Real Estate Marketing Made Easy! | the Association of Real Estate Investment Professionals AREIP.org |

We all know that good photos of the homes you have for sale encourage potential buyers. But very few of us can afford to send out a professional to very home. Here are a few tips to help you get better photos.

1. Clean your lens. It amazes me how much dirt and fingerprints get on to camera lenses. Be sure to clean yours often using high-quality photographic lens tissue. Check your lens for dirt and fingerprints each time before you begin to photograph.
2. A tripod will help you steady your camera and get sharper photos even in low light when exposures are longer. If you don't have a tripod, try holding the camera up against a solid object, such as a counter or a door frame.
3. Use natural light wherever possible to create an evenly lit scene. Turn on lamps and lights only if they add to the scene and don't create high contrast pools of light. Trying to photograph a room at night using room lights can exaggerate this effect.

Sometimes a less than perfect picture can be improved in PhotoShop. I needed to get rid of the window signs, cut the contrast and improve the perspective on the home.
4. If you are using flash to assist in lighting, be very aware of the effect of the flash on reflective surfaces, such as mirrors and high polished accessories. Change your angle to avoid hot spots.
5. Be aware of mirrors and other objects that may include your reflection, or the reflection of less that desirable objects such as that leg lamp you just remove from the scene.
6. De-clutter the scene. Remove excessive knick-knacks, memorabilia and personal photos. Have the owner get the gun out from under the bed (I actually saw a scene like this once). Watch for things that may be natural to a living space but unnatural in a photograph like facial tissue boxes, TV remotes, etc.
7. Use as wide angle a lens as you have available. You'll get more of the room into the photograph and the room will have a larger appearance.
8. If there's a TV or computers in the room, turn them on if you can. Better to have a lit screen than a black one.
9. When photographing the exterior, remember that early morning and late afternoon, when the sun is low in the sky, will often give the best light. Choosing the time of day the the part of the home to be photographed is in sunlight can help you avoid those deep blue shadows, but watch out for excessive contrast.
10. Look for interesting angles and points of interest on the property. Take a lot of photos – pixels work for peanuts. Do they have a great garden, deck, patio or pool? Gardens photograph well in shade – the colors are more saturated and there are no harsh shadows. Pools are very reflective - change your angle or use a polarizing filter over the lens. Decks, patios and pools look much more inviting on bright days, but watch out for those shadows.

Signs gone, contrast knocked down, perspective improved. One half hours work in Photoshop
11. Take a tip from film and TV cameramen. Wet down bricks, sidewalks, driveways and paves areas before photographing. The "wet" look is much more appealing, the water brings out the color of bricks and paving stones and it helps to reduce contrast.
12. One of the advantages of modern digital cameras is the ability to review photos as you take them. If you are less than satisfied with a photo, analyze what you don't like, try to fix it and do it again. A little extra time can make for a much better series of images.
13. Use software to enhance the photos. Image programs such as PhotoShop allow you to remove things that you couldn't while photographing. Get rid of those pesky electric wires, remove the cat from the roof, and digitally scrape the stickers and sign off of the windows. I've even replaced a boring sky with a bright blue, cloud dappled one on a few occasions. You're promoting a product – make it look as good as possible.
14. Most digital camera have the ability to take short video clips. Use this feature take panoramas of appealing surroundings, or to give the viewer an idea of the neighborhood. Remember that these clips often include sound, so it's a good idea to be very quiet, give a decent narration or use software to add a voice and/or music track.
15. You can create a slide show from your same-sized photos using software as basic as QuickTime Pro on your Mac or PC. I also have a free program called Flash Slideshow Maker Professional on my PC that makes a Flash movie and player. It is available for PCs at http://www.flash-slideshow-maker.com
    
    If you prefer an online solution, try Bubbleshare at http://www.bubbleshare.com. Their service is free and it gives you the code you need to place the slideshow on your website, blog, MySpace page, etc.
    
    I'm sure there are many more tools you can use for this. Try searching for the keyphrase "slide show maker pc," or "slide show maker mac."

I hope this article helps you get better images on the next home you need to photograph and encourages you to produce a slide show as well. We'll soon have some videos demoing a few techniques to get better images displayed on your website. Keep an eye on the AREIP.org website for more.