%20(1).png)
A behind-the-scenes look at hotel photography — from guest rooms to bathrooms and restaurants. Real on-location challenges, problem-solving decisions, and the workflow behind creating clean, commercial-ready hotel images.
Throughout my photographic career, I have been fortunate enough to discover what truly drives me. I enjoy solving problems, I love traveling, and I thrive on challenges. Hotel photography is the perfect combination of all three.
Four Seasons hotel room, photo by Jiří Lizler
(For example, this image taken at the Four Seasons Prague was a relatively simple extension intended to showcase the room’s majestic proportions, chandelier, and dynamic range.)
To succeed in hotel photography, you must master architectural and interior photography, while also thinking commercially and critically. You need to step into the mindset of both hotel guests and marketing directors. Every hotel is different.
I would like to take this opportunity to educate fellow photographers and clients about my problem-solving approach, as there are quite a few challenges involved. If this interests you, read on.
Recently, I had an assignment in Karlovy Vary where we encountered several issues that had to be solved on location. I usually ask my clients to prepare a shot list in advance so everyone understands the scope of the project. This helps us estimate production time and identify potential challenges.
It also serves as a checklist—once a shot is completed, we can confidently move on to the next one.
Let’s start with guest rooms. In this example, the most pressing issue was dynamic range. Simply put, our eyes perceive rooms very differently from cameras.
As hotel photographers, our task is to accurately convey the atmosphere and layout of a room, highlight its features, and eliminate distractions.
Hotel Saxonia Karlovy Vary, photo by Jiří Lizler
This room presented several challenges:
Although the room appeared dark in the camera, it actually had sufficient natural light coming through the windows, along with a pleasant view of a hillside with spring trees in bloom. In the initial capture, however, none of this was visible.
Simply put, these are elements that contaminate the colors in a scene and make them look unnatural—in this case, green reflections from the bedsheets.
Everything in the world has different white balance values depending on the light source. The key question is: what should appear neutral—typically the bedding.
My personal approach is to treat natural window light as the reference white balance and use lamps as accent or practical lighting. Some hotel brands allow more flexibility in this area, while others have strict guidelines.
This is subjective, but personally, I dislike using ultra-wide lenses to show an entire room. I strongly believe in the principle that less is more.
Wide lenses are often a lazy solution that distort proportions and make rooms feel unattractive. By using tighter focal lengths, I am forced to stage the space more carefully—moving furniture, styling the bed, adjusting curtains, and refining details.
This is often the most visible issue in hotel photography. If you expose for the room, the view disappears. If you expose for the view, the room becomes too dark.
Many photographers rely heavily on flash to bridge this gap. I’m not saying that’s wrong—but sometimes, less truly is more. As mentioned earlier, natural light creates better shape and depth. Remember: photography is a 2D representation of a 3D space.
When possible, I use flash only as a base layer and then “paint in” natural light to restore visual realism. The last thing you want is a flat image with no shadows.
So how did we solve all of this in this particular room? From start to finish, this single image took approximately an hour and a half.
We styled the room, rearranged furniture, adjusted white balance, and even replaced the light bulbs with my own to gain full control. Yes, you read that correctly—we left no stone unturned. This image required an exceptional level of attention.
Bathrooms, like guest rooms, come in many shapes and sizes, but most follow a similar pattern: small, windowless, and full of reflective surfaces.
Hotel Saxonia bathroom, photo by Jiří Lizler
Common challenges include:
Bathrooms are compact, which makes composition more demanding. Again, my “less is more” philosophy applies here. By showing less, I can emphasize materials and avoid distractions such as toilets.
Multiple light sources are usually present—ceiling lights and mirror lighting. The key is deciding which light source should be dominant.
Ah yes—reflections. Despite popular belief, they cannot always be “fixed in post-production.” Large amounts of glass and chrome require careful consideration of angles and lighting before pressing the shutter.
I could continue with many other scenarios, but to keep this article focused, let’s conclude with restaurants.
Hotel Saxonia restaurant, Karlovy Vary – photo by Jiří Lizler
Common issues include:
There is a fine line between spacious and cluttered—and it should never be crossed. My goal is to showcase the lighting, atmosphere, and layout of the space.
In this case, we captured three separate images instead of one ultra-wide shot.
Cabinets were too dark, windows were completely blown out. While the view wasn’t exceptional (the restaurant is on the ground floor), I still wanted to preserve detail and blend all light sources harmoniously.
As with all public spaces, we want perfection without disturbing paying guests. In this case, I had exclusive access because the hotel was still under renovation. While this was beneficial, it also meant power was being turned on and off—and the fire alarm was constantly active.
