Framebridge x AR | Alyssa Rosenheck's Fresh and Easy Ways to Style Artwork

Art is powerful. It not only enhances the energy of a space, it has the capacity to represent our dreams and where we want to be going in life. Art heals, it connects, and it can transform – your walls, your style, your life! Most importantly, it has no rules. I teamed up with Framebridge to style and share a few unexpected ways to hang artwork to make your walls (and soul!) sing #TheNewSouthern. 

First, select art that inspires where you want to be going in life. Dream larger than your current set of circumstances and choose art to reflect this. Then, get creative with how you style it. Make the display of the piece as creative as the work itself to double its impact. A simple art hook transforms the real estate between windows or the ledges of a bookshelf into a high place of visual inspiration. Another trick that requires no hammer or nails is simply adorning countertops with leaning art. It’s a simple way to elevate kitchens, marry old and new pieces, and layer up each and every space with love. To see the full how-to, click to watch the video below. It was so much fun “hanging” with Framebridge today!! 

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Alyssa’s debut Coffee Table book, The New Southern, Releases September 2020 via Abrams

Apartment Therapy | Alyssa Rosenheck's Intuitive Approach for Photographing Spaces

Photographing spaces is a sacred experience. Being a self taught photographer has allowed me to rely on my intuition, instincts and a strong sense of story telling just as much as I rely on my technical skills. I am telling a story each time I fly across the country, pick up my camera and step foot into a space. I recently photographed an abandoned historic building in Tulsa, Ok. I sensed the energy of the building. It was dynamic, rich with history, struggle, hope, and a sense of optimism. This is the story I will be telling for this project. As for most homes, I walk in and can immediately feel the dynamic of the family. These four walls of our home are where we live, grow, love, rest, reflect, struggle, find hope, gather, and love. So, when Apartment Therapy asked me to share a few photography tips, I wanted to navigate both the technical side as well as the soulful intention I bring to each space.

I hope my tips help facilitate a different perspective when looking at spaces, at life and the energy that comes with it. Regardless of your end goal, tools, or type of space, I hope these tips help you create and share in a way that is meaningful and unique to you. Here are five insights for everything from how to get your lighting just right to finding your sweet spot.

ONE | FAVORITE IPHONE APP

The best camera is the one in your hand! With all the current apps and tools available, not to mention the high-quality cameras on modern devices, you can do a lot with just your phone. My current favorite app is A Color Story, from dear friends and inspiring entrepreneurs Elsie Larson and Emma Chapman. I love the filters for portraits, but for photographs of spaces I like to keep it simple and only alter the exposure, contrast, and color temperature.

Watch my Instagram Takeover for A Color Story to learn all my how tos, favorite filters and more for editing on the go.

TWO | STRAIGHT SHOOTER

When capturing a space, shoot straight-on and aim for clean lines (my love language!). The best bet for achieving nice, tidy lines is to adopt a few supporting tools. Start by simply turning on the grid on your phone’s camera: For IPhone users, it can be found under Settings > Camera > Grid. Next, external support like the Movi Freefly smartphone stabilizer or a JOBY GorlliaPod mini-tripod make for smoother video and precise photo angles. These two options are great for your iPhone and head to my Washington Post Feature to check out my professional tripod I use on a weekly basis.

THREE | OPTIMIZE THE ANGLE

I suggest saving inventive and creative angles for detail shots. Playing around with angles can be a fun way to experiment with close-ups of objects and really communicate the details of a space. This is also a great way to highlight unique and found objects that speak to your heart.

Photos: ©AlyssaRosenheck. Design by Taylor Anne Interiors.

FOUR | LIGHTS OFF

Natural light (as opposed to overhead lighting or lamps) is essential for capturing the most accurate representation of a room— When every I start shooting, I am flipping off all the light switches in the home. This may be counterintuitive, but natural light yields the most accurate representation of the room’s color and all the beauty within it,

FIVE | PERSPECTIVE

The ultimate goal is to have the camera feel like a natural extension of your body. Perspective is more important then technical skill in my opinion. When you focus too much on “whether you’re doing it right” this can yield a “stiff” product. Ask yourself what your intention is in capturing the space, the person, and how you can best tell a story? My book, The New Southern, was a way for me to explore this deeper. The New Southern is about creativity being a unifier as I celebrate makers in their spaces…. the spaces that have supported life pivots, tremendous growth, determination, and the grit the one finds in the South.

Everyone and everything has a story to tell and this is your chance to share it. Xx

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Elle Decor | Alyssa Rosenheck's Statement-Making Christmas Tree Decorations

I recently shared my secret weapon for an easy, elegant Christmas tree with Elle Decor: RIBBON. And while the beauty of a well-styled tree is undeniable, I am thrilled to share my Christmas tree styling tip for a few reasons. First, my tree represents love. Growing up Jewish, we never had a tree. This was the first time we brought a tree into our home, and to me it represents the warmth surrounding the season. Second, I love using ribbon because it is an easy, affordable way to elevate a tree without having years of ornament-collecting under my belt. I used vintage velvet ribbon for mine, which instantly adds a layer of softness to the space. To see my tip and 50-plus more ideas to make your season extra special, read the story here. 

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The Washington Post | Alyssa Rosenheck's Tips for Photographing Your Home

The Home: it’s our safe haven from the world, a place to dream, to grow , to love, to rest and certainly, create. My camera gives me admission into homes all over the country. I sense the homes filled with love, filled with time honored stories and a soulful patina. But most of all, I feel honor and gratitude to document the sacred spaces of others. I enjoyed sharing my tips with the Washington Post for Photographing your home. Whether you want to simply capture a space that is both the source and a byproduct of your inspiration OR you have more concrete goals in mind–listing your home, sharing your design work, finding a tenant–you have a foundation for success here.  Below are my favorites tips and to read my full conversation; head over to the The Washington Post. 

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ONE | Level Up - It is a quick rookie mistake when one thinks hand holding the camera is going to yield super star results. Invest in a simple tripod for your dslr or an attachment for your camera phone. Straight lines are the oxygen to an image, when capturing straight horizontal and vertical lines, the image, the composition, the components within the image will breathe and sing a chorus line to the viewer but when the lines are off, your eye immediately catches this and the crooked lines become a focal point and misses the mark. Hence, the need to level up and have a tripod.

TWO | Lens - First, set an intention through your own personal and emotional lens. Each room has an energy and story to tell. The four walls of our home and creative spaces are where we love, find inspiration and grow (hello #TheNewSouthern) and what a cool privilege it is to be the one holding the camera while communicating a story of these spaces that have supported you and many more to come. Second, invest in a good prime lens and wide angle lens. One of my favorite prime angle lenses is a 50 mm because this lens is most representative of what your natural eye sees. My goal as a photographer is to communicate a space inspiring stillness while also transporting you to what I am experiencing as I am in the space. Prime means having a  fixed focal length, and shooting with a fixed lens also motivates you to move around the space and really focus on achieving the perfect frame for the shot. Wide angle lenses are important in capturing the scale of a space. I encourage you to rent as many as you would like and play around with what feels most natural to you without distorting the image. If you are using a phone, there are really affordable wide angle lens accessories as well if you are on the go.

THREE | Let there be light - Natural light.  I find it necessary for an image to be the most accurate representation of a room as possible.. It is camera vs. eye, and all cameras are not created equal when it comes to the vast dynamic range of our eye. I am known for bright and crisp images so it always surprises my clients and observers when we are starting to photograph the house and I am methodically flipping off all the light switches. Is it counter intuitive? Yes. But it yields the most natural look of the color of the room and all the beautiful things within it. Natural light also forces you to adapt to what you are given while understanding all exposure options. The only way to know what works for you is to practice during different times of the day while studying the way light moves from room to room. For me, this is a form or prayer and poetry.

FOUR | Be a Straight Shooter - I am a back to basics kind of gal in every area of my life especially when it comes to angles behind the lens. Let’s keep things simple and shoot straight on. This will yield beautiful clean lines and communicate the simple geometry of the space. Over complicated angles and postions result in fussy images and confused focal points. 

Photo + Styling: ©Alyssa Rosenheck for Luxe Magazine Design: Amanda Barnes Interiors

FIVE | Layer - an image is technically flat but what makes it come to life with great dimension are its layers. The rooms you are shooting need to communicate a stillness or an emotion to the viewer. There needs to be an element of visual texture to the space for it to have dimension. Ways to do this are decorative tabletop accessories, layered sculptures/artwork leaning against a wall, layered rugs to draw the eye in, incorporating texture through throws and fabric selections, and fresh flowers picked from the garden. Leave the red roses at the store and stay within a neutral color palette such as whites, greens, and blushes. This color palette will keep an image fresh and attainable without it being season specific. 

Photo + Styling: ©Alyssa Rosenheck for Mydomaine and Design: Allison Crawford

SIX | Composition - I find composition to be much more important than the camera you have in your hand. It enables the space’s story to be told through object arrangement and placement. I can communicate a particular point of interest through my focal point or can introduce a moment of relief by emphasizing negative space. There are numerous theories behind composition, but at a very basic level, your goal should always be to achieve straight lines,  balanced layers and let the rule of 3rds guide your lens. 

©Alyssa Rosenheck for Architectural Digest - Design: Alexis Bednyak + Searl Lamaster Howe