Real estate photography quality has never been more critical. I’m dismayed when I see real estate listing photos that look like they’ve been shot from a moving car, or when the photos show a home at its least flattering angle.
As a home seller you need to insist that your real estate agent use quality photos to market your property. As a real estate agent, you need to consider whether you have the time, equipment, and/or talent to take the best shots. Here’s why:
In the US 70% of home buyers search for properties online before calling a real estate agent to discuss properties they want to visit. In Canada, that number is as high as 90%. This means that quality photos are key when promoting a real estate listing.
Whether you are working with a real estate agent or trying to sell your house on your own, make sure you are always showing your real estate property in the best light.
For the exterior listing photo, rather than the usual daytime image, consider how much more interesting the home might look when shot at dusk with the interior lights on. This is a home I decorated as seen in this photo by Toronto real estate photographer Dan Chan. By shooting the house at dusk, it’s possible to communicate more of an idea of the home’s interior even from a single exterior photograph. This makes the real estate listing much more enticing to potential home buyers when seen on MLS or on a FSBO site.
I invite you to share your comments and ideas here about real estate photography.
Debra Gould, The Staging Diva®
President, Six Elements Inc. Home Staging
Internationally recognized home staging expert Debra Gould, creator of the Staging Diva Home Staging Business Training Program, has staged millions of dollars worth of real estate, including seven of her own homes. She is president of home staging firm Six Elements Inc. and has trained over 4000 home stagers to start and grow their own businesses. Debra is the author of four home staging guides and offers a Directory of Home Stagers to help homeowners and real estate agents locate home stagers who will decorate homes to sell quickly and for top dollar.
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You’re absolutely right Debra! It’s amazing what a good photo can do to a property especially when trying entice potential buyers.
This photo of the home you decorated looks gorgeous. Something definitely to think of when taking my own photos. Thanks Debra 🙂
Lorraine, You’re most welcome, glad I could help.
Debra
Very true; pictures are such an important part of marketing a home and yet I think realtors often over look taking a quality picture. This is unavoidable, but I also much prefer pictures of homes in the summer season when everything is alive.
Old post but still great information!
I think that twilight (dusk) photos can be an excellent way to show off a house, and not just for higher-end properties either, although they can be especially effective in that case.
However, these kinds of photos can sometimes be quite challenging, depending upon the orientation of the house with respect to where the sun has set, and also with respect to the evenness and quality of the interior lighting. Sometimes supplementary lighting can be useful for brightening up and evening out the interior lighting, and sometimes additional Photoshop processing will be needed to darken and even out a sky that is overly bright relative to the house.
Great tips David, thanks for sharing!
Hi there, I enjoy reading all of your article post. I wanted to write a little comment to
support you.
I generally like twilight shots of exteriors too but each house needs to be considered carefully together with the skill of the photographer. I recently helped a client whose beautiful home hadn’t sold. The main listing photo had been a twilight shot of the exterior but because the front walls of the home were 2 floors of glass, a ‘fish bowl’ effect was created – quite a put off. The shame of it was that when approaching the house during the day, it didn’t feel like that.
Another recent home staging project photographed at dusk ended up with interior shots that were washed out and tinged in green instead of the vibrant yellow and grey scheme in the furnishings and accessories.
Thanks for commenting Louise and sharing those examples!