Order & Chaos - Architecture & Street Photography
Order & Chaos: Architecture and Street Photography is a four-part speaker series exploring how photographers navigate the balance between structure and unpredictability in the built world.
From the deliberate lines of architecture to the fleeting moments of the street, this series examines how we see, interpret, and simplify complex environments. Ian Plant’s Taking it to the Streets explores the art of observation and timing in dynamic, real-world scenes. Angie McMonigal’s Contrasts in the Built Environment reveals how light, shadow, and design create compelling visual tension, while Beth Buelow’s Simplify the Chaos focuses on distilling busy scenes into clear, impactful compositions.
Together, these sessions offer a deeper understanding of how to work within, and against, the complexity of urban environments. By learning to recognize patterns, embrace contrast, and simplify visual noise, photographers can create images that feel both intentional and alive.
Hosted by Murray Livingston, this series invites you to see the built world differently, not just as a backdrop, but as a space full of structure, story, and possibility.
LIVE Schedule
- October 3 — Taking it to the Streets (Ian Plant) — 9:00 AM PT
- October 10 — The City, Reimagined – Using Vision to Shape the Scene (Julia Anna Gospodarou) — 9:00 AM PT
- October 21 — Simplify the Chaos (Beth Buelow) — 4:00 PM PT
- October 24 — Contrasts in the Built Environment (Angie McMonigal) — 9:00 AM PT
Recordings will be available on-demand starting the day after each LIVE seminar, so you can watch (or rewatch) anytime.
Are you an annual or monthly member? You’ll gain access to all these sessions the day after they’re streamed live!
Nature Photography Classes offer a unique opportunity to hear from and interact with people that rarely speak with audiences and are considered some of the best photography educators in the world. Â
Ian Plant – Taking it to the Streets
Ian Plant
Taking it to the Streets
LIVE October 3, 2026 at 9:00 am PT / 12:00 pm ET and available on-demand beginning on October 4th.
Street photography is the study of the human condition, relying heavily on making candid photos of people in public places and capturing stories about people and the places they live and gather. But even more than that, street photography involves capturing ephemeral moments when subject matter, mood, composition, and light come together to create a meaningful or artistic photograph. The challenge of street photography — and its unique appeal — is finding a way to turn the mundane things we see every day into art. In this class, acclaimed photographer Ian Plant takes you to the streets on a visual journey, teaching you the fundamentals of street photography — exploring not just the technical aspects, but also the artistic philosophies that are at the core of his creative photography process.
Bios:
Whether hanging over the rim of an active volcano or braving the elements to photograph critically endangered species, Ian Plant has spent the past two decades traveling the globe in his never-ending quest to capture the beauty of our world with his camera. Ian has reached hundreds of thousands of people in his mission to inspire and educate others in the art of photography. Ian is the author of dozens of books and instructional videos, an instructor for KelbyOne and other photography education outlets, and founder of Photo Masters, a site dedicated to photography education and inspiration.Â
Julia Anna Gospodarou teaches "The City, Reimagined – Using Vision to Shape the Scene"
The City, Reimagined – Using Vision to Shape the Scene
LIVE October 10, 2026 at 9:00 am PT / 12:00 pm ET and available on-demand beginning on October 11th.
Join Julia Anna Gospodarou for an exploration of how vision can transform the complexity of the city into compelling photographs. Rather than being limited by what is found in front of the camera, you can learn to approach the urban environment as a canvas: one that can be simplified, reorganized and reimagined according to what you see in your mind. From intelligent composition and the deliberate use of people and movement to long exposure and creative post-processing, Julia explores ways to overcome the challenges of a bustling city environment and shape the scene into the photograph envisioned. Whether photographing architecture, streets or everyday urban life, this lecture is about seeing possibilities where others see obstacles.
Bio:
Julia Anna Gospodarou is an internationally acclaimed, award-winning photographer, architect with a Master’s degree, best-selling author, and highly sought-after educator, teaching workshops and lecturing around the world. A Two-Time IPA Professional Architecture Photographer of the Year, World Photography Awards and Hasselblad Masters Top 10 finalist, and winner of more than 100 international awards, Julia is the founder of (en)Visionography and creator of Photography Drawing. Her work and teaching explore photography as a form of artistic expression, where vision, emotion and personal experience become the foundation of the image. She is passionate about helping photographers move beyond simply recording what they see and discover the freedom to create what they envision.
Beth Below teaches "Simplify the Chaos"
Beth Buelow
Simplify the Chaos
LIVE October 21, 2026 at 4:00 pm PT / 7:00 pm ET and available on-demand beginning on October 22nd.
It might feel like a stretch to imagine finding beauty and calm in a concrete jungle. There's a certain amount of unruliness in your average city environment, from cars to people to block after block of buildings of all shapes and sizes. Yet it's possible to feel both sparks and serenity when we focus on a less-is-more approach to architecture photography. We'll explore how to turn down the noise and turn up your ability to find amazing (even abstract!) images in unexpected places. You'll learn to leverage your eye for nature photography composition to create surprisingly organic outcomes. Even if you've never tried architecture photography before or think it's not for you, you'll take away ideas that will help you grow in. your self-expression and creativity.
Bio:Â
Beth Buelow is a Michigan-based artist, coach, and educator specializing in abstract and minimalist photography. Beth's creative philosophy is simple: If you’re not amazed, you’re not paying attention. Inspired by Walt Whitman’s words, "I am large, I contain multitudes," Beth's photography reflects a multifaceted approach, both in subject matter and aesthetic. If there’s one constant, it’s her playful, often unexpected perspective on nature, architecture, and everyday objects. She is the host of the PIXELS podcast, runs creativity mastermind groups and photography retreats, and teaches and mentors with a focus on abstract approaches. In addition to photography, she loves creating cyanotypes, Zentangles, and alcohol ink art.
 Angie McMonigal teaches "Contrasts in the Built Environment"
Angie McMonigal
Contrasts in the Built Environment
LIVE October 24, 2026 at 9:00 am PT / 12:00 pm ET and available on-demand beginning on October 25th.
Angie shares how contrast turns architectural details into dynamic abstractions. By isolating small moments, where light shifts, forms collide, or materials meet, the images reveal unexpected energy within familiar spaces. It’s a study in how intentional framing can transform everyday structures into expressive, abstract compositions.
Bio:
I’m a fine art and commercial architecture photographer based in Chicago, striving to bring a detailed, thoughtful perspective to my work, whether for clients or through the workshops I lead. Having grown up surrounded by nature yet fascinated by the big city I now call home, I bring the meditative calm of my upbringing to a terrain that’s always transforming. Drawing from my education in the micro sciences (molecular biology, microbiology, virology) my focus is more frequently on bold architectural details rather than sweeping cityscapes, creating images that celebrate those unexpectedly iconic elements hiding in plain sight. I work with art consultants, designers, architectural firms, and private collectors to provide compelling photographs for their collections. My goal is to create images that draw out the organic interplay between design, structure, environment, and society. Publication credits include Shots Magazine, Chicago Magazine, National Geographic, The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Architectural Digest, among others. Exhibitions by galleries in Chicago, Los Angeles, New York, Barcelona, and other destinations.
