REAL ESTATE PHOTOGRAPHY: TIPS FOR STUNNING DIY PHOTOS

Let’s face it, taking your own listing photos is risky. Chances are you’re not a professional photographer, don’t have amazing gear, and well, real estate photography is not as easy as it looks. But since you’re reading this article, you’ve probably made up your mind already and want to learn how to take great listing pictures that will impress other agents on your MLS and buyers on Zillow. So to help make your life easier, here are some of the best real estate photography tips.

1. Don’t Show Too Much. Sometimes Less Is More.

Sometimes less is more. Don’t show too much. For instance, if the floor plan isn’t ideal, show individual spaces. The goal is to get buyers into the home. Let them decide when they get there whether they want to make any compromises the property may entail.

2. Be Wary of What’s in Your Line of Sight Through Windows

Photographers and agents sometimes neglect to consider what is in the line of sight through windows when shooting interior spaces. If one is not careful, the shot may inadvertently include scruffy landscaping across the street, an old van in someone’s driveway, or a patch of weeds in the sidewalk area. Worse yet, it may be a shot that includes a window with a large bush blocking most of the outlook, making the room feel closed in.

3. Shoot Your Virtual Tour on the Same Day as Your Listing Pictures

If your schedule allows for it, always have your virtual tours shot on the same day, and preferably in the same lighting as your listing pictures. First, because consistency is important, and second, your virtual tour needs to look just as good as your listing pictures.

Speaking of quality, the image quality of some virtual tours might not look as good as pictures taken with your high-quality camera. This makes lighting even more important.

If you’re on a DIY budget, Asteroom is an excellent way to make DIY virtual tours with nothing but your phone. So if you have a decent camera on your phone, there’s no more excuses for not having virtual tours for even your cheapest listings.

4. Hire a Pro to Edit Your Photos

The gig economy is flourishing, and experts who are ready to take your photos to the next level are just a click away. That means prices are lower than ever, and there is no excuse to not have all your listing pictures edited by a professional.

At last check, there are 260 listings on Fiverr for freelancers who will take your DIY real estate listing photos and run them through Lightroom and Photoshop to give them the polish your listings deserve. With prices starting at just R650, how can you afford not to?

5. Remove Window Screens & Make Sure the Windows Are Clean Inside & Out

I think one of the little details that a lot of people miss is to remove the window screens and clean the windows inside and out. This just makes rooms look so much bigger in photos and in person with the right light.

6. Make Sure All Light Bulbs Work & Make Sure They Are Consistent With the Fixture

Make sure all your light bulbs work, and please keep your bulbs consistent within a fixture. I have seen bathroom light bars with three different kinds of bulbs in them: standard, LED, and compact fluorescent.

7. Get Your Lighting Right

Make sure the sun is on the front of the house. Your cell phone camera is good, but you lose the details when homes are backlit. I also love high-contrast homes. Bright colors photograph better than neutral ones—almost the opposite of interior photography rules. You may not like the fake grass and clouds, but blue skies and green grass make compelling thumbnails!

8. Invest in a Wide Angle Lens

A wide angle lens is a must-have for shooting interiors, but most of the ultra-wide range zoom lenses run well over R10,000. Unless you are shooting the Taj Mahal, this isn’t necessary. I would recommend a 24mm wide angle to help ‘open up’ rooms, and they won’t break the bank at only around R2,500.

9. Neutralize & Declutter Before You Start Shooting

We explain to our sellers that some design features and elements that look great in person may not photograph well. For example, bold accent wall colors, or collections, or a photo collage. We advise to clear everything off counters and leave minimal decor for the professional photos. It may look plain to the sellers, but it will really make the home shine in the photos. For over 93% of homebuyers, the first showing is online and the photos are what make them decide whether or not to schedule a time to view it in person.

10. Always Stage the Home, Even if It Just Means Rearranging Current Furniture

Staging your home for listing photos is absolutely crucial. If you are currently living in your home, rearrange furniture in a way that lets potential buyers see the potential. Buyers won’t be able to envision themselves living there if they can’t see past crowded furniture or dated decor. For a quick fix without breaking the bank, try adding trendy rugs or pillows to your existing furniture. If the house is vacant, consider hiring a professional stager. They know what is in style and proper placement. Contemporary furniture and decor will bring your house to life and help buyers visualize the space.

11. Pay Attention to the Details

Pay attention to the details! There is nothing worse than a fabulous home photo with a crumpled, crooked bedspread or an open, dirty toilet! Put away toiletries, straighten bedclothes, and always look over the photos for small details that will turn off a potential buyer.

12. Don’t Post Too Many, or Too Few, Pictures

There is a quantity sweet spot. Too few photos may leave buyers wondering what isn’t being shown, or confuse them on the layout and features. Too many photos may cause buyers to lose interest.

Around 20 pictures will give a pretty accurate depiction of most homes without being too overwhelming. However, a lot of it depends on the size and square footage. For instance, 10 would be far too few on a 10,000-square-foot, million-dollar house, but could be just fine for a one-bedroom, one-bath condo.

13. Open All Curtains & Blinds

As a professional drone photographer in the real estate business, a pro tip I always recommend for real estate photos is to open all of the interior window blinds. While these may be outdoor photos, opening the blinds makes the house look more inviting and bigger from the outside by allowing potential buyers to see the exterior and interior of the home in one picture. From a photographer point of view, opening the blinds dramatically reduces any glare that may shine back at the drone camera when capturing pictures and videos.

14. Whenever Possible, Hire a Professional Listing Photographer

Professional photographers understand the importance of light and how to capture a space at the right time for the highest visual impact. Based on the position of the property, they know if it’s best to shoot at sunrise, sunset, or anywhere in between. They also have the ability to blend the same photo taken with different exposures to create the perfect image.

In our digital, mobile world, professional photographs have the ability to stop the consumer from scrolling through listings. Beautiful images capture attention and get people to click through. Being able to get and keep the consumer’s attention is highly valuable in our instant-gratification world.

15. Relax!

Believe it or not, one of the keys to real estate photography or any photography, for that matter, is to leave the stress from your day in the office. When you’re stressed out and rushed, everything you need to do to take great listing photos becomes harder. Choose angles to shoot from, keep a steady hand to keep pictures sharp, and especially, coordinate with homeowners about dogs, cats, clutter, and all the other annoying things that will get in between your camera and the beautiful pictures of your listing on Zillow.

So relax. Schedule your shoot on a day when you’re not frantically rushing from showing to showing, and take a few deep breaths before you walk into the house, camera in hand. You already got the listing, so the hard part is over, right?