Why Every Interior Design & Architectural Shoot Should Include Video (and How to Do It Right)

When I first started capturing architectural and interior design projects, I was contracted to photograph a beautifully designed home for a client located a little over an hour away from Toronto. But when we arrived, the homeowner changed their mind about the areas we were allowed to capture.

“You can’t shoot the bedroom or the ensuite,” she said. “It just feels too personal.”

Totally valid. It’s her home, her sanctuary. But for my client, it meant compromising the amount of shots that they would get from their investment. It would mean leaving out key elements of the product they delivered, which if they had known in advance, they might have reconsidered capturing the project.

I realized that these moments of access are rare. And when you get them, you have to make them count.

Whether it’s a family home, a commercial building, or a private residence, the opportunity to document finished work is something we should never take lightly.

It is a privilege, not a guarantee, just because you designed the space.

Every project you complete is a chance to build something bigger than just the final result—it’s a chance to build your brand, your reputation, and your future opportunities.

In the next sections, I’ll break down why so many designers and builders miss this window, how video can turn a single project into months of meaningful marketing, and practical ways you can start thinking differently about how you capture your work.

Why Referrals Alone Aren’t a Marketing Strategy

For decades, this industry has thrived on referrals. You build something great, people talk, and the work keeps coming. That makes total sense and honestly, it’s what most businesses strive for.

But here’s the thing:

Referrals aren’t a strategy. They’re a byproduct of doing great work.

When the market shifts, the pace slows, or the economy takes a dip, many firms realize they’ve never built a content strategy. And suddenly, the silence online starts to feel loud.

Still, I don’t think the issue is laziness or even resistance. Most professionals simply don’t see marketing as necessary, until it becomes urgent. And by then, they’re often unsure where to begin and responding in a panic.

Here’s the reframe:

Marketing isn’t about the spotlight. It’s about making your values visible to the right people. It’s about giving people the clarity and trust they need to confidently reach out. The more they understand your process, your values, and your personality, the more likely they are to come to you pre-aligned and ready to work together.

From Swipe to Story: Why Your Work Deserves More

We’ve all seen it: a stunning project gets shared online… and disappears in a scroll. That space, that design, that build took months of work, coordination, and vision. But in a blink, it’s gone.

This isn’t just a visibility problem, it’s a value problem.

We know that interior and architectural design is layered, intentional, and emotional. The best projects don’t just look good, they feel good! And that’s something photography alone can’t always communicate.

Take this project with Barzotti Woodworking, for example: we created a cinematic video to enhance their portfolio and repurposed it across multiple marketing channels. As you’ll see in the video below, we were able to take the original footage and reformat it for Instagram Reels, YouTube Shorts, TikTok, and any other platform that requires vertical (9:16) video.

That’s where video comes in. It’s immersive. It’s emotional. It captures intention, not just appearance.

What Video Brings to the Table (That Photos Don’t)

Great design is meant to be lived in, not just looked at. And when it comes to marketing your work, video helps people experience the spaces you create in a way that photos alone never could.

Video allows you to:

• Show how a space flows
• Capture texture and movement
• Highlight material transitions and lighting effects
• Tell the story behind the decisions
• Create emotional resonance

And there’s tangible business value too.

According to Wyzowl’s 2025 Video Marketing Statistics report, 84% of video marketers say video has directly increased sales.

In a high-ticket industry like custom homes, emotional storytelling makes a difference. Your clients aren’t just buying design, they’re investing in how that space will make them feel. Video helps them imagine their future, not just admire your past.

Explore more of our featured work in our Video Production Portfolio

Treat Every Project Like a Full Content Campaign

I am a firm believer in quality over quantity. With custom builds, it is rarely about volume and the fewer projects you do, the more you need to maximize them for marketing.

In our most recent shoot for Barzotti, we focused exactly on that, pairing quality photography with an engaging video in both landscape and vertical aspect ratios to enhance and maximize their marketing assets.

Many of my clients only complete a handful of full-scale builds or renovations per year. Out of those, only a few grant us permission to document them. But each one is an opportunity to create months of strategic content, if you plan for it.

Think of your project as a campaign, not a deliverable. For example:

• Start with a teaser or progress content
• Capture the final result in both photos and video
• Interview the designer and/or builder on their approach
• Edit shorter versions for reels and stories
• Use the assets for web pages, newsletters, and project pitches

The bonus? Evergreen content doesn’t expire. A strong video clip from two years ago can still be relevant for your About page, service offering, or award submission. And this is only the beginning of what can be achieved from a single build.

When you build a campaign, you build momentum.

Set Expectations. Protect the Experience

Homeowners rarely know what a professional production consists of. Many people assume you’re only there for an hour, snap a few shots, done! In most cases, a kitchen alone will take over an hour to fully document.

The reality is:

• There’s setup, lighting, staging, test shots, and various angles
• Video adds additional takes and transitions
• Then we have to reset everything and return the space to its original condition

And all of that happens in a lived-in or worked-in environment. Homeowners still need to cook, take a call, and potentially play with their dogs. You’re in their world for the day or more.

That’s why it’s so important to set expectations upfront out of respect for everyone. Communicate the time commitment. Explain why it’s worth it. And be as respectful as possible of their space and schedule. You have likely been a part of multiple productions, for them, this is a new and hopefully an exciting experience.

We always recommend a thank-you gesture to ease the experience:

• A cleaning service of their home after the shoot
• A gift card for home decor or groceries

Get creative and cater to their needs as they are helping you greatly. While this is not required, it goes a long way! When the homeowner has a good experience, they’re more likely to say yes again. And that might mean another project or just another open door. Regardless of any future opportunities, respect goes a long way.

Content Strategy Tips for Slow Seasons

Content creation isn’t just for completed projects.

In fact, some of the best storytelling happens before a project is fully finished.
When you’re in a slower season, it’s the perfect time to build your content library.

Here’s what I recommend:

• Progress updates: Capture casual behind-the-scenes shots
• Mood board walk-throughs: Record a voiceover explaining your design concept
• Client meetings or site visits: Share snippets (with permission) of how you collaborate
• Day in the Life content: Show the real, human side of your business

Important tip: Always shoot in both landscape and portrait formats—especially when using your phone. You’ll thank yourself later when it comes time to edit for different platforms. If you can only pick one, I always recommend landscape with your phone’s highest quality and give yourself room to crop. This allows you to use one take with various aspect ratios.

This is also a great time to repurpose.

Dig into your archives, re-edit older videos, pair them with new captions, or showcase the story behind them. You don’t always need to shoot new content, you just need to stay active and strategic.

If you want even more ideas for planning smarter, check out my Content Creation Blueprint.

Low-Lift, High-Impact Video Ideas

Not every project requires a full crew and a multi-day shoot. Every business today is expected to be a content creator and some of the most valuable content can come from simple, intentional moments that you can’t always plan ahead of time:

• Walk-and-talks: Have the designer explain decisions while walking through the space
• Voiceovers: Record reflections post-shoot and overlay them on footage
• Timelapse: Show a space transitioning from morning to night
• Close-ups of detail: Materials, movement, light transitions, etc. (those small moments people miss)
• Before/after transitions: Simple, effective, and emotional. A quick tip is to try to shoot the before photos how you expect your photographer to shoot the after photos.
• Project recap videos: Use old photos and drawings to tell the story of how the project came to life

And don’t limit this content to social. Use it to:

• Enhance your project pages
• Strengthen your proposals
• Build more meaningful newsletters
• Tell your story at trade shows
• Add dimension to RFPs and award submissions

This isn’t “extra content.” It’s your voice. And it has a job to do.

Don’t Just React. Adapt.

I talk about this inside my Content Creation Blueprint: If you wait until things slow down to think about marketing, you’re already behind.

Reactive marketing is stressful. It leads to rushed decisions and disjointed messaging.

Adaptive marketing is about staying one step ahead:

• Capturing content along the way
• Repurposing intentionally
• Planning each shoot like a long-term asset builder

Video, in particular, is an investment you can keep using:

• Re-edit for seasonal campaigns
• Swap voiceovers as your messaging evolves
• Crop, shorten, or reframe for different channels

Create once. Use it often. Let your content do the heavy lifting.

Trust Is Earned. Don’t Waste It.

In the world of custom home building, interiors, and architecture, your audience isn’t just hiring someone with technical skills. They’re hiring someone they connect with. 

Your audience wants to know how you think, how you solve problems, how you treat people. So when the opportunity arises and you’re invited back into the home you worked on, given full access, and trusted to create, treat it like the rare moment it is.

Respect the space. Plan ahead. Capture everything you can. Because trust, once earned, shouldn’t be wasted.

Design once. Capture everything.

Want to make your next shoot work harder for you?

If you’re planning a project and want to be more intentional about your content, let’s start a conversation.

Or if you’re not quite ready, grab my free Content Creation Blueprint.
It’s packed with practical ideas to help you market smarter, not harder, even if we never work together.