That location is the Hillwood Mansion. They normally don't allow photography at all, inside the mansion - ever. However, that day, they told me that they were allowing cameras on a trial basis. I therefore considered it a duty to forget about my misadventures with interior shots, and to just go for it.
How did I do? Not too bad. Here are some examples:
Let me say that the first and second pictures would not have been possible, had I not shot in RAW. Why? Because of the post-processing required. Both pictures were VERY dark, especially the first one. The contrasting levels of light were not my friend, that's for sure. Not to discourage you, but NONE of my takes of the first picture were usable, initially. As JPEGs, I could have fixed them, but they wouldn't have looked as natural. I love the finished product, though - both pictures reflected my vision for them. The first, tranquility. How nice would it be to have tea in that room? The second picture, elegance. I love all of the elements of this room.
What does all of thais mean for you, with a point-and-shoot? Don't shoot directly into the windows - that causes exposure issues. Flash wasn't allowed here, so that wouldn't have helped you. That brings me to the third picture:
This picture only needed a White Balance setting of Tungsten, and an ISO of 800. The lighting was very low. I could have taken a similar picture with my point-and-shoot.
What else could help you? I took a picture for a woman who thought that "I knew what I was doing". Without tweaking the ISO, I was able to take a decent picture. This is because the light was behind me, and the room wasn't as dark as these rooms were. And that might your best lesson of all - if you can't tweak the ISO or the White Balance, find a decently lit room - and don't shoot into the light. However, if you can afford it, make sure to have a point-and-shoot that allows you to control these two settings. It makes a HUGE difference.
Till tomorrow!
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