Lafayette Hotel & Club | San Diego Hotel Photography
Of all the hotel photography projects I’ve worked on, this one might be one of my absolute favorites. Earlier this summer, the famous Lafayette Hotel & Club in North Park finished a 31-million dollar renovation to kick off its 77th year of existence. Known for its old Hollywood charm, the new Lafayette has restored its glamor and upped it to the next level.
The goal of this shoot was to capture the overall vibe of luxury present through all the little details. It was such a pleasure to work on a project full of so much California history and I can’t wait to show you all the results!
How I Planned This Hotel Photography Shoot
The Lafayette Hotel & Club combines old Hollywood glitz and glamor with a fresh twist, so I planned the entire shoot around capturing the intricate details. Since I needed to photograph the entire hotel property, planning for both interior and exterior shots were necessary.
For the exterior, I focused on packing my shoot bag with all the necessary equipment in all lighting scenarios. To read all about how I work with California lighting, click here.
For the Lafayette interior specifically, the rooms are really dark and moody. I made sure to play around with the settings in my camera to work with dimmer lighting, but also left room to play around when the shoot day arrived.
Capturing The Famous Lafayette Pool
Of all the picturesque locations around the Lafayette Hotel & Club, the outdoor pool is by far the most famous. This spot has been photographed time and time again, but for this finished remodel I wanted to make it look really special.
I focused on making sure each image captured the beauty of the new renovation details, while still ensuring the beauty of California is included. Luckily, the famous west coast sunshine was out, so I centered the blue sky and palm trees within each photo.
As for the pool itself, the Lafayette renovations included a ton of color and prints all centering around the art deco design style. I chose to capture primarily wide angles that play to the symmetry of the hotel rooms and funky pool furniture.
Haley’s Pro Tip: Let the architecture and details be the focal point of each image. More often than not, hotel images require a “less is more” approach, so focus on your angles and let the property do the work for you.
Showcasing The Luxury Hotel Rooms
The Lafayette Hotel renovation in each room is the perfect combination of old Hollywood and modern luxury. With the moody lighting in each room, I made sure to play around with my camera settings to accommodate the darker colors.
I primarily used corner angles for hotel photography shoots because it allows for as many details to fill an image as possible. I loved the combination of light colors with intricate patterns, so I wanted to highlight them as much as possible. The final images looked incredible!
Highlighting The Fun Bathroom Details
Although the rooms themselves had a more serious and luxurious feel, the bathrooms hit you with a pop of fun the moment you step in. I was obsessed with the black and white tiles mixed with the light green walls, so I captured a ton of images focusing on this detail.
Haley’s Pro Tip: For rooms that are smaller and harder to maneuver around, position yourself just outside of the space at a corner angle. This way, you’re able to capture as much square footage as possible without taking away from the space itself.
Working with the Lafayette Hotel & Club to capture their new remodel was such a pleasure and by far one of my favorite architectural projects to date. If you’re interested in working on a hotel photography project together, feel free to reach out so we can discuss all the details together.
