Berlin in the rain

I mentioned last weekend that I was spending some time post processing photographs from a weekend in Berlin (some three years later) and while doing so I found this shot of the city, in the rain, taken from the roof of the Reichstag.

It wasn’t the only photograph I took from that vantage point, and although I initially disregarded it for the selection of images I put online after the weekend, upon taking a second look at it last weekend I concluded it was actually one of my better shots from the trip.

It was, obviously, shot from inside through a rain-soaked window and that limited my compositional options.  Ideally I would have included more of the cityscape at the bottom of the frame, but the window and a roof outside it meant that I couldn’t include anything below than what is shown here.

I think what I like about the shot is how the natural light and the artificial light balance well with each other, and that was a case of fortunate timing.  I didn’t wait for this to happen, nor did I necessarily realise it at the time, but this balance meant that I was able to expose for the natural light and keep detail throughout the buildings without over-exposing the windows, lit by the artificial light.  If this balance is not correct, you have to chose between one or the other, or indeed try other approaches, and it is interesting to compare the light in this photograph with the light just about 10 minutes later.

In the Brandenburg gate photograph you see the compromise that had to be made to get a good exposure of the gate itself – the entire bottom right corner of the frame, which was only lit by the available light, is greatly underexposed.

Natural landscape photographers often find themselves waiting for the light, but it can be a worthwhile thing for an urban photographer to do also.  That is, if you don’t get lucky and it finds you first.