Tips for shooting interior shots of extremely small apartments

[big_apple_ken]

Hey guys,

I want to help a friend of mine out and shoot some photos of her apartment since she is looking to sell. Thing is her apartment here in Hong Kong is SUPER small (we're talking 400 sq ft or less). So a few things I wanted to ask:

1) Obviously I'll be using a wide angle lens but what are some general tips to make a room seem more spacious?

2) I only have 2 strobes but was curious how should I approach the lighting in the room.

I've already started looking at http://photographyforrealestate.net/ but was curious if you guys had some more tips/advice. Thanks!

[Marius B]

I am no expert, but the things I think of is:

1. Take out all things that does not need to be there, all personal items, furnitures that is not needed.

2. Paint the room white or another light colour

3. White or bright curtains, bed sheets and furnitures.

4. Your 5D and 16-35 @ 16 :) Straight angle

5. You probably know all these things, and more about lighting than me, but I would also consider using a tripod if you don't get the result with strobes.


You probably knew all this :)

[PhotosGuy]

Good tips. Try some shots with the flash bounced off the ceiling to see what exposure you need for just the flash. Then wait until the outside light matches that & shoot again for everything in one shot.

Canon on distortion, lighting, panos, HDR...: Effective Real Estate Photography (http://www.usa.canon.com/dlc/controller?act=GetArticleAct&articleID=2887)


Photographing Bathrooms, Bedrooms (Pg 2), Hallways (Pg 3), Living Rooms (pg 4), (http://www.all-things-photography.com/photographing-bathrooms.html) etc.

[big_apple_ken]

Thanks guys! Photoguys that link was pretty helpful. I even tried to shoot a panoramic shot but I didn't like how distorted the walls came out. Even if they are a tiny bit distorted it kind of ruins the shot :(

I used my brother's room as a test since his room isn't that big (about 100 sq feet). All shot with my 5D & 16-35L. Basically I found the shots that looked the best and most spacious had the following qualities:

- The height of the shot should be relative to the height of the furniture (and not so much the height of your eye-level). It seems to produce shots with a more even distribution of floor and ceiling space in your frame

- I've noticed that shots where I get 3 walls seem to make the room more spacious than when I only photograph 2 walls

- Also, if possible never make your immediate background a wall (unless the area is large). It makes the room seem very dull and cramped. Always shoot from an angle whereby there is some room behind your main subject.

I just used 1 strobe w/ umbrella so I'm not sure how much it helped but here are a few photos:

It would have been better if you could see out into the hallway but I think opening the door already draws the eye to look at items from near to far in a natural manner.
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3552/3784963175_7edbe56bbf.jpg

3 walls and also made sure to shoot it from an angle whereby there would be room behind the subject (in this case it is the couch).
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3631/3784969249_eaa0a6cd33.jpg

Couldn't use the 3 wall method here but I've found incorporating the mirror sort of compensates for a 3rd wall
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2661/3785854948_8cf7127c2b.jpg


These are the other shots I took that my friend found not as useful since it is a lot bigger than her apartment:

Living room area
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2505/3749326103_df503c886a.jpg

Dining area
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2618/3750120032_629d083c14.jpg