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Before and After: An ActiveRain Exercise in Editing

By
Real Estate Agent with Big Block Realty 858.232.8722 CA BRE# 01261476

Photo editing is definitely a skill-set I'm self taught in as it became necessary to improve the quality of my listing photos, before I could afford a professional photographer. I used to take all my own photos and was very careful to edit them prior to posting them, because my clients were going to see them and my target market was going to be marketed by them.

 

It drives me bonkers when I see bad photos in the MLS:

Bad light, messy backgrounds, improper crops, photographer in the reflection of the mirror. There are agents that literally upload their raw cell phone photos and think "that's good enough." I feel like asking the homeowners, "Really? This is what you are paying for? This is 1/3 of why you hire us and this is as good as it gets with your agent?!?"

 

Below you'll see some examples of a before and after of a photo. The original is not MLS=worthy. The edited version became an MLS photo that helped sell the home!

 

BEFORE

Before

Raw Photo, common problem, the sunlit window creates massive shadows and dark exposure.

 

  AFTER

  

What I did to correct this photo was adjust the following:

 

Brightness increased, Contrast increased, Shadows decreased, Highlights decreased, Color Temperature was warmed and then I auto-straightened the shot and cropped it.

 

I did all this on Windows Live Photo Gallery Editor, a FREE program that came with all my PCs.

 

The edit took all of 2 minutes. Super easy!

 

Now as I got better at editing, I was able to make even greater improvements to my before and after edits, this one changed my career:

 

BEFORE

Thomas J. Nelson

AFTER

nelson

 

 

 This is my May 2017 Entry for Dick Greenberg 's hosted contest.

Posted by


Thomas J. Nelson
REALTOR®, CRS, RCS-D, CDPE, e-Pro, Certified Military Home Specialist, Luxury Home Specialist, Author, Keynote Speaker and  Podcast Host 

Serving Coastal San Diego from Carlsbad to Coronado, Downtown, Balboa Park Area,
La Jolla/UCSD & Mission Bay Park Areas
I Offer Rebates to Veterans
& Active Duty

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(858) 232-8722
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RCS-Divorce     Southern California Chapter of Certified Residential Specialists (CRS)

 
 
Disclaimer:  Nothing in this blog article is to be construed as legal advice, tax advice, medical advice or financial advice.  For legal advice see an attorney.   For tax advice, health or financial advice see a tax attorney, certified public accountant, or other qualified professional.
Jeff Dowler, CRS
eXp Realty of California, Inc. - Carlsbad, CA
The Southern California Relocation Dude

Thomas

VERY Clever!! And the before and after photos of you are pretty good, too!.

Seriously, the edits made a huge difference. It's not all that hard. But then taking and using decent photos shouldn't be, but for some it clearly is a problem.

Jeff

May 21, 2017 08:26 AM
Gita Bantwal
RE/MAX Centre Realtors - Warwick, PA
REALTOR,ABR,CRS,SRES,GRI - Bucks County & Philadel

Thank you for the information. I will try this program on my computer.

May 21, 2017 09:46 AM
Brian England
Ambrose Realty Management LLC - Gilbert, AZ
MBA, GRI, REALTOR® Real Estate in East Valley AZ

The photo of the dining area is highly improved with your editing!  Looks like you have a new profile picture to you use too!

May 21, 2017 11:49 AM
Thomas J. Nelson, REALTOR ® e-Pro CRS RCS-D Vets

May 21, 2017 12:52 PM
Kasey & John Boles
Jon Gosche Real Estate, LLC - BoiseMeridianRealEstate.com - Boise, ID
Boise & Meridian, ID Ada/Canyon/Gem/Boise Counties

Ahahahaha!  I'm so glad I clicked on this link to see your before and afters. Happy Sunday! -Kasey

May 21, 2017 02:15 PM
Rebecca Gaujot, Realtor®
Lewisburg, WV
Lewisburg WV, the go to agent for all real estate

I like the before and after photos of both ... the property and you

May 23, 2017 08:16 PM
Gene Mundt, IL/WI Mortgage Originator - FHA/VA/Conv/Jumbo/Portfolio/Refi
NMLS #216987, IL Lic. 031.0006220, WI Licensed. APMC NMLS #175656 - New Lenox, IL
708.921.6331 - 40+ yrs experience

Ha!  But I so get your frustration with poor pics, Thomas J. Nelson, Realtor, CRS ... back earlier in my career I also performed appraisals and managed my company's appraisal department.  Drove me nuts when poor pics were presented with an appraisal.  Even back then there was never an excuse for it.  And even more so now ...

Gene

May 25, 2017 09:45 AM
Francine Viola
Coldwell Banker Evergreen Olympic Realty, Olympia WA - Olympia, WA
REALTOR®, In Tune with your Real Estate Needs

I love it!  LOL!

May 26, 2017 11:16 AM
Debbie Reynolds, C21 Platinum Properties
Platinum Properties- (931)771-9070 - Clarksville, TN
The Dedicated Clarksville TN Realtor-(931)320-6730

You made me smile, Thomas. Great job on editing both photos.

May 26, 2017 04:35 PM
Dick Greenberg
New Paradigm Partners LLC - Fort Collins, CO
Northern Colorado Residential Real Estate

Hi Thomas - Nice editing work - you managed to turn that first photo into something very attractive. (The same could be said about the second set too) Thanks for your entry!

May 30, 2017 08:22 AM
Beth Atalay
Cam Realty and Property Management - Clermont, FL
Cam Realty of Clermont FL

Hi Thomas J. Nelson, Realtor, CRS, you did a great job with the editing, love the FREE programs. Nice profile pic too! 

May 30, 2017 10:32 AM
Ruth Vogt
Fairway Independent Mortgage, LLS. Equal Housing Opportunity. Regulated by the Division of Real Estate. - Colorado Springs, CO
719-592-0855 www.ReverseLoansInColorado.com

Love the edits you did! Both sets of photos gave a completely different perspective. You should definately win the contest!! haha!

May 30, 2017 12:28 PM