10 Beautiful Tips to Capture Real Estate Photography

With so many real estate agencies listing themselves daily, real estate photography is always in demand. Marketing a real estate property without a quality photo can increase the level of difficulty in their work. Doing a professional shoot for the real estate site can be a little tricky.

Let us guide you with 10 simple real estate photography tips to get amazing photos.

What is Real Estate Photography?

Taking photos of both residential and commercial property is considered as real estate photography. Photography was never considered this important to real estate than it is today. Real Estate Photography has emerged and its demand has increased in the time being. Real Estate Agencies now hire photographers for shooting at their sites such that it can help them get leads.

So, Is there any Scope in Real Estate Photography? How much one can earn from it?

As Real Estate Photography is totally a niche based it doesn’t give you income like other popular photography. But it has a lot of scope in it as you have many clients to click for them.

Income from this totally depends on the size, space of the property, and your experience too.

If you are a fresher, you are advised to charge less in the beginning as compared to the competitors.

Check Out these Top 10 Tips for Getting a Quality Real Estate Photography

1. Use of Camera and Lens

A camera that can shoot manually is enough for real estate photography. Using full-frame cameras can be very handy in this. But if you have a camera in which lenses can be interchanged. Any such camera can be made handy for professional use.

The use of a wide-angle lens will help you capture tight spaces and moreover, it will make the room more spacious.

2. Using Tripod

A tripod will ensure that your camera is stabilized and you don’t end up clicking blurry images. Tripod can let you try and get some HDR pictures which can be very useful for the agent and the homeowner.

3. Flash and Flash Trigger

There are two types of flashes- moonlight and flashguns. You can use flashguns if you don’t have a budget. If you have saved some money, Moonlights would be the best option for shooting in spacious properties.

You will need a flash trigger when you are using an off-camera flash for your photography. It will allow you to fire that flash at the same time of capturing the photo.

4. Light Stand

It will be very difficult to position your flashes if you don’t have a light stand with you. You won’t be able to give light to a certain space of the room without a light stand.

A regular flash stand will be enough for lightweight flashes. But for bigger moonlights a C-stand will be necessary. 

5. Polarizing Filter

Using a circular polarizing filter will help you block the 50%-70% of the light. Do make sure that the filter you are using is of the size of your lends. If you are not a professional real estate photographer, it is recommended to take them off before shooting.

6. Preparation Before the Shoot

Every real estate photographer looks for some of the shots which are common for every home/property.

Having the plan ahead is an important step in order to learn real estate photography.

• Wide-angle shots of the bedroom and the living room.
• A single photo of the bathroom condition being it is extremely beautiful and spacious.
• Photos of the backyard and shots of the front of the home to show the attractiveness of the property for sale.
• Some shots of features such as laundry room or pantry etc.

The list will help you to have all the must-have shots of the property. 

It will also tell your agents what they can expect from your shoot.

7. Remove Unnecessary Items

The agent which is in touch with the homeowners should be asked to take the responsibility of clearing the home before the shoot.

Even in our homes, we remove unnecessary items from time to time. Removal of items that we don’t notice can outstand in the photo.

It is very important to make sure that homeowners keep the surfaces as clean as possible. Sometimes you might find that all the things are not removed which can outstand. So, there is nothing bad about giving suggestions to hide those few extra items.

8. Take a Tour of the Home

Understanding the property and its space before start working will give you a better idea on how to take things off. It will help you to understand the environment and make spaces wherever necessary.

Getting all the information ahead will help you to plan in what order you should start taking photos.

Making the notes of what you want to organize and from what place you can start your work can be very helpful for your work.

9. Use of Flash and Bounce

The homeowners and agents both usually want the work to be done quickly so as to put the property in the listings online. Also, the budget doesn’t allow for many photography hours for a single listing.

Using a flash unit can help you work faster such that you can move faster from one place to another.

It’s tricky how you use flash on your camera. If we point the flash directly on the wall, we get a bright area in the center and a drop shadow around it.

In order to remove all this, place the flash so that it bounces off the walls and the ceiling. All this will make the light get diffused into space and give an even look.

You won’t be able to do this with the help of a camera flash. So, it is suggested to buy a flashgun as it can be moved in many directions. 

Also, using a manual flash is recommended as it will allow you to fully control the flash’s strength.

The size and shape of the room decide the position of your lights. Mostly, placing the flash units in the corners or behind you can help you get a quality shot.

10. Tip for Less Distortion

Distortion while shooting different angels can be a big problem. Pointing the camera even slightly up or down, the vertical lines start to slant in one direction or the other. 

To get away from it, keep the camera straight. Keeping the camera straight will help you to avoid distortion.

To get the best shot in real estate photography, the ideal height is said to be 5 feet. This height looks natural and feels balanced.

Conclusion

If you want to make a career out of it and make it a reliable income source for yourself. You just need to be consistent in it and with your look.

Do not preoccupy the photography equipment in the beginning. As it doesn’t take a lot to take a quality real estate picture.

Just follow the tips and tricks discussed above. It will be very helpful for you to build a great portfolio for yourself.