Photography for an Interior Designer

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This is a sampling from 15 interiors that I photographed the other day for Dana Neeld of Staging Spaces, an exceptionally talented interior designer in the Philadelphia region. We were tight for time, so I shot with minimal lighting, averaging about 15 minutes to set up the equipment and shoot each view. I prefer this approach because the photos "feel more real" to me.

The images don't come out of the camera looking anything like this. Cameras don't render scenes the way we perceive them. Extensive post-production is required to make the most of the data captured by the camera and create an image that has depth and looks real. Up to a dozen, images are combined to create each image. The post-production time averaged about 45 minutes for each image.

I show these to illustrate that excellent interior images are possible without going in with a crew and doing extensive lighting.

These images, especially when combined with her "before" photos are invaluable for her marketing as they show potential clients what she brings to the table. Since we buy with our eyes, photographs are by far the most effective way to demonstrate what she does.

Remember, if you're providing a service, you're selling trust. You can't show a buyer in advance what you're going to deliver, but you can show what you've done for others. Perception is everything, so you can't afford to use images that are less than the best.  

Great images aren't an expense, they're an investment.

See more examples of my Philadelphia architectural photography.

Why photos need to be digitally enhanced.

Most people look at great photos and think that they're that way because the photographer used a great camera. That fiction is perpetuated by camera manufacturer's ads that try to make you think that if only you had a better camera you'd get similar results, just as a golf club manufacturer would like you to believe you'll play more like Tiger Woods if you use their clubs.

Don't get me wrong, as a pro, the quality of the equipment that I use is very important to me. I also know though that the work that I deliver has received considerable post-production, enhancing and retouching. Even though I use top of the line equipment, the images that come out of my camera are ALWAYS enhanced in some way. I won't settle for what the camera gives me.

In addition to great lighting and composition, the best photos that you see in ads are almost always digitally enhanced and retouched. Products, places, people. . . (even supermodels).

The best photographer in the world can't deliver perfection unless the subject is perfect. . . and they never are.

Cameras don't see the same way our eyes do. They're sensitive to changes in the color of light that the human eye can't detect. They can't handle scenes with a wide range of brightnesses like our eyes do - shadow areas go black and bright areas lose detail. On the other hand, the resolution of good lenses pick up every little flaw, every piece of dust on a product, every pore in a face, every defect, and bring them to our attention.

Before digital photography, the great photographers like Ansel Adams produced amazing images by complex darkroom maneuvers that improved on the images that the cameras produced. Now this is done using a computer in the "digital darkroom".

The purpose of digital enhancement and retouching is to improve the imperfect and create an image that looks far better than the camera is capable of recording on it's own. When it's done properly it's all undetectable by the viewer.

To learn more and see a gallery of photos that are digitally enhanced, including many before and afters, read this article: Photoshop Expert Techniques and this: Before and After Images.

It's not creative unless it increases sales.

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The purpose of your images should always be to increase sales. They should be eye-catching, convey quality and create desire. 

Unfortunately, many professional photographers, graphic designers, creative directors and ad agencies just don't get it. They get so caught up in their desire to "be creative", win an award or copy the latest fad that they totally miss the point. They forget that the whole reason they're hired is to increase sales.

In the right light (and with some help in post-production), everything is beautiful.

The six images above are from a series of about 40 that I just shot for a housewares manufacturer. They've been digitally enhanced and retouched as the prototypes provided were scratched up and didn't match the colors desired for the final products.  The colors were modified in post-production to match the PMS colors specified. 

The photos you use create powerful perceptions of your products or service. High quality professional photos provide a great return on your investment through increased sales.

Images that aren't high quality create the perception of an inferior company and inferior products. The money you think you're saving is small compared to the sales you'll lose.

Images that increase sales will return profits that far exceed their modest cost. Cheap shots  will lose you sales without you even knowing it.

Photography of interiors

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before lighting and enhancement

You can compare the images more easily here.

Interior decorators have a problem. To get new work they need to show potential clients what they've done, but driving them around to past jobs isn't desirable or practical. Their own photos will fail to impress. They need images that are inviting and can capture a buyers imagination.

This interior is from my most recent shoot for a Philadelphia based interior decorator. She uses my images on her website, for direct mail and in her portfolio.

She does beautiful work, but capturing interiors well is always a challenge. They're extremely contrasty, especially during the day, and snapshots won't record them properly. This one was especially challenging because of the combination of the bright window and the black piano.

In addition to the specialized equipment required; viewpoint, staging, lighting and digital enhancement in post-production are all crucial components of high quality interior photography.

When choosing a photographer to do interiors, make sure that you use a photographer with a lot of experience doing architectural photography. Their photos will increase your sales and can pay for themselves very quickly.

In the end, the best pictures always win. It's only a question of who has them.

Creating an iconic image

Enhanced (click on the image to see it larger)

Before (click on the image to see it larger)

This image was just created for Cooper University Hospital in Camden, NJ. I was contacted by the marketing director because they wanted a photo of their new $220 million dollar patient care pavilion for a PR release inviting the media to their grand opening. The only problem was that the outside of the building was not finished.

They didn't have the budget for me to scout the facility in person so that part was done by looking at snapshots that were sent to me and by surveying satellite images of the site. Because there was no landscaping and the ground was filled with construction equipment and workers I decided to shoot up on it and eliminate ground level. This would also make it look heroic and more important.

After determining what approach that I was going to take, the sun positions were calculated for the day of the shoot. I wanted the brightest reflections to be near the Cooper sign, and figured 1-3 pm was my window of opportunity. This was shot just after 2pm.

When I'm shooting an image like this, my primary thought is that of capturing information. I know that I'm going to be working on the image to give it more drama. When an attempt is made to do that in camera, there's a huge risk of losing highlight or shadow detail that can never be recovered.

The canopy and fascia on the front of the building (the sign is on the side of the building) had to be constructed in Photoshop be me using the architect's rendering as a guide. There were also many wires coming down from hoists on the roof. These were also reflected in windows and casting shadows. The retouching and enhancing took me about 8 hours to complete.

They now have an iconic image that they'll be able to use for years.

You can see more architectural images in my architectural photography portfolio.

Eye-catching images

Enhanced (click on the image to see it larger)

Before (click on the image to see it larger)

This image was just made for an annual report to illustrate an article on their commitment to working on the repair and improvement of infrastructure. We shot at a few locations that day.

When we drove up to the excavated area where the men were working there was a large cloud of dust coming up from the pit. I requested permission to go down with the workers and was given a few minutes to stage a shot. In just under two minutes of shooting I was able to get about 20 images (I know by the time stamps on the images). Total time in the pit - under 5 minutes.

This is a good example of digitally enhanced photography and it's power to improve images. One worker's shirt had printing on it that needed to be removed (it was the sub-contractor's t-shirt), there was some litter on the ground, major changes to color and tone were made. I decided before I shot to add my own dust cloud in post-production in order to control where it appeared and also to keep it from damaging a $6000 camera. Total time retouching and enhancing the image - about 2 hours.

You can more easily compare the before and after versions of this photo and others in my digitally enhanced photography portfolio.