Advice?? (equipment, technique, etc.)

amye · August 30, 2005

I've been lurking around this great forum for a few months now, and this is my first post. I've already learned SO much from you guys by just reading.

I'm really hoping that you can help me out with this specific project...

My company has asked me to do photo shoot for them, and this is REALLY a big test... if I do well, it could certainly lead to other photography opportunities for me here.

HOWEVER (and it's a doosy) this assignment is completely out of my comfort zone... (I usually shoot people, not things or locations)

They've told me they will rent whatever equipment (lighting, etc) I need, but I really have no idea where to even start.

I'm going to be shooting the interior of one of our remodeled hotel rooms (showing new granite countertops). They need some overall room shots (outside-in, from the front door and from the bathroom towards the front). They also need some concentrated shots on just the new countertops. These will be straight rooms shots and then a second set using props (laptop, hanging clothes, etc.)

I've been told by the art director that, in the past, they've had to shoot the room "piece-mill" and do some serious post-processing to compile the images (carpet and fixtures shot separately from the general room, etc.)

That's the jist... ANY help or tips (regarding lighting equipment, things to keep in mind while shooting or WHATEVER) would be GREATLY appreciated!

Thank you!!
amy

Andy · August 30, 2005

what do you own for camera gear, bodies, lenses, flash?

are you adept at post-processing, photoshop, stitching multiple shots?

wxwax · August 30, 2005

You're gonna want a wider angle lens than you already own.

Can't really help you with lighting, I'm afraid. Look at architectural and home magazines for ideas on how to shoot and how things are lit.

amye · August 30, 2005

oops, sorry about that-- i have canon gear (limited) a 20D, 70-200 f2.8, 50mm f1.8 and the kit lens.

As for photoshop, i'm fairly advanced-- i'm a graphic artist, so I've done quite a lot of post processing in my career.

thanks again for the help, if you can provide it!

Sam · August 30, 2005

amye wrote:

oops, sorry about that-- i have canon gear (limited) a 20D, 70-200 f2.8, 50mm f1.8 and the kit lens.

As for photoshop, i'm fairly advanced-- i'm a graphic artist, so I've done quite a lot of post processing in my career.

thanks again for the help, if you can provide it!

Here's my thoughts. A wide angle lens, maybe a Canon 10-22. A tripod. If all the shots are of the room with out people, you won't have to worry about shutter speeds, just keeping the camera still.

Shoot in raw, and correct the white balance in PS.

As for the lighting.......................that's whole other kettle of cats. But maybe all you will need are 2 or 3 lights, and a reflector or two, to reduce, or create shadows as needed.

Oh, and one more thought..........if you have a local shop that rents lighting equipment, maybe it would be possible to pay someone from the shop to be your lighting assistant, consultant, ect. for the shoot.

Good luck!

Sam

Andy · August 30, 2005

Sam wrote:

Here's my thoughts. A wide angle lens, maybe a Canon 10-22. A tripod. If all the shots are of the room with out people, you won't have to worry about shutter speeds, just keeping the camera still.

Shoot in raw, and correct the white balance in PS.

As for the lighting.......................that's whole other kettle of cats. But maybe all you will need are 2 or 3 lights, and a reflector or two, to reduce, or create shadows as needed.

Oh, and one more thought..........if you have a local shop that rents lighting equipment, maybe it would be possible to pay someone from the shop to be your lighting assistant, consultant, ect. for the shoot.

Good luck!

Sam

excellent advice, sam. though for the first shoot, i'd recommend renting the 10-22 or just using the kit lens (not so crappy!) and seeing what results you get.

davev · August 31, 2005

Hi Amy.

I don't have any expertise in this kind of shooting, But I do have a shot from
a hotel room with a Tamron 18-200mm lens on a Canon 300D camera.
It's the same 1.6x factor that you will have with your 20D.
If you use a wide angle, you'll have to deal with the distortion.

Hopefully this pic can help you out a bit. (with room coverage)
sorry I can't help you more.

Taken at 18mm

Seefutlung · September 1, 2005

My 2 Cents
Amye-

Don't rent strobes ... stick with standard lights. Two or three max w/ reflectors. Keep the ISO at 100, tripod everything. Look at past photos and get from the art director what shots he liked best and worst. CYA- with what the Art Director likes then try a few shots outside of the box (i.e. directional lighting w/ shadows, different props - people or animals, et cetera). Good Luck.

ziggy53 · September 1, 2005

Amy,

Similar to other recommendations, I suggest that if you can have some unlimited time with a room, first shoot it as snapshots. You can even use the built-in flash. I would suggest using the "kit" lens because you will probably need the WA. (The kit lens is pretty good stopped-down, but pretty soft wide-open.) The 50mm might work great for the counter top work. Then look at the resulting images and decide what's working and what's not working.

Then try some things. Start putting lights and card reflectors etc. around until you start getting the kind of results you need. I would suggest shooting until you are pleased first, and then bring other people into the mix. You will have acquired considerable experience as a result of the previous exercise and it will be easier to accomodate others' requests when you feel more in control of the components.

"Hot" lights are easier to visualize with than E-flash and usually are not a problem to color balance. Halogen work lights are the cheapest form of light and work pretty well, assuming you have enough electicity.

White foam-core or other white cards are pretty good for both reflectors and modifiers. You can cut them for a gobo and spot effect or position them to control spill.

If the art director has helped with a shoot before, they may have some valuable information to share. Try to get previous images to look at and figure out how things were accomplished previously.

Insist on plenty of time. This could, and maybe should, take days to complete properly.

ziggy53

Shay Stephens · September 1, 2005

Lighting is key
A wide angle lens and a tripod will make life easier, but the most important thing in something like this will be the lighting.

Most of your time will be spent getting the lighting right. Whatever light you decide to use, also be sure to bracket every shot you plan on making. If nothing else, you will be able to exposure blend those bracketed shots in situations that cannot be properly lit for one reason or another.

Lighting is job number one here. As mentioned, make sure you have plenty of time to shoot, review, reshoot, review, etc until you get good results.

David_S85 · September 3, 2005

What Shay says. I'll also add...

...an old realtor trick. Find out what light bulbs are in the lamps and then bring along higher wattage bulbs to switch out what's already in the lamps. This is especially important if you have daylight streaming in through the windows so the room(s) won't look too dark, or if there's a huge difference in brightness from one side of the room to the other.

Note that artificial lighting mixed with sunlight will probably create a white balance challenge. You might wish to also try white balance bracketing besides the exposure bracketing, so you can blend where and when needed. (In actual practice, I've not yet been able to pull that one off in post, but I'm still trying). If you shoot the rooms with only (or predominantly) daylight or artificial light, then WB shouldn't be problematic.

Wides are a absolute must, and so will be using a utility to straighten up the scene in post. PTLens is very very good at this, and it's a free plug-in as well as a stand-alone program. Results tend to be superior to PS CS's built-in filter. You just choose what lens and setting you used, and bingo!

amye · September 6, 2005

Thank you all for the great advice! Today I'm busy getting things (props, rented equipment, etc.) together for the shoot all day tomorrow.

I'm excited (and a little nervous) about the opportunity!

Hopefully there will be enough available light to take care of the general room shots-- I'm getting a couple of lights/reflectors from one of the rental places here in town to help where needed.

I'm going to bracket every shot...

I'll let you know how it goes!

Thanks again!!!
amy

ziggy53 · September 15, 2005

Amy,

Inquiring minds want to know ... how did it go with the shoot?

ziggy53

Advice?? (equipment, technique, etc.)

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