Benefits of Utilizing Professional Real Estate Photography

Professional real estate photography is an essential and effective marketing strategy, with a proven track record of helping people sell their homes. Capturing the beauty and true nature of any property helps you professionally showcase a listing with confidence, drawing buyers in immediately. Online listings that utilize professional photography generate an average of 61% more page views than their point-and-click counterparts. For that reason alone, working with a professional real estate photographer is not an extra expense—it’s an extremely smart investment.

Make Your Home Shine Online

The first impression is the most crucial one when it comes to online visual marketing. Your clients deserve to have the best real estate listing images to market their homes, no matter what the perceived property value may be. Keep in mind that today's tech-savvy buyers spend hours online searching for the property of their dreams, and 51% of these home-buying individuals purchased a house they found online. Of this number, more than 85% percent of people said photos were among the most useful features to help them make their home-buying decision.

Research has consistently shown that professional images of real estate properties attract more attention than their amateur counterparts. When potential home buyers see well-presented images of properties, it assists them in making informed and self-assured decisions, often inspiring individuals to want to view—and sometimes purchase—a home right away.

Let’s look at some reasons why professional real estate photography is so essential.

Researching Real Estate Online is the Norm, so Pleasing Pictures are Crucial

Statistics consistently show that most people browse online when looking to buy a home, and that the majority of these individuals find pictures to be the most helpful aspect of deciphering what they like and don’t like about a house. Like all web browsers, potential home buyers are web-savvy individuals who, in many cases, have seen lots of different types of photos online throughout the years via different platforms. That means they can tell the difference between run-of-the-mill smartphone photographs and what is offered at Art of Construction Photography. Professionally taken real estate photos get noticed and appreciated by online browsers, ultimately leading to more looks and clicks. In a world where we are inundated by digital pictures, why not make the home you are trying to sell look as good as it possibly can?

Professional Real Estate Photography is Simply Superior

Data is one thing, but let’s talk specifically about why professional real estate photography is a cut above what amateur photographers produce.

To start, professional real estate photographers know how to expertly photograph rooms in a house and can capture all the right elements in a space, such as its expansiveness or storage capacity or other key features that might make the home more desirable to people. In almost every instance, professional real estate photos will have crisper color tones that are more pleasing to view online compared to what non-professionals produce. These images are taken by expert photographers who create centered compositions that highlight the best elements of a room.

From an exterior point of view, professionally taken shots of homes feature the homes themselves and not distracting elements such as cars, basketball hoops, or unsightly patio apparel. Professional real estate photographers understand the importance of focusing on the house itself and compose shots that are balanced, true, and natural.

Professional real estate photographers also have a sense of art direction and staged photography. They will scout a home location prior to a shoot in order to capture all the right angles and create ideal compositions that draw eyeballs online. What’s more, professional real estate photographers know what to do in the post-production process of photography and can expertly select the exact right photos to use and enhance them as needed.

The Data on Professional Real Estate Photography

Let’s get into the numbers when it comes to using professional real estate photography. To start, it has been shown with regularity that homeowners who utilize professional real estate photography services sell their homes 32% quicker. Here are more numbers to consider:   

• Professionally taken real estate pictures sell faster and for more money. On average, homeowners who utilize the skills of a professional real estate photographer get $3,400 more for their houses.
• Houses being sold in the $200,000 to $1 million price range sell for between $3,000 and $11,000 more via marketing with professional real estate photos.
• Homes priced from $400,000 to $499,999 tend to sell approximately three weeks quicker with the assistance of professional real estate photography services.
• Homes listed online with professional real estate photography receive about 139% more clicks than houses in nearby locations that did not use such photography. More clicks on pictures increase the chances of a potential home buyer visiting and purchasing your home.

When marketing your home, keep in mind that showing just one or two photos will not be sufficient and may in fact lead to the house staying on the market for close to three months longer. By contrast, those who showcase their homes with 20 or more professionally taken photos typically sell their houses in one month or less. 

Professional Real Estate Photography Cuts Down on Stress, Frees Up Your Time

Whether you are a realtor or homeowner who is trying to sell a home, taking photos of a house yourself can be a monumental, time-consuming—even self-doubting—process. You may ask yourself, “Are these images the right ones and even any good?” Even if you are a semi-skilled photographer in the real estate business, you likely do not want to deal with the hassles of taking the photos, cropping and doctoring them to where they need to be, pulling them off your camera, and uploading them online.

Professional real estate photographers, however, can take, resize, enhance, and deliver photos with expertise and speed. They also have the needed tools to get the highest-class shots in the business.

Additionally, professional real estate photographers can often spice up the marketing process by creating additional materials such as brochures, fliers, or video content. This gives the photos that sellers use an extra “bang for the buck” in the selling process, potentially selling homes at an even faster rate.

Choosing a Professional Real Estate Photographer

Selecting the best professional real estate photographer for you comes down to discovering what they provide and seeing if they can do added marketing beyond just taking photographs. Try to find someone who is willing to truly listen to your selling needs and that you can develop a friendly repertoire with. Thoroughly check his or her past photography work and see if it is compatible with your marketing needs. Don’t be afraid to spend a little more money if it means you will get a professional photographer who offers consistently topnotch service and outstanding photographic results.

Prep Your Home Prior to Having it Professionally Photographed

Have we convinced you by now that professional real estate photography is the way to go when selling your home? If so, here are some ways to prep your house prior to the photographer scouting it out and taking pictures!

Throughout the house:

• Make sure to clean thoroughly by vacuuming and mopping and scrubbing down windows and countertops.
• Turn on the lights of the house so that everything is as brightly lit as possible. This is a good opportunity to make sure all the lightbulbs are working.
• Turn off all aural and visual distractions such as the stereo, TV, ceiling fan, and even computers.
• Let in the light! Open your shades and window blinds so that the house is well lit.
• Hide all the personal photos that mean the world to you but can take away from the setting of the house. If you want, replace them with more general photos of landscapes or other conventional objects.
• Put all the shoes and clothes into closets and remove small-floor rugs to better highlight the flooring.

Outside of your house, make sure the garage door is closed and cars aren’t in the driveway. Mow the lawn, mulch or remove the leaves, and trim all vegetation. Make sure your fire pit is clean and free of vegetation.

In the back of the house, make sure your water hose is coiled unobtrusively and turn on any water fountains you may have to create a relaxing setting. Clean around the pool and clean the water of the pool; remove any hoses or pool vacuums that may be lying around. Freshen up your outside chairs with fluffy pillows that aren’t faded; remove all toys.

In the kitchen:

• Clean the countertops so they are sparkling and free of appliances and kitchenware (leaving out one appliance, such as a toaster, is acceptable).
• Take away all magnets, personal notes, and photos from the refrigerator.
• Put the garbage cans in a closet or pantry to free up space.
• Put all dishes in the dishwasher and make sure the dishwasher doesn’t smell. Run it prior to any home showing if you have to.

In the dining room:

• Make sure the dining room table is polished and free of all clutter.
• Put out nice-looking placemats for a homey, welcoming look.
• Have a centerpiece on the table such as flowers or a vase.
• Make sure the chairs are straight and evenly spaced.
• Take out any highchairs or child booster seats.

In the living room and family room:

• De-clutter everywhere, including on the coffee table, fireplace, and on chairs.
• Clean the interior of the fireplace.
• Arrange the pillows in a stylish way, making sure they are well fluffed.
• Remove any toys on the floor and on furniture.

In the bedrooms:

• Make the beds.
• Make sure the bed linen is well pressed and straight.
• Clear out all personal items including family photos.
• Remove all clutter so that it’s easy to walk in the rooms.
• Vacuum the floors and clean under the beds.
• Remove all posters, stickers, and personalized items on the walls.
• Remove all diapers or other potentially smelly items.

In the bathrooms:

• Remove all toiletry items from the countertops.
• Make sure the toilets are flushed and the toilet seats are down.
• Remove all the toiletry items from the shower.
• Hang only clean towels and make sure they are nice ones.
• Take out the floor mats.

   Got pets?

• Move the food and water bowls where they won’t be seen.
• Move the pet toys and other pet gear into storage.
• Get rid of pet hair by vacuuming and using a lint roller on furniture.
• Remove all pet waste and toys from the backyard.