Real estate photography is an essential segment of the real estate industry. High-quality photos are necessary to help homeowners advertise their properties to potential buyers.
Real estate agents who want to help sellers will recommend professional photographer services to these homeowners to ensure their property is presented in the best possible light. In an era of social media and easy internet access, the need for high-quality photos to post online for home sales is incredibly high.
Real estate photography is more challenging than it sounds. Many people think they can take good enough pictures with their smartphones to sell their houses, but there is far more involved in making a home look appealing. Let’s discuss the importance of real estate photography skills and how professionals can create stunning real estate photography to help people sell their homes.
Preparation and Planning for Real Estate Photography
You cannot simply enter a property and start snapping pictures to create a high-quality marketing campaign. Preparation and planning are necessary to ensure the property is as visually appealing as possible in the listing photos. Here are some real estate photography tips for preparing the house.
Declutter and Stage
When people live in a home, they customize it to suit their needs and personalities. However, many homeowners have different preferences for how their properties are organized and decorated.
The first step in preparing a house for professional real estate photographers is decluttering the rooms and depersonalizing the space. The more the home looks like a blank slate, the easier it is for potential buyers to imagine what life would be like in it.
If the floors, walls, and surfaces are covered in junk or personal items, this will reduce the visual appeal of the space. Stage the furniture in a way that opens up the room and adds appealing decor that is less personalized to make the pictures more attractive.
Clean and Tidy
Thoroughly cleaning your home before a single real estate photograph is taken can show future buyers that the owner takes good care of it. Pay special attention to the windows, floors, and surfaces throughout the home. Cleanliness will increase a property’s curb appeal and entice buyers to schedule a visit or attend an open house.
Maximize Lighting
Lighting is key to taking high-quality images of a home, especially of interior spaces. Professional photographers understand the importance of natural light, so they open the blinds and curtains before taking pictures to highlight the warm tone.
Try to schedule a photo session during the brightest part of the day, when sunlight is entering your house and reflecting the most, which could be during the golden hours. You should also use interior lights strategically, especially if the bulbs have cold LED coloring.
Equipment and Settings a Professional Real Estate Photographer Needs
Impressing potential buyers is easier when a professional photographer is involved. These individuals use specialty cameras, equipment, and a thorough post-production process to create beautiful images that resonate with potential buyers. Here are some types of equipment and camera settings that are necessary for effective real estate photography.
Essential Camera Gear
Taking great real estate photos starts with a high-quality camera. If real estate photography is an important part of your career, you can invest in a DSLR or mirrorless camera.
However, modern smartphones have incredible cameras with adjustable settings, so if you know how to stage a property and take pictures with natural lighting and great angles, you may only need an updated mobile device.
You should also consider additional accessories for a successful photo shoot. Tripods will ensure that stabilized images are captured, and various lenses, such as narrow and wide-angle lenses, will allow you to capture more aspects of the property.
Flash technology or lighting equipment can improve lighting in certain areas, such as basements or windowless bathrooms.
Camera Settings
Image quality will depend heavily on your camera’s settings. For example, the aperture affects how much light is allowed into the camera lens, affecting the brightness of the image and depth of field. In low-light conditions, you may need a larger aperture setting to ensure all elements of the room can be seen.
Shutter speed also affects the lighting of your photo. A longer shutter speed may require the use of a tripod and remote trigger to avoid a blurry picture. ISO determines how much light the camera captures. If the setting is too high, the image could lack sharpness, so stick with a lower ISO setting.
Finally, you must pay attention to the white balance, which determines how colors appear in your photos. White balance calibrates the camera by identifying what should be pure white, allowing it to capture all other colors in the scene accurately. If it is not an automatic setting, find a neutral white in the house to set the balance correctly.
Composition and Techniques
Now that your camera settings are in order, you must consider the subject of each image. With optimal lighting, a well-staged layout, and proper camera settings, your photo could still reflect poorly on the house if the composition is unappealing.
Here are some real estate photography tips regarding photo composition.
Rule of Thirds and Leading Lines
The rule of thirds is one of the most popular visual techniques in photography. Two horizontal and vertical lines are drawn across the camera view, creating nine rectangles of equal size. The human eye tends to follow these lines to the points where they intersect. These intersection points should be where the unique features and highlights of the room are placed.
Leading lines create visual interest and depth in the image. Some examples in real estate photos include pathways, stairs, fences, beams, or arches.
Shooting Angles and Perspectives
Great photos create an inviting atmosphere in a home. One key element people look for in a property is spaciousness. Few people want to live in a cramped house, so your detail shots should convey this space.
Capturing this sense of space depends on strategic camera placement and lens choice. Take pictures from corners or doorways to maximize the visible area in each shot. A wide-angle lens will help create an impression of larger, more open spaces.
When considering your angle and perspective, remember to use the rule of thirds to focus on the highlights of the room. For outdoor pictures, investing in drone photography may be worth it to capture the amount of space on the property.
Capturing Key Features
One to three photos should highlight unique selling points. For example, if the family room has a beautiful fireplace, make sure you capture multiple angles of the room to demonstrate how it looks. Updated kitchens, modern bathrooms, and outdoor living spaces are especially appealing to buyers, so include various angles of these spaces in your shot list.
One photo of a unique selling area will not be enough to highlight it to buyers, so don’t be shy with the shutter button.
Post-Processing and Editing
If you follow the previous steps, many people will be satisfied with the resulting photos. However, an experienced professional real estate agent can add some extra touches to take the pictures to the next level. Here are some tools and tips for the editing process.
Essential Editing Software
Photo editing software is a professional photographer’s best friend. Here, you can touch up your images with the right tools, such as Lightroom or Photoshop, to optimize each image.
Perhaps the color or light in one image can be adjusted slightly to make it appear warmer. Maybe you wanted to hide an item in the frame of a perfect picture. Some simple edits can help present the home in the best possible light.
Editing Techniques
You should avoid massive changes to the home’s images. After all, if a buyer falls in love with heavily edited photos, they may become disappointed when they visit the property in person. Minor edits, such as cropping, straightening, or adjusting brightness and contrast, can accomplish plenty.
How A-List Properties Can Simplify Your Home Selling Process
While professional real estate photography is crucial for attracting potential buyers, preparing your home for a photoshoot can be time-consuming and costly. If you’re looking to sell your property quickly without the hassle of staging and capturing perfect images, cash home buyers offer an efficient solution.
We purchase homes in any condition, allowing you to bypass the traditional selling process entirely. This approach means no need for decluttering, cleaning, or investing in high-quality photos. By opting for a cash sale, you can expedite the transaction and move forward with your plans, whether it’s relocating to a new city or freeing up finances for other investments.
Call us today at 972-526-7042 or complete the online form to request a no-obligation cash offer for your house.
Zach Shelley
Zach Shelley is a seasoned real estate investor with a diverse network spanning across the nation. As the founder of his own real estate venture, Zach is committed to offering innovative solutions to homeowners facing various real estate challenges.. Through his dedication and strategic approach, Zach continues to make a significant impact in the real estate industry, providing homeowners with alternative pathways to navigate their property transactions.
