Noobie question on shooting window scenes

My wife is in the window treatments business and wants to develop a portfolio of her company's work for the sales ladies, but our trusty point-and-shoot camera was not up to the task. So after reading a number reviews and reading recommendations in forums on cameras, so I recently picked up a Rebel XSi with the stock 18-55mm EF-S lens. I don't have an external flash.

The problem is that the inside of the homes where we take pictures is often dark, but when you take a picture of the window you have the problem of the bright light coming in thru the window, a problem compounded in winter because of the immense amounts of snow covering the ground and trees. This results in the camera metering off the window light.

How do I mitigate this problem? Would a 430EX II or a 580EX II flash help my problem?

coldcanuck

expose for the inside (ie meter off a wall that is typical of the light in that room).
Experiment with the angle as well...straight on if the window is clean you'll probably have trouble seeing it too well anyway.

Use a CPL, it will remove any reflections in the window.

Edit: Sorry, misunderstood the question

I think a flash (such as the 430exII) would help the problem by bouncing the flash off the ceiling or a wall. Hitting it directly can't be doing any good.

You can approach this in a few ways:
1) Expose for the inside with existing light - your problem here is that exposing for the interior will probably mean that the window itself will be too bright and you will blow the highlights.
2) Use a flash - This will help balance the light between interior and exterior however you will have to be careful with the shadows. Bouncing might help as it effectively increases the size of the light source.
3) Additional interior lights - even adding a standard lamp or 2 will help increase the interior light (and might make it easier to arrage the positioning to make control of the shadows easier).
4) Do your product shots in a controlled enviroment - set up a small area as a studio with constant lighting and a sample window. This will enable the products to be shot consistently.

The problem with shooting in situ is getting all your product shots to be consistent (white balance issues, exposure, shadows etc) whereas studio means full control.

Or, you could wait until the exterior light level matches the interior level.

And, take the time to learn how to shoot on "M". Why? Post #47
Click the post #47 at the top-right of that post if you'd like more info on the subject.

One more possibility to add to the list above:
Create what is called an HDR, High Dynamic Range, photo. Essentially two shots with a tripod mounted camera, one for the outside view through the window and the other exposed for the interior. These are then blended together in the appropriate software.

neilwood32 wrote in post #9397760
You can approach this in a few ways:
1) Expose for the inside with existing light - your problem here is that exposing for the interior will probably mean that the window itself will be too bright and you will blow the highlights.
2) Use a flash - This will help balance the light between interior and exterior however you will have to be careful with the shadows. Bouncing might help as it effectively increases the size of the light source.
3) Additional interior lights - even adding a standard lamp or 2 will help increase the interior light (and might make it easier to arrage the positioning to make control of the shadows easier).
4) Do your product shots in a controlled enviroment - set up a small area as a studio with constant lighting and a sample window. This will enable the products to be shot consistently.

A fifth option would be to hang neutral density gel over the outside of the window to reduce the light coming through from outside.
You could also consider HDR or exposure blending. Basically, using post-processing techniques to balance the exposures.

are you trying to get a photo of the glass itself, considering you're wanting to show the results of window treatments?

jimmeh wrote in post #9398833
are you trying to get a photo of the glass itself, considering you're wanting to show the results of window treatments?

window treatments == curtains, blinds, etc. around the the window

Thanks. I think maybe what I'll do is rent an 580EX II flash for the day (relatively cheap at $12 a day) and then go take some pictures towards the end of day when the outdoor lighting is reduced. I would prefer to go in at night and take the photos, but these are model homes and I don't think the sales lady wants to stay after hours while I take photos.

Thanks all for the feedback.

coldcanuck