Open-plan living room with floor-to-ceiling glass, a grey sofa, and an oak slatted volume framing the space — architectural photography by Flare Department

Photography for Panorama Penthouse

Photography Architecture

Panorama Penthouse

In a former office building on the Dutch coast, Bureau Fraai converted a raw 300-square-metre shell into a residence built entirely around its view. Floor-to-ceiling glazing wraps the full width of the penthouse, framing the sea on one side and the city skyline on the other. Rather than break that view with walls, the interior architects designed free-standing oak volumes that organise the space without ever blocking it. The project went on to win a Jury Award at the 2023 Architizer A+ Awards and earn a nomination for ArchDaily’s Building of the Year. That kind of pedigree made this shoot, captured by our own Mart Goossens, one of the most exciting architectural photography projects in the Netherlands.

With nearly 5-metre ceilings and light pouring in from two directions, this space is made to be photographed. The challenge was capturing how the architecture actually functions. The oak volumes read as sculptural objects rather than partitions, housing a master bathroom, walk-in closet, sauna, and office space, while every room still shares the same panoramic view. We composed each shot to balance structure with openness, letting the oak’s warmth stand out against the shell’s neutral white and grey.

Light was the other defining factor. With views changing constantly across the time of day, no two site visits offered the same conditions, so timing mattered as much as composition. We photographed the living, lounge, and dining areas in their “tripod” arrangement to show how each connects to the outdoor terraces. Furthermore, we used the central volume’s mezzanine as a vantage point to capture the full scale of the space from above.

For us, architectural photography means stepping into a building’s logic and making sure every frame respects it. With Panorama Penthouse, that meant patience for the light, restraint with the styling, and an eye for how the openness of the interior and its structures work together.

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Credits

Name

Role

Bureau Fraai

Architect

Mart Goossens

Photographer

Bas Goossens

Creative Director

Lieve Claessens

Project Manager

Press

Elevated oak platform with white sofa in an open-plan living area — architectural photography by Flare Department Living room with floor-to-ceiling glazing, a woman seated on a grey sofa overlooking the city — architectural photography by Flare Department Grey sectional sofa beneath oak wall paneling, with a floor lamp — architectural photography by Flare Department Staircase framed by vertical oak slats — architectural photography by Flare Department Home office nook with an oak desk, glass partition, and staircase beyond — architectural photography by Flare Department Wide interior view combining staircase, glass office partition, and oak slat walls — architectural photography by Flare Department Oak-slatted corridor with hanging plants and a figure walking through, motion blur — architectural photography by Flare Department Staircase framed by oak slats with trailing plants — architectural photography by Flare Department Office entrance with a sliding glass door and oak slat wall — architectural photography by Flare Department Bedroom with white bedding, oak slat headboard wall, and a muted blue artwork above — architectural photography by Flare Department Bedroom, alternate angle of the same oak-panelled sleeping area — architectural photography by Flare Department Wide bedroom shot showing the full oak-enclosed sleeping nook — architectural photography by Flare Department Bedroom corner with oak slats and bed edge in view — architectural photography by Flare Department Oak-slatted corridor opening onto floor-to-ceiling glazing — architectural photography by Flare Department Curved oak volume beside a freestanding bathtub with a city view — architectural photography by Flare Department Dining area with blue chairs and a long table beneath floor-to-ceiling windows — architectural photography by Flare Department Dining area, white walls, blue chairs, city view beyond — architectural photography by Flare Department Couple seated at the dining table with flowers, wide window backdrop — architectural photography by Flare Department Wider kitchen-dining view with pendant lighting and guests seated — architectural photography by Flare Department Oak-slatted volume beside a glass corridor — architectural photography by Flare Department Library nook with red and orange lounge chairs, bookshelves, and floor-to-ceiling glass — architectural photography by Flare Department Kitchen with blue barstools, white cabinetry, and a linear pendant light — architectural photography by Flare Department Minimalist white corridor — architectural photography by Flare Department White hallway with a figure captured mid-jump — architectural photography by Flare Department Curved oak-slatted corridor with hanging plants — architectural photography by Flare Department Glass-and-oak-slat corridor, alternate angle — architectural photography by Flare Department Close-up detail of oak slat construction — architectural photography by Flare Department Oak slat volume with a trailing plant overhead — architectural photography by Flare Department Living room on the elevated oak platform, sofa in view — architectural photography by Flare Department Wide living room shot with white sofa, oak slats, and floor lamp — architectural photography by Flare Department Bathroom with green tile, stone countertop, and matte steel tapware — architectural photography by Flare Department Bathroom mirror and sink area with stone cabinetry — architectural photography by Flare Department Stone bathroom with toilet, sink, and spotlighting — architectural photography by Flare Department Tiled stone shower with multiple showerheads — architectural photography by Flare Department Evening interior with oak shelving and warm ambient lighting — architectural photography by Flare Department Evening shot of living room with built-in oak joinery beneath a dark ceiling — architectural photography by Flare Department Dusk terrace view through glass doors with person at dining table and city skyline beyond — architectural photography by Flare Department Wide evening living room shot with dark ceiling and dusk skyline — architectural photography by Flare Department Evening interior-exterior blend, sofa visible against the dusk view — architectural photography by Flare Department Glass doors opening onto the terrace at dusk with two people inside the living room lit behind — architectural photography by Flare Department
Wide shot of the Panorama Penthouse living room looking down toward the bedroom, floor-to-ceiling windows along the left wall — architectural photography by Flare Department
Sauna interior with light oak slatted walls, built-in bench seating, and a wooden bucket — architectural photography by Flare Department
Corridor formed by curved oak slat volumes with trailing plants, a figure passing through in motion — architectural photography by Flare Department
Close-up of a curved oak volume's edge against a shadow-streaked grey wall — architectural photography by Flare Department
Sauna interior with slatted oak windows framing panoramic coastal views — architectural photography by Flare Department

“We weren’t photographing rooms so much as photographing light finding its way through a home built to let it in.”

Double-height library with built-in bookshelves, a rolling ladder, hanging notes overhead, and two burgundy lounge chairs framed by trailing plants — architectural photography by Flare Department

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