When I photograph an interior, I rely on a multiple flash lighting set up to get crisp, sharp, bright interior photography images. I prefer to get it right in the camera rather than spending hours in post production on a computer. HDR is a great tool but I find the results very flat and uninteresting, the edges on any details tend to be very soft and colour control is limited.

Interior Photography – Lighting a Hallway

The first image is the final result, one single shot with all the flashes synced to go off at the same time. I have also included a set of images to show how placing the flashes in the different locations has effected the final results.

I always start with the main exposure which is set for the window/s trying to strike a balance with the room lights. If the room light are on a dimmer i will set my exposure of the window and adjust the room lights, if the room lights look too bright I just switch them off.

This shot shows the placement of the two additional flash light, one at the top of the stairs and the other in the passage way. the room in the distance trough the passage way is nicely balanced to the main exposure so no additional lighting wasn’t necessary.

With just the main flash the image looks alright, but when you compare it to the final result you can see how your eye are drawn in to the photo.