While shooting architectural images, I'm often amazed at how much symmetry exists in the design. I sometimes wonder if the reason we find symmetry appealing is because that is how our bodies are designed. Architects design many structures in a manner similar to the human body--with the parts on the left being duplicated and mirrored by parts on the right.

While shooting pictures inside the Indiana Capitol in Indianapolis, I came across a scene which I call "Extreme Symmetry". This scene is not only symmetrical from a horizontal perspective; it is symmetrical from a vertical perspective as well. It's symmetrical looking from East to West and again from North to South. This is a rather large interior space, so the architect must have taken great pains to ensure that the design was symmetrical.

Extreme symmetry On a side note, capturing this image was quite challenging. I lined everything up while laying flat on my back in the center of the floor. In the meantime, at least 50 kids sat all around me as they listened to a tour guide as part of a grade school field trip. Fortunately, the Nikon D800 offers Live View. Live View makes things a little easier as it is difficult for me to get down low enough to see through the optical viewfinder for a picture like this one.