Just a quick note to include our cover photograph and main story in this weekends edition of the Real Estate Liftout.

A gorgeous place with amazing views, and a lot of fun to shoot.

Real Estate Liftout Cover Photograph in the Manly Daily on 19/01/13

Real Estate Cover Story with photography by [NBPD] on 19/01/13

Shane Law [NBPD] Northern Beaches Photography & Design

Photographer |  Blogger

Shane Law [NBPD] Northern Beaches Photography & Design

Photographer |  Blogger

Let’s pause here for a second to quickly talk about how lines work as a general rule in photography. I will cover Vertical, Horizontal, Diagonal and Implied Lines.

1. Vertical lines in photographs can help create a sense of strength and/or a sense of growth (think of buildings and trees for example). Take a look at this image I took last week, what do you notice about this image?

[Vertical Flagpole]

As I mentioned in the opening paragraph, much is said about vertical lines. This is because often a photographer will have to “edit” lines to make sure actual vertical lines in reality are represented that way in the final photograph. The reason it has to be “edited” that way is because when a photographer points the camera up or down to any degree, the resulting image will have lines that become angled. The reason why it is important to have it edited is because we expect cupboards, doors, windows etc to have vertical sides, and if we don’t see an image that way we have a sense that something is wrong.

2. Horizontal Lines 

The most common horizontal line that we see in photography, is the horizon itself. Lines such as these tend to represent stability, peace, rest. Often in real estate images, particularly ones with a view,  we place the horizon perfectly horizontal because once again, this is what the viewer expects. In addition to this more obvious horizontal line I often use horizontals to mix things up a little, for example shooting a kitchen straight on with good symmetry and structure, with vertical lines for balance and stability as in the example below.

[Kitchen shot with symmetry, balance and horizontal lines]

My favourite type of line, I have mentioned them before in regards to corporate photography, but I can tell you I always look for them. They are dynamic, and are often used to lead a viewers eye through the photograph and can give a sense of depth. Take a look at the image below, it could be very different, but I shot it this way so that the diagonals create interest.

[Diagonal Lines creating interest]

[Outdoor Table with Diagnol Lines]

[Kitchen Bench]

[Kitchen Bench showing Block Element]

[Kitchen Bench: Closer View]

[Kitchen Bench: Closer View with Diagnol Lines]

Ok, so we have talked about how you can use verticals, horizontals and diagonals, so time to move on to…

4. Implied Lines.

I have talked about these type of lines at length in our blog post entitled Elements of Professional Photography (part 1). The photograph I used in this article to illustrate this concept was this one below. Here you can feel your eyes moving from left to right in a diagonal fashion, first down and then up and down again. There is no actual lines that make our eyes want to do this, the line our eyes take in an “implied” line created in the design of the photograph.

[Implied Diagonal between Subjects Faces]

[Sun Room]

[Sun Room with Diagonal and Implied Lines]

Remember, we love to hear your comments so feel free to let us know what you think in the “leave a reply” section below, and view more of our work at www.nbpd.com.au.

Shane Law [NBPD] Northern Beaches Photography & Design

Photographer |  Blogger

Example #1- 279 Whale Beach Road, Whale Beach, NSW, Australia

Here is the image in the original JPEG format.

Example #2 Whale Beach Road, Whale Beach, NSW, Australia.
We also photographed a house on the same road only weeks before, the house that was mentioned in a seperate article stating “It took just 10 days to achieve the record-breaking sale of Geoffrey Cousins’ Whale Beach home, believed to be in excess of $13 million”. This was on the cover of the Manly Daily weekend real estate liftout on October 13th, 2012. Take a look below.

Example #3,  Oracades, Whale Beach Road, Whale Beach, NSW, Australia.
We photographed this property which is found just around the corner from the previous properties. Selected for the front cover image.

Example #4, Northern Beaches, Sydney, NSW, Australia.
Last but not least, here is one of my favourites from the past few months of shooting, it was published in the real estate glossy liftout, another property from Whale Beach.

All these premiere properties are listed by the fab team at Raine & Horne Palm Beach – Glenn Lee, David Eden and James Baker.

Please send us your comments.  We enjoy hearing from you.

Shane Law [NBPD] Northern Beaches Photography & Design

Photographer    |   Blogger

Last Friday we photographed a great event, lots of energy, great location, good people. Take a look at this event photography, and for tips on how to shoot events see our post called Event Photography Sydney

Reblogged from [NBPD]:

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Hi all,

We have been shooting Real Estate photography and Interior photography for some time, and for many these terms mean the same thing. But we believe there is a difference and here it is ... Real Estate Photography is all about showcasing a property and is often about photographing space, and incorporating other features (such as views, position etc) to make it look attractive.

Read more… 475 more words

I have to stress, most people have an opinion about what looks good, bad or otherwise, particularly clients, friends, family even the dog next door.  However, this does NOT mean they are correct or even have a clue what they are talking about (woof?), remember who is trained, knowledgable and experienced. With that said, be open to criticism, often there is wisdom in feedback it just depends on how you decipher and use it. Who knows it may inspire a masterpiece.

[You may be right]

So what makes BAD design? Here’s a shortlist of Top Graphic Design No, No’s.

1. Being Inconsiderate-When a design is not considered it literally looks like vomit on a page. Take the time to plan your design. Thumbnail. Think about your brief, your audience. Use your grid and think about common points of alignment. Think about the hierarchy of the design and the most effective way of delivering the brief. Draw your audience in and keep them there for a while.

2. Fonts Galore- Limit your fonts.Usually 2-3 typefaces suffice. More than this and a feeling of being overwhelmed, inconsistent and dare I say…amateur-ish? Unless of course this is a feeling you are aiming for, it has been consciously considered and compliments the structure of the design.

3. Mr Big and Heavy- Contrary to popular belief, bigger is not always better, however size DOES matter but most importantly it is how you use the variation of sizes to be most effective. Use a combination of weights and sizes that work together to deliver the message.

4.  Faulty Images- Get the images right. Do not use copyrighted images without permission. Buy quality stock images or use a Professional Photographerto get the look and feel of the images 100%.  Professional images are more desirable to the client, the brand, and the audience.  Those with camera do not maketh the photographer.

5. Crazy Colours- Don’t overdo the colour or combination of colour. Use it wisely. Colour has a psychological and physiological effect on us so getting it right is very important to support the overall attitude of the design. A good rule of thumb is using the 60- 30-10 rule. Use the primary color in 60% of the layout to create the overall theme.  Add about 30% of the secondary color to create contrast and visual interest. And lastly use 10% of the accent color to provide the  supporting accent and detailing of colour.

So there you have it. An essential shortlist of the Top Graphic Design No, No’s. Keep them in mind and try to avoid them.  Remember to integrate the Elements to Graphic Design and the Principles of Graphic Design and you are well on your way to successful graphic designing!

Jodie Slowski [NBPD] Northern Beaches Photography & Design

Graphic Designer | Webpage Designer | Photographer | Mixed Media Artist | Blogger