Who’s the first person renovators think of when they want stunning photographs of their work?
Chances are it’s Gordon King, who has been taking photographs for Lagois Design∙Build∙Renovate for about 20 years. A veteran photographer, he broke into the field of architectural photography way back in the days of film and didn’t look back.
Now his outstanding digital photographs appear in high-end “home” magazines and websites. He also does photography for architects and institutional or commercial clients.
Weddings and passports
Years ago he was a retail photographer with a studio above a dance school on Rideau Street in Ottawa. He did everything from weddings to portraits to passport photos. It was demanding and unfulfilling.
He finally decided it was time to do something else with his talent. He had a young family and “retail” was just not cutting it. He went into commercial photography.
“I had a few lucky breaks,” he says.
Right decision, right clients
The lucky breaks were in the form of some influential people in the building industry. “They mentored me and showed me how to find the right clients.”
It was the right decision.
“Once I started doing architecture and built a clientele, I was like, this is the best.”
It was simpler and also more rewarding, because architectural photography satisfies his interest in design.
Word-of-mouth success
He hasn’t spent much time with social media or in promoting his work, because he’s busy. His clients are regulars who keep coming back, and others go to him because of word of mouth. Some he began with at the beginning when he was shooting film.
Now he does all his own editing and processing.
“That’s a huge part of the job. When we used to shoot film, we’d drop the film off at the lab and they would take care of everything,” he says. “Now the lab is in our computers.” He adds sometimes the processing and editing can take longer than the photo shoot.
Gordon comes from Montreal, where he studied photography. “The professional photography course wasn’t that great,” he says. “There was no photography of architecture at all.” There were no business courses at photography school, either.
So he did what many creative people do. He taught himself. He also worked for Bombardier in their 15-person photography and cinematography department.
Photo finish is a process
Now, because he works so consistently with regular clients, the procedure of photographing a newly-renovated home is smooth.
“They know they don’t have to give me specific instructions,” he explains. “They’ve seen my work and they know I set a high bar for myself ‒ that it will be a good result.”
He integrates photo-shooting and computer work from the start, “so as I’m photographing, I’m thinking about what I’m going to do on the computer with that image. I’m about 95 per cent there as soon as I take the picture.”
Afterwards he does the final adjusting. When clients get the photos, they’re perfect.
Thunderstorm photography and everything else
When Gordon walks in the door of a newly-renovated home, he looks at the light, of course; but the light changes during the shoot depending on the orientation of the windows or the room. It also changes with the weather. Gordon photographs even in thunderstorms, but he explains a professional photographer can handle all different lighting conditions.
Does he think about retiring?
“A lot of photographers just never quit,” he laughs. “I’m really happy with the quality of work I’ve been getting in the last few years. And I don’t want to walk away from it.”
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