Our Problem

[Chiller]

Alright...this one is getting us down here at work. We just updated some of the stuff at our work, and the owners want a few images. The othe 20 or so images have been taken care of. This one is driving us mad, and it is the one the owners specifically want.
Here is our scene. He want this angle, but we are shooting directly at the front windows, which face North. In a way it is better then south. :biglaugh: The other problem is, the repro shop lighting is not the brightest. There are a lot of lights, but they sit pretty high up.
I have tried different shutter/aperture combos, even grad filters, and bracketing. Our next attempt is to try multiple images and mask in the windows.
I just wanted to get your ideas, and see if anyone can come up with a solution. This is a snap of where the image needs to be taken from, so you get an idea what we are fighting with. And Im about ready to take the boss out into the parking lot. :batterup::biglaugh:
Thanks y'all.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v708/Chiller5757/IMG_3403zzz.jpg

[Hertz van Rental]

The 'obvious' solution is to get some more light in there - a couple of bright halogens bounced off the ceiling would do - to balance out the daylight.
If you can't get lights in there for whatever reason then you will have to use a longish exposure. I would keep the aperture around f16 or even f22 to keep depth of field and focus about the second machine. This will mean that anyone in shot will be blurred so you need to decide if you can live with that.
You could pop a small flash off (second curtain) and get a sharp image overlying the blur - and it will help lighten the foreground.
The problem with this is that the windows will blow and so will anything near them.
There are two answers to this.
1) Use lighting scrim (http://www.leefilters.com/lighting/products/finder/act:colourdetails/colourRef:C4631F797D2AA8/) over the outside of the windows. This will drop the light coming through by about 2 or 3 stops. But it will be visible and also reduce the illumination inside. And scrim is very expensive. Or you could use ND gel over the windows. But again, it's expensive.
2) Wait until twilight/evening when the light outside is not so bright. You could get quite an 'arty' effect - but the light in the room would be much dimmer.
I think what ever you do you are going to need some auxiliary lighting of some kind. A bunch of desk lamps pointed at the ceiling would do. Just watch the positioning so you don't get unwanted reflections in the windows.

Of course, you could try HDR. It might work if you get the exposures right.

[Chiller]

Thank you so much for your reply Hertzy. Appreciate you taking the time. I agree with the lighting. Another problem we have, is the mix of lights. Florescent, and Tungstun. :biglaugh: What a nightmere eh?
We talked about shooting later in the evening, when the light is setting. The owners wanted people in the shot, but by that time they have their feet up on a couch someplace.
I think we are going to try a multiple exposure and merge the images, sort of Hdr-ish, and see how that works.
On the good side of the coin, there might be a crop involved. I found out that some of these photos , might be "banner" style, with a crop long, but tight on the height side. (sorry , I dont have an acurate size) There is a chance some of that window may not be as prominant.
Back to the drawing board. I have printed off your idea, and will keep it in mind. Thanks again my friend. :-) It is greatly appreciated.

[Hertz van Rental]

Another problem we have, is the mix of lights. Florescent, and Tungstun.

Strangely enough, this isn't normally a problem - providing you have daylight tubes and not the ones that give a horrid green cast.
It's to do with people's expectations.
Although there is a colour temperature difference we expect daylight to be slightly bluish and tungsten to be rather yellow. So when we see them in their 'correct' place (outdoors/indoors) we accept them as being Ok - providing the difference is not too pronounced.

If you are going to try the double exposure then use a tripod, do one exposure for the windows and one for the interior. And then use layers in Photoshop. It's a bit of a faff to get it to work and you would be better off doing it right to start with.

[Chiller]

The bulbs are "reflector" and are recessed. The florescents are "u=tube" type defused with those cheapy covers.
I agree about the expectations. I know if there is a long exposure, Im not going to get those clowns to stand still long enough, so doing more then one exposure, will be tricky. It will be a toughy, but I might do one exposure with everyone in it, and a second of the window with everyone out, create a layer, and mask the good and bad together.
We are going to try for an early shoot tomorrow, when the sun is not so harsh outside. I saw another issue with the sun reflecting off the car windows in the parking lot, but they could be cloned out.
People ask me why I like to wander and shoot the world alone and not want to touch anything professional. :biglaugh::biglaugh:....oh ...oh.. and Im not getting paid for this...I work here. Gheesh.
Thanks again man....have a coffee for me will ya. :-)