MAJOR SHOOT FOR AZIZI DEVELOPMENTS
REAL-ESTATE SHOOT AND POST-PRODUCTION PROCESS COMMISSIONED BY AZIZI DEVELOPMENTS IN DUBAI, UAE
Photo composite: the buildings in the background were photographed. The canal and the promenade in the foreground are a mix of 2D images and 3D Computer Generated images. This image represents “reality” in the near future.
As an architectural photographer, I'm used to capturing the cold, hard beauty of a building. It's a form of discipline and patience, seeking the essence of design through symmetry, perspective, and meticulously chosen compositions. But on a recent project with a major Dubai developer, I had to push my skills further.
Sure, I captured the developer's dream shots with perfect angles, all framed by the city's dramatic skyline. However, the real job started after the last shutter click.
The Challenge: Time Travel Through Editing
While professional photos always involve some editing, this project took us on a time-traveling adventure in the post-production suite. Lush greenery sprouted around the development, replacing the construction dust. The water canal, still under construction, transformed into a pristine turquoise oasis. The currently barren promenade and beach became bustling with happy residents, showcasing a thriving community.
The real challenge was in adding the elements to the photos of a lively future community that hadn't quite materialized yet. This wasn't about enhancing reality, it was about creating a vision – a glimpse of what this development would have looked like after 6 months, but promoted today.
To achieve this, I assembled a team of specialists in the field of image retouching, 2D image manipulation and 3D CGI visualisation. We spent a month merging my architectural photographs with 2D image elements consisting of trees, skies, retail shop fronts I photographed all over Dubai. They had to be carefully selected, masked and blended with the photos. We also generated 3D models of the canal, the promenade, the beach, the trees, which were camera-matched, rendered and composited with the photos into cohesive images. It was an undertaking requiring meticulous attention to detail and constant communication between myself, the client, and the artists in my team.
Four weeks of photography captured the essence of each community – interiors, exteriors, aerial views, the whole package. Then came the magic: transforming those images into vibrant illustrations of the future which took another 1.5 months of work.
This project was a technical, creative, and logistical exercise which exploited the benefits of ultra high-resolution, digital architectural photography and all the latest image editing techniques, including the latest AI powered Generative tools which sped-up certain repetitive tasks.
The buildings I photographed were fresh off construction, receiving their finishing touches, still devoid of any occupants. The glass windows weren't cleaned yet, which presented a real photography challenge. To capture a clear reflection of Dubai's skyline posing to the right side of the frame, a quick on-site window cleaning operation was needed.
In the end, I delivered over 80 stunning visuals to the client that showcased these communities not just as buildings, but as thriving, inviting places to call home. It was an exercise in the power of collaboration and the ability to turn a vision into reality, even before the reality itself has fully arrived.
Ready to see the before and after visuals from behind the scenes of the post-production phase? Scroll down to check out the short film I created! It takes you on a visual journey of a few key edits that brought the future of this real estate development to life.
Client: Azizi Developments
Photography / Post-Production Supervision / Editing: Beno Saradzic
Additional Image Editing: Alex Bovell, Eric Catona
Additional 3D CGI: CGI Kite
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