The second, and second most important factor to consider is your lighting.  Photos are all about lighting – and painting with light, above anything else. Practise restraint and only take photos where the light is good – almost always this is when light is pouring in from the side of your intended subject. This is because side light gives depth and contrast to a scene or object, whereas most other light flattens your image.

I suggest waiting until the right time of day to take your photo, or practise blocking off light with a curtain, closing a door, holding up a blanket, or something similar so you can control the light. I personally take note of a room’s natural light pattern, designing the room in such a way that I ensure beautiful side light. A bed positioned near a window, etc. There’s no doubt I absolutely consider photos when designing a room and I encourage you to, as well – it makes your life much easier later on. Below, let’s look at some examples of what an impact different lighting can make to the same image.

The above examples show the three directions of lighting, and the huge difference it makes to the same image. We shot this series of images in a studio, and moved around studio lighting so you could see the difference it makes, but how do we practise this in the real world without studio lighting? Here’s some basic guidelines that can help you.

1. Firstly you could consider controlling your lighting. If you are taking a photo of a room or a vignette in a room, you can close all doors and windows (if you can) except those positioned to the side of your subject. If you are unable to cancel out a light source, such as a window without curtains on it, you could have someone hold up a thick towel over it, or even in some professional circumstances, mask it off with black plastic and painters tape.

2. Secondly you could consider finding the right light. Say, for instance, you would like to shoot a product or an object you have made. You can scour your home for spaces you can use as a shelf with that sought-after side light, or set up a table next to the perfect window. This video is great for explaining how to do that, and this article gives a helpful overview as well. Think about lovely backdrops you could make with lime wash paints, old table top surfaces, tiles, tin ... papers! The options are endless once you start thinking creatively and have found that perfect window!

3. Lastly, you can find the right time for your light. There will be times of the day, mostly sunrise and sunset, where light comes in mainly from one side of your space. If you learn how your space is lit at certain times of the day, you can take your images when the light is just right! Let’s look at an example of this in the real world.

Next, in addition to considering where your light is coming from, you need to consider what your light is. I always turn off all artificial lights, including overhead ones or lamps. When natural and artificial light “mixes”, it creates this nasty muddy tone, which always results in a terrible photo. It’s best to rely solely on natural light.

Make it a habit to walk around and turn off all artificial lighting, no matter how minor it may be, before you take an image. Let’s explore what a difference this makes in the two examples to compare below.

Next, you’ve made all the preparations to take a great photos. You’ve cleaned your lens. You’ve blocked off all the light in your room except for what’s coming from the side, you’ve turned off your overhead lights – now you are finally ready to take your shot! So, make sure you check the lines. When you decide to take an image, remember that you are composing a picture, so think about your scene as a finished product and take a moment to make sure all your lines are straight.

Things like doors, window frames, table tops. There is nothing that gives away an amateur photographer faster than wonky lines. It’s best to watch these when you’re taking the photo rather than having to fix them afterwards, but don’t fret, they can be straightened in the edit – which we will give you advice about in this chapter. Let’s explore what that looks like in real world examples.

My last piece of advice really is a pro tip, but one that will make a huge difference to your images. Try to take your images from a seated height, rather than from a standing height, especially when taking interior images. This is down to aesthetic sciences, as our eyes feel most comfortable looking at an image when it feels like it was taken from sitting down, rather than standing up. Sounds a little wild I know, but let’s explore the example below so you can see how it make sense.

Workbook Time. Reach for your workbook, and complete Question 7.1, now.

Here’s a bit of a bonus for you if you are someone who would like to further develop their photography skills. Below is a list of resources I used myself (yes! I am a self-taught photographer!) when teaching myself ‘iphoneography’ and photography using a camera. They are all very good, and very affordable for the information they provide. My photos are now regularly published by books and magazines around the world, and I take most of the images for my Instagram accounts on my phone camera – proof that if I can do it, so can you! It really is just learning the basics and practice, practice, practice!

• This class is excellent if you would like to further develop your skills using an iPhone.

• I found this class excellent in learning how to photograph interiors with a standard camera and tripod setup.

• Lastly, if neither of the above suit what you are looking for to further develop your creative photography aims, check out these masterclasses to find further learning that suits. All are excellent and all very affordable for the information they provide.

Before we move on from photography to exploring press, I want to share some final pieces of advice with you all. Taking images is a learned skill, so challenge yourself to understand and practise the principles given in this class – and take further direction from the resources provided if you would like to learn more about your camera or editing tools. This lesson, and all lessons in this class require you to actually do, rather than just read and understand.

Moving on from that, it is perfectly okay to never take an image that is published to your social media or in press ever – and still be a ridiculous success! Many of my students don’t – they harness the overwhelming amount of other image content sources available to be used for free. Here’s how to do that, and the sources you can draw from.

1. You might consider using other people’s excellent images by hiring a photographer (more on that next), asking for a favour from a friend who takes beautiful images, or trading products or services with someone who can take images for you.

2. You can use images already uploaded on the internet, as long as you reference the photographer. You can search location or key word hashtags on Instagram for images you might like to use – for example, if you are a potter, you might be able to find some lovely action photography of someone throwing pottery by searching #pottery. Or, say you are embarking on a renovation project in regional Tasmania, you might be able to find some lovely landscape photography by searching #tasmania. The same applies for searching Pinterest. Just make sure you reference the original owner or creator of the image by adding “Image Taken By (person’s name and/or Instagram handle)” to the end of your captions. Here’s a guide on how to search Instagram for images based on keywords.

3. You can search for stock images or videos that might suit your application, and they are often quite well priced and of a high quality. My favourite website for this purpose is Stocksy. I think you’ll all have fun exploring this resource, and feel inspired by the imagery they have that you can use!

Lesson: Do’s & Don’ts

Before we go, I want to give you some final words of advice when working in the world of obtaining media, and catching some major press. Here is a list things I have learnt along the way, and you might be mindful of. Let’s start with the don’ts.

1. Don’t be public about any press you might get until it is actually published. You will likely know ahead of time if your work is going to be in a particular issue of a certain magazine, but you need to keep that information quiet until it hits the shelves.

2. Don’t cold call, or cold email editors of magazines with your images or your pitch. Magazine editors are incredibly busy people, and emails like these tend to annoy rather than pique interest. It is best to approach freelance writers or photographers working for the magazines you’d like to be featured in, rather than the editors themselves.

3. Don’t offer your images to another publication if you already have a feature coming out using those images. Be honest with publications about where that particular set of images has been used, and when. Magazines like exclusives on stories – and really dislike using images that have been published by competing publications in the past.

4. Don’t tag magazines, photographers or writers in your Instagram stories or images unless it has something to do with them. Many people tag or hashtag people and publications like this, hoping that their work will be seen. It has the tendency to annoy rather than attract interest from the intended party.

Now, here’s a list of things to always do!

1. Be honest when being interviewed by your writer about your project, who was involved with it and give credit where credit is due. I’ve seen many particularly nasty situations in the past, where stylists and designers have worked hard for a client to complete whole house renovations and builds – and in the press, owners have framed it as if they had done the work themselves. Word always gets around about these mistruths and it always does more harm to a project than good in the end.

2. Thank the editor, photographer and writer of your feature, both via email and publicly on your social media when your press comes out. All three have had a lot to do with such a huge achievement for you, and you should always acknowledge their efforts.

3. Make sure to always tag or credit the photographer who took an image for you on your social media, as they are the owner of that work and appreciate you doing so, even if you paid for the images. Something as simple as “Image by @nameofphotographer” at the end of your caption will suffice.

4. Lastly, be really proud of your efforts — and any resulting press from them. We all do suffer with a bit of imposter syndrome and fear being the “tall poppy” – so please do your homework and read The Man In The Arena speech below, and know that you deserve everything you’ve worked so hard to achieve.

07. Community

Any work, or ideas you are posting related to this class, please use the hashtags #principlesofstyle and #poss07 so your fellow classmates can connect with you and continue to grow this community.