staircase photography Archives - Noëmie Rubinsztejn Photography

Photography

The Importance of Staircases

May 19, 2025

A captivating photograph taken from the bottom of a square spiral staircase, looking upwards. The crisp white walls contrast sharply with the black metal railings, which form a striking geometric pattern. Warm yellow accents add depth and energy to the composition, guiding the eye toward the center of the spiral. The repetitive architectural elements create a visually engaging effect.

What is a staircase? Which are the types of staircases? How do you photograph stairs?
There are many questions surrounding staircases and I understand why. Staircase photography has always had a mysterious effect on people.

I perceive the staircase designer as an artist. No matter the angle, the streamlined composition always leads to a dream. Whether used as a background or the main subject, a staircase can shine like sunlight, fade like a sunset, create bold contrast, or highlight an overlooked detail in the scene.

How about my staircase photography?
My staircase photos tend to vary. I try to find an intriguing viewpoint and tell a different story through my lens because each design offers something new. Even staircases built just a few years apart, like Art Nouveau and Art Deco, differ completely. Their air du temps is distinct. One curls and flows. The other commands with clean lines and geometry. Both are mesmerizing but never the same.

As a photographer, I’m drawn to the details; modern cubes lighting the steps of a classic grand staircase, or a spiral stair twisting itself into elegance. The final image becomes a magical space where colors, angles, and even wood grain seem to dance an improvised waltz.

Why do I love shooting staircases?

Because of the contrast.
Because of the surprises.
Because of the stories they tell.

A staircase connects not just spaces, but transitions between moments, moods, eras. It’s a quiet witness to movement and change, a threshold between the known and the unknown.

A spiral staircase, especially, feels like life itself: full of turns you don’t see coming, elegant in its unpredictability, and always leading somewhere new. As we ascend or descend we’re reminded that every step is part of the unfolding story. And some staircases are just waiting to be seen, remembered, and captured before time turns the page.

Through my photography, I capture these stories where color, light, and shape come alive in a dance only staircases can inspire.

You can explore my staircase images on my website. Click here to discover more about my stereo blind staircases.

Photography

La fête au village, Antwerp, Belgium

July 4, 2024

La Fête au Village is a picture where what one sees is not what it seems. In my imaginary world, the element is not just a staircase. The black and white photograph features a staircase that seems to have been drawn by pencil. It is a hypnotic staircase.

Staircases are fascinating elements: depending on the angle you look at them, they tell a different story that will awaken your imagination.

When discovering this staircase in a stunning building in Antwerp, Belgium, I soon realized that its staircase would offer a great creative opportunity for my photography. I may safely say I was right, as I was able to transform its spirality into a dream party. A party in which I could see the various lines and forms interfere and lead to unknown beauty and horizons.

But there is more. Is this a drawing? A photograph? Do you notice the pencil lines trace the curves of the staircase and its surroundings? I love playing with this thin border in my photography. La Fête au Village is one of these pictures where what one sees is not what it seems. In my imaginary world, the element in the picture is not just a staircase. It is much more than that, and this is what I want my viewers to understand by using a caption to open the door to their imagination.

How about adding motion and liveliness to these details that would otherwise live such a lonely existence? How about imagining the scene as that specific moment when components grasp that they might represent something different than bars, steps, and marble? Or the complete opposite? Are you ready to enter that perception? What is it that you see?

Photography

Torpedoed Tornado, Antwerp, Belgium

June 29, 2024

As a photographer, I am intrigued by the tornado of details in an architectural composition: the final image turns into a magical space. The black and white photograph features a very steep staircase, surrounded by lights.

As a photographer, I am particularly intrigued by the tornado of details in an architectural composition: the final image usually turns into a magical space where color, angles, and the wood or marble on the floor seem to be dancing a perfectly improvised waltz.

My staircase photos usually variate because I try to find an intriguing viewpoint and tell a different story through my camera, as the design has various aspects, identities, and heritages.

Indeed, although they differ by just a few years, Art Nouveau stairways, for example, have other forms and shapes than Art Deco steps. Their history and air du temps are different; the emphasis is elsewhere, as they experienced other happenings and events. The home decor of the two streams will be mesmerizing yet unique: the first will be curly, whereas the second will be composed of straight lines and curves.

I perceive the staircase designer as an artist, as no matter how one looks at the creation, the streamlining of the composition always leads to a dream, even when looking from different angles. The sudden change of shape the architect incorporates to achieve a perfect balance between the forms in his design is usually enchanted and photogenic.

I love shooting staircases as they have so much to tell; they connect parts of a place, link stories, and jump from one galaxy to another. Stairs are the thin line residing amidst two worlds. In short, they remind me of our existence: unpredictable and surprising.

Photography

Jay’s Ladder, Antwerp, Belgium

May 14, 2024

A photograph taken from the bottom of a stairwell looking upwards. The white-painted trail walls contrast with the black metal railings, which feature a crisscross pattern. A bold red accent outlines the inner edges, adding a dynamic visual element to the geometric structure. The diminishing rectangular frames create a strong sense of depth and perspective. Soft lighting enhances the shadows, emphasizing the clean lines and symmetry of the architecture. I love playing with thin lines in my photography. “Jay’s Ladder” is one of these pictures where what one sees is not what it seems.

Is this a painting? A photograph? I love playing with thin lines in my photography. “Jay’s Ladder” is one of these pictures where what one sees is not what it seems.

In my imaginary world, the elements in the picture are not just staircases. They are much more than that, and this is what I want my viewers to understand by using a caption to open the door to their imagination.

How about adding beauty and liveliness to these details that would otherwise live such a lonely existence? How about inserting light, creativity, and happiness into their life? How about imagining the scene as that specific moment when elements grasp that they might represent something different than lines, steps, and wood? Or the complete opposite? Are you ready to enter that perception? What is it that you see?

Lifestyle

Life as You Know it, Antwerp, Belgium

May 2, 2024

The elements in this photo reminded me of our existence: unpredictable and surprising, while elements are luring behind the walls and doors. This photograph features a narrow staircase surrounded by a yellow and white wall and a chandelier. Behind the white wall there is a brown wall luring.

The elements in this photograph reminded me of our existence: unpredictable and surprising, while invisible elements are luring behind the different walls and doors of our life.

The chandelier is waltzing endlessly around as time is ticking everything away to the following chapters of our lives. Nevertheless, there were, are, and will always be these exceptional people who populate our lives, catch us when we fall, and embrace us with all the love in the world.

Photography

The magic of staircase photography

March 8, 2023

Staircase photography has always had a mysterious effect on me. I understand why there are many questions concerning staircases on Google. This photo was taken in Antwerp in the staircase of a big tower in Antwerp, Belgium. The stairs are in white marble, the walls in light blue and the floor was made out of black and white cubic marble tiles. The stairwell opened a door to my imagination and story-telling abilities and enabled me to transform it in a never-ending comma.

What is a staircase? Which are the types of staircases? How do you photograph stairs?

There are many questions concerning staircases on Google, and I understand why. Staircase photography has always had a mysterious effect on me.

I perceive the staircase designer as an artist. No matter how one looks at the creation, the streamlining of the composition always leads to a dream. Even when looking from different angles. Using a staircase as a photographic background or as its main topic will lead to an unexpected result. It will shine bright like sunlight or fade like sunset, add a tremendous contrast between the surrounding elements, or emphasize a detail of the favorite part of the location.

How about my staircase photography?

My staircase photos usually variate. I try to find an intriguing viewpoint and tell a different story through my camera, as the design has various aspects. Indeed, although they differ of just a few years, Art Nouveau stairways, for example, have other forms and shapes than Art Deco steps. Their history and air du temps are different; the emphasis is elsewhere, as they experienced other happenings and events. The home decor of the two streams will be mesmerizing yet unique. The first will actually be curly, whereas the second will be composed of straight lines and curves.

As a photographer, I am intrigued by the details in an architectural composition, such as modern cubes adding light to each step of a classic grand staircase or a spiral stair. The final image usually turns into a magical space where color, angles, and the wood on the floor seem to be dancing an improvised waltz.

Why do I love shooting staircases?

I like the contrast between the architecture’s horizontal and vertical lines and the unexpected curves of spiral staircase photography. The sudden change of shape, incorporated by the architect, to achieve a perfect balance between the forms in his design, is usually enchanted and photogenic.
I love shooting a staircase as it has so much to tell. It connects one part of a place to another, and links one story to another.

Stairs are the thin line residing amidst two worlds. The stream of their passage usually leads to true beauty as its movement draws fascinating forms and shapes. A spiral staircase reminds me of our existence. It is unpredictable and surprising while waltzing endlessly around, as time is ticking everything away to the following chapters of our lives.

My staircase pictures are on my website; click here to discover more about my stereo blind photography.