Floor stains come in a variety of colors, and it can be difficult to know how a particular stain will look in your room based on a photograph. Just like wall paint, you can purchase small containers of stains and do a swatch test. This will give you a better idea on how that stain will react with your particular floor. See photos below for an example.

We did a variety of stain samples for this customer.
Here you can see my floor guy applying the stain. He is using a buffing machine to apply the stain and also to remove the excess. This method is not only faster, but it also give a more professional finish.
The end result was beautiful!