10 Essentials Of Professional Real Estate Marketing Photos
1
The primary purpose of real estate marketing photos is to present the features
of the property. Make sure that each photo visually supports this purpose. Any visual
distractions that divert the viewer’s attention from this purpose need to be eliminated.
2
Use a wide-angle lens to shoot interiors. Wide-angle lenses increase the feeling of
space in interiors. What’s a wide-angle lens? For interiors, a lens should have a 35mm
equivalent focal length of between 14 and 24mm. Lenses with a wide enough angle
of view to shoot interiors don’t usually come with off-the-shelf or point-and-shoot
cameras.
3
Remove clutter and stage interiors for best results. It’s a well-known fact that
staging homes pays off. Homes sell faster and for a higher price when they are staged.
Most lived in homes have too much clutter. Photos will look better and show more of
the home if clutter is reduced and furniture is staged by a trained home stager.
4
The primary exterior shot is THE most important photo. Spend extra time, money
and effort to get a “knock-out” front photo because this is the photo that will be seen
most and first by prospective home buyers. Online thumbnails of this photo must
entice the buyer to look closer at the property. Many homes benefit from an elevated
front shot where the camera is 10’ to 20’ above street level.
5
Render interiors light and bright. Bright interiors are up-beat and make a more
positive impression on the prospective buyer, so you want light and bright photos.
Amateur cameras often under expose. Special lighting equipment and/or photo editing
techniques must be used to get interior photos to come across light and bright.
6
Vertical lines (walls etc.) must look perfectly upright and parallel with the edges
of the photo. We live in a world where we know that all walls are perfectly vertical.
When photos don’t look this way it becomes a major visual distraction.
7
Vertical and horizontal lines must be straight. Wide-angle lenses cause lines near
the edges of photos to curve (called barrel distortion) so special photo editing software
must be used to remove this lens distortion.
8
Don’t let bright windows distract. Unless special lighting and/or photo editing
software is used interior windows will tend to look too bright so the view out the
window is not visible. It is always possible to show the view out the window if the view
is an important selling point of the property.
9
Don’t let color casts distract. Strong color casts (typically a strong orange or yellow
cast from incandescent light bulbs) distract the viewers attention and make interiors
look unrealistic.
10
The way photos are presented online has a huge impact on the overall
effectiveness of marketing a property. Photos have the most impact when presented
large (800 x 600 pixels or larger) and in a smooth, easily controllable slide show. Real
estate sites typically do not present photos in the most effective way possible. One
of the purposes of a virtual tour or slide show is to maximize the impact of marketing
photos.