+44 (0) 207 252 3900 info@shootfactory.co.uk
Monday - Friday 10:00 - 17:30
Interior design in 2026 is moving away from rooms that look perfectly coordinated and towards homes with greater personality, warmth and a sense that they have developed over time.
Natural materials are playing a larger role, darker woods are returning, colour is becoming more expressive and vintage furniture is sitting comfortably beside contemporary pieces. Kitchens are becoming warmer and less uniform, bathrooms increasingly borrow materials and decorative ideas from living spaces, and texture is being used to give even restrained colour schemes greater depth.
These changes are particularly interesting from a photography and filming perspective. An interior with distinctive materials, colour, furniture, and architectural details gives a production much more to work with than a completely neutral room.
Pale oak and bleached timber have dominated contemporary interiors for several years, but deeper wood tones are making a noticeable return in 2026. Walnut, stained oak, reclaimed timber and vintage wooden furniture introduce richness without relying on additional colour.
The change shows up across kitchens, cabinetry, wall panelling, furniture, and flooring. Rather than matching every timber finish, designers are increasingly comfortable placing several tones within the same room.
For photography, wood provides another useful quality: texture. Grain, knots, aged surfaces and darker finishes react differently to natural and artificial light, giving interiors greater visual depth.
SHOOTFACTORY represents an extensive collection of locations with wood floors, ranging from period houses with original flooring to contemporary properties with parquet and darker stained finishes.
Stone, timber, marble, plaster, concrete and metal are becoming increasingly visible rather than being hidden beneath uniform surface finishes.
A marble worktop is allowed to show its veining. Timber cabinetry retains visible grain. Stone floors provide natural colour variation. Plaster and concrete bring subtle irregularities that prevent a room from appearing overly polished.
This works particularly well in location photography because the material itself contributes to the image. Close shots can highlight texture and detail, while wider compositions benefit from the tonal variation created by different surfaces.
Emerald in London provides a strong example, with large marble used within the main bathroom alongside fitted dark wood cabinetry. The combination reflects the move towards richer natural materials rather than completely white bathroom schemes.
The years of grey dominating residential interiors are firmly behind us. Colour in 2026 is considerably more confident, though that doesn’t necessarily mean every room needs to be bright.
Deep reds, greens, earthy browns, warm yellows and richer blues can sit beside softer natural shades. Another approach uses several variations of the same colour across walls, joinery, furniture and decorative details, creating an immersive interior rather than relying on a single feature wall.
For photographers and stylists, these rooms can provide an immediate visual identity without requiring extensive set dressing.
The SHOOTFACTORY collection of colourful shoot locations includes contemporary houses, family homes, creative studios and eclectic properties featuring painted walls, colourful kitchens, patterned wallpaper and statement furniture.
Colour productions can also look at our shoot locations to match your colour chart for further location ideas.
Pattern is no longer restricted to a cushion, rug or isolated wallpapered wall.
One of the more expressive directions in current interiors uses pattern across several elements of a room. Wallpaper can sit beside patterned upholstery, decorative tiles, curtains and rugs, provided there is enough visual connection between them.
Period properties lend themselves particularly well to this approach because pattern can be layered around existing cornicing, fireplaces, panelling and traditional furniture. Contemporary interiors can take a cleaner approach, using one or two larger patterned surfaces against simpler architectural lines.
Chelsea in London combines wallpaper with parquet flooring, high ceilings and Victorian architectural features, providing the type of layered residential setting that works well for interiors, fashion and lifestyle imagery.
Stainless steel has traditionally been associated with professional kitchens and industrial spaces, but it is becoming increasingly visible within residential design.
Kitchen worktops, splashbacks, cabinetry, shelving and fittings can introduce a sharper material contrast against timber, stone and painted surfaces. The result does not necessarily need to feel industrial. Used beside warm wood or softer colours, steel can become part of a much more refined residential scheme.
This contrast is particularly effective on camera because reflective metal behaves very differently from matte timber, plaster or stone.
Three Zero in London combines contemporary architecture with concrete, stone and stainless steel bathroom fixtures. Its lightly furnished interior can also be reconfigured around different creative briefs.
The kitchen remains one of the most important rooms in residential design, but the highly uniform fitted kitchen is no longer the only reference point.
Natural timber cabinetry, freestanding furniture, dressers, open shelving, vintage tables, and contrasting islands help kitchens feel connected to the rest of the house. Rather than every unit having the same finish, you can mix materials to create a room that appears to have developed gradually.
Large kitchen islands remain particularly useful within shoot locations because they create natural positions for talent, food preparation, products and lifestyle scenes.
SHOOTFACTORY’s location search includes properties with kitchen islands, open-plan layouts, second kitchens, and walk-in pantries, allowing productions to narrow the collection to the practical requirements of a shoot.
Vintage furniture is becoming less of a stylistic category and more of a normal part of contemporary interior design.
A modern extension might contain an antique table. An old wooden cabinet can soften a minimalist room. Mid-century furniture can sit beside contemporary lighting and new upholstery.
The result is an interior that feels collected rather than purchased as a complete set.
For shoots, these combinations provide useful visual contrasts and can make residential scenes feel more believable. They are equally suitable for fashion and portrait photography, where an unusual chair, table or cabinet can become part of the composition.
Roost in London takes this idea much further. Its four floors contain an eclectic collection of furniture from the 1930s to the present day, giving productions a wide selection of periods, textures, and decorative references in one location.
The spa-inspired bathroom hasn’t disappeared, but its interpretation has changed considerably since 2018.
Rather than relying solely on white sanitaryware and neutral tiles, bathrooms in 2026 are becoming warmer and more connected to the home’s overall decorative character.
Stone, timber, marble, warmer neutral shades, patterned tiles and freestanding baths can all contribute. Lighting and furniture are also receiving more attention, helping bathrooms feel like properly designed rooms rather than purely practical spaces.
Large format stone and marble surfaces are particularly useful for photography because fewer visual interruptions can make the room appear larger, while strong natural veining provides detail for tighter compositions.
SHOOTFACTORY has a dedicated selection of locations featuring freestanding baths, alongside properties with marble, tiled floors, panelling and distinctive bathroom interiors.
Minimal interiors remain relevant, particularly for product, fashion and commercial shoots, but minimalism itself is becoming warmer.
Instead of relying on completely smooth white surfaces, a restrained room might combine plaster, linen, timber, stone, brushed metal and textured upholstery. The palette can remain simple while the materials prevent the interior from looking clinical.
This creates an interesting distinction for location work. A space can still provide the visual simplicity a production needs without looking empty or anonymous.
Our contemporary shoot locations include architect-designed houses, apartments, warehouse conversions and open-plan properties combining materials such as concrete, glass, timber, brick and steel.
Perhaps the clearest direction for 2026 is not one particular colour or material. It is the move away from interiors designed to follow one recognisable formula.
Books, artwork, inherited furniture, unusual objects, vintage finds and personal collections are being allowed to remain visible. Different periods and styles can occupy the same room, and signs of age are not automatically treated as something that needs replacing.
For photographers and filmmakers, these properties can be particularly useful because the interior already contains a visual story. The background feels inhabited, which can help lifestyle photography, fashion editorials, interviews and television scenes appear more natural.
Properties tagged as eclectic, bohemian, retro, colourful or period within the SHOOTFACTORY library can provide particularly strong examples of this more individual approach.
Interior trends naturally change, but the direction in 2026 is less about replacing one fashionable look with another. Homes are becoming warmer, more individual, and increasingly comfortable, combining different colours, periods, and materials.
That creates interesting possibilities for photography and filming. Dark timber can provide a rich backdrop for fashion, marble and stainless steel can support contemporary product campaigns, colourful rooms can become part of a brand’s visual identity. In contrast, vintage and eclectic interiors provide an immediate sense of character.
SHOOTFACTORY represents residential shoot locations across London and the UK covering contemporary, period, colourful, minimalist, industrial, country and eclectic interiors.
If you are working to a particular interior brief, contact our location agency team, and we can help identify properties with the colours, materials, architectural details and room layouts required for your production.
Prefer an AI Summary?