To get the best results from your real estate photography session, the property needs to be ready to make a great impression on prospective buyers. Buyers watch HGTV and want to see photos that look like the “big reveal” after a make-over. Your home should already be spruced up, de-cluttered, de-personalized, and staged to be appealing to buyers. The re-painting is done and the furniture re-arranged.
Remember that the camera sees everything. Details that are easily overlooked in person often become annoying distractions in a photo. Also, we typically shoot at least two views of each room. Staging a room to look good from the hallway by hiding things behind a door or bed isn’t good enough. Those things will show in the “reverse-angle” view from inside the room.
Here are some tips for preparing your home for photography:
- Clean, clean, clean. Yes, those cobwebs in the corner, dust on the ceiling fan blades, and fingerprints on the refrigerator door do sometimes show in the pictures.
- Declutter some more. Photographs tend to look more cluttered than a room does in real life, so try to pare things down to a bare minimum for the photo session — even more so than for a regular showing. Sparsely decorated looks best.
- De-personalize. Besides wanting buyers to visualize themselves in the house, there is a potential security issue with property photos that will be posted online. Consider removing any obviously valuable items, as well anything personally identifiable (such as family pictures, diplomas, awards, names, etc.) We strongly recommend removing names and photos of underage children.
- Kitchen — Clear and clean the counters, sink, stove top. Take all the magnets off the refrigerator. Leave just one small appliance (such as a coffee maker) on the counter, and maybe a bowl of fruit.
- Dinning Room/Breakfast nook — Clear the table, or stage it with a centerpiece and nice place settings.
- Mud room or entry — Remove coats and backpacks. Remove dog toys and bowls, Remove throw rugs.
- Laundry (if it is to be photographed) — Straighten up thoroughly. No baskets of laundry. Stow away cleaning products.
- Bedrooms — Make the beds (with nice bedspreads and pillows), clear the bedside tables, put everything away. Be sure to check under the beds for anything stored there that might show. Bend down and look close — the camera may be down at waist level.
- Bathrooms — Clear the vanities, clean the mirrors, put the toilet seat down, remove bath mats and rugs. Hang fresh neatly folded towels. Close the shower curtain unless there is tile work and/or fixtures to be photographed, in which case, remove all shampoo bottles, loofahs, etc from the shower. If your shower enclosure is glass, clean it thoroughly. Steaks and water spots will show.
- Closets — We don’t normally photograph inside closets and cabinets, so that can be a good place to hide things. However, a feature, such as a walk-in closet, will be photographed and should be thoroughly de-cluttered with just a minimum of hanging clothes remaining
- Living areas — Tidy up. Pick up the kids things, remove books & magazines, hide the remotes, fluff the pillows, etc.
- Lights and lamps — Make sure all lights work. We need all the light we can get! Replace missing or blown bulbs, and try to match the other lights in a room — all warm white, all cool white, all daylight, etc. Tuck lamp cords out of sight if possible.
- Throw rugs and runners — Remove them to show off the floors and simplify the look.
- Pet bowls and toys — Hide all of them.
- Child/pet gates — Remove them, if possible.
- Trash cans — Remove/hide them if possible. At least empty them and remove the liners.
- Basement — If it’s finished living space, treat it just like the rest of the house. We don’t normally photograph unfinished basements, but sometimes it needs to be photographed to show potential expansion or storage area. In that case, clean and straighten as much as possible. An empty basement photographs best.
- Garage — This is another area we don’t usually photograph. However, if it includes a shop, workbench, or other features to be featured, straighten and stage it as neatly as possible. Like an unfinished basement, an empty space is best.
- Driveway — Move the cars and bikes out of the drive, hide the garbage cans, blow away leaves and debris.
- Decks and patios — Sweep or blow away leaves and debris. Stage as outdoor living areas.
- Lawns — Mow, rake, trim, edge, mulch, and generally make the outside as neat as the inside. Roll up hoses, hide kid’s toys, sweep the sidewalk, etc.
Just before we arrive for photography, make a last pass through the home and check the following:
- Children — Should be out of the house
- Pets — Should be out of the house or safely confined to a kennel/crate/cage in an area that won’t be photographed.
- Bedrooms — Straighten the bedspreads and pick up any forgotten items.
- Bathrooms — TOILET SEATS DOWN. Hide all personal items like toothbrushes and toiletries. Shower curtain closed, or shower area completely cleared.
- Living areas — Tidy up. Straighten the furniture. Plump the pillows.
- Kitchen — Check for anything left out on the counters. Remove the rag from the sink and the towel from the oven door. Don’t forget to stash your coffee cup in the dish washer.
- Windows — OPEN shades, blinds, and drapes to let the light in. Sheer curtains can remain closed — they diffuse the light nicely. If there is a nice view through a window, raise the blinds all the way to the top or open the sheers to showcase the view.
- Lamps & lights — ON — all of them.
- TVs and ceiling fans — OFF — and hide the remotes.
- Outside — Look around for any last minute clean up that may be needed
- Garage — Overhead doors closed.
- Gates — Unlocked so we can get all the way round the property
- Cars — Move them out of the drive and away from the street in front of the property.
When we photograph your home, we’ll do everything we can to select camera angles and lighting to make your property look its best. However, we photograph it as it exists when we arrive. We don’t clean, straighten up, rearrange furniture, or otherwise stage the property. And we don’t touch personal items.