Best Interior Photography Tips
Interior Photography Tips
Basic knowledge of interior photography will be useful not only for photographers but also for people from other industries, such as design, architecture, real estate photography, etc.
The main objects of this genre are rooms and furniture/interiors.
If you are new to this field, expert advice and tips will come in handy to achieve the desired results faster. Read my guide below and learn how to beat your competition!
15 Interior Photography Tips
If you want to learn how to get into real estate photography, you need to improve your skills first. At first, it may seem too difficult for you to get the same fancy pictures published by famous magazines.
Carefully study my guide to avoiding taking bad real estate photos.
I'll tell you all about the equipment, composition, camera settings, and other essentials for capturing awesome interior shots.
Plan Your Shot In Advance
Before you start shooting interiors, you need to think carefully and plan every step of the way. A visit to the property is an important part of preparing for a photo session. You can explore the space on your own and identify the best objects and parts to focus on when shooting. Being on site, you'll also get more accurate light information and understand how to take better pictures.
Experts also recommend knowing the orientation of the building. With this information, you can avoid taking pictures that are too bright. It will be easier for you to think about how to capture this or that part of the interior. Moreover, by exploring the area before shooting, you can prepare the right real estate photography equipment.
Clearing Up the Clutter
While this may seem trivial, clearing the room before shooting is essential for high-end real estate photography. You don't have to do it yourself. Just ask the client to prepare everything. Dust and unnecessary items can spoil the impression of even the most luxurious interior. For example, if you are planning a kitchen photography project, make sure the countertops and other furniture are free from grease stains, small objects, etc.
Thanks to the neat surface, the interior looks comfortable and inviting. Make sure the client hides all cables, toys, random papers, and other items. Before you start taking photos, check that everything is clean and accurate.
Feel free to ask the client to clean the surface, as this can affect the final result. If necessary, specify this point in your real estate photography contract.
Stage Scenery
If you specialize in commercial real estate photography, then you need to arrange your furniture and style items properly. Check how the room looks in the frame. If you see some annoying objects in the background, think about how to fix this problem.
When setting up the shot, make sure your gaze is fixed on the area where you want to focus the viewer's attention. If you want to highlight something in the center, remove any distracting objects from the foreground. Too many subjects in focus, bright colors, or anything else can prevent you from taking the perfect interior photo.
Outsource Editing to the Experts
To make your photos look professional and refined, you need to edit them in real estate photography software. During photo post-processing, you should not be limited to color correction. You also need to align the vertical and horizontal lines. Incorrect white balance can ruin your photos too, so you have to fix that too.
Maximizing Natural Light
Try to use as much natural light as possible. Artificial lighting may make your photos less attractive. You have to be very careful even when using the best photographic light bulbs as they can add distracting shadows, spoil the white balance, and make your interior look dull and unattractive.
To get more natural light for your interior design photos, we recommend opening windows, curtains, and doors. If necessary, you can use the flash for additional lighting. In most cases, you don't need to turn on artificial lighting. However, if the interior contains interesting or unique lighting elements, you can let it display them in the best possible way.
Trying Different Angles
Of course, the winning angle may vary depending on the specifications of the interior, but there are some universal shots that you should take. Wide angle. This is the best shot to capture the entire space.
One point perspective. Use elements of decor, artwork, fireplaces, or anything else as a single vanishing point to take a live shot.
sketch. Such images appear denser than single-point perspective images or wide images. I recommend using it to show off the furniture with some decor items. Detailed shot. This type is ideal for capturing small decorative items, textures, materials, etc.
Transition shots. This shot is useful when you need to show how different spaces are connected. For example, you can capture an open door through which the viewer will see the next room or the path leading to the garden. With interior photography images like these, you can show the way from one room to another.
Shooting Bracket Image
Capturing indoor space, you are dealing with a wide variety of light. You should shoot a room with dark corners and a very bright area at the same time. Remember that, unlike our eyes, cameras cannot naturally balance dark and light spots. If you know the nuances of HDR photography, you can take amazing pictures.
Bracketing 3-4 exposures for any image is one of the most popular HDR real estate photography techniques. To get a balanced image, you need to take 2-stops of underexposed shots, normal-exposure shots, and 2-stops overexposed shots.
Then, you need to combine these images in Photoshop or a suitable free HDR software. If you prefer the first option, then I recommend taking a look at the HDR Photoshop tutorial to quickly figure out what you need to do.
Exploring Various Composition Techniques
Learning the compositional approach is one of the important stages of preparation for photographing interiors. Knowledge of color, balance, depth, white space, and other aspects is essential when applying basic photographic composition techniques.
The right composition will help bring out your subject at its best. The rule of thirds in photography is important for photographers of all genres. Once you've mastered this technique, you can try other approaches, such as front-line photography.
Shooting Using a DSLR
When choosing a camera for real estate photography, you should consider several factors.
It should have decent bracketing features and a hotshoe flash, other than that, it will allow you to take high quality RAW photos. Modern digital cameras, such as DSLRs and mirrorless models, allow you to use a variety of lenses and have a variety of manual settings. You can adjust the shutter speed, exposure, ISO, and other parameters depending on your needs.
Newcomers to interior photography can use the automatic shooting mode to avoid mistakes with manual settings. If you are a fan of Canon cameras, the Canon EOS Rebel T6i will be a great choice for you. Nikon also offers decent equipment for interior shooting like the Nikon D750.
Use Wide-Angle and Prime Lenses
You need to have a good lens for real estate photography to maximize the potential of your camera. Experts recommend starting with a wide-angle lens. This type of lens allows you to capture the entire room.
For that invisible concave look, you should consider buying a Canon EF 17-40mm f/4L. Such a lens will allow you to show every side of the room. In addition, you may also need a prime lens such as the Canon 50mm f/1.8. They work well for sketches and details.
Stabilize Your Gear on a Tripod
Usually, photographers rarely have perfect lighting when shooting indoors.
Fortunately, a good tripod for real estate photography will help solve some of the problems associated with poor lighting conditions. If you specialize in long exposure photography and want to take great interior design photos, then a tripod is a must. For example, a Newer 77-inch tripod will allow you to use the shutter speed you want without any problems.
If you use bracketing for interior photos, then you can't do without a tripod. Wide shots also require this equipment. With the viewfinder, you will need to check for vertical as well as horizontal lines if you are taking a one-point perspective image.
Scattering Artificial Light
You must use flash and spotlights for photography to deal with shadows. Keep in mind that artificial light must be diffused or reflected so it doesn't look unnatural.
You have to point the light at the ceiling or the wall behind you to reflect it. Umbrellas and softboxes come in handy when you need to spread light. You should also consider the color of the walls as they can add some color to your glow.
Setting the Correct
Aperture The f/8-11 aperture is the most optimal for interior photography. For most scenes, you will use an aperture of f/8. However, to focus the viewer's attention on a particular feature in the room (such as doorknobs or ceiling decorations), you should choose a narrower or wider opening.
To make details clearer and more visible, you should set a small f-number (eg f/2). As a result, you will focus on certain elements and a more blurred background. A good depth of field is essential if you are shooting interiors with a lot of detail.
Aperture at f/16 is a good solution in such cases. Keep this nuance in mind if you need to capture an object located close to the camera in the foreground.
Keep Your ISO Low
ISO is one of the most important real estate photography camera settings. You should use a higher ISO value to get more light into the sensor. Most modern cameras have an ISO range of 100 to 4000.
While increasing the ISO allows more light to enter the sensor, it also has its drawbacks. The image contains noise and looks grainy if you use a value that is too high. To maintain the sharpness you want, you should start at 200 ISO. You can increase this value, but make sure not to cross the ISO 400 line.
Note Shutter Speed
Acceptable Aperture and ISO values are fairly standard. However, you can choose any shutter speed for interior design photography. There are some important tips to keep in mind when adjusting your shutter speed. For example, you should use a tripod to prevent your photos from looking blurry if you shoot at a shutter speed of 1/100th of a second or lower.
Also, long shutter speeds won't be a problem if you shoot from a tripod. However, if the shutter is open for too long, you may see unnatural colors in the image. In some cases, your image may look compressed if you set the shutter speed to more than 1/2000 second.