Architecture & Interior Design Photography in Costa Rica
Photography that proves the design holds up in real light, for portfolios, awards and publications.
A finished building is judged through its photographs long before most people ever walk through it. Your portfolio, your website, an award entry and a magazine feature all depend on the same thing: images that show the design as you meant it.
We photograph residential and hospitality projects across Costa Rica with a focus on the design itself: the lines, the materials, how light moves through a space. Not styled amenities, but the architecture.
Architects
Portfolio-ready images of the finished project, shot to the standard that awards and publications expect.
Interior designers
The shot that carries a room straight into a client presentation, with color and materials rendered true.
Builders & developers
Proof of finish quality that your next bid, brochure or sales deck can point to.
How we photograph architecture
A portfolio has to prove the design holds up in real light, not just in renders. For architects, angle matters more than anything else. We consider the isometric-style perspectives that echo the view of the project in CAD, so a finished shot reads like the drawing come to life.
- Light chosen on purpose: sunrise, sunset and blue hour, each space at its best angle of light.
- Composition around the design: structure, lines, materials and how they meet, before decoration.
- Straight, clean frames: perspective, white balance and exposure corrected by hand, the way editors expect.
- Aerial context: drone photos that place the building in its site, with the landscape that shaped it.
- Details and spaces: wide views for the whole, close frames for the junctions and textures that show the craft.
Portfolios, awards and publications
Architecture photography usually has more than one job: your website, a competition entry, a magazine or an editorial platform. Each has its own image rules. Here are some of the most common ones, so the shoot is planned around where the work will go.
| Where | Images | Technical requirements |
|---|---|---|
| ArchDaily | At least 15 images per built project | At least 2,880 px wide, taken by photographers specialized in architecture. Perspective, white balance, tone and exposure should be corrected, and images should not be partial, dark or over-edited. |
| Architizer A+Awards | 1 to 12 single images, no collages | JPG, JPEG, TIFF or PNG, up to 30 MB each. One optional video. |
| AIA photography competition | Per call for entries | At least 2,816 px on the longest side, up to 20 MB per image. |
What it means in practice: we deliver full-resolution JPG files exported at maximum quality, usually 75 to 120 per project, which covers these requirements. Every call for entries sets its own rules and changes them from year to year, so check the linked guidelines before you submit. If you already know where the project is headed, tell us before the shoot so we plan the coverage around it. We only ask that you credit ConeCat if the project is published.
Pricing for architecture projects
Every building is different, so architecture work is quoted around the project: its size, the number of spaces, whether you need day and twilight coverage, and where the images will be used. Our Premium package, from $600, is built for this: a minimum of two sessions (day and sunset or night), camera and drone, tailored to the project.
- Final pricing varies with distance from our photographers' base; travel time and cost are factored in.
- High season starts in November, and our calendar fills up with it. For a project with a date to meet, ask early.
- Want a video to go with the photos? See our video options, from $180.
What our clients say
"Denisse perfectly captured the nature around the house, as well as the key architectural details. Communication over WhatsApp was easy, and she did a flawless job at our home, which we rent out when we're away…"
Related work
Architecture photography: frequently asked questions
Real estate photos sell a property: they show every room and the lifestyle around it. Architecture photos present a design: they choose the angle, the light and the composition to show the idea behind the building. Many projects need both, and we can plan the two in a single visit.
It depends on where the project is going. ArchDaily asks for at least 15 images per built project, and Architizer's A+Awards accepts 1 to 12 images per entry. We usually deliver 75 to 120 photos per project, covering the whole building, the key spaces, the details and an aerial view, so you have room to choose the best ones for each use, including a competition entry.
Full-resolution JPG files, exported at maximum quality. That is above the minimums that ArchDaily (2,880 px wide) and common photography competitions (around 2,800 px on the longest side) ask for.
When the light does the most for the design. Facades and exteriors usually look best at sunrise or sunset, interiors in good natural light, and glass, pools and lighting designs at blue hour. We plan the schedule around the orientation of the project and the sun on that day. Our Premium package includes at least two sessions for that reason.
A single-visit shoot usually takes around two hours on site. With two visits, plan on about three hours in the morning and two in the afternoon or at sunset. Add travel time, and expect more for properties with many spaces or that need adjustments between shots.
Delivery currently takes 7 to 10 days after the shoot, depending on our workload and the number of photos, so it can change with the season. In high season, which starts in November, ask for the date when you book. Videos usually follow the same timeline, though an elaborate production with several days of shooting and specialized editing can take longer. These times are a reference, not a commitment.
Finish the details: clean glass and surfaces, working lights (garden and pool lighting included), furniture in its final position and no construction materials in view. Tell us what you are most proud of, so we shoot it first. If the project is furnished, a few simple decor touches go a long way.
Yes. Submitting a project to a competition or a magazine does not need a different license. The only thing we ask is a mutual courtesy: if the project is published, please credit ConeCat as the photographer, with a simple “Photography by ConeCat”. If you tell us when it happens, we can also coordinate a joint post that benefits both businesses.
ConeCat keeps the copyright of every image, and the license covers the use you booked. See our Terms & Conditions.
Clients judge an architect by what has already been built. Professional photos of finished projects show that the design was delivered as drawn, in real light and with real materials, which a render cannot do. A portfolio that shows projects similar to the client's own is one of the quickest ways to earn trust before a first meeting.
Renders show intent, and photos show results. For clients, awards and publications, built work in good photographs carries more weight. We recommend using photos for completed projects and renders only for work in progress.
Publications set their own rules and decide what to publish, so no photographer can guarantee it. What we can do is prepare the project to meet them. ArchDaily, for example, asks for at least 15 images at 2,880 px wide, taken by a photographer specialized in architecture, with corrected perspective and exposure. We plan the coverage, the light and the delivery around that standard.
Most new clients find designers on their website and on Instagram or Pinterest, so your photos are your first meeting. A shoot that captures each room's light, materials and color gives you images for your portfolio, your social media, your proposals and any submission. Tell us where you will use them so we plan the shots for that.
When it is completely finished and styled, and ideally before the client moves in, so the space looks as designed. If the home is already occupied, we coordinate with the owner and prepare the spaces first.
Have a project to show?
Tell us about it and we will send you a quote within 24 hours.