Being a photographer isn’t just using a camera to take pictures. This project involved research, design, and learning new computer software.
I’ve photographed new eatery spaces at Philadelphia International Airport, but recently, I was asked to help provide an image for a very different kind of airport amenity: a fitness center! ROAM Fitness wanted to use one of my images of the Philadelphia skyline in a new gym in Terminal F. This is ROAM’s second such workout space; its first gym is located in Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport.
Passengers and flight staff alike can use the gym in Terminal F.
The mural wraps around to a side wall by the cardio machines.
The wall space was about 9 feet tall and 35 feet long, so my first challenge was finding an image that would look good at such an elongated proportion. I selected a few suitable images from my digital archives and mocked up the best among them in Photoshop to show how the wall would look. The owners of ROAM Fitness then chose their favorite mock-up, seen below.
This was the mockup chosen by my client—a unanimous winner among all deciding votes!
Next, I had to enlarge my original image to more than 30 feet in length, which is difficult to do without losing image quality. I worked with Mike Antner at Richart Graphics to create the final mural.
Guests can enjoy a peaceful yoga session that “looks out” onto the beautiful Philadelphia skyline. Namaste!
Converting one of my images into a mural involved mock-ups, software research, and even a little bit of AI magic.
Using Photoshop alone did not retain the necessary sharpness. Gymgoers would be working out inches from the mural, and a blurry image would be unacceptable at such a close distance. After comparing resulting quality among several image enhancement programs, I used Topaz AI to generate the final enlargement. Topaz AI used my direction on subject type (“architectural,” here) and its online image database to rebuild my image on a larger scale without sacrificing sharpness.
After that, Richart printed and installed the mural, and I got to photograph it in use. Now guests can work out before their flights with a great “view” of the Philadelphia skyline.