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Finding a sense of place<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Having begun as a hobbyist with a focus on travel photography, Nina later tried her hand at unearthing the art in more immediate surroundings. \u201cI started by photographing the industrial culture in my hometown, an area dominated by mining,\u201d she recalls.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI was gradually drawn to \u2018more beautiful\u2019 motifs, before doing landscape photography for years, mainly as long exposures. This is still a great passion of mine today \u2013 I find it liberating to listen to the waves crashing on the sea for minutes while recording a frame. And it was always good training for practising patience,\u201d she adds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
With her own style developing, Nina returned to photographing urban landscapes, discovering the importance of communicating a sense of place as she did so.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou can always tell in a good picture that the photographer was there \u2013 not just physically, but with spirit and understanding, immersed in the scene,\u201d declares Nina. \u201cA good photo triggers something in me; an emotion, the desire to look at it again and again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt can be aesthetically pleasing due to its simplicity, or tell the viewer a story through its complexity. Everyone who looks at a photo brings a different wealth of experience, a previous history and their own emotional world \u2013 so photos have different effects.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cGenerally speaking, a photo only works for me in its entirety,\u201d she notes. \u201cThe more things fit together, the more coherent it becomes as an emotional trigger.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n While most architectural photography focuses purely on the geometry of buildings, Nina\u2019s images often showcase the interplay between the built environment and the people who inhabit it. \u201cArchitectural elements serve more as a background,\u201d she explains. \u201cThey form the framework for my protagonists, as the human factor plays a major role in my pictures.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOn the one hand, people naturally help to illustrate proportions, but on the other \u2013 and in the best-case scenario \u2013 they can also tell the viewer a story and give room for personal interpretation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cMy photos can perhaps make you think about our role in the environment we ourselves have created. Have people made a space they no longer fit into? Is man now too small for a world he designed?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Blending architectural and street photography, Nina maintains a purist approach to both disciplines. \u201cSomething that\u2019s important for me to underline is that my works are all candid,\u201d she notes. \u201cI meet my protagonists purely by chance on the street and these people play the decisive role in my images.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThis is based on my deep love for street photography. Staged photos don\u2019t give me anything; they lack a certain authenticity. I like having to work hard to achieve something I can then look at with pride.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Much of Nina\u2019s output is characterised by its monochromatic presentation. \u201cBlack & white photography underlines the minimalist idea,\u201d she continues. \u201cI\u2019ve been addicted to this since my first days as a photographer \u2013 nothing distracts, everything is reduced to the essentials.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Nina intends for her photos to be printed, so she prioritises a large sensor size for supreme detail. \u201cFor me, the process only ends when I hold a high-quality fine art print in my hand,\u201d she explains.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI work with both X Series and GFX System cameras. My FUJIFILM X-H2<\/a> enchants me with its compactness, speed and the enormous resolution and quality for an APS-C sensor. When you travel a lot, you want to save every gram of weight, so my choice often falls on the X-H2.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n When not limited by bag space, Nina trades the 40.2-megapixel X-H2 for a 102-megapixel GFX sensor instead. \u201cI have lost my heart to the GFX! She is the boss in my camera bag,\u201d Nina exclaims. \u201cThere\u2019s nothing like that exhilarating image quality when you stand just centimetres away from a large print on the wall and discover the smallest shades, nuances and details.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThis is a passion that needs to be experienced and lived to be understood. I use a FUJIFILM GFX100S II<\/a> and this camera is my fulfilment.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n To maximise her options when framing up contrasting scenes \u2013 while ensuring she makes the most of that all-important sensor size \u2013 Nina brings along a small selection of zoom lenses for each camera.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIn both systems I currently only use zoom lenses,\u201d she notes. \u201cOn the one hand, this gives me the greatest possible flexibility, but on the other it allows me to keep my luggage relatively small.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n With a selection ranging from ultra wide angle to telephoto on each format, Nina likes to keep her options open when composing a photo. Working with the X-H2, she uses the FUJINON XF8-16mmF2.8 R LM WR<\/a>, XF16-55mmF2.8 R LM WR<\/a> and XF50-140mmF2.8 R LM OIS WR<\/a>. For the GFX, she packs the GF20-35mmF4 R WR<\/a>, GF32-64mmF4 R LM WR<\/a> and the GF100-200mmF5.6 R LM OIS WR<\/a>. \u201cWith three lenses per system, I am fully equipped to meet my needs,\u201d she states.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When searching for visual interest in built-up areas, Nina prefers to work more instinctively, discovering worthy subjects as she explores.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI like to walk spontaneously through the city and look for backgrounds, repetitive patterns or an exciting lighting situation,\u201d Nina states. \u201cEspecially in unfamiliar places, I feel highly inspired by the foreign and unfamiliar, noticing circumstances I would overlook at home in everyday life.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n That isn\u2019t to say that no preparation is required. \u201cI often find my settings at well-known buildings, so I do research beforehand,\u201d she notes. \u201cWhen I go on a trip, I usually have a plan in my pocket to help me along if my creativity falls asleep or even leaves me. Such phases happen. After a long period of anticipation, you finally arrive at your destination and suddenly your feet hurt, it\u2019s far too warm or the photos you\u2019ve taken so far don\u2019t satisfy you. My mood can quickly change in those situations,\u201d she laughs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIn cases like this, I use my plan as a guide and know which place is likely to reawaken my creativity. But I don\u2019t think in advance about which photo might be made there \u2013 from which corner of the square it will be created or exactly what the result should look like. In relation to this, I like to go to a place completely unbiased.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Once struck by an idea, Nina\u2019s techniques for heightening the impact of a building involve maximising its profile in the frame. \u201cTo enhance the minimalism of a scene, I often use a borderless representation of the architecture, so you can\u2019t tell whether a building ends at the edge of the picture,\u201d she explains. \u201cAs a result, the viewer is initially confused by the dimensions and finds it somewhat more difficult to categorise them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cFurthermore, the exact alignment of lines plays a major role. I try to completely avoid converging verticals that quickly appear in architectural photos \u2013 and eliminate them in post-processing. This is certainly personal taste, but for me the parallelism of lines and correct alignment emphasises the order and tidiness of a scene.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cSometimes it\u2019s also the little things. For example, when a line ends exactly in the corner of the frame. Even if it\u2019s not that important for the effect of the picture, for me personally it\u2019s the icing on the cake \u2013 I always enjoy details like that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Nina\u2019s evocative use of bright highlights and dark shadows are a staple of her images. \u201cLight and shadow are always effective at giving a composition additional depth and layers, and making it appear more three-dimensional,\u201d she notes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n While certain types of lighting are more favourable for this look, in Nina\u2019s opinion every change in conditions presents a new imaging opportunity. \u201cWhen the sun is harsh, it\u2019s the long shadows of buildings; when it\u2019s raining, it\u2019s a passerby with an umbrella,\u201d she points out. \u201cThe last thing I worry about in my life is the weather.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n For her monochrome work, FUJIFILM Film Simulations help create the desired aesthetic. \u201cI always work with a colour preview on my camera, even though my work is largely black & white. I can\u2019t really explain why,\u201d Nina ponders. \u201cI use a refined Film Simulation of ETERNA Bleach Bypass for getting a better impression of the scene on the display.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Turning the photos black & white and adjusting the contrast is all done in the editing stage. \u201cThis is part of my post-production process,\u201d Nina explains. \u201cI do my final editing from the RAW file in great detail. I am an absolute tonal value obsessive and attach great importance to getting the maximum out of my photo in the edit.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n When it comes to parting advice for those interested in architectural photography, Nina has the following to say:<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cPatience plays the biggest role if you don\u2019t want to settle for a mediocre photograph. Over the years, I\u2019ve learnt to deal with the fact you don\u2019t always get what you dream of. But you have to keep at it \u2013 keep coming back and, at some point, you will be rewarded for your efforts.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Fine art street photographer Nina Papiorek discusses how geometric buildings form the foundation of her photos \u201cWhat runs through all my photos like a red thread is a minimalist approach,\u201d begins Nina Papiorek, a German photographer whose images combine solitary human figures with imposing architectural structures. \u201cI like tidy, clear images where my eye is […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":273,"featured_media":166458,"template":"","category":[2084,1006,1202,3113,11002,1937,13392,1055,3701,320,565,3554],"post_tag":[],"b2b-solutions":[],"class_list":["post-166613","story","type-story","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-be-inspired","category-cameras","category-category","category-g-mount","category-gf20-35mmf4-r-wr","category-gfx-series","category-gfx100s-ii","category-lenses","category-gfx-series-mirrorless","category-products","category-stories","category-g-mount-zoom"],"pp_statuses_selecting_workflow":false,"pp_workflow_action":"current","pp_status_selection":"publish","acf":[],"fujifilm_category_label":"GFX100S II","publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-10-18 00:15:33","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/no-no\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/story\/166613","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/no-no\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/story"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/no-no\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/story"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/no-no\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/273"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/no-no\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/166458"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/no-no\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=166613"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/no-no\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/category?post=166613"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/no-no\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/post_tag?post=166613"},{"taxonomy":"b2b-solutions","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/no-no\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/b2b-solutions?post=166613"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"\"](\"https:\/\/fujifilm-x.b-cdn.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/Nina-Papiorek_02.jpg?width=821&height=1024\")
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Establishing a style<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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The best equipment for architectural photography<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Finding a frame<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Colours and contrast<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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