An article on "How to Photograph Your For-Sale House" is from the Wall Street Journal and well worth the read.  For others out there who believe in home staging to sell your house or listings, this article is not complete since no mention of how Home Staging is necessary before the photoshoot.  There are some very good tips in the article from professional architectural photographers but the below tips are the ones that I thought needed help:

1. "If a room is empty, bring in a prop like a chair to give it a sense of scale."   If you do choose a chair, make sure it's the correct size for the room.  Why not bring in a home stager to get it right the first time?

2. "Inside, close the drapes to lessen the possibility of the camera's light meter being fooled by bright exterior light."  Light is important so shouldn't a professional know how to adjust the camera so it's not fooled by the bright exterior light?

3. "Use props such as fruit, drinks, magazines and towels. This will make the space look as if someone was just there."  Use props, but just using props will not look like they've just been there if there's no furniture in the house.

4. "A vase, chair or object in the foreground gives more depth to the shot."  Yes, true, but most want to see the house, not the vase, chair or object. (I'm guilty of this one.)

5. "Shoot at chest-level so you show less ceiling." This is just funny.  Show less ceiling?  I guess if there's nothing to focus on like furniture, it might happen.

6. "Move furniture so it doesn't hide architectural features like a fireplace."  I HOPE not. Maybe this happens, but if you use a home stager, it won't.

7. "If an interior is empty, stand back as far as you can to show how large the space it."  And to show how cold looking it can be. Usually rooms look larger with furniture in them.

8. "Don't use a wide angle lens in an interior shot, They make rooms look smaller."  Again, see #7, usually rooms look larger with furniture in them.

Please hire a home stager before you have your listings photographed.  You'll sell faster and some times for more money!

DC Redesign is your Real Estate Stager for Orange County, CA, and surrounding areas.