The invention of the camera in the early nineteenth century made it the primary means of architectural documentation, offering plans and sketches a complementary visual quality. However, due to geographical distance architectural critique remains disconnected from actual buildings. Recent technological advances have revolutionized the field of printing and visual communication, creating a situation where the architectural photograph is no longer a reliable point of reference. Nonetheless, "sexy" photographs that appear in architectural magazines are given the weight of "policy makers,” turning every staring building into a model for others to idealize.

            In this situation the cliche "a picture is worth a thousand words" is no longer relevant. Most buildings published in architectural magazines are not at all familiar to readers, who inevitably cannot judge them objectively. Moreover, architectural photographers are neither expected to, nor capable of, transmitting architectural information for academic critique. To them, the photograph must be a work of their art: a result of the right composition; a unique positioning of light and shadows, color, an illusion, a fleeting moment. The end result reveals the building only in its best light, hiding its blemishes which, if exposed, may actually reduce its architectural value. Referring to the building as an "environmental statue," most photographs fail to illustrate its sense of space - not to mention insulation, orientation, taste or smell.

            Since photographs are first and foremost the fruit of the photographers artistic point of view, any architectural critique based upon them must of necessity be conducted carefully. As an artist, the photographer has specifically chosen particularly flattering angles, hiding those that might detract. Often, artificial sharpening or softening effects may be the result of Photoshop software, found nowadays in every computer. 

            However, taking into account that a perfect building is really a utopian concept, architectural photography has some advantages, conditioned, of course, on publication as a result of a careful selection process. Only then may it positively enrich architects visual stimulus, allowing for the evolution of professional debate, or even architectural style.

            Illustrating this article are photographs by Amit Geron - an artist and one of the most popular architectural photographers in the country.