Thompson Photography
Thompson Photography, LLC serves architects, engineers, designers, historians, and builders across North America. Capturing inspired design they assist clients in clearly communicating their vision. The firm also specializes in documenting large-scale historic restoration projects with clarity and purpose.
The organization is led by Dave Thompson, who has built a reputation for manipulating light and color. He creates ultra high-resolution imaging that highlights the art and science of exceptional architecture, design and engineering.
Areas of Expertise
-
![Preservation Image - Worker with Pediment]()
Historic Preservation
Photo-documenting Your Role in History
-
![Michigan State University Research Center]()
Architecture
Capturing Architectural Visions
-
![]()
Engineering & Construction
Supporting Your Expertise in the Build
-
![Heritage Hall Interior - Skylight]()
Interiors
Framing the Art of Space
-
![]()
Historic Artifacts
The Past Artistically Preserved
Explore
Capitol Lantern, State of Michigan Capitol
Dave Thompson’s photograph of the Capitol’s Lantern Level transforms historic architecture into cinematic art. Emerging from deep shadow, the cast iron spiral stairway draws the eye upward, its riveted metal and sweeping curves echoing the decreasing radius of the dome above.
Soft daylight spills through tall windows, sliced by a vivid glimpse of blue sky, creating a striking tension between weight and air, shadow and illumination. Through precise control of light and composition, Thompson reimagines this iconic space as both intimate and awe-inspiring—inviting curious viewers to reach higher to experience a one-of-a-kind view, and to see Michigan’s Capitol in a bold new way.
Odawa Falls by designer and architect Sigmund Blum
The fountain honors the enduring spirit of the Odawa Indian Tribe in Michigan’s history. The work rises 24 feet in height and spans 14 feet in width, with a basin four feet deep. Ten thousand gallons of water circulate through the structure, continuously collected, filtered, and returned in a measured cycle of movement and sound.
Dave Thompson captures the fountain’s sculptural form and subtle illumination, revealing a moment of early morning stillness within the rhythm of the city and a luminous presence that draws in passersby.
A Compressed Slice of Grand Rapids, Michigan: Character, History, and Landmarks
On a warm, hazy late-summer evening, this northwest view from historic Heritage Hill captures 120 years of Grand Rapids in a single frame. Alexander Calder’s La Grande Vitesse (1969), the city’s official mascot, anchors the scene, flanked by 1970s Brutalist towers and appearing to be shaded by DeVos Place (2004).
Beyond, the blue-and-silver rise of Bridgewater Place (1993) crowding out the US Post Office in it’s mid-century sawtooth aluminum (1962). Over a mile distant, to the restored Romanesque Revival St. Adelbert Basilica (1913), and beyond, the ancient west bank of the Grand River, no longer the raging torrent it was at the end of the Pleistocene epoch.
Grand Haven, Michigan Lighthouse
This iconic Michigan lighthouse rises from the lake, its red walls glowing against the cold as ice clings like crystalline armor. Below, green and blue water surges, throwing spray into a pale, golden sky.
Unmoved and defiant, the lighthouse stands as a quiet guardian, its violence transformed into sculpture. Captured by Dave Thompson, this image freezes a fleeting storm into a timeless portrait of resilience.
About
Owner and Principal
Dave Thompson grew up in Michigan with a camera in hand, and for over 30 years, he has worked on both sides of the lens. From his early career as a marketing executive to leading his own independent photography studio, Dave has produced and managed a wide range of complex, multi-location photo shoots, national advertising campaigns, and major events across the U.S. and Canada.
Thompson Photography specializes in ultra high-resolution imaging, capturing every detail with stunning clarity. Whether photographing architecture, interiors, historic restoration projects or artifacts, there is a story to be told.
Dave’s approach focuses on context, designed to help help viewers better understand the “why?” of an object, a room or the entire structure.