Getting it Right in the Camera

From time to time I see some photographers boast that, when they shoot photos, they "get it right in the camera," meaning that they produce an image that needs little or no processing or retouching after they take the photo. I especially see this comment from architectural and interior photographers who use supplementary lighting, who take pride in working this way and who seem to disparage photographers who do not work in this way as somehow less professional. I think this attitude comes from the days when transparency film was the standard medium for professional color photography. This film is very unforgiving and and provides very little flexibility for manipulating the image after it has been created. Color negative film provided more flexibility, but for various reasons was seldom used for professional purposes, with the exception of portrait, wedding and event photography (the end use for which is usually a photographic print, rather than a reproduction made with a printing press).

Because of the limited flexibility of color transparency film, architectural and interior photographers traditionally used a considerable amount of supplementary lighting, among other reasons to minimize color imbalances from mixed light sources and to reduce the contrast range of the scene to fit within the limited tonal range of transparency film. This process tended to require a lot of expensive lighting equipment and a degree of lighting skill not commonly found in other genres of professional still photography. With the advent of digital photography, some architectural and interiors photographers continued to use their traditional methods of lighting, generally only using the basic digital processing controls to finish their photos, except for doing the kind of retouching (in digital form, of course) traditionally done by airbrush artists when film was the only photographic medium. However, digital photography now offers a tremendous amount of control, both for solving traditional technical problems and for creative expression, and I don't see any reason to dismiss using the potential of digital photography as somehow less than professional. Certainly, if a traditional lighting method is giving a photographer the results he or she wants and needs, all well and good.  In the end, however, I think the end result is all that matters to the viewer or end user of the photos.

Recent Work-2950 Alexis Drive, Palo Alto Hills

Here is an exterior photo from a recent real estate marketing job. The front exterior is often one of the "money" shots for marketing homes, and is sometimes the most important shot. This photo was used for the cover of the marketing brochure for this listing, and as the lead photo for some of the ads.

In this case I was able to photograph this home at an ideal time of day for the front of the home, with the sunlight falling at an angle directly on the scene. This kind of lighting creates attractive shadows which provide a sense of depth and bring out the structural and decorative details of the architecture. This is also excellent lighting for showing off the attractive and extensive landscaping. 

2950 Alexis Drive-Front Elevation

Recent Work-848 Southampton Drive, Palo Alto

Here are some more photos from my recent shoot of this contemporary style home, designed by Maydan Architects.

View from Living Room

Master Bedroom

Kitchen

Contemporary Staircase

Here is another staircase from a recent shoot of a home in Palo Alto, CA, designed by Maydan Architects.

Contemporary Staircase

Traditional Staircase

Here is a traditional-style staircase from a home in Palo Alto, CA, which I shot for real estate marketing purposes.

Traditional Staircase

I really enjoy photographing staircases. I find something about their shapes particularly engaging. Except, perhaps, for very grand ones in luxury homes, staircases are not usually considered to be primary subjects for marketing a home. However, they are often one of the first things one sees when entering a home, and they can say a lot about the general style of a home's interior.

As is often the case for mainstream real estate marketing photography, I had to photograph this staircase at a time of day when the ambient lighting was far from ideal, for which I compensated by creating a substantial part of the interior lighting with several small flashes, one placed on the landing at the top of the stairs, and the rest located on either side of the camera. The purpose of the added lighting was not only to generally brighten up the interior, but to even out the lighting somewhat and to help direct the eye through the scene better. An additional benefit of supplementary strobe lighting is that it brings out textures, and can be especially flattering to wood.

Palo Alto Master Bath

Here is a master bath of a home in Palo Alto, CA, that I shot for a real estate listing several months back.

Master Bath

Master baths are often one of the "money" shots for real estate marketing (along with living rooms, kitchens, dining rooms and media rooms), especially for nicer homes, and thus these need to stand out and look especially appealing. This bath has been nicely remodeled and was in excellent condition. I did not have to do any remedial retouching or resort to an awkward composition in order to downplay any less-than-ideal elements. The ambient lighting was far from ideal for this shot, as  is often the case for real estate marketing photography, which must often be done on short notice and with little choice of time for shooting with the best light; therefore, I used supplementary lighting in the form of several small flashes placed strategically around the room, to even out the lighting and to highlight certain areas of the scene. 

This shot is a crop of a considerably wider shot. Many real estate agents favor extreme wideangle views because the agents want to show a lot of space within one photo. The crop above is the way I would tend to compose this scene for an architect, interior designer, product manufacturer, etc., and I think it provides a very good sense of both the space and the various finishes and fixtures.