In a previous post, I went through my top five tips for interior photography, I have since been asked by a number of people what equipment I use. While I am a big subscriber to the fact that it’s the person behind the camera and their experience and craft that will make a truly great image. Hopefully, this list of equipment for interior photography will give you a good starting point to build your own kit.

My top five pieces of equipment for interior photography

Tripod with bubble level

A sturdy tripod with a bubble level is critical to getting good interior shots. It doesn’t matter how good your camera is, if the shot is blurry then it’s useless – and that’s a mistake you’ll only make once.

A geared head is definitely the way to go with this. If you can afford something like the Arca Swiss D4 you will have a tripod head for life – but go for the best you can afford. I would avoid a ball head for architecture photography, as no matter how much you think you have tightened the head, I’ve found they always move a little when you let go of the camera. Having the ability to do minor tweaks to a composition with a geared head is great for interior photography and having a bubble level on there means you can get it perfectly level every time.

Tilt Shift Lens

What will really elevate a truly great interior photographer above those which are “just good” is paying attention to the really simple things which often go unnoticed among those less experienced.

Little things like making sure all the lines which are meant to be vertical are vertical when shooting on a really wide lens – this is always going to be hard as you’re going to be dealing with a large amount of perspective shift as well as the distortion of the lens.

A tilt shift lens allows you to escape this, by – you probably guessed by the name – allowing you to tilt and shift elements within the lens which brings your verticals back to vertical. It will take you a little bit longer, but sometimes stepping back and taking a little bit more time to compose a shot is a good thing and it will save you having to correct it in post production, which although possible will lose you a large section of the image.

Macbook Pro

For 90% of my work I will shoot tethered into Capture One Pro using Tethertools cables. These cables are a little bit more expensive than the competition, but I’ve never had one fail on me, and they come in bright orange too which is great when you’re on a set for avoiding tripping over them!

Shooting to your Mac gives you an instant visual on screen. This is great if your client is on site with you, as you can receive constructive feedback throughout the shoot and enable the client to play a more hands-on role in the process, if they wish to do so. It also means you’re not fighting with a tiny screen on the back of your camera to check if you’re focussed on the correct subject.

Depending on how much you need to move around on the shoot, it’s sometimes a good idea to bring a table to sit your Mac on so you’re not constantly fighting for somewhere to put it. Manfrotto do some great attachments which fit to your tripod, which gives you an all-in-one solution.

Polarizing filter

Although to most photographers this may be seen as something which should be inside a landscape photographer’s bag, rather than included in an interior photography kit list, I find my polarizing filter invaluable in most situations.

Whether it’s trying to take the edge off harsh sunlight streaming through an errant window, or removing the shine from a kitchen work surface, a polarizer can help. Be aware though that it can take up to two stops of light – so that tripod becomes even more invaluable!

Speed light

If you have room in your bag, a couple of speed lights are a great accessory to carry with you. I have mine synced to my camera via Pocket Wizards and mounted on monopods so I can quickly move them and leave them in place while I adjust the lighting. Also, if I need a little extra reach to get them into a hard-to-reach corner, I can use the monopod like a boom pole and direct the flash exactly where I need it.

Another good bit of kit to bring along with your speed lights are a couple of different gels. They can be used to help balance the natural light with the flash or to produce some nice effects which otherwise wouldn’t be possible.

What piece of equipment for interior photography could you not go without? Please leave a comment below with any bits you feel have helped raise your interior photography and if you like this post please share it using the social buttons below.