10 tips for taking beautiful photos of your home

If you’re an interior designer, proud homeowner wanting to showcase your decor, or just wanting to improve your interior images for instagram, here are a few of my tips for snapping the best shots of your interiors! A couple of these tips will relate specifically to DSLR shooters, but most are applicable to anyone— even those of you using your phone camera to capture your images!

01/ SHOOT STRAIGHT-ON TO WALLS

So basically: when you’re shooting, shoot directly at a wall, not diagonally towards a corner. This isn’t a rule, I shoot into corners all the time, but I do love the clean, straight lines of a straight-on shot. If you scroll through these photos you’ll notice almost all of them are directly facing a wall. There’s just something aesthetically pleasing about the perspective lines of a straight-on photo. Again, this can be a personal preference thing, but I notice that many of the photos I like and that are popular on Instagram or in magazines follow this guideline.

02/ ADD A HUMAN ELEMENT

These photos in this post in particular don’t do the best at showcasing this tip, but it is one thing I like to do, and find that I enjoy in other people’s photos. Put people (or pets) in your photos! My Corgi makes it into a lot of the photos I take of my space and I love how she adds a little bit of realness to the photo. I also enjoy putting myself in the photo (standing at the counter cutting fruit, making the bed, playing with my son) just to give a lived-in feel to my images. We do, after all, actually live here! It can be harder to set up, and getting a toddler to cooperate for photos might be more of pain than it’s worth sometimes, but I try to do it when I can.

Even if you can’t get an actual person in your image, you can at least give some kind of staging that alludes to people’s existence, haha. Maybe have an orange sliced up on a cutting board with a knife laid beside it when you take photos of your kitchen. Or a book cracked open with a cup of coffee and a scone on your coffee table when shooting your living room. Just little evidences of human life peeking through your photo.

03/ USE NATURAL LIGHT

Most of our indoor lights have a very warm, orangey tone, so when lights are on they can tend to tint everything orange. I prefer my images to look as natural as possible in order to get an accurate depiction of paint colors/upholstery etc, so I’ll turn off all the lights and use only window light. If you are a whiz at off-camera lighting and feel comfortable lighting your space that way, by all means!

Because turning the lights off in your home will often mean your space is a lot more dim than usual, you’ll probably have to put your camera on a tripod so you can use a long exposure in order to get the correct exposure in your image.

You can also open doors that aren’t in the photo in order to let light in from other rooms or outdoors. I’ll often open my front door when taking photos of my living room because it lets in way more light BUT! I have to put a white sheet over my door because it’s painted orange, so that orange color gets cast onto my space unless I throw a sheet over it. Light can do funny things like that, so just keep an eye out for funky shadows or weird colors getting cast onto your space.

04/ CLEAN UP CLUTTER

This one is kind of a personal preference depending on how “real” you want your images to be, but I do like to take photos of a space that has odds and ends and clutter tucked away. It helps put the focus on the design elements on the room and draws the eye to the areas you want. For example, my kitchen counters house waaay more stuff in my daily life than is shown in these photos, but I wanted to show the concrete counters and backsplash tile. With coffee makers and dish drying racks all over the counter, it’d be harder for the viewer to focus on those design elements. This can also apply to stuff like cords and remotes. Just tuck ‘em away for the shoot!

05/ MOVE STUFF AROUND

This might be considered “cheating” but I do it a lot. Move design elements from room to room! I definitely do this most with plants. I don’t have as many plants as I’d like in every room of my house, so I’ll usually do a little bit of plant musical chairs, adding plants to the room I’m shooting. You can also do this with stuff like throw pillows, blankets, etc. Since you’re not showing your entire house in one image, you can fudge a little by borrowing stuff from rooms not shown in the photo you’re taking. Tricksy!

06/ USE A WIDER ANGLED LENS

I don’t like to get too crazy, if you have too wide of a lens it can distort things and start to look fish-eyed. The widest I’ll use is a 24mm lens, which seems to be a good lens, especially for shooting smaller spaces. I like to use a 50mm for shooting details, and a 35mm is a happy medium between 50 and 24mm.

07/ SHOOT THE BIG PICTURE

I’m all about a nice vignette (I mean, c’mon, I spent a while styling that shelf!) but people like to see the big picture. If you have a small space, it might mean you have to step into the doorway of the neighboring room in order to get far enough back to fit your room in frame. See that pink door in my living room? In order to get a full shot of my entire living room I have to use my 24mm lens and then be standing about a foot into that doorway to get the shot. In order to shoot my tiny bathroom, I’ve climbed into the very back corner of my shower in order to get the shot. Whatever works!

08/ DIFFUSED LIGHT IS YOUR FRIEND

I do enjoy the occasional harsh sun, shadowed photo, but in general, it’s best to shoot at a time of day when the sun isn’t beaming directly into your windows and casting a bunch of really harsh light. A partially cloudy day makes for really wonderful light (though here in the PNW we can get too many clouds and it’s almost too dim to shoot some days)

09/ MOVE STUFF OUT OF YOUR WAY

Sometimes you want to get just the right shot, but the arm of a chair is getting in the shot. Don’t be afraid to scoot things out of your shot. When you’re shooting, look at the image you just took on the camera’s screen and make sure there’s nothing peeking into the shot that’s distracting the eye.

10/ SHOOT RAW

This one is a little more technical, and you might not have the right photo editing software to edit raw images, but shooting in raw (instead of jpeg) makes it way easier to correct things like over or underexposure. Most DSLR cameras have the option to shoot raw, you just have to scroll through your settings to select the raw option. Again, this one is a little more techy, so if you’re not super comfortable with your camera or if you don’t have software that can work with raw image files, don’t worry about it!

For editing, I like to use Lightroom for my “big camera” images. When it comes to phone images, I always edit using A Color Story app. They’ve got lots of filters, and you can combine, tweak and save your filters too so you don’t have to repeat all the steps you take every time to achieve a cohesive look on your photos. Another app I’ve used in the past for photo editing is Afterlight.

wildbride retreats!

Back in April I announced an idea for a second Winne trip.  I knew that the Brave was a creative home for me, and I longed for another Brave journey.  But I also knew that this time I didn't want the trip to be about me.  I didn't want it to be just a sight-seeing trip, or a personal growth trip like it was for my first one.  So I had the idea to travel around and interview cool ladies doing amazing things and create a podcast.  I was really excited about the idea, but I also felt like something was sort of off about it, for me.  I couldn't figure out how to make the project really resonate with me, it was like I was working against the flow trying to get the project going.  I had planned on leaving on the trip about this time of year, but time kept slipping by and the project kept getting pushed back.

When I took my break from the interwebs and started dipping my toes into doing Wildbride photo shoots, I naturally was inspired to involve the Brave in my life again.  I knew that the Brave and Wildbride were connected, deep down they meant the same thing for me.  They were a part of the same story.  So I started thinking of how the two of them could mesh.  The result: Wildbride Retreats!

I knew that I wanted to connect with more women beyond the Pacific Northwest, but that everyone who wanted to do a shoot traveling to me wouldn't always feasible.  But with the Brave, I'm mobile.  I could go TO people.  So starting at the end of January I'm hopping in the Brave with Kristina (the loveliest redhead who you've seen on this here blog plenty of time.  My soul sister and luscious goddess) and driving down the West Coast of the US leading Wildbride retreats along the way.  We have retreats scheduled for the Oregon Coast, Northern California Redwoods, Joshua Tree, and Sedona!

 

The retreats will be on weekends, arrival on Friday, Wildbride shoots on Saturday, and leave Sunday, and we've got so much fun stuff planned.  Kristina is a certified Yoga Instructor and will be leading yoga for us to get us all grounded into our bodies, we'll be staying in some incredible homes (don't worry, we don't all have to cram into the Brave), and eating delicious food.  You can see the tentative daily schedule here, I'm so excited to get to commune with Wildbride women and have a healing, celebratory weekend surrounding the photo shoots.  Each retreat only has 4 spots because I really want the retreats to be more intimate.  I don't want to feel like we're rushing the shoots, or that I don't have enough time to connect with everyone.  

 

Also, I have big dreams for taking Wildbride even further than the Winne can go.  I'm traveling to Paris Dec 1- 5,  and New Orleans Dec 29-31, and while I don't have time to put together full retreats for those trips, I would love to do Wildbride shoots while I'm there!  If anyone is local to Paris/New Orleans or happens to be there while I am, please email me and let's chat!  I'm also dreaming of Ireland, Iceland, and beyond for 2016!  But for now here are the confirmed Wildbride Retreats:

Oregon Coast | Manzanita, OR  Jan 29-31, 2016 (only 2 spots left!)
Redwoods | Mendocino, CA Feb 12-14

Joshua Tree | Joshua Tree, CA Feb 19-21

Sedona | Sedona, AZ Mar 4-6

You can see all the info on the retreats, what's included, what's not, and the tentative daily schedule over at the Retreat website!  I'm offering an Early Bird deal for everyone who signs up before November 30 (and I also have payment plans available for early birds too, so if you're interested in finding out more about the payment plan email me!).  After that it'll go up to full price, so make sure to sign up before then!

W I L D B R I D E

Sometimes you need a break to clear your head. To reconnect with yourself, get your compass set on your true north, get the voices out of your head and listen to the still, small voice that is your authentic creativity.

This summer I took a step back. I put pause on, well, pretty much everything except wedding photography (because the show must go on). I had some really refreshing time to assess what I wanted, to give my creativity breathing space, to nourish myself.

I started going on creative outings, just me and my camera. I decided to shoot whatever I was drawn most to. I knew that I was influenced by other creators, and I wanted to reconnect with what I, at my core, was drawn to, inspired by. I also reflected on what I was drawn to and inspired by as a kid. Not surprisingly, I was instantly led to nature. As a kid I was always in the woods. I was in love with nature. I was a die hard tree-hugger. When I first started fashion blogging I was shooting all my outfit photos in the woods, or out in nature somewhere. Since moving to an urban area I've tried shifting my aesthetic to be more city-friendly. I do enjoy doing more urban inspired photography, but it's definitely more out of necessity than anything else. If I had my way, I'd be in nature 100% of the time.

It was time to make a shift. I wanted my photography business, my blog, and my work to reflect this authenticity. I found a new passion that merged two things I adore. Women and nature.

In January I started doing boudoir photo shoots. I really loved how they made both me and the women I shot feel powerful and confident. It's empowering to feel sexy and gorgeous. But there was something about it that didn't sit totally right with me. Doing bedroom-lingerie-Victoria's-Secret type boudoir felt...off. There was an aspect about it to me that felt intended for the male gaze. I knew that that wasn't always the case. Sometimes a gal just wants to put on some sexy lingerie and look hot for her own damn pleasure.  I'm so for that.  But at the same time, there was something about those types of boudoir shoots that didn't feel authentic for me, as a photographer and a woman.  I wanted to be about something different.  I wanted to create something different


 

In June and July I was hot and heavy into Dr. Clarissa Pinkola Estes Ph.D's "Women Who Run With the Wolves" (a book I recommend every single one of you read immediately. Or read again if you've already done so). I was feeling the Wild Woman vibes like whoa. Every word was like, YES. And I knew I wanted to make images that tapped into THAT aspect of womanhood. This wild, natural, powerful aspect of women's nature. No airbrushing, no liquify-tooling away "imperfections." Being powerfully sensual, feminine, and beautiful. I wanted to photograph that. I wanted to give women those images. I wanted to be a part of that experience with women.  And so Wildbride was born.

The name Wildbride came from the idea of women who were married to nothing but their wild woman nature. She belongs to no one. No one owns her but herself. She is betrothed to the wild within her. She's made vows to the wild woman in her soul alone, to her creativity, to her mental and spiritual health.

So, quietly over the past few months, that's what I've been doing.  Finding ladies who are like, "Yeah, all that? I'm about it. Let's do this" and then going out into the wild, stripping down, letting it all hang out, and making magic happen. And it's making me come alive. I'm so excited about Wildbride.  I've been doing Wildbride shoots the past few months, but now I'm officially pushing it out of the nest and letting it spread its wings.  I can't wait to connect with more women, bring more diversity in body types and ethnicities into these shoots, and even create Wildbride images with women beyond the borders of the US.  Everything about Wildbride resonates with my soul.

Women are incredible, strong, wild, sensual, powerful creatures. There is a part of a woman's soul that is married to the wilderness in a way that escapes explanation. We are so much more than how the media portrays us. Our bodies are so much more than meant for the male gaze to consume, they are sacred. We are Wildbrides and there are parts of us that will remain untamed until our last breath. Sometimes we squirrel it away because it's not proper. Sometimes we only let it out when we are alone. Sometimes we find a group of women who let us tear down the walls and get wild.


Instead of traditional boudoir shoots, I'm offering Wildbride shoots to clients anywhere around the globe.  I know not everyone can afford to fly me to them for a photo shoot, but I'll be announcing my travel schedule for the next six months and some super exciting Wildbride news later today for those of you who would love to do Wildbride but aren't local to the Seattle area.  
A Wildbride shoot is for you. Not for your significant other (though I'm sure they'll love the images we create), first and foremost we make these images for you. My hope and desire for Wildbride is that they aren't just photo shoots.  I want them to celebrate womanhood, to empower, and to heal.  I want women to have their Wildbride images to look at be reminded of the creative, sensitive, sensual, powerful, sacred being that she is.  

After the Jump there are a few more images that are NSFW, and you can always head to my portfolio to see more as well :)  Also: photo credit on the top image of me to Bailey, the lovely green haired goddess in the photo above.  The water was pretty cold so I got in all the way for some solidarity with her and she took some Wildbride shots of me!

mt. rainier engagement session inspiration peek

Ugh, you guys, this shoot.  K, so not only did we get to do a really fun hike in a gorgeous area, but we also got to take photos along the way and the end?  That view?  I die.  Oh and Kristina's Free People dress? Pretty much drooling over it.  Huge props to Kristina + Craig who were so game for the 2+ hour drive, plus an hour hike to make these images.  This is just a little peek at the shoot, head over to the studio blog to see the rest of it.  This shoot is going in the books as one of my all time favorites!

neah bay on film

The digital shots from my trip to Neah Bay are in this post, but I took my film cameras along for the ride and these are a few of my favorite shots.