Interior Lighting Suggestions/Tips...

[ITSTOCK]

First, I am using a 35-80mm lens (not the most ideal, I know ) on an old Canon Rebel. I've been meaning to grab just the stock lens off one of the forum members, but for now I am trying to work on the photoshop end of the pictures. I've found that setting the exposure on the camera a bit long makes for the best "photoshopable" pictures, and toying with, first, the brightness/contrast, and second, the highlight/shadow makes for the best pictures. What other functions can I use to take the best interior lighting pictures? Showing the actual LIGHTING isn't all that important, just what it does/how it highlights.

Low quality example:

Before



After