The Colorful Art Déco District of Miami Beach Shot on iPhone

Photographer Nicolai Boenig explores the pretty pastels and iconic architecture of the ever-popular Florida vacation destination

Art Deco Facades of Miami Beach photographed by Nicolai Boenig

While Miami may still have a reputation as the seaside resort for retired people and excessive party location for spring breakers and celebrities, intensive efforts are made to transform the metro area into a multifaceted cultural hub. The historic Art Déco architecture around South Beach is one of the elements that make this region so unique and definitely worth a visit.

Iconic Miami Beach Hotel on Ocean Drive - photographed by Nicolai Boenig

Q: Nicolai, how did you develop this set of images and what kind of photo equipment did you use?

» This photo series was not an assignment – as a matter of fact, it wasn’t even planned. On a brief stay at the coastal city, I headed to the beach and simply got lost in the playful facades and lovely color palette.
The equipment? An iPhone 11 loaded with ProCamera, flip-flops and a beach towel 😀

Miami Beach - Nicolai Boenig for ProCamera 3

Q: Do you have a personal favorite from this series?

» Hmm, maybe the following image because of the serendipity. The light tones in the whole scene match beautifully, and it looks like the woman on the giant poster is checking out the car.

From a compositional standpoint, it’s interesting that the buildings consist of all these straight lines whereas the car is all curves – and the big arrow on the street is a nice visual lead-in.

Art Deco buildings in Miami Beach photographed by Nicolai Boenig — Bug meets Bunny: finding candid, un-staged scenes like this is very rewarding as a (street) photographer

Q: How did ProCamera help you in capturing these architectural travel impressions?

» By using ProCamera’s Auto Perspective Correct (APC) feature, I was able to emphasize the geometrical character of the ornate facade designs. Let me show you a side-by-side comparison to illustrate the difference perspective correction makes:

Comparison Photo: converging lines vs. straightened image — Snapshot with converging lines vs. corrected image (same iPhone lens, same spot, same camera angle)

Perspective Correction

Every time you angle your camera and photograph a subject from below, you will get converging lines. Especially in architecture photography, you will probably want to avoid such leaning-in lines as buildings otherwise seem to fall over. This is where ProCamera’s Auto Perspective Correct comes in very handy. The feature automatically corrects perspective distortion in real time by using the iPhone’s built-in gyroscope.

The 80s pastel color palette on Ocean Drive Miami Beach photographed by Nicolai Boenig

The innovative Auto Perspective Correct is part of the “ProCamera Up” feature bundle. You can find more information about this optional add-on via ProCamera app > Shop > ProCamera Up.

In the in-app shop, you can easily start a free 14-day trial to see how these special features work for you. In case you are interested in temporary access for a specific vacation or photo project, there also is a very affordable 1-month plan. Recently, we also started offering ProCamera Up as a one-time purchase.