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Wide Angle Lens = Better Listing Photos

By Jill McTague

Real Estate Agent with RE/MAX Andrew Realty Serfvices

July 21, 2010 09:30 AM

Have you ever looked at houses for sale online? Some agents do a lovely job of photographing a house while others look like they took the photos using their cell phone without even getting out of their car (I wish I was joking but I’ve actually seen that). Buyers have made it clear – they want to see lots of photos of your house before they decide that it’s worth their time to come take a look in person.

I’ve added a new wide angle lens to my camera set up and I’m very pleased with the results. As usual, I spent a lot of time researching my decision and choose a Raynox lens because of their low distortion rates.

Look at how much more of the room you can see. Now instead of just shooting the seller’s furniture, I can show off so much more of the house itself!

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Kathryn Acciari

Central One Federal Credit Union - Shrewsbury, MA

Mortgage Loan Originator

What a significant difference - you can see the room, not just the bed. Thanks for the tip!

Aug 07, 2010 02:38 AM

Jill McTague

RE/MAX Andrew Realty Serfvices - Medford, MA

DebOnTheWeb & Associates - Medford, MA Real Estate

Kathryn - this was the house that convinced me to buy the wide angle lens. None of my original shots showed the house itself, just the furniture. I went back and retook all of my photos with the wide angle lens. I was happy, the sellers were happy and the house sold in 6 days!

Aug 07, 2010 03:19 AM

Joy Baker

RE/MAX Insight - Salem, NH

So NH RE & Short Sale Specialist

Forgive my ignorance, but what the heck is vignetting? I don't see anything unusual in the corners.

Maybe it's time for new contacts...LOL. The picture looks great Deb!

Aug 07, 2010 11:14 AM

Jill McTague

RE/MAX Andrew Realty Serfvices - Medford, MA

DebOnTheWeb & Associates - Medford, MA Real Estate

That's a good question Joy. It's the dark corners you see (most prominently in the lower left hand corner of the shot) and it's a side effect of many add on lenses.

Aug 08, 2010 12:28 AM

Joy Baker

RE/MAX Insight - Salem, NH

So NH RE & Short Sale Specialist

Thanks for responding Deb. Now I see what you're referring to but I could definitely live with that in exchange for the ability to show so much more of the room. I've decided I really need a new camera so I guess I have some research to do!

Aug 08, 2010 05:08 PM

Jill McTague

RE/MAX Andrew Realty Serfvices - Medford, MA

DebOnTheWeb & Associates - Medford, MA Real Estate

I thought it was a worthwhile tradeoff too Joy.

Aug 08, 2010 11:18 PM

Sharon Alters

Coldwell Banker Vanguard Realty - 904-673-2308 - Fleming Island, FL

Realtor - Homes for Sale Fleming Island FL

Deb, I bought a Nikon D40 last year with an 18-55mm lens. I hate the barrel distortion and wide with no character shots that OBEO gives. I would like a bit wider lens, but really get great pix with this camera and lens. Excellent example of what two lenses can do in your picure. The first one looks like a comment I am still laughing about from last week 'your pictures look like you're selling a bed on Craigslist' ! ROTFL :)

Aug 09, 2010 03:28 PM

Jill McTague

RE/MAX Andrew Realty Serfvices - Medford, MA

DebOnTheWeb & Associates - Medford, MA Real Estate

Too many agents' photos look like that Sharon!

Aug 10, 2010 12:59 AM

Felix Krynicky

Keller Williams Realty - Greensburg, PA

Helo Deb, We actually use Photoshop and panorama stitching when we can. We average 31 days on the market right now for sold properties. I believe the photos with syndication play a huge part. Great post!

Click HERE to see some of our stitched photo work.

Aug 27, 2010 02:11 PM

Jill McTague

RE/MAX Andrew Realty Serfvices - Medford, MA

DebOnTheWeb & Associates - Medford, MA Real Estate

Felix - your photos look great and they are definitely a strong reason why your properties sell so quickly. I did use panorama stitching for some shots before but find it easier to use a wide angle lens. Obviously it's working very well for you!

Aug 27, 2010 11:22 PM

Barbara Heil-Sonneck

Design2Sell - Atlanta, GA

Home Staging Atlanta

I am in the process of buying a new camera, thank you for this information!

Sep 11, 2010 11:45 AM

Jill McTague

RE/MAX Andrew Realty Serfvices - Medford, MA

DebOnTheWeb & Associates - Medford, MA Real Estate

My pleasure Barbara!

Sep 12, 2010 12:12 AM

Bruce McCallum

DFH Real Estate, Victoria, BC 800-668-2272 - Victoria, BC

Homes In Victoria BC

I just purchased a Nikon 5000 with 18-55mm lens. Works great plus has the 'live view' feature which is much better than having to look through the viewfinder. Tips to getting rid of 'keystoning' is to hold camera level - ususally at about waist level while looking through the 'live view' screen. So far so good. Thanks for the blog.

Nov 06, 2010 07:37 AM

Jill McTague

RE/MAX Andrew Realty Serfvices - Medford, MA

DebOnTheWeb & Associates - Medford, MA Real Estate

Good luck with your new lens Bruce. Thanks for the tip about holding the camera waist level - I'll try that out.

Nov 07, 2010 12:07 AM

Jark Krysinski *PREC (Personal Real Estate Corporation)

REMAX CREST REALTY WESTSIDE - Vancouver, BC

TeamYVR Team Leader, BA,ABR,IRES,IMSD,LLB

Deb, thanks for the great article. It's SO true, and the attacking thing is that the ones with the better pictures actually sell much faster than the ones with the iPhone shots. Now, wait a minute, as an iPhone4 user, perhaps there is a wide-angle effect or App I could find it - given that there are about 250,000 apps there MUST be something to help us in this department ;) Cheers, Jark.

Nov 12, 2010 06:12 PM

Jill McTague

RE/MAX Andrew Realty Serfvices - Medford, MA

DebOnTheWeb & Associates - Medford, MA Real Estate

Jark - there is a wide angle lens for the iPhone4 that HDHat sells that you can check out, but I'll stick with my prosumer set up. It looks much more professional when I'm in front of a seller!

Nov 12, 2010 10:15 PM

Anonymous

Errol Hartman

Felix or Others:

What should I look for in a camera to do panorama stitching? Do you use a tripod? Thanks, Errol

Dec 13, 2010 08:53 AM

#24

Shonda Grier

ASG Investments - Mitchellville, MD

RE Investor, Short Sale Expert

Great post ...You've definitely sold me on purchasing a wide angle lens!

Dec 19, 2010 06:02 AM

Anonymous

Debbie Anderson

I love your post. Can you tell me what kind of camera set up you use with the new lens?

Jan 02, 2011 10:14 AM

#26

Jill McTague

RE/MAX Andrew Realty Serfvices - Medford, MA

DebOnTheWeb & Associates - Medford, MA Real Estate

Hi Debbie - My camera's a bit old. I use a Canon S5 IS. I originally bought it because I like the 12 x optical zoom for my travel photos, but the manual settings help me get good interior shots when the lighting isn't behaving when I photographing a house.

Jan 02, 2011 10:47 PM