How To Properly Capture High Ceilings In Real Estate Photography
High ceilings are a sought after feature in real estate, often associated with luxury and spaciousness. As a real estate photographer, capturing the elegance and scale of high ceilings is crucial in conveying the property’s full value. However, this task comes with its unique set of challenges.
In this article I’ll discuss how to effectively photograph high ceilings, ensuring they contribute to the allure and appeal of the property in your images.
Table of Contents
Use A Taller Tripod
To begin, the choice of equipment plays a pivotal role. Although this may seem simple, it’s worth mentioning. One of the easiest yet most effective tools for capturing high ceilings is a tall tripod.
Give our article Best Tripods for Real Estate Photography a read to see some great options for tall and sturdy tripods that will be excellent for capturing high ceilings.
Elevated Positioning: A tall tripod allows you to position your camera higher than usual, providing a better angle to capture the expanse and details of high ceilings. This elevated perspective helps in showcasing the vertical space and architectural details like ceiling moldings, chandeliers, or intricate ceiling designs.
Stability and Precision: Besides offering an elevated vantage point, tripods ensure stability. This is crucial in achieving sharp, high-quality images, especially in indoor settings where you might be working with lower shutter speeds and natural light.
Aim Your Camera Upwards and Correct Verticals While Editing
Capturing the grandeur of high ceilings often requires you to tilt your camera upwards. While this achieves the desired effect of showcasing ceiling height, it can introduce distortion in the form of converging vertical lines.
If you’ve every sought constructive criticism on your own real estate photography, one of the first things that seasoned pros look for is straight vertical lines. That means you really need to balance how high you aim in this situation.
Post-Production Correction: Modern post-production software offers powerful tools for correcting these vertical lines. Applications like Adobe Photoshop or Lightroom allow you to straighten the lines, ensuring that the walls don’t appear as if they are leaning inwards. See why we named Adobe Lightroom and Photoshop our Best Editing Software for Real Estate Photography
Balanced Composition: When aiming upwards, balance the composition by including some of the lower parts of the room. This provides context and helps in maintaining a sense of proportion in your images.
Use a Tilt-Shift Lens
For tackling the challenge of vertical distortion head-on, a tilt-shift lens can be a helpful tool in real estate photography.
What’s a tilt-shift lens? It’s a lens that allows you to change the angle and position of the lens in relation to the camera sensor. This capability is particularly useful for architectural photography.
By adjusting the lens, you can capture a taller part of the building while keeping the camera sensor parallel to the ground, thereby preventing the vertical lines from converging. For a deeper explanation, read our article Are Tilt-Shift Lenses Needed for Real Estate Photography?
Preserving Architectural Integrity: The use of a tilt-shift lens ensures that the architectural integrity of the property is maintained in your photos. It allows you to capture the full height of the ceilings without the distortion that typically comes with tilting the camera upwards.
Selective Focusing: Another advantage of tilt-shift lenses is their ability to selectively focus on specific areas of a scene, which can be creatively used to highlight particular features of a room with high ceilings.
Get Creative With Angles and Perspectives
Beyond the technical aspects, being creative with your angles and perspectives can add an artistic touch to your images.
Experiment with Angles: Don’t just stick to conventional straight-on shots. Experiment with different angles to find the most flattering views of the ceiling and the space.
Reflections: Use reflective surfaces like mirrors or glass tables to creatively capture the ceiling’s reflection, adding depth and interest to your images.
Additional Resources
If you’re just getting started in real estate photography, check out our Beginners Guide. It’s full of helpful articles and tips that will guide you in the right direction as you begin your real estate photography journey.
You can check out our Gear section as well to see reviews and recommendations on the latest real estate photography gear.
If you’re more interested in other resources that can help your real estate photography business, check out our Business Resources page.
