Chilehaus Courtyard
The Chilehaus grabs your attention with its ship's bow shaped exterior, but the inner courtyards are just begging to be photographed. The building has three of them that are all easily accessible through arched passageways from the street. Once you step inside, the dark clinker brick walls rise up around you on all sides with rows of windows repeating all the way to the top. The symmetry of the window grid framing a rectangle of sky is so clean and precise, plus at blue hour when the building lights come the courtyards transform completely. The warm glow catches the brickwork and the contrast between the lit walls and the fading sky is stunning. Cafés and restaurants sit at ground level so you can take your time and wait for just the right light. While you are waiting for the perfect light, the brick itself is worth paying attention to up close. The dark Oldenburg clinker shifts in tone depending on conditions, and the arched entrance portals have wrought iron grilles with gilded detailing that most people walk straight past. Once you have the courtyard shots you can walk around to the eastern tip on the corner of Pumpen and Niedernstraße for the famous ship's bow angle. The Chilehaus is part of Hamburg's UNESCO World Heritage listed Kontorhaus District making it easy to fill a day exploring and shooting. Don't miss the Sprinkenhof directly across the street with its impressive courtyard. (Hamburg, Germany)
