such a significant thing for me, so this was the very beginning of my interest. My love for photography started with my dad, and my love for architecture started with my uncle. They were extremely significant in my life and my work. I realize this is such a rounded out answer!

No, I think this is great! It shows the continuous fluidity of how you were constantly being nurtured within this process of becoming a photographer. When you were growing up, did you have any photographers that you looked up to? Were any of them female?

I studied the history of photography, and I studied about Henri Cartier-Bresson and how he took those decisive moments. It's these decisive moments that had the biggest influence in my career. My shot always has people in them, like 100% of the time. I like having people in my shot because of that human element; that one little thing changes the entire perspective. Having a person in it, changes the whole feeling of a photo—if you do it right. 

For instance, last year, there was this perfect moment when a woman with the red dress walked right through my shot, and because I want to chase these decisive moments, I shot her in it. Cartier-Bresson has such a huge influence on me in my career, and I actually was able to meet him at Magnum. Actually, his wife was one of the first and few women I had interactions within photography. At my university, all my teachers were male, and in my class, there were six guys and me. I was so isolated as a female photographer from them. So because of that, the biggest influence was from male names in the field. Recently, I posted how one of my biggest goals is to be a recognizable female name but also to have others be there with me. It's not enough to have just ONE female photographer. 

You know, everyone will say that you’ll crash, you’ll burn out, and I think if you’re passionate about what you do, and if you really live and breathe what you do, no one can tell you otherwise.

It's so perfect you say that especially in the times and social climate we’re in, now we get to see this representation. 

Absolutely, it’s motivation! As women, we can be as strong, as successful, and as passionate as men. I have two small boys, and I juggle so much, and there are days when I wake up and feel like my head is going to explode. I need to do all these things and be able to sort out mess, and then I need to look good and go into a meeting and pretend nothing has happened. Most of my male colleagues have their wife to support them, but at the end of the day, I look and realize I have managed and still manage. You know, everyone will say that you’ll crash, you’ll burn out, and I think if you’re passionate about what you do, and if you really live and breathe what you do, no one can tell you otherwise. I see this every single day. 

Do you find your personal life influencing you and your work?

Well, from a perspective of capturing photographs, the one thing that really influences my work is that I learned to become so aware of doing things well. You learn how to do things right in the moment. When you have a life outside of your work, you learn to see things differently because you have to juggle more, you learn to adapt. To be perfectly honest, my work gets me out of the home environment completely. I don’t think about my kids or other things...my work is my escape. I think this is the biggest challenge for females, we need to have that escape factor. So I feel like my work life and personal life complement each other…they don’t necessarily work together. 

It's one of those things where everyone is in such a hurry, they miss these moments. If you really believe in something…it shows in your shot. I feel when you’re in tune with what you do, all of this actually reveals itself to you. Being on the same wavelength as your work is key.

Connecting with what you said earlier about being in the moment, your photos... they’re loud, but in the best way!  Your photos possess these amazing narrative qualities. Can you talk more about this process? 

Yes! This is exactly what I want to do, tell a story. It's that combination of photojournalism, Besson’s concept of decisive moments, and working with the building. When you find that perfect composition, you almost have to have the patience to understand and see that decisive moment. That thing that’s happening, that is what evokes a feeling. It's one of those things where everyone is in such a hurry, they miss these moments. If you really believe in something…it shows in your shot. I feel when you’re in tune with what you do, all of this actually reveals itself to you. Being on the same wavelength as your work is key. It’s more important for me to look at an image and say, “Ok, I can totally feel it, I can feel the space.” 

Do you have any examples of this?

Sure! Clouds for example, I love photographing clouds. People have said to me that they never notice clouds. It’s all perception. It's how you see something. If you don’t look for those beautiful moments in a building, then you’re going to miss them. You’ll only see the functionality of the building, you’ll only notice the things that you don’t like. After we stop being kids, we always look for the negative. But if you have a kid go into a space, they will always find something magical. My big theory in life is to never lose that childlike excitement because that becomes your downfall, your battle. When we get older, things become too casual where we miss things, or we look for the negative. We need to keep that purity of the eye and be able to create something that others just don’t see in their everyday life.

I totally agree, people who are in a creative realm have to practice this concept of seeing things again for the first time. 

This is the whole goal, you know! There was this workshop that I taught at Central Mexico University, and all the students thought I was going to take them out and about like somewhere in Mexico City. I said to them, “Nope, we’re going to stay in the building that you are studying in. You need to explore the usual before you can see the unusual." If you’re trying to catch the unusual but can't actually take a shot of something that you see every day, it’s not possible. If you can manage to find something beautiful in the every day, when you see the unusual, you’re going to create something spectacular. 

That’s an amazing concept to constantly think about. To understand the usual so you can learn to find those obscure/odd moments in the unusual. 

Exactly! We need to be daring! I see a lot of people, and they need perfect lighting and the perfect everything, and I’m thinking, "How about you shoot towards the sun?" Like the rule of thirds, people might be very upset at me saying this, but we shouldn’t have rules. I feel that the biggest brains in the world have taken the rules and thrown them in the garbage. This is the one thing we need to do in photography. My biggest influence at the moment in photography, and the person that I look up to, is Fernando Guerra. He does exactly that, he throws out the rules. He’ll put the gardener in the shot; he’ll put something that is completely different and make it apart of the space. He’s the person who I relate to the most because this is my approach. 

Is there such a thing as taking a "perfect photo"?

This is something I always think about…why do we think about perfection when the imperfection is a million times better and stronger as a visual. Why not photograph the underways of a building or the trash cans inside? This is such a juxtaposition especially with modern architecture that people should see. Sometimes, the ugly shot is much more striking than the perfect lighting and the perfect person walking through, and I think this is the difference between being successful and not. It’s about how much fun will you have, and how much are you willing to throw away in order to create your own rules.

The ugly shot is much more striking than the perfect lighting shots, and I think this is the difference between being successful and not. It’s about how much fun will you have, and how much are you willing to throw away in order to create your own rules.

When you were a student, did you already have this concept of "throwing away" the basic rules of photography? 

It’s funny you’re asking me this because I got the worst marks all the time, like for 3 consecutive years in the class. I would always do something completely crazy. For example, we had this specific project where we had to project on two projectors, slide film, and it's really like a narrative of a film. You made a script, then you photographed it and projected it on slide film one after another in a sequence onto two projectors with live music. It was almost like a mini movie or a time lapse. And I will never forget, I thought I did this amazing job on my project, and it was done in vertical format. At the end of the year, we present this project to the entire university, and we have people from all over coming to see the work. When I started the projector, you could hear the "humms" in this huge theater. I couldn't figure out why they were so upset. The commission was outraged and said this is crazy; why haven't I done it in a horizontal format. I remember thinking, "You know what, we can't be so small-minded." 

This is one of the biggest issues in general in the world, not seeing the bigger picture. We all focus on our own little world full of rules, and then, if you look at what's going on around the world, and look at what people are achieving, it's incredible. What will happen in the next 15 years with so many industries? I'm here thinking, "Wow, why are we so narrow-minded with photography sometimes?" This was one of the biggest things I'll never forget. I was so upset because everybody was criticizing me for my work, but my professor for the class said, "You know guys, this is not a movie, this is photography." But I still got the worst marks of course (laughs). For me, there were a lot of moments, these moments of me hitting my head at the wall, and it was the same when I started in the industry. Fifteen years ago, everybody wanted to shoot without any people in the photo, and I was completely against it. I thought, "How are you going to show any photographs with an interesting perspective if we don't have any people?" So in the beginning, it was a lot of me pushing and showing how we can do it. 

You've worked with some of the biggest names in architecture. Have there been moments when you and the architect had conflicting views on how a shot should be made?

For me, I’ve been lucky with the architects I’ve worked with, and sometimes I have architects come back to me and say, “I’ve never seen this angle,” and this is something I strive for. I almost have a game now where I try to capture the building in a way they haven’t actually experienced, because surprising an architect, this is one of my biggest goals. I want an architect to say, “Wow, yes, that’s something I didn’t notice.” I’ve been super lucky that the architects I've worked with have really let me be. I can honestly only think of one architect where I did butt heads with them. 

I almost have a game now where I try to capture the building in a way they haven’t actually experienced, because surprising an architect, this is one of my biggest goals

Can you share what happened?

He wanted this residential building to be shot in black and white with a very dark, cloudy setting, almost in a daunting way. I said, “Nope, that’s not going to work,” because I’m thinking of the magazines and  publications, I know very well what they like. But you know what, he proved me wrong. This is the first time I’ve ever said to someone, “You’ve proved me wrong.” (as she laughs) I will never forget that, that helped me a lot. 

It’s funny because humans are very quick to say, “No, this is not doable!” This is the wrong attitude because you can’t say no without trying, and I try to be very open-minded and be open to any possibility. You have to always try. But for the most part, things always have a positive outcome when I’m working. The architects give me such a sense of freedom which is what I love about this profession. I feel that they trust me, and they’re saying, “Just go for it.” But, I'm very diligent with what’s happening in the world, especially in the architecture world. It’s important for me to get out of my little bubble and learn. 

It looks like you prepare for every project in such a specific way. You’re trying to understand and gain that broad knowledge base of how you can take a space and transform it in a photo. Has this always been important to you?

Absolutely, and the environment is important as well. You have to ask, how does it impact the people around? As photographers, we need to understand the logic of the architect as well as looking at the trends internationally. I remember a Kengo Kuma project I got asked to do, and I was horrified. I had to photograph the tea house he built in Vancouver. So what I did was watch tea ceremonies constantly until I understood how the wrists have to move, how the tea ceremony is done, where the tea master sits, and everything like that.

Mind you, this tea house was on the 13th floor of a building, and I was limited with space. So I was like, "Ok, you’re shooting with Kengo Kuma. There's preciseness of the Japanese culture and the preciseness of the tea ceremony." I wanted to be respectful and see how the architect has worked before because this wasn't his first tea house. For me, going into something like this, you have the unusual factor of the location, and I had the freedom to express how to get the shot. So what I did was request for the tea master, who happened to be a woman. It was very memorable.

This is something that I do out of respect for who I'm working with. You have to understand what their work is like and where they’re coming from. You need to be part of everything. You know, if I had a lot of money, I would want to study EVERYTHING. I want to understand the perspectives, the learning process has to be endless. 

It’s funny you say that. I had one professor say to me that architects have to know a little bit about everything. This can be applied to photographers as well.

It's true. You also need to be humane. You need to treat the building almost like a human. You need to have this awareness of space, and I do feel that buildings have their own soul and presence. Also, when you’re looking through the viewfinder, your state of mind makes a huge deal as well. You have to know the space, the context, especially with buildings. You have to treat them like your kids almost. You have to look at them in different perspectives, you have to look at them in a different light. You need to find those hidden moments and explore. It’s almost like meeting a person and needing to know everything about them, it’s the same way you treat buildings. You just can’t rush through these shots. 

The way you are using light in your photographs and how these shadows are created, is that something you try to plan around or do you just let the building be? I’m so mesmerized with the light working with the colors in these buildings you photograph.

I do chase lights, and I do chase those lights around the building. For me, I know exactly where the lights are going to be around the building.  I know those moments very quickly, at least I see them very quickly, especially with commercial buildings. You shouldn’t interfere, somehow you need to go with how the light is interacting with the buildings. Sometimes photographers come in with massive lights, it almost looks like a movie set. But when you do this, you’re missing these beautiful moments that the architects intentionally or unintentionally have put inside. You can’t control all those environments. At that point, you should try to be this silent person that observes and documents. This is the difference between trying to make something really splashy, forcing feeling and light, and letting things happen.

Do you have any example of this type of a moment?

I did a photograph of a diver that ended up on the cover of Architectural Record. There was a tree outside, its shadow was reflecting on these translucent panels. So I waited for that moment when the diver was right on the translucent panels. I just increased the contrast a little bit and when she jumped, you don't really know what you’re looking at behind her. Then Architectural Record came back to me and said someone called and made a complaint. I said, “Ok, wow, what would the complaint be?” They said, “Well, we have a person who called in and said that the clouds can not be that low.” I thought to myself, "Wow, you can change the way people can see things just by playing with shadow and light." (she laughs) This is almost a cheeky thing to do, but it’s so funny how you can really change the way people see. 

Ok, now let's get technical. Do you remember your first camera? What is your favorite piece of equipment to use? 

I’ve kept with Canon the entire time. But when I started in architectural photography, I just had one lens which was just a zoom lens. I think 24-70 or something like that. I literally had no equipment. The first job I had as an independent architectural photographer was with my husband's Canon and the one lens he had. Because starting out, we just didn’t have the money. But having a tilt-shift lens is crucial to do any architectural photography. So I spent years saving for those. When I was just starting, that had been the best purchase I’d ever made. 

But I want to go back to the fact that I did successful jobs on my own with a non-professional camera and non-professional lenses. I used them for years and those photos got published. Maybe it’s not good advice, but now if you’re really good at what you do…you can grab an iPhone and do an amazing shot. I never want people to feel they’re limited if they don’t have the money. But if you do, I highly recommend the 17mm tilt-shift lens. 

Today so many people dream of wanting to do something, but they get bogged down with not having a certain thing to get them going. Do you have any thoughts on this?

I think there are a lot of excuses of why we can’t do or achieve something. Bottom line, a lens will not stop you. You can still create a spectacular shot if you’re observant and you see the moments and the light. So this shouldn't be an excuse. 

What's the best piece of advice you’ve been given in your career?

This is a bit funny, the best piece of advice I got was from a card I bought many years ago, I know it sounds strange. I loved the photo on it. It was an old brick house, and you’re looking out at the beautiful desert, and it said, “It is your mind that creates the world.” Honestly, this has been my guiding thing. Every morning when I get up, I think, “Okay, what kind of world am I going to create today?,” because at the end of the day, it is us. Whether it's your mood or your attitude, it’s everything. When you know you’re in control of your own thoughts and mindset, you can actually create something really, really beautiful. 

What advice you would give to others who want to pursue architectural photography?

Be as open-minded as possible, but also don’t jump in immediately after school. The one thing that’s being lost nowadays is being an apprentice and seeing the world through the eyes of a photographer or architect or whatever the profession is. Just jumping in and trying to do a career immediately, no matter how talented you are, isn't enough. What you need to get is that experience. It has nothing to do with not being fast or not achieving something immediately, but it’s about seeing the world. Granted, this doesn't happen in 15 minutes. Everyone messages me asking, “Oh, how did you do this?,” and they don’t know how long I’ve apprenticed and the period of time it takes to see and come to the realization of who you are. 

Take a little bit of time to realize who you are as an artist and who you are as a person. 

Ema Peter is the principle of Ema Peter Photography. In the past 8 years, she has worked with some of the largest architectural, interior design and engineering firms in North America. Ema’s photography has helped many of these firms reach award-winning status.

Her images have been published in Architectural Digest, Objekt International, Dwell, Wired, New York Times, and many more.

Ema holds a masters degree in art and applied photography from the National Academy of Theatre and Film Arts in Sofia, Bulgaria as well as a PhD in photojournalism.

She started her career as a TV anchor on Bulgarian National TV and then as an intern at Magnum Photo Agency in Paris. She then led one of the largest photography teams in North America at VRX Studios Inc. She was also the lead photographer for ad campaigns at Hilton, Hyatt and Fairmont and was responsible for creating photography standards for some of the top hotel brands around the world.