Let’s cut to the chase. You own some real-estate and you want to sell it. Cash is hard to come by these days and you cannot afford to hire a professional to take photos for you. What do you do? You know the fact that listings with photos sell faster and listings with high-quality photos sell even faster as well as for more money. Hence, you absolutely want to take photos and now you may just have to do it yourself. If that’s the case then buckle up and get on with it. Don’t worry. With the following tips you just cannot go wrong:
Get your hands on the right camera
While you might want to use your smartphone to take photos because that’s just way cheaper and convenient, it’s a big no-no. If you don’t have a DSLR, then ask some friends or relatives – every other person nowadays walks around with one so you might just be in luck. If you still can’t get one then just rent one. Opt for a camera with a wide-angle lens (28mm lens on a 35mm camera) so that you can capture the entire room or even home (exterior) in one shot. Moreover, do prefer the camera with optical zoom rather than the digital one because that will allow you to focus on specific features of the real estate.
Get comfortable with it
Learn the basic features of the camera. Understand why, when, and which features/settings you should choose depending on your setting and subject. Take some random photos, try out the different features, and then analyze the photos.
Brainstorm
So one of the most underrated aspect of photography is thinking before shooting. You need to grasp the fact that you just cannot walk in and snap away. Take a look at the lighting, de-clutter, stage the room if needed, understand the main subject, and figure out a way to maximize the appeal to the viewers. Go through the different possibilities through which you can provide a virtual tour to the audience.
Compose
Take advantage of the viewfinder of the camera you are using. Monitor the changes that occur when you move closer, backwards, and sideways. Ask yourself what position is the best? How can I capture the perfect shot?
By visually composing your image before taking the actual shot you will be well on your way to getting a good enough shot.
Note than it even might be worth the effort to take photographs while standing on a ladder or a stool. This is because not only can you snap photos from a higher perspective, which will be unique in itself but you can also focus on what’s more important (the room itself) rather than the ceiling.
Use a tripod or even a monopod
Nothing ruins pictures more than blurring does. When you are not used to taking photographs or when you are shooting using the zoom feature and even when you are in a badly lit setting, this problem of images getting blurred worsens even more. Taking still/stationary shots is way harder than it looks. However, there’s an easy way out of this. You can use a tripod/monopod and comfortably eliminate this problem.
Ensure adequate lightening and use angles to your advantage
Lightening is the most essential part if you want to get ideal shots. Focus on it. While shooting interiors, apart from using thee flash, switch all the lights on and if possible bring additional lightening gear to ensure that the images come out bright and visually pleasing to the eye. Also, leverage daylight as much as you can.
You may have to be particularly careful when the background is bright as in that case the subject will get lost in the shadows. When you are out in the open you can avoid this problem by tightly framing your subject and when you are inside you can turns the blinds on.
While this might seem bizarre to you but getting the right photos can be a quite difficult especially when the structure and setting of the real estate is such that you cannot position yourself properly. Shoot from an angle whenever there are shiny metal surfaces or mirrors. This will help you avoid the big white spots that appear in photographs.
Shoot more and do not leave before you get it right
Professional photographers are so skillful at their craft that they take only a handful of pictures. You, however, will need to take a lot of pictures. Improvise, move around maybe, and take pictures with and without flash. Moreover, before leaving check out the photos that you have taken. Ensure that you have got the required photos and that there is nothing wrong with them. You wouldn’t want to know later on that you forgot to take photos of one particular room or that the majority of your photos were dark or blurred, or do you?
Master Software
Once you are done taking photos, you should delve deep into the post-production process. This is where you improve your photos and prepare the end products. Be it organizing photos, cropping, adjusting exposure, brightening, or pulling out details from shadows you can do all that and much more with various softwares that are available in the market. However, do note that you should not make way too many changes in the images such that when potential buyers come in to view the property in person, they are left shell-shocked because of the difference in the images and the reality. Windows Photo Gallery for Windows users, IPhoto for MAC users, Adobe Photoshop, Pixlr, Picasa, and FotoFlexer are just some of the tools that you can use for image editing.
The gist
It is highly recommended that you avail the services of a professional photographer to get high-quality photos that can capture the attention of viewers and help your real estate sell quickly at a higher price. If you cannot do so then use the above-mentioned tips to give yourself the best possible chance of taking photos that increase your chances of making a sale.
