By now we get that great listing photos are pretty much must-haves. I wrote a blog post about it earlier this year, if you want to check it out.
Basically, your listing photos are going to grab the attention of a potential client, and give them a chance to visualize themselves in that home. If you can showcase a property well, you’ll find a lot more people will want to check it out.
But what is a great listing photo? And how do you shoot one? Well, I took the liberty of creating a dos and don’ts list from my own insights. Let’s see:
DO take your photos during the brightest time of day
You don’t need fancy photography lighting to take a great photo. Natural light is beautiful and doesn’t cost you a thing. Open the curtains in each room to allow natural light to fill the space.
DON’T snap a photo facing a window
For the most part, when you’re facing the main source of light, it kind of overwhelms your camera. As a result, everything else in the shot goes dark and shadowy. Not the best way to show off a space. What you’ll want to do is take the picture perpendicular to the wall with the window, so that the light is illuminating the room from the side. Or you can take it with your back to the window too.
DO edit them
Now I don’t mean anything drastic, like photoshopping carpet into hardwood (props if you can do that though). But you can always tinker with the exposure or brightness, and contrast of the image. Or, quite simply, many photo editors offer an “Auto-fix” option that automatically perfects all those elements.
DON’T use filters
For personal pictures, I mean great, go crazy with your filters -- but for professional listing photos? Maybe not. You’ll want to keep your images clean and straightforward so that you can give an honest window into what the house really looks like.
DO stage each room
Don’t make the mistake of reserving staging only for open houses! You need something to draw people to even come to the open house, and that something is your pictures. Now, you don’t have to go all out with this. Since they’re pictures, you can take a few shortcuts. Have your client sweep their personal items under the rug for a second while you snap your pic, perhaps. Take the same pot of flowers from room to room. It doesn’t have to be hard.
DON’T leave any evidence of pets
Dog doors and the link are absolutely fine, but you’ll want to stay away from snapping shots that include pet food bowls or dog beds. Something as simple as a fish tank could be a huge deterrent when a potential client starts thinking of all the “extra maintenance” -- realistic or not.
And of course, you’re going to need a platform to upload your fantastic listing photos to: at CityBlast, we offer featured listing pages. And as part of our service we publish your listing not only to your social network, but also the networks of other local agents. You’ll get a lot more views on your listing photos. As an ActiveRain member you receive a 30% discount on CityBlast membership. Click here to sign up!
Thanks for reading through my do’s and don’ts! I’d love to hear your input too. What makes a great listing photo?
Bookmarked this one, great tips!
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