Architectural photographer, Northern Ireland

15yrs

Nick Gray. Ex Hennessy and Porsche.

Nick Gray, property photographer, at golden hour
Architectural photography

Planned around the sun

Buildings are made by light as much as by stone. I plan every shoot around where the sun will be, so the building looks the way its architect drew it.

Architects and builders

I work for architects who need a building recorded the way it was designed, and for builders who need finished work to show the next client.

The brief starts with the drawings and the site: which elevation matters most, which way it faces, and what sits around it. I ask for both before the day, so the shoot plan follows the building rather than the clock.

Exteriors at the right hour

Every elevation has an hour when it looks its best. I check where the sun will be before I arrive, and shoot each side of the building when the light falls across it rather than flat onto it.

Light sells. I’ve spent fifteen years learning where to find it.

Interiors that explain the plan

Inside, I shoot the spaces in the order they were designed to be read: the arrival, the main volume, the way light enters, and the junctions where one material meets another.

Twilight

Twilight is when a building glows from the inside. I shoot exteriors as the sky darkens and the interior lights come up, so the glass reads warm and lived in instead of black.

Drone for context

Some buildings only make sense with the land around them. Drone frames show the site, the approach and the setting, shot on the same visit and graded with everything else.

Awards and submission sets

For award entries and publication I put together a submission set: the key exteriors, the interiors that explain the plan, and the details a jury looks for, all graded as one.

The Lakeside Huts

Northern IrelandArchitectureTimberSunriseGolden hour

Timber cladding, green panelling, an oak worktop and a butler sink. Two shepherd’s huts and a plywood cabin on a private lake, shot at sunrise and at golden hour so the timber and the water read together.

Shepherd’s hut door open onto a lake and wooden hot tub in late afternoon sun, Northern Ireland
Timber shepherd’s hut with hot tub and jetty on a private lake in evening sun, Northern Ireland
Green panelled shepherd’s hut kitchen with oak worktop, butler sink and woodburner, soft daylight
Valais Blacknose sheep looking in through a cabin door in late afternoon light, Northern Ireland
Plywood cabin bedroom with a picture window over the lake, afternoon light

The Townhouse

Northern IrelandResidentialTwo visitsPhotographyFilm

Sage-green cabinetry, a long oak table, green velvet and white render. Shot across two visits: daylight for the rooms, sunset for the kitchen and the courtyard, all graded to one house style.

Open-plan townhouse kitchen and dining room with the sun setting through sliding doors, Northern Ireland
White rendered townhouse and courtyard at sunset, Northern Ireland
Green corner sofa and patterned cushions in a townhouse living room, low evening sun
Sage-green townhouse kitchen with long oak dining table in warm late light, Northern Ireland
Townhouse bedroom with green velvet headboard and rattan pendant, sun on the wall
Walkthrough
Questions

Before you book

  • 01

    Can you shoot for award entries?

    Yes. I put together a submission set graded as one, with the exteriors, interiors and details that tell the story of the building.

  • 02

    Do you shoot twilight?

    Yes. I plan twilight exteriors for the window after sunset when the sky and the interior lights balance.

  • 03

    Do you fly drone for site context?

    Yes, drone is part of the same visit and graded with the stills.

The Lakeside Huts, Northern IrelandThe Townhouse, Northern IrelandEight questions to ask before you book a property photographer