In Focus is Archinect's new series of features dedicated to profiling the photographers who help make the work of architects look that much better. What has attracted them to architecture? How do they work? What type of equipment do they use? What do they think about seeing their work in blogs?

In this feature, we talk to Brazilian photographer Bruno Cals whose exhibition Horizons will be on view from May 6 through July 31 at 1500 Gallery in New York City. The photographs in the exhibition are part of a personal artistic project that Cals, a well-known fashion/advertising photographer based in São Paulo has been working on since 2008. There will be an opening reception at the gallery on May 13 from 6-8 pm. Event details on Bustler .

Archinect: What is your relationship with architecture? What drew you to architecture, as a photographer?

Bruno Cals: I love architecture. My father is an architect, and when I was a kid, I used to follow him around as he worked. If I wasn't a photographer, I would have loved to be an architect. This is the first time I have worked on a series of architectural images, and it has been very rewarding.


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Palermo 01 , Bruno Cals


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Palermo 02 , Bruno Cals


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Palermo 03 , Bruno Cals

Describe how you work... who are your clients?

BC: I split my time between commercial/advertising jobs and my personal artistic projects. I don't have my own studio: for my commercial work, I rent studio and equipment. I have 2 assistants on staff, the rest I hire freelance. My commercial work is mostly photographing people, whereas for my personal work, it's mostly the opposite. I work for several of the biggest advertising agencies in Brazil: DM9DDB, NeogamaBBH, Y&R, etc., for clients such as banks, car companies, phone companies, beverage companies, etc.


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Avenida Paulista 01 , Bruno Cals


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Avenida Paulista 02 , Bruno Cals


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Avenida Paulista 03 , Bruno Cals

Do you mostly work in a specific region? What is your travel schedule like?

BC: For my commercial work, I am based in São Paulo. As far as my artistic work is concerned, this is my first exhibition outside Brazil.

What is your goal when capturing buildings in photographs?

BC: For this series, I wanted to put them in a point of view where they are unrecognizable as buildings, making them instead appear to be landscapes, hence the name Horizons...


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Prada , Bruno Cals


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Hermès , Bruno Cals

What are your thoughts about including people in your photos? Is it important to photograph a building in use, or by itself?

BC: My one rule about photography is that there are no rules. I like to shoot a lot of different things, including buildings, people, buildings with people, no rules.


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Largo São Francisco , Bruno Cals


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Tokyo Midtown , Bruno Cals

What are your favorite pieces of equipment?

BC: Canon 5D, very versatile. Litman 4x5 , my favorite.

Do you work alone?

BC: For my personal work, yes. For my commercial work, I use large teams of people.


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Safra , Bruno Cals

How do you feel about seeing your photographs on blogs and websites?

BC: I love to see my pictures being shown and discussed. I'm very critical of my work, and it takes a long time before I decide that a given piece of work is ready to be shown. Once it's ready, I need to show it and get on with thinking about the next work to be done. There's so much to photograph.



Bruno Cals was born in Rio de Janeiro in 1967. At age 19, Cals moved to Paris and began a successful career as a fashion model. At age 26, he decided that he wanted to be a photographer and returned to Brazil where he began shooting professionally. Initially a fashion photographer, Cals worked for Vogue and Elle and Visionaire. Since then, he has become a successful advertising photographer, working for the largest advertising agencies in Brazil. He has won several awards, including three at the Cannes Lions International Advertising Festival.