Architecture spins, zooms, slides, grows, shrinks and blooms like oversized artificial flowers in animated GIF form, with the effects originating from both fantasy motions that the real-life buildings don’t actually perform and functional movable parts. With these graphics we see architecture from a new perspective as it seems to take on a life of its own – and while watching elements of a building click into place from the sky like a game of Tetris is satisfying, it’s also really cool to see how transforming elements of real buildings work, like a massive sliding metal roof that covers or uncovers an all-glass house at the push of a button.

M.C. Escher and the Droste Effect

M.C. Escher’s drawing of a landscape. spotted inside a window (Prentententoonstelling or ‘Print Gallery’, 1956), serves as the basis of this Droste effect gif. The artist used a mathematical grid to create the twisted perspective in the original drawing, and then researchers at Leiden University reproduced it on a computer, adjusted the perspective and applied the zooming effect.

Rapid Perspective Shift

This somewhat disorienting gif gives us an idea of what it would be like to zoom through a city in a flying car, quickly shifting our perspective of a single building’s corner several times.

8 Animated Architectural Images by Axel de Stampa

A series of structures by famous architecture firms like MVRDV and Herzog de Meuron come to life in these gifs by Paris-based architects Axel de Stampa and Sylvain Macaux. The Mirador Buidling by the former zooms into place on the ground like a life-sized game of Tetris, while the randomly stacked levels of the latter’s Vitra House appear and disappear. ‘Architecture Animée’ adds a fourth dimension to architecture by quickly applying changes that normally would only be seen with the passage of time.

Sliding Pergolas House

We get to see just how the star feature of the ‘Sliding Pergolas House’ in Brazil by FGMF Arquitetos works in this fun gif. The movable roof elements make it possible to shelter some areas of the spacious courtyard while letting sun stream into others.

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Buildings In Motion 15 Most Mesmerizing Architecture Gifs

When the scenery is this beautiful, who could blame you for letting your attention wander away from the movie screen? Beijing-based architect Ole Scheeren constructed a temporary floating cinema for the Film on the Rocks Yao Noi Festival in Thailand, with a platform that undulated on gentle blue-green tropical waters in the Nai Pi Lae lagoon.

Some might argue that when you’re watching a film, you should be totally sucked into it, forgetting about your surroundings – so what should it matter that just beyond the screen are majestic, towering rock islands, or that just below the platform upon which you sit could be coral reefs brimming with colorful life? But watching a movie in a setting like this is definitely a once-in-a-lifetime experience, and your memories of whatever film you see would never be the same.

The Archipelago Cinema featured a floating screen and a raft-like auditorium where guests nestled into big, soft, cozy chairs. Scheeren adapted local techniques used by fisherman to construct floating lobster farms, making the cinema out of recycled materials. After its run as a theater was up, the cinema was donated to the community of Yao Noi for use as a playground and stage.

Scheeren described his project to Architizer: “A screen, nestled somewhere between the rocks. And the audience…floating…hovering above the sea, somewhere in the middle of this incredible space of the lagoon, focused on the moving images across the water: a sense of temporality, randomness, almost like driftwood. Or maybe something more architectural: modular pieces, loosely assembled, like a group of little islands that congregate to form an auditorium.”

Architecture is influenced by Eros, Greek god of sexual love and beauty, also known as Roman counterpart Cupid. Architecture can be beautiful and a thing to love. But there are some castles built specifically for love as loving tributes, gifts, or even erected for love lost. Nothing is more powerful than love and expressing love in architecture is divinely romantic. However, love and tragedy are reoccurring themes to these castles. For Valentine’s Day, here are 10 castles built for love.

Boldt Castle on Heart Island, New York

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Valentine’s Day 1905 was to be the day that George Boldt gave his wife the five-acre Boldt Castle estate in the Thousand Islands. He had this medieval and Victorian architectural styled castle built as a testimonial of his love for his wife, Louise. Boldt Castle was to be an eleven-building complex, the most grand in the Thousand Islands. Among many amazing architectural landmarks, there was the Yacht House, a gigantic playhouse Alster Tower, the Power House, and a fairytale version 120-room home modeled after a Rhineland Castle. One year before Boldt Castle was to be completed, Louise, aged 41, died. Brokenhearted, George Boldt stopped the construction and never returned to the island. After more tragedy of vandals set free on the island, there is a bit of a happy ending. Drawn by the romance of the place, now couples come to be wed at Boldt Castle.

Taj Mahal in Agra, India

(image credits:wikipedia,taj-mahal)

The Taj Mahal was built for love, but tragically as a mausoleum and in memory of love lost. After the death of his favorite wife, Mumtaz Mahal, Emperor Shah Jahan began building a tomb that would be the most resplendent monument ever built by man for a woman. While the dome of the mausoleum and its four standing minarets are built out of white marble, all the outlying buildings within the Taj Mahal complex are primarily built out of red sandstone, combining Persian, Indian, and Islamic architectural styles. The central focus of the complex is the tomb and you can tour it virtually here.

Swallow’s Nest Castle: “Castle of Love” in Crimean, Ukraine

(image credits:English Russia,Oddity Central)

Built in 1912 near Yalta in the South of Crimea, the Swallow’s Nest is one of the most romantic castles of Neo-Gothic style. The Swallow’s Nest Castle was originally named “The Castle of Love.” However, the romantically named “Love Castle” started with humble beginnings as a wooden cottage. There is little proof that this “Castle of Love” was built for a great love . . . more like a lover’s nest. Perhaps not constructed for true love but built for the purpose of making love. In 1927, an earthquake measuring 6-7 on the Richter scale, cracked the 130 ft Aurora Cliff. The huge crack closed the castle for the next 40 years. The cliff and castle have since been fortified and restored. The public flocks to Swallow’s Nest Castle to look over Ai–Todor Cape, the Black Sea, and to dine in the restaurant now within the castle’s walls.
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Dobroyd Castle in Todmorden, England

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Dobroyd Castle at Todmorden started as a promise of love and turned into a honeymoon home. John Fielden, the son of a wealthy industrialist, fell in love with a local weaver girl, Ruth Stansfield. Fielden proposed to her, but she said she would marry him if he would promise to build her a castle on a hill. When completed, Dobroyd Castle had 66 luxurious rooms, a stable for 17 horses, boasted four small turrets and a main tower. The initials of John and Ruth were engraved in a dozen places, the monograms JFR carved into the Devon marble and Caen stone, as a testimony to their love. However, in a social climb to “immortalise the name of Fielden,” John sent his wife to finishing school in Switzerland to improve her education and learn social etiquette. Distance apart did not make the heart grow fonder, alienating the couple. When she died, he remarried. But John was crippled after being kicked by a horse and spent the rest of his life in a wheelchair. Love and tragedy.

Kellie’s Castle in Batu Gajah, Malaysia

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Kellie’s Castle is Malaysia’s oldest castle and built for love by Scottish planter William Kellie Smith for his wife Agnes Smith. She missed home tremendously and had also blessed him with a son. Construction began in 1915, combining three architectural styles – Greco-Roman, Moorish, and Indian. A Spanish flu epidemic killed most of the 70 Indian construction workers. Kellie Smith built a Hindu temple near the castle to please the Indians and to restart construction. Kellie Smith left for England to fetch a lift for the castle tower, but he died shortly thereafter from pneumonia. Construction on the castle built for love was left uncompleted. The castle ruins are rumored to be haunted.

Stratford Castle in Durban, South Africa

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Stratford Castle in Durban, South Africa, now is placed within Camelot Residential and Golf Estate, but it too started off as a kiss of inspiration from true love. The Castle’s cornerstone on the North wing is engraved with Sir Walter Raleigh’s immortal words: “But true love is a durable fire, In the mind ever burning; Never sick, never old, never dead; From itself never turning.” The castle was built upon the spirit of those lovely words. Do you wish you could build a castle for your true love? How about buy one? Stratford Castle is for sale to the tune of $365,000,000 and equipped with, among many things, a golf course within Camelot (and neighbors).

Mystery Castle in Phoenix, Arizona

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Mystery Castle is a castle built for a princess. Sounds like a magical love story, but it started on a sad note of despair. Boyce Gulley left from his home in Seattle, sick at heart after being diagnosis with tuberculosis. He slipped away from his wife and daughter, who he did not want to watch him die, and began one of the most beautiful yet odd love stories every recorded. With his last few pennies, he purchased a mining claim of 80 acres in the foothills of South Mountain. He then spent the next 16 years building a castle by hand while waiting to die. He used natural materials and old abandoned artifacts. With the memories of his daughter when the two of them built sand castles on the Pacific beaches, memories of the times when she cried as the tide washed them back into the sea, he built the Castle Made From Love. His Mystery Castle would never wash away and she would have it forever. After Boyce died, his daughter, Mary Lou Gulley, discovered her inheritance and received the love offering of Mystery Castle.

Coral Castle in Homestead, Florida

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In the early 1920’s, a man named Ed Leedskalnin was left by his fiancé the day before their wedding. Heartbroken, yet intending to leave the mark his undying love, Leedskalnin worked for 28 years on his tribute to his lost love. Working only at night, managing to move tons of stone, he built his lost beloved “Sweet Sixteen” an intricate and stunning castle made of coral. Mystery surrounds Coral Castle, starting at the gate which is a piece of nine ton coral. Leedskalnin claimed to know the secrets of the great pyramids. Yet neither his knowledge nor his devotion to his lost love brought her back to him. It has, however, brought untold thousands of visitors to Coral Castle.

Winchester Mystery House in San Jose, California

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This California “Castle” is a story of love and of tragedy, built less in an effort to remember her beloved husband and more for the love of her own life. Sarah Winchester, the widow of gun magnate William Winchester, believed that her life was endangered and that she was haunted by the ghosts of those killed by Winchester rifles. Her master building plan was only to keep continuous construction so she would be safe and perhaps live forever, or for as long as the house was being built. Her “castle” was an architectural reflection of her psyche, built for 38 years without ceasing, into a maze-like mansion “full of twists, turns, and dead ends, so that the spirits would get lost and never be able to find her.” There are about 160 rooms, 47 fireplaces, 10,000 window panes, two basements and three elevators. Before the 1906 earthquake, the house had been seven stories tall, but is now only four stories. The Winchester Mystery House is allegedly haunted yet open for tourists. Love comes in all shapes, sizes, and colors as does tragedy.

Prasat Hin Phimai in Phimai, Thailand

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The Legend of Pajitt and Orapima begins with a prince named Pajitt. The king wanted his son to take a wife, so Prince Pajitt traveled the countryside for months until he spotted a pregnant light-skinned woman. He considered her his soulmate, but he could not marry a widow. Instead, Pajitt planned to marry the unborn child when she, Orapima, reached the age of 16. As she grew, they fell wildly in love. Before he could marry Orapima, he returned to the King for the wedding payment to her mother. Orapima was kidnapped, but Pajitt rescued her. While they rested in the forest, a woodsman killed Pajitt with an axe and stole Orapima. She killed the woodsman and returned to Phimai where she built a sanctuary, Prasat Hin Phimai. Heartbroken, she prayed for her true love and the reincaration of Pajitt’s spirit. Prasat Hin Phimai was built, painted, and sculpted on the inside with scenes from her life with Pajitt. One day, a young man saw her handiwork and was brought before her. She recogonized Pajitt’s spirit and they lived happily ever after. Today, in the small town of Phimai, lies one Thailand’s most extensively restored Khmer temple complexes as seen above . . . the sanctuary and “castle of love” Orapima had constructed as she waited on her beloved Pajitt’s reincarnation.

Somewhere between creative vision and recording a split second of time, master photographers manage to capture the very essence of their subjects. This amazing ability taps into our senses and captivates us with their crafted capture, worth much more than a thousand words. Be it sex appeal, serene landscapes, or tumultuous events, the most gifted photographers show their passion when they shoot, shoot, shoot. Here are 12 top master photographers and some of their best photos.

Polar Bears & Howard Ruby

(image credits:Howard Ruby)

Howard Ruby is an outstanding photographer who has commercially pushed the envelope in all areas of photography.  He manages to capture the drama of the subject matter. He believes that an image can leave a lasting impression that far outlasts watching a video or hours of reading a book. He is on a visually supported mission to bring awareness to climate change and conservation programs. These images of polar bears and icebergs are from his Global Warming gallery.

Visions of the Wild & Florian Schulz

(image credits:Visions of the Wild)

Florian Schulz is another award-winning professional nature photographer with a mission to protect large endangered ecosystems. Schulz has photographed what he considers to be vital areas of unmatched biodiversity such as Yellowstone to Yukon, Baja to Beaufort, Canada, Mexico and Africa. He captures images to inspire and help preserve our natural world.

Ansel Adams

(image credits:The Ansel Adams Gallery)

Ansel Adams was a master of fine art photography. He would pour 18 hours a day into his labor of love, his art. Neither he, nor his camera, knew the meaning of a day “off.” He loved his work though, and it shows. His photographs are legends and some of his classics include Mt. McKinley, Wonder Lake (top left), Half Dome, Merced River, Winter (top right), Rose and Driftwood (middle left), Jeffery Pine Sentinel Dome (bottom left) and Moon and Half Dome (bottom right.) He was a huge activist for the environment and the wilderness.

Robert Mapplethorpe

(image credits:Robert Mapplethorpe)

Robert Mapplethorpe was another epic fine art photographer. As often as not, however, his photos stirred controversy and would be banned from an art gallery. Mapplethorpe sometimes used a Polaroid and stated, “it was more honest.”  A true artist, he snubbed his nose at social acceptance and conventional projects in favor of nudes, provocative S&M photographic documentation, or whatever caught his fancy. He caused ripples in the artistic community and was a powerful force in shaping fine art. The upper right photo is his self portrait.

James Nachtwey Fine Art of War

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James Nachtwey may possibly be the best war photographer to date.  Each of his pictures successfully tell a poignant story worth much more than a thousand words. Nachtwey specializes in documenting war-torn countries. He once stated, “I’m working on a story that the world needs to know about. I wish for you to help me break it in a way that provides spectacular proof of the power of news photography in the digital age.” He has jeopardized his life so many times to let the world “see” what is happening that his guardian angel has surely suffered many bruises and busted bones.

Andrew Prokos Architecture and Landmarks

(image credits:Andrew Prokos)

As in all arts, fine art photography can be broken down into specific genres as well as photos that blur the lines and mix categories. Andrew Prokos is one such photographer. Although he has captured many black and white traditional fine art photos, his skillful shots include architectural, landmark, and cityscape collections such as: Grand Central Station Mercury Clock at Dusk, Rockefeller Center Atlas and St. Patrick’s Cathedral at Night, and a panorama of Midtown Manhattan at dusk as seen from Queens.

From Fairy Tales to Boudoir Photos — Annie Leibowitz

(image credits:Lost At Eminor, abc news)

A true versatile master of photography, Annie Leibovitz has been commissioned by hundreds to tell their tale through a portrait. She is famous for her creative portraits which show a close collaboration between her subjects and her ability to capture the moment. In this case, Johnny Depp and his wife will forever have this image of intimacy recorded. Leibowitz’s claim to fame comes about by her selecting subjects to photograph who “Open their hearts and souls and lives to you.” She snapped the bottom shot for Disney to celebrate their famous fairy tales. The play of light upon the glass slipper and the background setting need no written words to evoke a memory of Cinderella. She also a formidable force in fashion and fine art photography.

Valley of Regret

(image credit:Leah Johnston)

When an image so perfectly captures an emotion, this is great creative photography. In this case, Leah Johnston uses her photos as an illustration to her poetic verse. This portrait is titled Valley of Regret. She has assembled a collection of her uniquely stirring photographs and touching poems on Flickr.

Go Ahead and Burn One: Smoking Kills

(image credits: Platinum,Carioca)

Some photographers are masters at giving us images that are visually stimulating if also somewhat shocking. In the top image, Platinum Studios in Rio de Janeiro constructs a commercial image of a bowling pin burning as if it were a cigarette. On the bottom are pictures out of Carioca Studios. This amazing photo production house, based in Bucharest, Romania, is highly specialized in advertising photography. From their Faces Gallery, a woman smokes while holding a baby as the smoke curls upward to form a halo above the child’s head. On the lower right, Golden Pig and Bitches, stuns us. It is one of four from that series to be ranked in Lurzer’s Archive Special Edition.

Snickers

(image credits: Carioca)

In America, the above pictures do not immediately bring Snickers to mind. But in Europe, Carioca launched a successful Snickers campaign with these photos. In Romania, Carioca means felt pen. They chose that name so people could not hold them to a specific meaning, visual style, or philosophy. Recently a Carioca member who will remain anonymous told WebUrbanist, “Carioca is a photo production house. We have production, photo, postproduction, and CGI departments. We have here 3 in-house photographers (which are also the partners in Carioca, together with a production guy). We use to sign the works as Carioca (because indeed every visual is a collective work) and we like it to be that way.”

David LaChapelle & Simon Green

(image credits:Simon Green Photography, David LaChapelle)

Commercial Advertising Photographer Simon Green paints a vivid image with his camera of this princess dressed in red but resting as if dead upon the rocks. David LaChapelle as an artist, a fashion photographer, seems to like to keep people talking even if the comments are not always complimentary. He is a dynamic force in his field, such as with the advertising photo on the left that was taken for Lavazza.

Fantasy and CGI for Platinum

(image credits: Platinum)

Platinum Studio uses all available artistic means in order to best construct commercial images. They blend their visions to create an eclectic and diverse range of photos. Today, they excel in images developed with CGI and 3D tools. There is also a touch of the fairy tale element like in the top picture, reminiscent of Rapunzel with a new rebel attitude. In the bottom photo, a hospital room is transformed with the use of Legos. And who doesn’t like Legos? They can cheer up any place or any image, definitely making it cool.

In the early days of photography, monochrome wasn’t a choice – it was a fact. When color film was made possible, it became all the rage. For decades, black and white photography was all but forgotten by everyone other than professional photographers. But recently it’s been making a resurgence. A new generation of photographers is exploring the amazing visual possibilities of black and white photography.

Richard Vanek

(images via: Richard Vanek)

It has been said that color photography requires far less thought than monochrome. While that may or may not be true, anyone who has photographed in both knows that black and white does take some careful planning. The lighting and composition of a black and white shot will make a huge effect on the finished photograph, perhaps more so than on color shots. The foresight that Slovakian photographer Richard Vanek invests in his photographs is obvious. His “Remembering Childhood” series consists of reconstructed memories of his childhood or images that remind him of specific moments from his early life.

CB Clements

(images via: Webshots)

Infrared photography is a stunning way to get a different perspective on common subjects. When it’s combined with monochrome photography, such as in these photos from C.B. Clements, the results are truly incredible. Black and white infrared photographs look somewhere between HDR photos and old film negatives. The unexpected tones and enhanced textures make for some of the most beautiful monochrome pictures ever.

Roby 72

(images via: Roby 72)

The sense of personality and feeling displayed by subjects in photographs is somewhat more poignant in black and white than in color. Because there are no bright colors to convey happiness or muted colors to display desperation, the weight of emotion lies wholly on the composition, textures, and lighting of the photograph. Roby 72 has only been taking photographs since 2007, but judging from his masterful composition of monochrome photos, it’s easy to assume that he’s been a photographer for much longer.

Phil Douglis

(images via: Phil Douglis)

Photographers favor monochrome photos for a variety of reasons. Phil Douglis often takes his photographs in color and converts them to black and white in order to emphasize certain aspects of the image. By removing the color, he removes the distraction of colors and is able to draw attention to shapes, negative spaces, textures, and positions. His photographs are strong in color, but incredible without color.

Marcus Puschmann

(images via: fotopusch)

Even images that have been seen before become extraordinary when seen in black and white. Without colors to distract the eye, the viewer is free to discover new details and parts of the picture that aren’t apparent in a brightly colored image. These photographs from Marcus Puschmann show images from Venice, one of the most heavily photographed cities in the world, but they seem to show a new side of the city. The spiral staircase in the Vatican is a highlight of his set, showing a unique perspective and beautiful composition.

Wendell “In the Rough”

(images via: In the Rough)

Photographers who use black and white know that not all shots will work without color. Some look boring or too dark, and some lose a lot of detail. But there are some shots that work much better with a lack of color. Close-up nature shots can be absolutely stunning in black and white, as can architectural photographs and portraits. This photographer, who goes by the Flickr handle “intherough,” has a great eye for striking black and white compositions.

Sara Heinrichs

(images via: Sara Heinrichs Photography)

Although complex and heavily textured subjects look amazing in black and white, there is also something to be said for smooth, simple lines in black and white. Sara Heinrichs is an outstanding photographer specializing in portraits, and her portraits of newborns utilize black and white for gorgeous results. The simple innocence of the tiny babies is emphasized by the lack of distracting colors. Their flawless skin and bright eyes light up the frames and never fail to elicit an “aww” from viewers.