If you’ve been following me long enough you know I adore any design by Jeanne Gang (Studio Gang Architects). So, when I saw her newish building, Mira, being developed in San Francisco I knew I had to get there to shoot it! As luck would have it, I found myself in SF the last week of 2021.

Despite less than ideal weather the day I went to shoot, it was slightly rainy and completely overcast, I think this offers a unique opportunity and a different kind of light than I might normally encounter with the typically sunny California. The sky is like a giant softbox creating nice even light.

The facade of the building took on this slight blueish hue, likely related to the sky and rainy atmosphere. I did edit all the images in color and black & white but I think I prefer the blueish tone. So that’s what I’m sharing here today.

The facade is also very sculptural, which is further exaggerated the closer you get to the building. So, there are a lot of shots that may not feel all that different but I like how you see the subtle changes from minor adjustments. Either from zooming in with the camera, moving myself closer to the building or choosing to fill the frame or leave a little bit of that whiteout sky as negative space.

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The two images above and the two below take on this butterfly wing-like feeling to me. Or fractals. Or maybe you see something else entirely.

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On the northeastern facade, there’s this one area that felt like it had a greater sweeping curve than other areas of the building.

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The last two images are my favorites from the day. In the first, the blue tones have this beautiful gradient and I loved the way the light was catching differently in various areas of the facade. There’s a greater subtly to the contrast in the curves and geometric forms of the balconies. There’s just a beautiful softness to this particular angle that I most connect to.

And, this last image, feels like waves or mountain peaks. Either way, another favorite from the day.

No doubt I’ll be back in SF soon and will most definitely be revisiting this beauty. When I have a favorite building I love to go back at different times of day, different times of the year, and under varying weather conditions. It’s a great exercise in seeing the same thing in different ways and pushing myself to seek out something new on each visit. Stay tuned 😉