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People often tell me they can’t create great content because they have limited space. Don’t let limited space impact the number of possibilities open to you.
Throughout the whole time I’ve been creating content, I’ve had to work with small spaces. When i first started out, i was living in my family home where I didn’t have my own bedroom, and the only bit of plain white wall I had to work with was in a tiny hallway. It was hard, and sometimes annoying, but at the end of the day, we have to work with what we have.
Since I’ve moved out, things have definitely gotten easier. I was able to paint a room with photography in mind, but at the end of the day it’s still a house and not a studio. I can’t keep large expanses of walls completely plain, I don’t have the space and quite frankly, I don’t want to. In terms of priorities, making the house feel like a home comes first, everything else I can work around.
So I like to say that I’ve become a little bit of an expert in creating in small spaces. I have 5 years experience of doing so and I’ve never felt limited in what I can do. So I’m going to share with you by tips, and how I’ve got around creating in small spaces.
Invest in a backdrop stand.
I literally use a backdrop stand ALL of the time when creating content, they are so helpful if you want different coloured backgrounds in your photos but don’t have those colours in your home. If you don’t have a white wall like I do, then you can easily invest in a white flat sheet. Of course, having light walls are more ideal as they reflect light, but I know this isn’t always possible with everyone’s living situation.
I’m not sure why I didn’t invest in a backdrop stand sooner as it would have made my life living with my parents a whole lot easier – I wouldn’t just be having to use the hallway if I just used a plain sheet as a backdrop!
You WILL HAVE TO MOVE THINGS.
If you’ve seen any of my reels, you know how small of a space I work with when doing my up close portraits. Every time I do them, I have to take some of my art off the wall but I’ve come to accept that. I love my gallery wall and I knew I didn’t want to have to give that up for the sake of doing photos, it’s such a small price to pay.
Of course, homes have to be livable so it’s unlikely that you’ll ever just have a big expanse of plain wall, unless you’re a minimalist which I certainly am not. In my office, I’ve kept the wall behind my sofa plain (for now) so if I need to take a photo which requires more wall space, I can just pull the sofa out and use the space of wall there.
Learn to use the Content Aware Tool in Photoshop.
This tool is literally a life saver I’m obsessed with it! It’s super easy to do, and basically allows you to extend backgrounds – it works like a charm and is best used on plain backgrounds.
Know, and accept, that there are some things you can’t do.
Once you realise that there are certain types of photos you can’t create, then you can rule them out in your head and move on. For example, I know that I won’t be able to take a self portrait with the whole of my sofa in it. I can’t get far enough away to get the picture I’d want to take of my desk. You can’t create outside of your means which can sometimes be a little bit disheartening, but if you don’t have the space then you don’t have the space! You have to make sure you’re creating content that you’re actually able to create!
Don’t make excuses not the create. Nothing needs to limit you. If you have a small space, like me, you just need to think a little bit differently.
You might also be interest in PROPS FOR SELF PORTRAITS TO ELEVATE YOUR SELFIE GAME
