Faking It - Property Photos Like the Agents Do!

These days the majority of people looking to buy or rent a house start their search online. Photos are the No.1 way to initially attract people's interest - so never underestimate its importance when looking for somebody for your home. A listing on Spiderhome.fr allows you to upload up to 20 images to promote a property to the maximum...so how do you make a good impression with your real estate photos?

The digital camera is a must for anyone wanting to post images online. A mobile phone camera won't give you the same quality shots - but expensive equipment isn't necessary either, any point-and-shoot digital camera with 5 megapixels or more will produce good photos. Digital cameras now have built in LCD screens, which allow you to see your photos immediately – this is a huge plus and you should make a habit of checking the image in the viewfinder prior to taking a photo. 

Always prepare the scene - when putting together attractive photos for your property listing, think about what rooms and subjects in your home will make for the best photos. Limit the number on photos you add of children’s rooms for example, most look the same and they don't usually have any interesting architectural features. Don’t discard interesting architectural details, a pretty window seat or sweeping curve of a banister can make impressive images, when creating an advert for your house.

 

Make sure you house is clean – clear countertops and remove clutter and distracting items like toys, tea towels, clothes, fridge magnets, etc. You can add a well-placed vase of flowers or arrangement of fruit to give a focal point, but keep photos simple and be aware of the background too.  

Use your imagination - try out unusual angles and views. Don’t always focus at the same level, try focusing on your subject from a higher or lower angle – pick an angle that shows maximum colour and minimum shadow. This can provide a dramatic effect to your pictures. 

The best way to show off a room is to shoot from a corner or doorway to include as much of the area as possible. This can add context and makes the room look more spacious than a tight shot does. When photographing your property from the outside, stand at an angle to the home rather than straight-on, allowing buyers to see the home's depth. Try to avoid objects that obscure your home, like poles and wires.

Light is the most important feature when it comes to taking a photos - in order to get the best lighting possible, the time of day and direction that the house is facing play an important factor. The light from the flash can be harsh and it can reflect off windows and mirrors - if the light conditions do not allow you to take pictures without a flash, then try bouncing the flash of a white wall or white surface... remember to check the settings of your camera and adjust them accordingly.

For interiors, use as much natural lighting as you can. Open the curtains and turn on all the lights (but make sure none will be in direct view of the camera lens) to make a room look bright and open. Avoid taking photos on rainy days, as this will produce gloomy photos. When taking photos of items with reflective surfaces, shoot at an angle so reflections are minimized, again avoid the flash. Take care with bathrooms, they can be difficult to photograph as they tend to be small and have plenty of reflective surfaces – step out of the room to gain every inch of space.

 

For exterior shots, the property should be well lit and devoid of stark shadows. Ideally, the sun should be behind you and not the house. Midday is not an ideal time although it is a good time to shoot interior photos as the light will be more even and will not be shining directly into the windows. Try to shoot on a day when the sky is blue but there are clouds to cover the sun, so the light is diffused and dark shadows are barely noticeable. Even bright, overcast days can provide good lighting for outside shots of buildings. An evening photo can be charming too, but take the photo at dusk before the sky turns completely black.

Focus on focusing - poor focusing is one of the most common ways to ruin a photo -use the automatic focus of your camera. If you are experiencing a delay when snapping your photos, it is because you haven’t told the camera what to focus on. This is an important step with a point-and-shoot digital camera. Half-press and hold the shutter button when you are about to take a photo – this will focus for you, then you can press the button all the way down to take the picture. For very-close up photos, try the ‘macro’ mode on your camera. Once you have composed the photo and brought the subject into focus – try moving slightly to the left or right, or taking a step back or forward to see if you can improve the composition. Check the image on the viewfinder before taking the photo. 

Camera shake will blur your photos and can be avoided - most decent digital cameras now have IS (Image Stabilization) or VR (Vibration Reduction) built into the camera. These can be especially useful when shooting indoors, or under low-light conditions and also when zooming in on stationary objects. They will enable the camera to take a sharper image at a slower shutter speed without blurring the image from a shaking of the camera.

Accuracy - apart from showing your home in a good light, your photos should present an accurate image of your home. You don't want to disappoint interested parties who arrange a viewing only to find that the photos are not a true representation of the property.

Don’t be discouraged if shots don’t come out right on the first try, remember that many professional photographers take hundreds of images before they find the best shots. Digital cameras give you the freedom to take as many photos as you like and it doesn’t cost you anything, so experiment with lots of angles and camera settings. Review the photos later and choose the ones that best represent your house. Be brutal and get rid of photos that aren’t particularly pleasing, but before you do discover why they don’t look good, you can learn a lot from the unsuccessful photos.

Finally, if uploading your photos on the Spiderhome site – title your photo with a simple catchy description under ‘alt’ and be sure to number your best photo ‘1’, this will be the principle image used to represent your listing.

Feel free to add any tips you may have on faking professional property photos....