Architectural Photographers in Dublin

The turn of the century heralded boom times for architectural photographers in Dublin. The noughties saw the city’s skyline sprout a forest of cranes, with former inner-city wastelands ceding space to gleaming steel and concrete. I remember shooting some of these new buildings, marvelling at the talent of their young architects. You can see my architectural photography by visiting https://www.robertmullan.com/Architecture/The-Built-Eviornment

Back then, digital photography hadn’t established itself and digital camera sensors had not ‘come of age’, these new ‘toys’ were viewed with suspicion. Most architectural photographers in Dublin stuck with film.

There was one film camera that became de rigueur: The Hasselblad SWC https://www.hasselblad.com/history/. Made in Sweden, it combined the precision of a Swiss watch and the strength of hardened steel. The legendary Carl Zeiss optical company designed the lens in the 1950s. Nothing came near for its distortion-free images. Lines were always parallel it never failed to deliver brilliant colour reproduction and contrast; oh I could go on and on!  For interiors, it had no equal, no wonder the camera was in every good architectural photographer’s camera bag.

I used my Hasselblad to capture one of my favourite images: Trinity College Dublin’s iconic Old Library building. This magnificent building celebrated its 300th anniversary a couple of years ago. Work started in May 1712 and it took another 20 years to complete the building.  Many famous students of the college like writer Jonathan Swift, philosopher Edmund Burke and artist Mary Delany were amongst the ‘regulars’. More information on this wonderful building see www.tcd.ie/library/tercentenary