We live in a world of shapes. Look up, and you’ll notice it: the clean lines of your office building, the sharp angles of the neighborhood gym, the tidy symmetry of the bungalow down the street. San Diego architecture is woven together by angles, lines, and shadows, quietly doing their thing as we rush past.
At least, that’s how photographer Maha Bazzari sees it. A multi-disciplinary artist, structural designer, full-time commercial photographer, and professor of photography for the San Diego Community College District, Bazzari has long been attuned to the overlooked shapes of the world.
With a childhood rooted in science—her father was a geophysicist for the United States Geological Survey in Saudi Arabia—Bazzari first built her career in the more structured world of commercial architecture. After more than a decade in that world, she pivoted to commercial photography around 2010, starting in fine art photography before naturally blending her architectural expertise with a creative eye. She has documented everything from the architectural progression of Little Italy in 2007 (and boy, has it changed since then) to the otherworldly geometry of the Salk Institute in La Jolla.
Her method is meditative: arrive in stillness, absorb, sit. Notice the way light slices through concrete or pools in a corner. See the shapes, capture the feeling, then click.
Here, you can browse some of her home and architecture images that moved us. We hope they make you tilt your head, squint your eyes, and never look at a parking garage the same way.
All Photos Credit: Maha Bazzari
Science Complex, Point Loma Nazarene University
Point Loma, San Diego | Carrier Johnson + CULTURE
“This building holds personal meaning for me. When I first moved to San Diego, I worked in architecture at Carrier Johnson, where I saw early design development and material studies for the Science Complex at Point Loma Nazarene University. I remember mockups of the perforated metal panels and façade systems long before the building existed onsite. Years later, after transitioning into architectural photography, I returned to photograph the completed project overlooking the Pacific. It felt like a full-circle moment, documenting the final expression of a project I had once known only as drawings, materials, and prototypes.”
Dr Pepper Bottling Company Wall
Little Italy area, Downtown San Diego
“I photographed this building near Little Italy not long after moving to San Diego in 2007, when I began documenting the city’s changing urban landscape. The faded painted advertisements and low industrial structure stood in contrast to the growing skyline behind it. Over time, many small warehouses and commercial buildings like this have disappeared as downtown neighborhoods have continued to develop. Images like this feel important to me because they preserve fragments of San Diego’s visual history and reflect my early years exploring the city through photography.”
Ironside Fish & Oyster
Little Italy, San Diego | BASILE Studio
“I framed the oyster bar as a complete composition, letting the patterned floor lead the eye toward the counter and the shelving beyond. I made sure to include the rolling library ladder along the back bar, a distinctive design element that emphasizes the height and density of the floor-to-ceiling shelving. I photographed the space at a time of day when daylight enters through the windows while the warm interior lighting still reads, balancing natural light with the glow of the bar. I approach restaurant interiors by deciding what to include and what to leave out, so the atmosphere and structure of the space can come through in a single frame.”
Nolita Hall
Little Italy, San Diego | Tecture
“This project was meaningful to me because it brings my design background and my photography practice into the same frame. While working part-time at Tecture, I helped design and fabricate custom lighting and bar seating components for the space, developing sketches, building 3D models, wiring fixtures, and installing them onsite with the team. Later I returned as a photographer to document the completed restaurant. Being involved in both the making and the photographing of a space is where my work feels most complete. It lets me bring an architectural mindset to the camera and photograph with a deeper understanding of how the space was built.”
St. David’s Episcopal Church & Preschool, Interior Detail
Clairemont, San Diego | Rob Wellington Quigley Architects
“This image was made while documenting sacred architecture across San Diego for the La Jolla Historical Society. With private, individual access to the building, I spent time observing how light moved through the structure and illuminated its materials. The layered wood framing and warm translucent panels create a rhythm of structure and glow that feels both architectural and contemplative. Photographing spaces like this reminds me how architecture can shape moments of stillness through light, proportion, and materiality.”
Neurosciences Institute
La Jolla, California | Tod Williams Billie Tsien Architects
“This campus stands out within San Diego architecture for its sculptural concrete forms, warm wood elements, and quiet courtyards that frame the surrounding eucalyptus trees. I am drawn to spaces where architecture can feel monumental and intimate at the same time. Photographing here is less about coverage and more about observing how light moves across concrete surfaces and how material and form create a sense of calm within the landscape.”
Islamic Center of San Diego
Clairemont Mesa, San Diego | La Jolla Historical Society Sacred Architecture Commission
“The repetition of the arches immediately drew my attention. By centering the composition and removing surrounding context, the architecture becomes about rhythm, proportion, light, and subtle shadow. Islamic architecture often uses geometry and repetition to create a sense of calm, and focusing on this detail allowed the photograph to reflect that quiet balance.”
Richard Wheeler Residence Renovation
Mission Hills, San Diego | Kristi Byers Sklar Studios
“Photographing this Mission Hills midcentury renovation was especially meaningful because the project balanced preservation and transformation so thoughtfully. Originally designed by architect Richard Wheeler, the home reflects an important period of residential architecture in San Diego. The updated interiors maintain the warmth and material richness of midcentury design while feeling fresh and livable. I photographed the project for the architect and designer, and it was later featured on the cover of a special edition design publication Projects like this remind me how architectural photography can document not only buildings but the continued life of design across generations.”
Neurosciences Institute, Stair Courtyard
La Jolla, San Diego | Tod Williams Billie Tsien Architects
“I was drawn to the alignment of the two staircases rising between tall concrete walls, forming a quiet, balanced composition. The blue glass softens the weight of the concrete and catches the coastal light that defines this part of La Jolla. Introducing a figure adds scale and a moment of color within the restrained palette. This is one of the ways I photograph architecture: by using structure and repetition to create a frame, then allowing a small human presence to activate it.”
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Kindred Restaurant
South Park, San Diego | BASILE Studio
“Kindred is one of those interiors people in San Diego remember—[it’s] bold, moody, and unapologetically its own. I was drawn to this booth vignette because it captures that signature contrast: black tufted seating against pink patterned walls, framed by repeating arches and reflective ceiling panels that amplify the lantern glow. When I photograph restaurants, I focus on more than wide angles. I look for intimate moments where the design language is distilled into a single frame. This is where the personality of a space lives—in the textures, color, and atmosphere guests experience up close.”
San Diego Zoo Wildlife Explorers Basecamp, Block Wall Detail
San Diego Zoo, Balboa Park | HGW Architecture
“While documenting the Wildlife Explorers Basecamp project at the San Diego Zoo, I was drawn to this patterned block wall and the shifting grid of shadows created by the afternoon sun. I love photographing moments where light reveals the geometry of a surface and a small detail becomes the subject. This image captures a design element that might otherwise go unnoticed.”
