Stewart J. Wilkins |
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Michelle, I do a lot of real estate photography and have learned a great deal from this super bunch of people. One of my problems is the brokers who shoot their own pictures. :-) Anyway, I'm sure someone will come up with much more useable info for you, but I do know that there's no rule about keeping the sun to your back when shooting anything. I've found that when the sun is at a 45 or 90 degree angle I get my best outdoor shots. Actually, I get my very best outdoor shots on a cloudy day. A high thin cloudy day is heaven for me. As far as the outdoor shots are concerned, is it absolutely necessary to take them then? Not that a good outdoor shot can't be a compelling image, but I would think, based on my experience with Realtors, that they are addicted to the sun for their shots. :-) As I usually don't take indoor shots of anything other than residential listings, I can't say too much about your indoor lighting dilemma. I will say, however, that when I shoot a big kitchen I turn the fluourescents off as they do have that yellowish effect. Ideally, if you used a tripod and a slower exposure, plus a mounted flash, it might produce better results. However, as I've shot some mansions that have some very big rooms (one, a ballroom) I also would suggest additional flash. Of course, knowing Realtors as I do they ain't goin for anything like that. If your camera has a hot shoe (it's a "thingy" on top of the camera that allows you to put on a mounted flash) that would help you out considerably, even without additional flash lighting. I'm thinking that, based on what you said about your camera, you have a built-in flash which, I'm afraid, for a room that size just won't get the job done. Also, outdoors if it's nightime you're going to have to use a tripod and overide your automatic exposure. The good news is: someone more qualified will soon come along and "voila" come up with a brilliant solution for you. In the meantime, good luck and always remember that there is a photographer near you who probably can do all this stuff for your brokers at really reasonable rates. :-) Have a great holiday! Stew
November 29, 2000
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