With the advance of technologies such as Photoshop, many of us have moved to adapting our approach to photographing some architectural and interior spaces to one that is more akin to the compositing techniques that have more often been seen in advertising photography over the years. Though there is always a place and argument for getting things right in one shot in the camera, the reality of shooting large, complex spaces with a variety of light sources, materials, moving people and other challenges results in much greater flexibility when we can break these elements down using a variety of exposures and then later blend those together to create a much stronger, more dynamic and purposefully composed result. In the video below, I share the process of compositing together a variety of frames in order to get accurate color, representation of materiality and space as well as thoughtful placement of the people within that space without causing distractions to the portrayal of the designer’s intent. By working with intention to show how people might use the spaces as intended, we create a scene that is dynamic in its ability to best display how spaces are designed and interact with one another in a single image that is able to tell a much fuller story than we might be able to get if trying to get all of these elements right in a single frame.
People often ask about the length of time these types of composites take when I share the process, and while some can take quite a bit longer when having to carefully select elements using techniques such as the Photoshop’s pen tool, this particular image came together in just over 30 minutes. Of course the time on site had to be carefully planned out, considering each space and where models would be placed and how they might be interacting with each other and the space. It also must be said that without the very collaborative effort of a great project team, coming up with such a dynamic result would be next to impossible. Not only was the project team helpful in considering all options, but they also understand the value in sending so many team members to a photoshoot in the first place in order to breath life into the completed space.
