Q&A with Landscape Photographer Patrick Colpron, aka @CandidCameraMan

I think that the reason my passion for photography developed so greatly and quickly was due to photo sharing on Instagram. I had recently switched from a Blackberry to an iPhone and was thrilled to finally download the Instagram app. I saw so many iPhone users post images on Instagram and share on Facebook.

I started primarily following Instagrammers from the Paris area that shot similar images like myself.  When I knew I was moving back to Toronto I began following people from the Toronto area as well.  One of my favourite photographers I came across was Patrick Colpron, commonly known on Instagram as CandidCameraMan.  When I arrived back in Toronto I reached out to Patrick and asked if he wanted to shoot together sometime.  I never thought he would respond nor agree to meet up.  He gracefully accepted.  From that point on we met on several occasions to shoot around the city, sometimes just a few of us and other times in rather large groups.

Patrick has always been very helpful and willing to share his tricks and techniques.  For those of you who don’t know him, we thought it would be nice to introduce him to our iLHP readers.

One Is Such A Lonely Number. Or Is it?

When I began taking photos, it was done predominately with my iPhone 4S and when I was alone.  Occasionally I would lug about my Leica when I believed I would encounter something  so phenomenal that my iPhone would not be capable of capturing the reality of the image.  I was residing in Paris and would be walking around and desire to stop recurrently to capture something that caught my eye. It became so infectious that when I was out with friends I would pause mid-conversation, stop and snap a photo.  My friends would tend to get annoyed that my picture taking would interfere with our conversation and take away our precious time together.  Photography gradually began to become somewhat of an obsession.

Instead of annoying whomever I was with at the time, I would venture off unaccompanied to explore the city and be able to take photos without hearing any complaints.  I wanted to upgrade from my iPhone, to improve the quality of my photos, so I had my ancient Canon shipped from back home in Toronto to Paris. 

“Rooftopping” – (Part 2: An Evolving Subculture)

In a previous article, “Rooftopping – Part1:  The Beginning” I introduced a craze in photography known as rooftooping that many urban photographers are exploring.  I communicated how rooftoppers were not particularly thrilled exposing where they shoot from and exposing their secrets.  Understandably because they often gain access by trespassing onto the properties they are shooting from.  The images often raise curiosity among the viewers leaving them to wonder where exactly they were captured from.  In the instances where the viewer is familiar with the city it is not too difficult to pinpoint the general vicinity where the photo was shot. However, figuring out the exact building tends to be more complicated.

Image courtesy of Vitaliy Raskalov & Vadim Makhorov |

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I want to make it clear that I am not revealing any secrets.  Many well-known rooftoppers openly discuss their experiences and post videos of them in the act.  I am friendly with several local rooftoppers therefore, it is not my intention to upset anyone.  I want to be able to share some incredible images by extremely talented young photographers, most who are self-taught.  As well as, acquaint readers with what is typically involved in such extreme photography.

Photographing Paris

A year has now past since I was fortunate enough to be able to call Paris my home. I am now living in Toronto again where I spent most of my life growing up.

When I said farewell to Paris, I left feeling completely heartbroken that my journey had come to an end.  I lived in a quintessential Parisian flat in the 8th arrondissement of Paris just a short walk to Avenue des Champs-Élysées.  I would glance in one direction and be able to lay eyes on the stunning Arc de Triomphe and turn my head the other way and catch a glimpse of Place de la Concorde.

Needless to say, I was not looking forward to moving back to Toronto after living so many years abroad (8 years in the US before France).  I was frightened I would not be able to search deep enough to find any creative inspiration and truthfully, just be bored.  How could one possibly compare the two cities?  Paris is bursting with fascinating history,  extreme elegance and utter romance everywhere your eyes wonder.  As for Toronto, everything appears to be common, newly built and rather uninspiring.

View from top of Sacre Coeur | 1/40 sec f / 11, ISO 160 |

6 Tips for Better Architectural Photography

Achieving an architectural photography image that invokes excitement with the viewer can be extremely challenging.  The following are tips that  have worked best for me…

5) Shoot During the Golden Hour

Humber Bay Arch Bridge | Etobicoke | Canada | 6.0 sec at f / 22, ISO 160.

My absolute favourite time to shoot is during the evening just before sunset.  The golden hour is when the sun shines a glowing light and anything that it reflects off of often creates a beautiful image. When an image is shot during this short time, the viewer’s eye is immediately drawn to the brightest spot of the photo which adds a new exciting dimension to the shot.

4) Try Un-boring Compositions and Perspectives

Sacre Coeur | Paris | France | 8.0 sec at f / 22, ISO, 100.3)

When composing my image I often find that I avoid taking images facing straight at the subject .  I try to find an angle that is interesting to the eye and will add a different element to my image other than just the structure itself.  I aim to find a perspective that allows the details and colours of my subject to really stand out.  I find it best to do a few test shots from different angles to see which will give me the best composition and perspective.  In the image below, I shot the Sacre Coeur Cathedral in  Paris from as low to the ground as I possibly could.   I aimed my camera upwards on a short tripod to give the illusion that the Cathedral is grander against the blue sky and cloudy background.