Interview with Architectural photographer Marco Castilla

20th June 2015 Architecture, Interviews 4700

How did you get into photography ?

I got into photography quite naturally trying to catch things I like best, i.e. Architecture.

Where do you get your creative inspiration from ?

Quite different things influenced me : the American paintings of Edward Hooper, or those of the Italians of the 18th century, like the landscapes of Caravage or the Dutch school with Vermeer. There is also the cinema of Wenders, John Carpenter, or William Friedkin for the street environment.

As for the photos I rather like Henri Cartier-Bresson, Doisneau or Bernd and Hilla Bercer for their industrial photos. Concerning Thomas Hoepker, Steve McCurry or Philip-Lorde l’Amériquca DiCorcia I adore what they do, or Raymond Depardon for France, but it is Stephen Shore for those incredible American shots who most influenced me.

Which places have been your favourite shooting sites so far and why?

I have discovered plenty of magic places to take photos, for example the Pena Palace in Portugal under the fog, or the Spree Park in Berlin, a given up amusement parc. But what most impresses me are the cities: New York, Hong Kong, Shanghai. I purposely get myself lost in order to discover new places. However, the site I most prefer for the photos is the USA because of the incredible diversity of landscapes which look like a great playing ground for photographers.

Is there any gear in particular that helps you in your architectural photography?

There is nothing which can help me to shoot a good photo… For me, intuition is the most important. Quite often, when you think you cannot find anything, you do and vice versa. However, it is important that you like to get up early or to go to bed late in order to make photos with very little people. Afterwards, in order to avoid people on the film I utilize the longest of pauses with nd neutral filters.

What do you do besides photography?

I am one of those persons who get bored very quickly in only one field.Therefore, I do many different things as the realization of films, paintings, sculptures, special effects for the cinema etc. At the moment I am building a wooden tower of Babel, nearly 7 m high.

What is your favourite photography book?

The book of Roman Bezjak and his socialist modernism which I adore.

What are your future plans with photography?

I will continue the series “Babel” edited by the magazine “Conference” of autumn 2014 with poems of the novelist Cécile Ladjali which accompany each one of my photos A conference will be organized in Toulon on September 2015. The poems and photos will be exposed there.

Website: www.marcocastilla.fr