take great photos for rate my space, part 1

Digital photography has made it almost easy for amateurs (like us) to take great photos. And we don't need a lot of fancy equipment to publish on sites like HGTV's Rate My Space. I haven't had formal training, but I've always enjoyed taking pictures of interiors - for my websites and for realtor friends - with my 6 year old Sony.

So it was a real treat for me to watch a professional photo shoot in my own home, for HGTV Ideas Magazine. Now I pay more attention to the photography on Rate My Space, the good, the bad, and especially the great spaces that could look so much better.

The New York Institute of Photography's website features a great article on "How to Photograph Interiors." It details 3 guidelines for better interior shots. I'll summarize them here, but it's worth your time to read the whole NYIP article.

Guideline 1 -Make certain that you select the best possible portion of the room to photograph. Show the best view of your subject.

Guideline 3 - Remove Distractions.

Distraction 1: Too much stuff. After you take your photo, look at it as others do and then edit, edit, edit.

Distraction 2: Vertical and horizontal lines that are crooked. The sense of tilt can be very distracting. See NYIP photo at right.

Distraction 3: Bad Interior Lighting. Don't use your flash. It will make the room look strange. Instead, turn off your flash.

Here are two examples of beautiful RMS kitchens. Both have wonderful layouts, cabinetry and accessories. The major difference, IMHO, is the quality of the photography. 

Kitchen One is on its way to being the #1 MOST VIEWED space ever on HGTV's Rate My Space website. Jfell took the photos herself and they look professional, but not "staged."

Compare with Kitchen Two below:

1st photo - note the angles, lighting, view, stuff

Photo 6 - a better view to show first?

Kitchen Two has great bones. Though reposts of RMS spaces with few changes are generally not well received, I would love to see better photos of the kitchen above. I think it would zoom past its current 3.9 (excellent) rating and its 32,900 views.

In part 2, I'll talk about NYIP's Guideline 2, which asks "How can I give emphasis to my subject?"