Piers's Blog

Stopping That Sun Flare

Piers Lamb (Evers & Co.) — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 09:57:07 -0700

Have you ever shot an exterior house photo and you get that lens flair spot? This is from strong light entering the lens at just the correct angle and bouncing till it hits the sensor, making circles, sheets of bright white overlay or covering the entire image and thus lowering the contrast.

There are a couple of ways to remedy this. First, use your lens hood. This is the round piece of plastic that extends past your lens, that comes with most lenses when purchased. Not always the best, for we are using a wide angle lens that tries to capture as much image as possible, then we put a blocker on it to prevent the sun coming in. Second, use your hand or a piece of cardboard over the lens to block the sun. Lastly, shoot the picture from shade, under a tree or switch the angle you are shooting from.

Time of day has a lot to do with this. It is near impossible to shoot a home with the sun just over the house. If you have the time, I recommend that you wait and shoot at another part of the day. It is worth it to get the best front shot you can.

Some Potty Humor in DC

Piers Lamb (Evers & Co.) — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 12:26:45 -0700

This was not a listing of ours but I had to show. This home on Sherier Pl. NW, Washington, DC was built in 1920. I would have felt this would have gotten renovated off but there it stands, in the capitol of the United States a home that still has an outhouse. The second part of this I found interesting was that to flush the toilet, you just lifted up the seat and the jobs done.

Staging for the Camera – 1. Remove Objects In the Foreground

Piers Lamb (Evers & Co.) — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 13:47:20 -0700

This is another simple trick to making a room shot look better- move objects that are very close to you in the foreground out of the shot. A vase, flowers, or lamps, will just dominate the photo and detract from the room; the reason for this is the extreme stretch perspective of the wide angle lens. Just like the back of a spoon, the objects closest are exaggerated and the background objects are far in the distance. Two problems occur from this. First you make a non significant object the focal point, and 2 you hide the room you want to show.

For instance take the shot below where I removed the lamp and magazines from the photo. However, for the staging of the room it needed to go back, so remember to keep two perspectives, one staging for an open house and another for the room shots.

I should have removed one of the pillows but I

Buy Rechargeable Batteries or a Battery Pack for Your Camera Flash

Piers Lamb (Evers & Co.) — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 11:20:41 -0700

Rechargeable batteries are not as inexpensive compared to regular batteries, but in a few uses they will pay for themselves many, many times and a lot greener. I myself use a battery pack called a Quantum that gives me two weeks of mass shooting un-failed with a fast recharge. It is a rechargeable pack that screws in to the bottom of my SLR camera, they also carry an over the shoulder like purse style. Both can be purchased at most camera stores or online. When you are not using them for the camera put them in toys or other devises that use them. I rarely buy regular batteries any more.

What I use
XtraPower by Promaster rechargeable batteries, I have had over 2 years
Turbo Compact by Quantum, I have had just under 2 years

Fact Sheet Verticals ~ A Part 2

Piers Lamb (Evers & Co.) — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 10:22:03 -0700

This is part 2 of Shoot Horizontal When Possible, I posted 6/24/08. Now to talk about when you have to have the vertical. When creating a fact sheet, as opposed to using a lesser photo (bathroom, hallway or detail) as one larger vertical put two vertical photos close together to make one horizontal, to keep consistent with the size of the other images. But a great shot is always a great shot and always highlight in size the best points of a home.

Maid Of The Month ~ Pat Kennedy

Piers Lamb (Evers & Co.) — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 09:18:58 -0700

At our office every month we give accolades to the top sales of the month. The honor is called Maid of the Month. We do not keep a board of who has done what and how many, we just have our Tuesday meeting, the broker announces who was the top that month. Then it is my job. It is my job to come up with a fitting immortalizing poster for that individual. Every month a different concept. It started with art posters, meaning known works from renowned painters through time. Now, I am on a movie poster kick. For the past year and a half I have run through the gambit of putting our agents as stars of movie posters such as Legally Blond, Star Wars, the Sound of Music, My Fair Lady and The African Queen. See a theme here; we have a few women in our office. This month for one of the newer agents to our office that had a great career in real estate before joining us, we give the honor to the person that has 252651 some points here on Active Rain, the top of Washington, DC list, Pat Kennedy as Pippi Long stocking. Congrats.

Digital vs Offset for Production

Piers Lamb (Evers & Co.) — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 12:09:39 -0700

As per my last blog, I use a Konica Minolta c6500. I love it. Very infrequently do we do offset for projects, except business cards and some local guides. I do have a few agents that do overprinting. Meaning they get a template done offset in large, 1000s of numbers to get the colors of their logo and branding nailed, then I just print over that. Offset meaning using a printing press with inks as opposed to digital, the copiers that most of us use in office. We lease ours and the pricing is great, for in-house costs- $.065 for a post card being cut 2 up from 8.5x11 on 11lbs cover, $.13 8 1/2x11 fact sheet on 100lbs cover and $.26 for 11x17 fact sheet on 100lbs cover.

The benefits of in-house digital-
1. It is Friday, I do a shoot and the agent has written text for the fact sheet. I have the ability in an hour to create and print marketing materials for that agent for the weekend.
2. Color looks off- I can color correct on the spot and run the job.
3. For lesser runs it is more cost effective.
4. Agent needs to make a change, I can do I right away and print (price change).
5. All the work is print-on-demand and a much faster turnaround.
6. Lessen over printing.

The benefits of Offset presses-
1. Colors look more vivid- better looking photography.
2. Full bleed and unique sizing can be achieved more easily, they cut the paper.
3. Larger runs, more cost effective.
4.Unique Paper stocks.
5. Someone else owns the printer and does maintenance.

Just some thoughts to consider.

Call Boxes ~ Mount Pleasant, DC

Piers Lamb (Evers & Co.) — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 13:03:57 -0700

In Mount Pleasant, Washington, DC in the summer of 2004, nine call boxes were converted from their useless state of decay into pieces of art that convey the area's history in little dioramas created by sculptor Michael K. Ross in a program called "Art on Call." The boxes show time periods of when Indians inhibited the area, through the civil war to the present. The two I have chosen are "Casualties Arriving at Mount Pleasant General Hospital, May 1864", and "Mount Pleasant street, 2004."

Kitchen Contact Paper – In the Eye of the Beholder

Piers Lamb (Evers & Co.) — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 11:49:37 -0700

I see many homes with the popular contacting of shelves in cabinets on homes that are being sold by older families. We have all seen flowers, plaid and stripes all in bright colors that say hello when you open a solid wood cabinet in a kitchen and sometimes in the bathroom. But here is the best I have found yet on a shoot this morning on Cathedral Ave., In NW Washington, DC. Need I say more?

If you like this, find more on my group and I welcome you to add your own Unique Details.

Konica Minolta c6500 A Great Copier

Piers Lamb (Evers & Co.) — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 10:32:54 -0700

Today I am going to switch gears a bit as I wanted to pass on what I use in-house to create fact sheets, postcards and other marketing materials for my agents. I am 500,000 prints into my new Konica Minolta c6500 printer that I acquired Aril 2007, this replaced the Konica Minolta cf5001. I use the paper settings between postcard size to 11x17 up to 100lbs cover stock; I can scan at 600 dpi and it is fast. I have included the website so as to not make this a spec sheet for the printer. http://www.biz.konicaminolta.com/production/c6500/spec.html.

I wanted to give these copiers props, before this one I constantly needed repair almost every Friday, truly if not more often, calibrations and paper jams when it got humid. Now in the 500,000s, I have had nothing but normal maintenance; color stays truer and with this one came a pro calibrator, so I could do it myself. It has been worth the changeover especially for the speed upgrade; I print upward of 3000 cards monthly for some agents and have 60 agents that need fact sheets every weekend, this machine gets the job done.

In a future blog I will get into why I go digital, with Digital vs going Off-set.

www.Dashfly.com - Routing Site

Piers Lamb (Evers & Co.) — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 10:06:48 -0700

Here is a great site that a couple of my agents use for mapping homes for their tours, www.Dashfly.com. It's free. You can add many stops in any order, change order and get a map that uses Google mapping that shows the locations, you can also print out the file for yourself or for your clients if they are in a different car. Also you can save file, email and get mileage calculations of the route.

1910 Mailbox

Piers Lamb (Evers & Co.) — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 12:04:51 -0700

This brass mailbox comes from The Dresden, on Connecticut Avenue, in Washington, DC, considered one of DC's best addresses. Not that this is a- typical in DC on other historic buildings, this just had detailing that was intresting and still had the original lock. I forgot to ask if it was still in use.

Shoot Horizontal When Possible

Piers Lamb (Evers & Co.) — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 12:09:34 -0700

I shoot horizontal most of the time. Reason for this is a three-fold. First, it gives a perspective of more of the size of the, allowing more of what is valuable to be seen, i.e. build-ins, windows, where the walls meet. Second, I achieve more shots of the same size lined up from top to bottom on my fact sheet and am able to showcase the property better than if I alternated between vertical and horizontal images. Third, the imagery makes for a larger preview on web sites like the MLS.

There are times when vertical is needed: when trying to get a feature of a ceiling like a skylight, but then take two photos- one horizontal for the room and one vertical for the skylight. Also most bathrooms or powder rooms will need a vertical shot, as well if the home is vertical.

Seeing horizontal is normal for our eyes. Much of our world is set up this way; TVs, movie screens, a car's front window, computer monitors and motorcycle helmet visors. This is how we see out of our eyes. Horizontal orientations have a grounding effect, comfort and stability, while vertical tries to reach the sky moving our eye up off the page.

Back Form the 60’s – Conversation Design

Piers Lamb (Evers & Co.) — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 13:03:40 -0700

Here is a forgotten piece of history that I found in a home in Washington, DC on Chain Bridge Road. The home was built in 1976 but was inspired by architecture done in the 60's, I present the Conversation Pit- a social design idea that was not long lived; a sunken-in room with seating around the outside, normally in front of a fire place as pictured here.

Eagle on the Ceiling

Piers Lamb (Evers & Co.) — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 15:38:46 -0700

This came from a home in NW, Washington DC on Yuma Street. It appeared in the entry foyer of the 1922 home. It was owned at one time by Senator Phil Gram. It was noted by the owner of the home that the eagle's head was facing the wrong way for this style of crest.

Reshoot The Fall/Winter Listings

Piers Lamb (Evers & Co.) — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 10:56:10 -0700

Summer is here. I have seen a few winter shoots on the web and this is a message for those agents, it is time to update the listing photos from winter to now. Listings are lasting a lot longer on the market from the previous years. You should update the images to reflect the best of the season. Show the flowers, cut the lawn, lose the old listing pictures with snow, gray skies and no leaves on the trees and get new shots of the home and gardens to add new life to your listing.

Zuber’s Wallpaper

Piers Lamb (Evers & Co.) — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 10:37:28 -0700

This wallpaper was located in the dining room of a home from 1917 on Lamont St. NW, Washington, DC. The paper was created by Zuber & Cei, of Rixheim, France. This vibrant wall mural was not created over night. They ink some 1,500 wooden plates applying 192 color on a typical edition of 50 panels. Zuber was known as the finest wallpaper manufacturer in the Western world. The company produced murals of gardens, soldiers, ports, country sides, all from many different countries.

Charcoal The Air Cleaner

Piers Lamb (Evers & Co.) — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 10:51:43 -0700

I have seen a number of my agents get good results from buying a large bag of generic, cheap, charcoal briquettes and putting it in homes that have dank, musky smells. Just put a bag in the rooms with the problem. Place the bag lying down on its back, having the front facing the ceiling. Cut a cross on the upwards facing side and fold flaps open. In a day or so the room will be much fresher. And when you are done using it for this purpose use it to cook with for the next bbq.

1882 Fireplace

Piers Lamb (Evers & Co.) — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 10:17:05 -0700

A great all Victorian fireplace and mantel from a historic home on Warwick Street, Somerset Maryland from 1882. Cast iron relief panels of 3 cherubs holding veils on back and sides with tile surround. I do not come across many of these, most people today remodel them out to put a gas fire place.

Location, Location, Location- Photos that Show More than Just The Property

Piers Lamb (Evers & Co.) — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 09:26:12 -0700

We all are told that real estate is LLL; well if that is the case what I have seen from other people's web work and fact sheets normally shows only photos of the home. I have a number of agents that go the extra mile to set the scene of the home and where it is located. Take pictures of the area around the home; showcase what makes this area unique, memorable or useful to a buyer. Pay attention to what will set off a trigger for a potential buyer to like this property even more from its surroundings. Take pictures of a statue, fountain, old bridge, circle, woods, or even an event that happens seasonally; 4^th of July parade, cherry blossoms in bloom and so on. Then accompany the photos with a short paragraph about the area and what it has to offer; schools, shopping, parks, outdoor activities and what might interest the demographics of people who would be purchasing the home.

Last, keep the good photos and build a catalog for yourself for the next time you need a good shot in that area.

Put that Dog/Cat in the Shot

Piers Lamb (Evers & Co.) — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 09:41:23 -0700

I have always gotten great feedback when I do a shoot and the owners pets are in the shot. It comes from two sides. First the owner loves seeing their most favorite animal having its picture take and then for the world to see them on the fact sheets and web. The situation reinforces your relationship with the owner by showing affection to a member of their family. This all falls into keeping the seller happy.

Then the other side, are the potential buyers. 39% of U.S. households own at least one dog and 34 % of U.S. households own at least one cat.* Then consider the people that love animals but due to allergies or rental restrictions cannot have one, or people that just like to see cute, fluffy, small creatures and you end up with a lot of animal lovers in our country.

When you shoot, take a number of shots, animals like to move around a lot. Then pick the best one.

Animals add life, happiness and a softness that an empty room cannot provide, showing that a wonderful life was being had in this home and you (the buyer) can have the same.

Just make sure the animals are seen and not smelt.

* www.hsus.org, The Humane Society's web site

Clear the Fridge

Piers Lamb (Evers & Co.) — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 10:49:50 -0700

This is one that is simply, easy, doesn't take much time and makes a big difference. Just get the stuff off the fridge. Remove all magnets, stickers, calendars, business cards and yes, the kid's masterpiece. Also remove the debris off the top. This is a good time to get rid of the other agents' cards and calendars they have hanging around. Do get permission first, but this is one that can really make a kitchen look much, much less cluttered and more spacious both for the photos and for walk-throughs.

I shot this one today, and yes I know I am not the only one that as a photo like this so lets see who can do better.

In a Condo or Co-Op Ask What Amenities the Residents Receive

Piers Lamb (Evers & Co.) — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 10:08:24 -0700

This is an easy one that is often forgotten. Remember to ask the person at the desk what extra amenities the building offers as the client (seller) does not always know or just did not think to mention them. Look for the gym, pool, roof deck, sitting room, laundry room, grocery store or library. Whatever adds value to the property; this also gives you more to take pictures of for fact sheets and web and should draw in a larger number of people to look at the property.

Old Call Box DC

Piers Lamb (Evers & Co.) — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 14:09:40 -0700

Here is a piece of technology I had not seen before. This is an old call box for the two apartments of this town-house in on Irving Street, Columbia Heights, DC. This came originally with the home per the owner selling the home, built around 1913. This one had two tubes to talk into, running to the apartments for vocal and an electric buzzer to get your attention.

Flash on Camera vs. Light on Stands

Piers Lamb (Evers & Co.) — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 08:40:49 -0700

This comes down to Time, Quality, Dollars.

Time: Learn a multi-flash system to use while shooting or
At shoot time - pull light out, set up and then tear them down just to put them back in storage after you shoot or

Take 2-3 hours(average home) to get a pro to shoot with light stands
Quality: Lights on stands for a home shoot from a pro generally look better

Dollars: Least expensive $150 to $500 upfront to purchase the lights and then classes; or
Pay a pro photographer $250+ depending on time, location and who you hire.

99.9999% of people that shoot real estate have NO need for multiple lights on stands. I have done my job successfully with a detachable flash, while using it as a bounce flash off the ceiling, for years. I have only seen a couple of instances where I might have used light stands, but it was time prohibitive. Those instances were for a couple of $4,000,000 homes that had vast rooms and were fully furnished. The fact is I need to be in and out of a shoot in an hour most times and the lights on stands are not a practical way for me to accomplish this.

I was put to a test once to get a position in a company that was looking for a photographer to train other photographers to go out and shoot real estate photography. I was put up against a high level pro photographer and we both had to shoot the same $2.3 million home in Georgetown, DC. He went in with 2 lights on stands and shot the place for 4 hours. I went in with flash-on-camera, using the bounce flash technique off of the ceilings and I was in and out in 45 minutes. When it came down to it, my images were just under the quality of my competition. He had better balance throughout a room and could highlight areas, for some more dramatic imagery, most of which can be done in Photoshop after the fact if needed. When the images were scaled down to a fact sheet size and printed on a digital printer they were so close that it did not make a difference. They offered me the job instead.