The National Museum of American Jewish History, designed by Ennead Architects, is Philadelphia newest eye catching building. A very mod and modern structure located on Market Street in the Independence Mall. And of course, a building such as this brought all of the architectural photographers to come and shot it, including me.
When it first opened in Spring, I rushed down and got many great shots, but the main image (above) gave me a great challenge. You see the orange side of the building faces north, rarely getting sun, whereas the glass side is always brightly light producing a poorly balanced image. The solution, wait four months.
Only in the summer, when the sun is at its highest, both sides are lit at the same time. I captured the image above in the Middle of July around 7:45 PM, just before the sun started to set. This allowed both sides to brightly lit, creating an even image. Something else that happen, which I did not predict, shooting at this time created long shadows of the buildings behind me hitting the neighboring building and helping to accent the museum.
