Photographing Yosemite: Digital Field Guide

1.3. How Can I Get the Best Shot?

The Ahwahnee Hotel is photographer friendly; just be sure not to make a nuisance of yourself. Set up your tripod so that other visitors can easily get around you. Plan to photograph the interior of the Ahwahnee in midday when most guests are out in the park, to avoid people walking through your images, and to be less of a hindrance to other guests.

The exterior that appears through the windows will be totally washed out when you expose for the interior. Many photographers choose to make one exposure for the interior lighting conditions and another for the exterior and combine the two images in an image-editing program. An advanced technique to try is High Dynamic Range photography, known as HDR, to get a full tonal range image.

1.3.1. Equipment

When shooting architectural subjects, using a wide-angle lens and tripod are equipment essentials. Because you are photographing in tight quarters, you will have to tilt the camera upward to include the ceilings. Doing this causes some distortion, which you can correct during post-processing. If you are really into architectural photography, you may want to rent or buy a tilt-shift lens designed to reduce the distortion inherent in wide-angle photography.

1.3.1.1. Lenses

As with most types of architectural photography, a wide-angle lens is the most effective when photographing the hotel. When photographing in the interior, a wider lens produces a better image. If you're fortunate enough to have a tilt-shift ...