So you've got your web site(s) all optimized for certain keyword searches and you do a Google search on a regular basis to make sure your web site is at the top of the list for those keywords.  Did it ever occur to you that Google might just be showing you what it thinks you want to see?  (It's very agreeable that way.)  When you search with Google (and other search engines), your results are often affected by past searches and other online behavior.

For example, if Google knows that you regularly search for pictures of rabbits, then your search for "rabbit" will probably show results more heavily weighted with cute bunny photos; someone who does a lot of searches for recipes, however, will probably see results for rabbit stew. 

How can you do a search that disregards your browsing history, cookies, etc. without deleting the history and cookies?  By using private browsing!  Private browsing helps prevent your browser from storing data about your browsing session. This includes cookies, temporary Internet files, history, and other data.

If you use Internet Explorer, click on Tools, Safety, InPrivate Browsing (or press Ctrl-Shift-P) to open a private browsing session.  In Google Chrome, click on wrench icon, select New Icognito Window (or press Ctrl-Shift-N).  Now run those keyword searches again (and try not to scream).  In my case, a search for "Herndon Real Estate" shows one of my web sites at the top of the first page in Google.  Using private browsing, it shows up at #2 - okay, I'm still happy. :-)

Try it and let me know your results!

Yesterday was a cold, icy, wet day ... but I felt the need to get outside and shoot.  Where better to shoot on a dreary day than a cemetery?  Guess I was feeling a little ghoulish. :-)

This one had me scratching my head ... guess no one could remember Grandma's name?

Think this guy was a fan?

The eternal optimist ...

And just so you don't think I'm completely dreich ...

Every year, the camera manufacturers bring out their latest models touting an ever increasing number of pixels.  In theory, the greater the number of pixels, the higher resolution the image.  But there's a lot more to it than that.  

The size and price of a camera is, in great part, determined by the size of the sensor.  Smaller sensors used in most point and shoot camera are about 1/15 the size of those used in the typical DSLR cameras. Cramming the same number of pixels into a smaller sensor means smaller pixels.  The smaller pixels just can't absorb the same amount of light as the larger pixels so you end up with noise (graininess) in your photos, particularly when taken under low light conditions.

The chart below is a comparison of sensors sizes used in various cameras - the three smallest sizes are those typically used in point-and-shoot compact cameras:

Here's a great video that explains the megapixel myth by "Pete the Gadget Guy".

In short, when shopping for a digital camera, don't go by the number of megapixels (regardless of what the clueless salesperson tells you).  Look at the features, lens quality and how it feels in your hand.  Don't buy into the megapixel myth!

So you've hired a professional photographer to take photos of your newest listing (yay, you!).  Do you now own those photos?  In most cases, no ... what you've paid for is a license to use those images.  The extent of the usage depends on how the licensing agreement is worded.  Here's what mine says:

LICENSE AGREEMENT

1. Grant of License.  This license grants the Client (“Licensee”), an individual, non-transferable and non-exclusive right to use the images described on page 1 of this invoice.  You may not sell, rent, lease, or sublicense the images to any other companies or entities not mentioned in this license agreement.
   
   
2. Permitted/Prohibited Uses.  The images may be used for any press articles, marketing, on-line use, as well as any form of reproduction, printed or digital, needed to market the subject property.  In addition, you are permitted to use the images for self-promotion upon completion of sale of subject property.  The images may be backed up or archived as necessary to complete the above stated uses only.
   
   You may not resell, sub-license, give, lend, sub-let, distribute the whole or part of an image, whatever its size and resolution. You may not reproduce, resell or redistribute those images for commercial purposes or for marketing use with another selling agent or marketing company.
   
   
3. Copyright.  All rights pertaining to the images are owned by Glenda Cherry Photography and protected by United States Copyright Laws, international treaty provisions, and other applicable laws. No title, copyright, or intellectual property rights in the images are transferred with this license. Full rights and copyright, including but not limited to self-promotion usage, remain with Glenda Cherry Photography, without exception.

Yes, I realize I could make up a much longer agreement filled with legalese, but this spells out the basics of the agreement (hey, we trust each other, right?).  Once you pay for the images, you can use them to market the property (and yourself). You can't give or sell them to anyone else.  I own the copyright and can use them to promote myself.  Pretty clear, huh?

If you've engaged a professional photographer, you need to know how you can use the photos.  Many professional photographers have licensing agreements that are much more restrictive than mine.  Don't let yourself get into trouble by violating the terms of the agreement.  If you haven't read it before, read it now!  

And if you want to read more about this subject, here are some good articles:

Who Owns the Photos? Not All Realtors Understand Photo Licensing

Photos, Photos, Who Owns the Photos?

Copyright and Licensing of Business Portraits

The Harvest Moon is used to describe the full moon that comes closest to the autumnal equinox - the Super Harvest Moon is when the full moon coincides with the night of the equinox (which was in the early hours of September 23 this year).  Unfortunately, I missed out on that one.  I got this photo at 9:15 pm on September 23:

A low-hanging moon will appear larger than one that is higher in the sky - it will also have more of an orange color because of the way light travels through the atmosphere.  Here's a photo taken the next night at 7:15 pm:

Want to try this yourself?  It's easy!  

1. Use a long lens (the one I used was only 200mm, but a longer lens will result in even better images)
2. Use a tripod - while the shutter speed isn't all that slow (the moon moves fairly fast), it's best to minimize any movement.  
3. Use a remote release - again, to minimize any camera movement.
4. Crank down the ISO - if you're using a tripod, there's no need to go higher than ISO-100.  A lower ISO will give you a clearer shot.

So many people wait for the traditional "spring market" to sell their homes ... but the spring market starts around March when your home probably looks like this:

Or, even worse, like this!

If you're thinking of putting your home on the market any time in the next six months, get your exterior photos now!  While May or June is probably the best time to photograph the outside of your home, most people don't plan this far ahead.  But if you take them now, you'll still have leaves on the trees and, depending on where you live, a nice green lawn.  Wouldn't you rather have potential buyers see this?

Or this?

Plan ahead and get those photos now!

If you need professional real estate photos in the Metropolitan Washington DC area, please give me a call or visit my website:  www.GlendaCherryPhotography.com.  

That's right.  Microsoft decided that not enough people were purchasing upgrades (huh?) so they've eliminated upgrade pricing for the newest version of Office.  Even if you already own Office 2007, you have to pay full price for an "upgrade"! 

Here's how the pricing works - each version (Home & Student, Home & Business, and Professional) has two price points:  Full Packaged Product (FPP) and Product Key Card (PKC).  The FPP includes the media and two licenses (one for your desktop and one for your laptop) - the licenses are transferable.  The PKC doesn't come with media (it's either pre-installed on a new computer or it can be downloaded) and it comes with only one license.  And that one license is not transferable.  If you replace your computer, you'll have to buy another license!  Although the PKC is about 30% less than the full package, it will probably end up costing you more in the long run.  (You can see the complete pricing information here.)

I've been using the trial version of Office 2010 for about 6 months and, quite honestly, I'm not all that impressed with it.  Outlook kept locking up while I was composing messages forcing me to start over every time.  I didn't see any new must-have bells and whistles in Word, Powerpoint or Excel.  Publisher is now only available in the Professional version (it was included in the Small Business version in 2007).  Based on this, I was on the fence about whether I would upgrade or not.  Microsoft made the decision easy.

Unfortunately, I discovered that I'll have to reinstall Office 2007 at some point.  My old versions of Word, Excel, Powerpoint and Publisher are still there, but Outlook has been completely hosed <sigh>.

It simply boggles my mind that Microsoft would make a decision like this ... especially with open-source software easily available (and free).  Google Docs, anyone?

Did I get your attention? 

It's driving me crazy to see so many photos of toilets in the listings.  It seems that some listing agents feel like they have to take a picture of every toilet in the house!  I understand that it's difficult to get a shot of a bathroom without including the toilet, but it doesn't have to be the focal point!  Everyone knows there's a toilet in there ... otherwise, it wouldn't be a bathroom.  Enjoy these photos, then scroll down for some hints on shooting bathrooms:

1. If there's no way to avoid including the toilet, at least CLOSE THE LID!!
2. Don't center the toilet in your shot ... focus on the vanity, the bathtub, the shower curtain ... anything but the toilet.
3. Don't take a picture of your reflection in the mirror ... just don't!  Move to another spot, crouch down, clone it out, whatever.  There's no excuse for something as silly as this.
4. Try to avoid shooting from eye-level - you'll usually get better results shooting from a lower point-of-view (3 to 4 feet above the floor).
5. Mirrors can be your friend ... some bathrooms are very small and, even with a wide-angle lens, it's difficult to show a lot of the space.  When possible, use the mirror to capture other areas of the room:

Do you have other tips for shooting bathrooms?  Share them here!

One of my clients is selling his home and he's decided to rent for the next year.  I've been sending him rental listings (and perusing many of them myself) and I was shocked to see how many rental listings have NO PHOTOS AT ALL!  At least 80% of the rental listings have no interior photos.  I can understand not wanting to pay for professional photos for a rental, but there's really no excuse for not having at least a few pictures. 

How annoying is it to drive to a rental property and find out that the MLS description seems to have been copied from a completely different listing?  Shutters hanging, paint peeling, no lawn maintenance ... on the outside.  When we dare to step inside (hey, we're here, we might as well have a look) we find rusted appliances, torn linoleum, filthy bathrooms, missing doors, etc.  A few pictures might have spared us from a complete waste of time. 

As a professional photographer, I rarely get calls to shoot rentals but, when I do, I know the agent is serious about marketing that property.  After all, every month that the home sits vacant is money out of the owner's pocket.  I offer my photography clients a "mini-shoot" that's affordable and makes them look GOOD to their clients.  These are agents that "GET IT"!