Special offer

Photograph with ZOOM...Show it Off, Sell it Faster

By
Home Stager with Staged First Impressions

Is there anything else to add to Active Rain's list of Photography 101 tips? Yes...zoom in on the home's best selling features to show them off.

Cheryl Johnson asks us to look at Architectural Digest for our homework...good advice!

But there is a difference between taking a beautiful photograph of furnishings and capturing what you are trying to sell. Show buyers what they are going to get for their money. They don't get the couch or bedroom sets!

 Zoom in closer... to the selling features of the house.

Example picture on left shows a close up of architectural details...hardwood flooring, slight upgrade in baseboard, and some custom trim added. "If you buy this house, you get these features." (They buy the ceiling too, but don't show it too much!)

Real estate photographers should know what the best selling features of the home are, and ZOOM in to show the details.

If you photograph an entire room, the eye dances around the photo, but often loses the details because of information overload.

If the fireplace is featured at the back of your composition, that's exactly what it is...background. Make it POP by zooming in on the mantle, the trim work, and if it's gas, turn it on so we know it actually works!

Are there built-ins? Get a close up shot to show that it's not furniture, it comes with the house.

Home stagers bring accessories into the home, which can be moved around to accent those zooms, as demonstrated in the picture above.

Staged First Impressions, Hampton, NH offers staged photography to all clients. Just ask. 

EDIT : Please note that I am not advising only zoomed in photographs, but some close-ups to be included in listing portfolio to show architectural details and custom work that could add to a home's value.

 

 

If you'd like to read more home staging blogs written by Sue Argue

 

 

Comments (48)

Val Allocco
Staged 2 Sell New York & Long Island - Northport, NY
HSE; ASHSR - Home Stager, for Manhattan, Brooklyn & Long Island

Hi Sue,

You present an interesting idea.....I agree that zooming in on the best details of the house is an excellent way to showcase the positives of the house.  I think that the pictures of the individual rooms are also necessary because they help to establish the emotional connection (much like pictures in a magazine or catalog).

This is an intriguing concept, however.  Talk about "thinking outside the box"!!

VAL

Mar 26, 2007 01:00 PM
Sue Argue
Staged First Impressions - Hampton, NH
NH Home Stager
Val, you're everywhere tonight! Yes, you are right, the overall room photos are important too, not just zooms will show off the house effectively in the listing shots.
Mar 26, 2007 01:12 PM
Joan Mirantz
Homequest Real Estate - Concord, NH
Realtor, GRI, CBR, SRES - Concord New Hampshire

Hi Sue,

I do think there is a place for a Zoom highlight of a particular interesting or custom feature.But it may be that the most effective venue for that is in a virtual tour Home presentation. A virtual toru puts the detail into context and illustrates how it affects the whole appearance. A static feature doesn't give a Buyer a feel for room size, layout or livability ...that is what they are looking for!

We are limited as to how many pictures we can put on a listing so with those limited resources the object is to give the prospect a feel for the whole package. The details get pointed out at the showing.

Mar 26, 2007 04:54 PM
Sue Argue
Staged First Impressions - Hampton, NH
NH Home Stager
Joan, you are right, if you take only close-ups, this would not give you a feel for the overall home. Taking zooms shows off the custom features that are described in the listing verbiage; and the buyer is being expected to pay for.
Mar 26, 2007 11:29 PM
Karen Rice Keller Williams Real Est
Keller Williams Real Estate - Hawley, PA
Northeast PA & Lake Wallenpaupack Home Sales

I honestly don't understand the "all or nothing" type comments here.  Maybe it's because of my background in photography, but I did not get the impression that the author was suggesting that you use ONLY zoom photos.  I assumed that the blog was pointing out that we should use the zoom to ADD TO the standard photos.

I understand too that some MLS's limit the amount of photos you can upload - but then again, I see some ridiculous shots, such as three identical (with only slight variations) shots of the outside of the home, and a goofy picture of a doorway and corner of a room, or a picture of a dining room table.  You'd be better off, IMHO, zooming in on something cool that COMES with the house, rather than showing a picture of a table that doesn't come with the house or the front of the house in triplicate!   LOL!

Anyway, Sue, thanks for this blog.  It provoked one of those "duh, why didn't I think of that" moments for me.  LOL

 Karen

Apr 01, 2007 11:42 AM
Sue Argue
Staged First Impressions - Hampton, NH
NH Home Stager
Karen, Welcome to Active Rain!
Apr 01, 2007 12:07 PM
Mike Stankewich, MBA, e-PRO - ZipRealty, Inc.
ZipRealty, Inc. - Huntington Beach, CA

This is an interesting concept, that I did not think about.  Our MLS allows 20 photographs.  Often I take 8-10 and do not know what else to add.  I agree with some of the comments that buyers want to see the big picture and furniture and stagging are important for visual impact even though they are not buying the furniture.  Buyers buy on emotion so you need pictures that show what they dream a house should be.

Our market went south in the fourth quarter of 2006.  I took a listing in which the owner's wife was very artistic and had the house decorated to the T.  I posted the allowable 20 on the MLS along with a professional virtual tour.  You could not believe the responce we got.  We sold it for the asking price within 3 weeks.  Too bad the appraisor was not emotionally involved.  We had to make a small adjustment to keep the deal together.

Well, anyway, if there are only so many wide angle shots to take, fill in the allowable quota with zoom details.  I like the idea.

Apr 01, 2007 01:10 PM
Sue Argue
Staged First Impressions - Hampton, NH
NH Home Stager
Mike, thanks for reading. It sounds like your artist client had staged the home to sell it. And you captured its beauty in the listing pictures. Bravo!!
Apr 01, 2007 02:17 PM
George Tallabas
RE/MAX Advantage - Nampa, ID
Idaho Real Estate
Thank you Sue....You make a good point.  I hope you had a wonderful weekend and I hope you have a happy and profitable week ahead.  I hope all is well in your world.
Apr 01, 2007 03:19 PM
Karen Rice Keller Williams Real Est
Keller Williams Real Estate - Hawley, PA
Northeast PA & Lake Wallenpaupack Home Sales

Thank you Sue.  I have found the place for two of my biggest passions...real estate, and photography.

 I was actually going to blog a little about poor  Realtor photos and fixing them, but I see there is a plethora of it already.   Shoot, it's hard to be original.  LOL

Apr 01, 2007 04:14 PM
Sue Argue
Staged First Impressions - Hampton, NH
NH Home Stager
Thanks for reading George and Karen. It IS busy George! April showers bring May flowers...
Apr 02, 2007 01:56 AM
Joan Whitebook
BHG The Masiello Group - Nashua, NH
Consumer Focused Real Estate Services
Sue -- Now you finally have done it -- there are a lot of AR people who are willing to argue whether to Zoom or not to Zoom!  I think zoomed pictures have their place -- however, as pointed out by others (and yourself) it has a purpose -- and that is to highlight certain details that a typical picture would not capture.  I think I would like to see these pictures in the brochure for the house rather than many on the MLS. 
Jun 26, 2007 03:41 PM
Greg Fox
Realty World Wichita - Wichita, KS
Techy Broker in Wichita Kansas

Sue,

I've sold new homes for years, and I'm an ex-photographer on top of that.  Zooming in (or close up) is a great idea, especially for features that might otherwise be missed.  Kithen counters, full tile back splash with mirrored custom tile work for example.  Shown and lit well, gives prospective buyers a feel of the detail, over kitchen layout alone.  I agree they must be used sparingly in the MLS (we need to show room size, etc), but if a home would be incomplete without such detail, must be used!!!

Jul 01, 2007 02:21 AM
Sue Argue
Staged First Impressions - Hampton, NH
NH Home Stager
Joan & Greg, thank you for reading and commenting. Photography is so important in marketing a home! There is definitely a place for a close up view, but not every picture for sure.
Jul 02, 2007 04:21 AM
Toronto's 2 Hounds Design: Decorating + Staging
2 Hounds Design + Home Staging - Toronto, ON

This is great for websites or realtors promotional page for a house.

The more photos the better, but include details for the best!

Jul 02, 2007 05:59 AM
Sue Argue
Staged First Impressions - Hampton, NH
NH Home Stager
Thank you for reading Dane. I'm so proud of your recent WIN :)
Jul 02, 2007 06:03 AM
Mike Pachenker
Coldwell Banker Bain - Seattle, WA

Hi Sue,

While I believe that shooting pics of rooms, the exterior, yard, deck, etc., I do believe that using a zoom to focus in on the esthetics is important also. Taking a close-up shot of; say a ballustrade or chandelier or anything that shows the character of a home is a big "OK" in my book.

Jul 02, 2007 12:13 PM
Sue Argue
Staged First Impressions - Hampton, NH
NH Home Stager
Well thank you for stopping by, Mike from Seattle WA.
Jul 02, 2007 01:41 PM
Anonymous
Paula

This is a very interesting post.  I think it illustrates what most people don't understand - the 80/20 rule in real estate.  20% of realtors do 80% of the business.  I think it's probably even higher than that.  Most of the rest have the enough skills to be working at the checkout lane in the grocery store.

This is why they don't understand they are in business.  Being in business requires working capital.  It requires marketing skills.  It requires knowledge. The barrier to a real estate career is a few hundred dollars for a license and studying useless facts for a test that most will forget, and very little is actually needed to be successful.  What is needed is a business mind.  Those who understand that they can't do everything themselves and STILL be successful.  That is why the most successful agents hire EXPERTS to design their website, EXPERTS  to stage their homes, EXPERTS to shoot their virtual or video tours, EXPERTS to take photographs.  But you will find (and can see by many of the above comments, most realtors will do whatever they can NOT to spend a buck, because they feel that "they have a camera and can push the button, they have a video camera and can take a video, they bought a free template website and can make their own... "  Then they wonder why they are NOT successful.  

Your points about highlighting certain objects and standout features of a home is spot on. Same is true with staging prior to photography.

That's exactly what a professional does to highlight the home, make your online "showing" stand out, and whet the appetites of buyers.  But the majority of realtors with their 6 year old, 1 megapixel $150 digital camera with floppy disc storage don't understand that concept.  All they want is to whet the appetite of the buyer so they can receive 'the call'.  The taking of quality photographs is more of an afterthought.  It's just something "they have to do".  There is NO thought about what makes a good photo. Many times, there is NO thought to what makes a STRAIGHT photo! (sloping floors anyone?).  Clear of the fridge first?  Remove the paperwork from the countertop first?  No thanks.  Too much work!

The quality or quantity of photos is irrelevant.  They don't understand marketing.  They don't understand the internet.  More importantly, they don't want to PAY an expert who actually DOES understand these concepts and CAN make the realtor look like a star! (and, oddly enough, sell the house for a reasonable price in a short amount of time!)

That's the difference between a successful real estate agent and one who will most likely be shopping for a new career shortly.

If you were selling your house FSBO, don't you think a realtor would be telling YOU exactly what I outlined above?  USE A PRO who knows what THEY are doing, and do YOUR job, which is SELLING real estate, which (presumably), you do well. 

Dec 29, 2007 02:53 AM
#47
Melissa Marro
Keller Williams First Coast Realty - The Marro Team - Orange Park, FL
Jacksonville Real Estate and Home Staging

Excellent!  I wrote a blog yesterday about basically the same thing regarding staging photos.... why did I not notice this back in March when you wrote it and apply it to my staging photos then?  I would have many more close ups on great homes that are already SOLD! 

Letting your clients know what you are selling is key! 

Dec 29, 2007 03:36 AM