Admin

It's really no big deal to make your own Video Tour

By
Services for Real Estate Pros with RealVisionHomes.com

shooting a property video isn't that hard ..or How not to go over the cliff trying to shoot a property Video tour!

After reading quite a few posts on how Real estate Agents ( at least the serious ones) are very keen on enhancing their offerings to clients, via the addition of Virtual tours and video, I decided to write a (short?) post on my experiences in producing a typical video tour of a House or Property.

From the onset let me say that as a Real Estate Agent you don't have to be intimidated with producing a video tour.

Don't let the Pros tell you any differently. Why am I saying that? because even though I don't actually sit behind a camera, i have been doing video for over 10 years - producing multimedia and web video, when web video was really postage stamped sized. So even though producing a property tour is part of my business/hobby, I would never tell a client they "need" me. Isn't this counter intuitive to my business? hmmm... yes it probably is, but I'm a technology lover before a business person, so well... that's my downfall.

Actually I firmly believe, Technology is slowly closing the gap, and making everyone self sufficient, you MAKE money by capitalizing on people's laziness! 

Now back to the post...

Objective: To produce a short video tour of a home to show to potential buyers, either locally, or Half way around the world if need be.  Why?

answer: to give them a "feeling" of the property before they visit - or to induce them to actually visit the property!

Equipment:

A decent videocamera. Prices are falling by the day, and even if they are not, buy on installments, but get a reasonably decent video camcorder. Consumer HD is a great way to start, but of course MiniDV will be ok, if you want to start off basic and upgrade later.

However, try to get a cam corder with as much "mega pixels for still shots" as you can get. This way you can also take snapshots when you are video shooting

Tripod! - Very important. If theres one piece of equipment I harp on, at least for creating a property video - It's a tripod. I mean you are'nt out to shoot the Blair Witch Realty Project are you? 

The Art:

Why do I keep saying dont let the Pros tell you its hard to shoot property Video? Well have you really dissected a property video? I mean take a look at a video of a home tour. Its so flippin (no pun) easy, it makes me laugh a little.

All you see is slow pans of the camera on a tripod, horizontally and then vertically. You rarely see the professionals attempting a real "walk thru" from room to room.

As you get more experienced with doing tripod mounted / panning videos, you can later get adventurous and use all sorts of tricks; shortening the tripod down and placing it on a chair with wheels and slowly going from room to room etc   :-)

Remember - You aren't producing a hollywood blockbuster here, and it's rare that a person just buys a project after watching a video tour ( though thats very debatable in Dubai! )

So, as long as you do a decent job of not shaking the camera ( tripod!) and you do  s-l-o-o-o-w pans with the tripod handle you should be just fine!

Getting camera stuff right:It's not rocket science anymore to focus and white balance a camera. Hit Auto!

if you do want to get just that wee bit involved, spending a day with the camcorder manual and the internet wont kill anyone to learn just the basics of things like focus and white balance.

THE BIG QUESTION: WHY WOULD YOU DO THIS YOURSELF? 

Well that is because YOU are passionate about selling that property! So you are the Director telling the story of that particular house, and why its a good deal/buy.

The more you are behind the camera, the more cues and highlights you will discover when pitching the sale to a client!

 Editing the video:  It's not that hard really... If your doing things like calculations and mortgages and analysis, this is really only as hard as using a computer mouse. In fact if you have Windows XP you already have the software built in to grab video from your camcorder and edit it.  go to Start--->Programs---->Accessories--->WindowsMovieMaker to get started.

Or see my outside blog post I did earlier on just about 'the easiest' video and DVD creation package out there.  It's really click and Burn.

Voice over and Music: Voice over is simple, grab a decent mic, and close the bedroom door. or if you are like me with an accent, just use subtitles and music!

Free music? search google for Creative Commons music licenses. As long as you are actually not selling your walk-thru, you can use any of the music under the creative commons license as long as you give a credit line in the video. 

Showing off your Work: With the click and burn package above you can make a DVD complete with your own logo and chapter menu - No technical knowhow needed. 

You can also save a copy as mpeg / quicktime or Windows media etc for playback on your laptop.

Then of course there is the excellent platform for hosting Real Estate Videos online .. and starting off free too! at  Vidlisting.com

(the blog post that inspired me to write this in the first place)

So there you have it!. It's a fun hobby,

But remember, if you are really that busy to DIY, just call in the professionals, that's what they're there for!

Regards,

 

More technology for real estate on my outside blog 

 

 

Show All Comments Sort:
Clydd realvision
RealVisionHomes.com - Dickens, TX

P.s I know i'm at risk of getting Flamed by the professionals, for calling this a 'nice hobby' , but I do take a hobby seriously :-)

and again I stress, with todays technology like camera anti-shake, and stabilization built in, Its really very hard to produce terrible video.

Bottom line, if its acceptable to you as the selling agent, you will know. Hey there's always plan b, budget permitting - call a professional! 

Jan 20, 2008 01:51 AM
Pam Graham
All Real Estate Options - Jacksonville, FL
Jacksonville, Clay & St Johns Counties
I love your post. I've been thinking about doing video tours of my listings and the area. I'll take a look at your other posts too.
Jan 20, 2008 02:07 AM
Clydd realvision
RealVisionHomes.com - Dickens, TX

Pam.. All the best!.Glad it was of some help. Do post a link when your up and running with the first tour.

Cheers 

 

Jan 20, 2008 02:29 AM
Clydd realvision
RealVisionHomes.com - Dickens, TX

Heres an article that completely is the opposite of my blog post.

They "do" want to make a property video that looks like a hollywood movie.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/property/main.jhtml?xml=/property/2007/11/04/pvideo104.xml

Im just wondering, Will potential clients not get Pi**ed off if they arrive at the home only to find that it's far from what it looks like in the video?

There's some more DIY tips at the bottom of the article though!

Regards

Jan 20, 2008 10:02 PM
Bob Southard
Atlas Realty Service, LLC - Kennesaw, GA
e-Pro - Cobb,Cherokee,NorthFulton,Paulding,Bartow

Hi Clydd,

 

Thanks for the tips.  I have just begun palying with video and MSmoviemaker.  Once I create and save the moviemaker project how do I convert the format to play on a dvd player?  Or will most dvd players play it?

Thanks

Jan 22, 2008 02:32 AM
Clydd realvision
RealVisionHomes.com - Dickens, TX

Hi Bob,

 Thanks for dropping in. Windows moviemaker does not include a "Write to DVD" option.

The options are: Wite to DV tape, email it , save to computer or save as a windows media file.

I would really encourage you to download an easier to use editor software ( with a lot more options than movie maker) from Ulead. There is a fully functional trial version there, and of course if you really feel video is for you, the software is very well priced for the simplicity and power it has 

(umm nope no kickbacks or commission from them to me!)

Regards!

Clyde 

 

Jan 22, 2008 02:46 AM
Lorrie Ann Thomas
Realty ONE Group Edge - Woodstock, GA
RealtorĀ®

Wow! Thanks for the informative post. After reading that, I've got to tell you about this salesman that contacted me recently, who offered me a 40sec video ( I provide the 6 still photos and bulletpoint features) they create the video ( very similar to the one I created with WindowsMovieMaker ) and then they tell me it will be distributed to the following Web Portals:  Google Video, Yahoo Video, YouTube video, Aol Video, and also HOMETUBE.com     

Oh and they also claim that

Your Listing will appear in the top 5 (if not #1) position when searched by address on:


Google

and all of my listings already do that.  So, hmmmm, what's the difference?   Oh and he said they will also be syndicated to these other websites:      Ok, so again, what's the difference?   (I'm all over those and then some.)

The only major difference I see between me doing it myself and their company doing it is the $395.      Now, that's a big difference!

  Oh, and for another $27 per listing, they will upload the video to Realtor.com (where I also have my video uploaded for free since I have my listings Showcased)   Are you interested? (I can give him your # and have him call you)  haha       p.s. and another place I have my video uploaded is http://www.wellcomemat.com/  (and it doesn't cost anything)

Mar 04, 2008 02:12 PM
Vicente A. Martinez
Prudential Douglas Elliman Licensed Real Estate Salesperson - Woodhaven, NY
Realtor, Brooklyn - Long Island - Queens Homes
Hi Clydd. Try and try again... it's not as hard as many make it out to be. Great advice.
Mar 04, 2008 05:49 PM
Clydd realvision
RealVisionHomes.com - Dickens, TX

Hi Lorrie, Vincent,

 I had rather an interesting chat with some people last week (friends) who are into production of video. Now here's the thing, they are professional videographers and do small shoots for everything from fashion shows to weddings and small ad films. So I have no doubt about their camera work and production capabilities.

However, when doing a property shoot they DO charge more... why? simply because they can! (the property has a big price tag, the agent makes money, the developer does - in dubai most properties are new or being built -.. so even the video grapher wants a cut in it ;-)

 in the end, during the discussion I did come to a conclusion, that yes you should get a professional to do a home tour, if and only if you have the budget AND they are charging you a fair price.

The biggest argument out there is as a real estate agent, you should do what u do best - sell property and leave the other skills to professionals. I Fully Agree to this concept.

So to meet this ongoing debate mid-way, I would say the more 'educated' a real estate agent is in all aspects of shooting a property video on a case to case basis, the agent should decide whether the price tag fits the work involved.

Thus the article above maybe should be amended to state "know a bit more about whats involved in a video shoot" ...or something similiar :)

Summary: if you have the money get a professional, if you feel someone is ripping you off, read more on the art itself and see if the price they are asking is justified. If you have the incentive - Do it yourself, it aint that hard!

Cheers

Clyde 

( Market slowdown? -- not in Dubai .. www.realvisionhomes.com)

Mar 04, 2008 06:07 PM
Gita Bantwal
RE/MAX Centre Realtors - Warwick, PA
REALTOR,ABR,CRS,SRES,GRI - Bucks County & Philadel
I will  bookmark this and try it some day. Thanks for the information.
Mar 04, 2008 09:27 PM
Ashley Berg
Realty Executives BRIO - Seattle, WA
Seattlenulls Green Real Estate Agent
Thanks for the tips.  I will be making my own visual tour for my next listing.
Mar 25, 2008 03:18 PM