PHOTOGRAPHY - PG 9

More photo pages: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11

On this night, Houston's City Hall building on Bagby street glows red. City Hall in red adds an entirely new dynamic to a famous and historic part of the city. This downtown building is the government headquarters of Houston, Texas. It was built in 1939 and has included the office of our mayors ever since. It's located next to Tranquility park and the famous Houston public library. When it was built all those years ago, its construction cost under $1.7 million. Times have changed but this building has held up well. This photo makes the building feel powerful. At the top of the building is a clock where you can see what time I photographed it.

The Woodlands Church at Fellowship drive was built in 2001. It seats up to 4,000 people and was built with mostly stone and glass. That center atrium is almost completely made with glass. The outer wings are made of more traditional and economic stone blocks. There's a shallow pool pond out front which is landscaped and has fountains spraying water all day. Those live oak trees in front of the building are much taller and more mature today than when I photographed them here. I chose a bright and clear day because I wanted there to be sharp contrast and a bright and clean feeling. That and other choices made for a nice positive feel, adding to the mood.

This photo is of Chapel in the Woods, the Woodlands Church. It's a simple and elegant looking chapel that sits surrounded by tall Pine and Oak trees. It's a very tall structure and I wanted to dramaticize that. It seats up to 450 people inside and often hosts wedding events. It was built in 2007 in the Woodlands Texas. The front of the building is full of glass panels all the way to the top. I captured the lighting partly with the help of a beautiful sky to enhance the mood. The way the trees are shown slightly on each side to frame the chapel against a colored sky creates a nice feel.

Faithbridge Church at Stuebner Airline was built in 2006. This large church is around 55k sq ft. It's sprawling and is made of materials which can be economic to build largely with. They tinted all the windows reducing visibility but helping to keep the hot Texas heat out of the building during summer time. That helps to save money and reduces the struggle on air conditioners. I framed this carefully to create a dramatic composition effect. I also waited for an extremely cloudy day so the photo would feel more striking. I wanted there to be a feeling of warmness. The lighting and other choices added more to the mood.

This is the Houston Texas Temple, which was built in 2000. This church of latter-day saints is built of stone and concrete materials, and finished in granite. It reaches 159 feet tall and is nearly 34k sq ft. It's located on Champions Forest drive and cost nearly $17m to build. It serves about 44k people in the region who attend periodically. I chose to compose this on a clear day in a way that felt powerful. The church against a clear bright sky made it feel bright and clean. There's a positive aura to it. Some of my choices for composition and lighting created a great mood and feel, along with some texturing to add to the richness.

This luxurious River Oaks Houston mansion is the home of world famous preacher Joel Osteen. Osteen is the long time preacher for Lakewood Church in Houston Texas. This beautiful mansion was built in 2008 and is 17k sq ft. It's made of stone blocks and has large old oak trees. It has six bedrooms, six bathrooms, 3 elevators and a slate roof. It's too wide to compose all in one frame while maintaining a close feel. I chose this composition to add to the luxurious feel I wanted and to make you feel connected to pure richness. That and some of the other choices created a great mood.

This is a famous River Oaks mansion in Houston and it's home to Lakewood Church preacher Joel Osteen. It was built in 2008, and built from stone block materials which were white washed. White washing can happen from rolling on paint or dyed cement. It's an extra layer of protection from weather which is necessary because Houston Texas is extremely hot and humid. The 17k sq foot mansion is in the middle of Houston's version of Beverly Hills, known as River Oaks or R.O. to some people. Then, there's a baby Beverly Hills down the street known as Tanglewood. I composed this photo in a way that would feel luxurious and glamorous. With all the choices, it feels like being in a movie where the boss is arriving at the gates of a mysterious compound. There's also a feeling of nostalgia adding to the mood and some surrealism.

Photography pgs continued: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11