Gravity Heights with PGAL | San Diego Restaurant Photography

We’re all about good vibes only, and Gravity Heights epitomizes those feelings! This San Diego restaurant and brewery serves stellar beer alongside epic food options. 

For this project with longtime architecture client PGAL, we wanted to showcase all aspects of the property – interior, exterior, and aerial views. With the bright colors, funky details, hanging plants, and a fab indoor/outdoor space, it was so much fun to shoot this space, and the client and I absolutely love how all of the photos turned out.

How I Planned This Restaurant Shoot

With so many elements to highlight during this shoot, it was essential to time everything and ensure I had a list of all the shots I wanted to get. Besides photographing the interior and exterior, we grabbed aerial shots of the entire building. While the restaurant was empty while shooting the interior, our aerial shots had to navigate around a hoppin’ patio space.

My main priority was including several detailed shots to show off the awesome design work completed by PGAL! Because this wasn’t our first time collaborating, it was easier to prep ahead of time and know what my client wanted to get out of this shoot.

Leaning Into Strong Lighting

While many photographers hesitate to shoot in the midday, I embraced it and actually manipulated it to my advantage for several of the exterior shots. The sun’s reflection on the outdoor awnings created cool stripes, geometric patterns, and other shadows that played into the space’s playfulness. This helped to soften the overall space and diffuse the harsh light.

Additionally, this strong sunlight actually warmed the interior shots by brightening up the colorful booths and bar area. This warmth permeated the entire shoot, including the aerial shots taken early in the evening and right before the golden hour.

Learn more about lighting for photographers and the best time of day to shoot, depending on the overall goals and objectives of the architectural shoot!

Capturing all the Cool Details

As they say – it’s all in the details, and Gravity Heights was not lacking for them! The outdoor space had geometric awnings, strung lights, picnic benches in several colors, funky pillows, an indoor/outdoor bar, and firepits for once the sun sets.

Not to disappoint, the restaurant’s interior was equally rad, with colorful booths, hanging plants, differently shaped lights, and bright pops of color. Even the bathrooms had fun tile work and lighting options!

Showcasing the Property’s Exterior

The grand finale of this shoot was capturing the aerial photographs of Gravity Heights! The outdoor patio area was packin’, and the lighting hit the building perfectly. While getting 360-degree views of the entire space with my drone photography is always fun, I love comparing and contrasting my aerial shots with the ground-level shots.

In this case, the outdoor awnings I initially shot during my exterior shoot created the coolest geometric patterns from a bird’s eye view! This is why I always recommend adding aerial photography to your project to give a full representation of your project and space.

Find out more about the advantages of aerial photography!

Designer: PGAL