Furniture photography in Sydney: in-situ lifestyle photos for Era House Furniture’s online store

Name: La Lente Photographer
Address: Epping, NSW, 2121, AU
Telephone: 0414 442 440
Price range: $

Era House Furniture needed photos that sell Gustavian furniture online. No white backgrounds, just a styled room, real light and the details buyers look for.

By Paul D’Ambra · June 2020

Home - Business - Furniture photography in Sydney: in-situ lifestyle photos for Era House Furniture’s online store

Grey bedside table with a drawer and books, a blue-and-white lamp, next to a floral upholstered bed.

Top-down view of a grey bedside table's pull-out tray with a phone and a glass of water beside a blue-and-white lamp.

Upholstered floral bench at the foot of a matching bed, with a bedside table and lamp behind.

White two-shelf side table with a cut-glass lamp, white roses and books, beside the carved bed post.

Floral upholstered bed beside a cane-sided bedside table with a glass lamp and books.

Close-up of a carved, painted furniture leg and cane side panel on a sisal rug.

A taste of the shoot. More photos are in the full gallery further down the page. Click any photo to see it large.

Karin owns Era House Furniture, an online store that sells Gustavian furniture, such as the Gustavian Bedside Tables with Drawer and Tray. She wanted furniture lifestyle photography that would help sell her new pieces: photos for her website and social media, and images to support a PR article she had arranged. This is how I approached the shoot, plus a shot list you can use if you need furniture photography in Sydney for your own range.

The brief: lifestyle, in situ and close-up details

Karin's brief had three parts:

Stand-alone product lifestyle images, with one piece as the hero.
In-situ photos, with the furniture styled alongside other elements so it looks lived with.
Close-up detail shots of the carving, cane, drawers and handles.

The photos were for her website, social media and PR. Karin had arranged an article on the Homes To Love website, which ran as Gustavian style: how to incorporate it in your home.

In-situ product photography in a styled room

We shot at Karin's house, in an area she had set up specifically for her products. I worked with the existing space and its light rather than bringing in a set. Every photo was taken in the styled room, so no white-background shots were needed.

Karin kept working during the day. Nothing stopped for the shoot. When she saw certain pieces being photographed she gave some guidance on what mattered to her. I also tried creative angles she hadn't thought of: low views along the bed, top-down shots of the pull-out tray, and frames looking past the carved bed end. That gave her variety, which matters when you post on social media week after week.

Low view along the bed to a cane-sided bedside table with a brass drawer handle and a glass lamp.

White bedside table with a cut-glass globe lamp and white roses, seen past the carved bed end.

What I photographed

Each bedside table on its own beside the bed, with a lamp, flowers and books.
The pull-out tray in use, with a phone and a glass of water, so buyers can see how it works.
Close-ups of carved legs, cane side panels, drawers and handles.
Wider views of the bed, the bedside tables and the bench at the foot of the bed, to show how the pieces sit together in a room.

Close view of a grey bedside table with a brass ring handle, books on the shelf and white roses on top.

Grey bedside table with pull-out tray, blue-and-white ceramic lamp, white roses and a striped cushion on the bed.

Where the photos were used

Karin used the photos on her website and on social media to sell the furniture. The same brief also covered her PR work around the Homes To Love article.

When in-situ photos beat plain white product shots

Product photography for an online furniture store often needs two kinds of photo, and they do different jobs. White-background shots show the exact shape and colour of a piece, and some marketplaces ask for them. In-situ lifestyle photos do what a white background can't. They show scale next to a bed or a lamp, how a piece looks in a real room, and the feel of the style.

For something like Gustavian furniture, where the look is the reason people buy, styled photos in a room do most of the selling. They also work much better on social media and for PR, where followers and editors want to see a home, not a catalogue page.

A shot list for furniture and homewares brands

If you sell furniture or homewares online, this is the list I'd start with:

Hero shot: each piece on its own in the room, straight on, so buyers see the full shape.
Three-quarter angle: shows depth and the side of the piece.
In use: drawers open, trays pulled out, cushions and throws in place, something on the shelf.
Scale: the piece next to a bed, sofa or chair so buyers can judge its size.
Details: joinery, carving, handles, fabric and finish, close up.
Room set: several pieces together, for banners and collection pages.
Portrait and landscape versions: for product pages, phone screens, Instagram and website banners.
A few creative frames: low angles, top-down views and shots through other furniture, for social media.

If you also need white-background photos for your store, plan them as a separate set-up on the same day, so you get both from one booking.

Furniture photography in Sydney

Business photography starts at $495 for up to an hour, with up to 10 edited photos and a commercial licence included. See business photography in Sydney for what's included and how to book.

Shoot details

Client
Era House Furniture

Industry
Gustavian furniture, sold through an online store

Where
Karin's home, in an area set up for her products

Photographed
Bedside tables, a bed and a bench, styled in a bedroom, plus close-up details

Used for
Website, social media and PR

Business photography in Sydney →

The full gallery

Floral upholstered bedhead and a cane-sided bedside table with a glass lamp and books.

White side table with a blue-and-white lamp, white roses and books on the lower shelf beside the bed.

Floral upholstered bed with white bedding beside a cane-sided bedside table and a glass lamp.

Floral upholstered bed and white side table with a glass lamp, seen through the painted bed end.

Carved bed-end post in front of a floral bed and white side table with a blue-and-white lamp.

White side table with a glass lamp and roses beside a floral bed and striped cushion.

Close view of a cut-glass globe lamp and white roses on a white carved side table by the bed.

Blue-and-white ceramic lamp and white roses on a white carved bedside table by the bed.

Cut-glass globe lamp and a small glass of white roses on a white bedside table.

More photos from the Era House Furniture shoot. Click any photo to see it large.

Need photos of your furniture range?

I can photograph your furniture in a styled room, with lifestyle, in-situ and detail shots for your online store and social media. Business photography starts at $495 for up to an hour.

See business prices →

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