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How to Get the Most Out of Real Estate Photography
Now more than ever great real estate photography is a must! With a large portion of the real estate buying and selling process being done online real estate photography has to be on point. Here at the Erica Diaz Team we recognize how important it is for our listings to have outstanding real estate photography.
We offer professional real estate photography to all of our clients! Having top notch real estate photography is a critical aspect to selling homes quickly and at the highest price point possible. That’s why we have an in house photographer who is always on his A game when photographing your home.
There are a few things you can do to prep and ensure when our photographer arrives at your home it’s in photographing shape. In fact we put together this article to share our top prepping tips and make the photographing process as smooth as possible. Some of the prep can be done days before the shoot, and others need to be done right before the photographer arrives.
Why Does Real Estate Photography Matter?
People who are in the market to purchase a home typically have their first interaction with the home online. Whether it’s searching through Zillow or viewing a listing sent to them by their real estate agent, pictures are their first impression. So, it’s very important to WOW potential clients with stunning photos. According to the Wall Street Journal, listings with high-quality photos can gain anywhere between $934 – $116,076 more on the market. They also stated that people will spend 60% of the time they look at a listing online looking at the listing’s photos.
Think about it, when you’re scrolling online in search of anything pictures capture your attention. Let’s use places to vacation for example. Pictures are what typically lure us to then read the caption. At this point if the photos and caption propose something in alignment for what we are looking for we’ll click the link to discover more. This holds true with real estate photos too! High-quality photos grab the viewers’ attention and lead them to viewing more about the listing.
Leave it to the Professional!
In today’s world we ALL have access to a camera with them literally being attached to the back of our phones. While it might be tempting to stroll through your home, snap a few photos, and call it good, that’s just not enough. In the world of real estate, subpar phone camera photos are not enough. With thousands of homes on the market, it’s crucial that yours STAND OUT! Making this is one of those tasks that are better left to a professional.
A real estate photographer has quality equipment to take breathtaking pictures of a home. There’s also specific skills and technique in real estate photography to capture every room in a home and make them shine!
Meet Matt
Matt is our in-house photographer here at the Erica Diaz Team. He is our go-to guy for all of our photography needs and the reason why ALL of our listed homes have scroll stopping photos. While prepping your home a little to ensure it’s picture ready, you can leave the actual photo taking to him.
Beyond a Photo
Videography is taking real estate photography to a whole new level. While high-quality photos are great for listing a home, a video of the home is added value. The same day that the photographer is out photographing a home they can also shoot a video walk through. In fact, the real estate agent should accompany the photographer so they can be in the video giving a guided tour. Both the photos and video can then be used on Zillow and other listing platforms. As well as the different social media platforms used by the real estate agent.
Staging for Photo Day
It goes without saying that your home needs to be squeaky clean before it is photographed. But did you know staging your home can go a long way too? Professional stagers can come to your home and give it a makeover. Their fees are relatively small for the huge difference it will make. They dress your home up in a way that makes it more appealing for a potential buyer. This involves making it inviting, homey, and cozy, while keeping it neutral and up to date.
Understandably, not everyone has the chance to get their house professionally staged before it is photographed, but that doesn’t mean that you can’t do some staging yourself! The goal when staging is to get the home ready to be photographed and make it as appealing to the buyer as possible. They need to be able to picture themselves and their things in the home. It needs to be clear that the house is just waiting to be bought by them. That means there needs to be some depersonalizing and decluttering. The goal is for buyers to have the impression that this is NOT someone’s house (even though it is).
DIY Staging Tips
- Declutter – Remove the clutter from surfaces. That doesn’t mean you have to remove every single item from visible surface. In fact, strategically placed items can make your spaces feel familiar and homey. A cluttered space however appears a lot smaller than it is at first glance, no matter how tidy it is. While it may be impossible to keep every surface decluttered especially if you’re still occupying the home that’s okay. Right now, we’re just focusing on picture time! The main living spaces to focus on when your staging for photos are the living room, kitchen and master bedroom/bathroom.
- Make Your Home Less You – This one might come as a shocker but removing your personal life from your home is HUGE. Even though you might still be living in the home, it’s a big deal to make it look as though you are not. While people are house shopping they are imagining themselves living in the home. Removing all the little personal touches such as framed family photos, unique or personalized artwork, magnets from the fridge, clothing/key racks, and more, will allow a buyer to easily visualize themselves living there. Oh… and don’t forget to remove things like toiletries too! This includes items that may seem out of sight like shampoo and conditioner bottles, soap bars, toothbrushes and toothpaste, hair products, etc. They will show too as the shower curtain is pulled back to showcase the bathroom.
- Tis Not the Season – While it may be a holiday season, seasonal decorations should also be taken down. This goes back to making the home less you and easily envisioned as the buyers’ new home. Plus, it would be a little weird for a buyer to look at pictures featuring pumpkins during Christmas time.
- Dress Your Home for Success – There’s no way you’d show up to a formal dinner in your pjs… right? It’s important to dress for the occasion. This goes for your home during pictures too. Think of it as prepping your home for an open house. It would be clean and tidy. This is exactly how it should look on picture day.
Day of Photo Shoot Prep
Great news… when your home is listed with the Erica Diaz Team, not only do we get shots of your home that will SELL it, we treat your home with respect. There are rules when it comes to real estate photography and the good thing is, you don’t have to worry about any of them. That is the beauty of having a professional photographer.
However, there are little things you can do to set your photographer up for success at your house. A few minutes spent prepping on photo day in addition to the staging prep can make all the difference in real estate photos. The photographer will surely appreciate it. And it will show in the photos too!
Things to Do
- Flip the Switch – While natural lighting is best for photography, there’s not always great natural light in every room. So, go ahead and turn on all the lights throughout the home. This includes lamps too if you have them! If the photographer feels there’s plenty of natural light they’ll turn the lights off.
- Let in the Light – Natural light is BEST for photos! So, make sure you open all of your blinds and shutters. This will also open up the room as opposed to closed blinds that can make things look dark and stuffy.
- Turn off TVs – Real estate photos are best if they are as basic as possible. Make sure all TVs are off throughout the house, they can add a lot of distraction to photos.
- Toilet Lids – Real estate photos are used to showcase your home and make it appeasing to buyers, there’s nothing like an open toilet showing in photos. Make sure all toilet lids are shut, it will add class to your photos for sure.
- Make the Beds – Unmade beds can make rooms look messy. Imagine you are setting your home up like a model home. This means everything must be tidy as if no one lives there.
- Move ALL Cars – Park all your cars down the street. Don’t put them in the garage, because we’ll be taking photos of that too!
- Your Family Has to Go – Make sure no one is home, and this goes for pets too! While it may not seem like a big deal to move people and pets from room to room staying out of the photographer’s way, it really quiet the fiasco. Remember everything also needs to stay tidy which is much easier said than done when people are there. It is just best to take everyone out of the house for a bit. It will make the process so much easier!
Erica Diaz Team – How to Get the Most Out of Real Estate Photography
High-quality, eye-catching real estate photography is a game-changer in the real estate world. Especially now with a huge part of the buying and selling process done online, great photos can be the difference in selling a home fast and at the highest price point possible. Here at the Erica Diaz Team we know how crucial it is for real estate photos so we have a full-time real estate photographer on our team! This means a quick turn around on quality photos.
If you live in Winter Garden or are thinking of selling your home, the Erica Diaz Team can help you. We’ll use a combination of great photos and marketing to sell your home fast and for the price it deserves. Also if you’re looking to buy a home we can help with that too! Contact us today!
2 Comments
I never realized that I would probably need to set up my house for the photographer. I kind of figured the real estate agent I’d hire would do it. Either way, I’d wait for the photographer so they can tell me what to do so it looks its best.
You bring up a good point that having professional photos done for your listing is a great way to stand out from the crowd. I definitely notice real estate listings that have good pictures, and I am much more likely to want to see the home in person. I think it is always a good idea to consult a professional when it comes to your real estate photography.