8 Tips to Take Better Pictures when You’re Indoors

Indoor photography is incredibly difficult and most amateur photographers don’t even attempt it. They worry that they simply do not have the right tools and equipment, and particularly lighting, to create a good shot. However, renowned expert Charles Nucci feels that the indoor environment is a fantastic place to take excellent pictures. He feels that if someone is able to master it, other forms of still life photography are a piece of cake. To help people who want to give it a go, he has created the following list of tips that show people how to set up and shoot fantastic pictures.

8 Important Indoor Photography Tips

According to Charles Nucci, to take excellent indoor photographs, people should:

  1. Use indirect natural light as much as possible. This means placing the subject in such a way that it is illuminated by light that comes out of a window, for instance. The best light is soft light, obtained early morning or late afternoon. If the light is too direct or sharp, then a white sheet can diffuse the light.
  2. Use sideways illumination, which will give the subject an extra dimension.
  3. Make the subject bright by using reflectors. This doesn’t mean professional equipment needs to be purchased, as a simply sheet of white paper will do.
  4. Create a backdrop by removing any clutter and placing the subject against a block color such as velour or velvet for softness, butcher paper, mat boards, or even shower curtains for interesting effects. For small subjects, a shirt can even be used.
  5. Make sure the backdrop is positioned properly, which is between two and three feet of the subject. This stops shadows from being cast, while at the same time allowing the photographer to set the proper depth of field. A reflector can be used on light, bright backdrops to make them stand out.
  6. Make sure the rest of the table surface is dull and does not reflect any light. Cover it with a non-reflective surface.
  7. Always use a tripod, as this will create the sharpest images. Tripods are inexpensive but, if money really is an object, you can create one simply by setting your camera down on a bag of rice or dry beans. This also allows you to set an angle.
  8. Use a remote control or the self-timer function, as this ensures that you do not move your camera at all by pressing the button. This will leave the image much sharper and exactly as you intended it to be.

Charles Nicci believes that indoor still life photography is a fantastic way for people to learn more about how to take great pictures. It is an opportunity to test different materials, colors, and light conditions, which is an important lesson to learn. Furthermore, he believes that indoor photography is quite hard, and mastering it means that people can take photographs anywhere. Mainly, he wants people to take as many pictures as possible. The beauty of digital cameras is that you aren’t limited to how many shots you take.