If you are looking to sell your house,
condo or manufactured home, you will need to have some pictures for
your ads and flyers. Better pictures will get you more interest,
which usually results in a better price. You can hire a professional
for several hundred dollars, but if you want to do it yourself, there
are a number of things you can do to make the pictures better and
make your house look better.
Equipment
Pros generally use a DSLR cameral with
a wide angle and 50mm lense along with flash and remote triggered
flash. Unless you are into photography I wouldn't suggest that you go
out and buy a professional outfit, as along with the equipment, most
pros have the experience to make the best use of it. All is not lost
if you don't have all the gadgets. Keep it simple and you will get
better pictures than most homeowners and surprise yourself with the
results.
So what do you use? If you have a
relatively new phone, you probably have a decent high resolution
camera already. With a few hints you can improve your work
considerably beyond the snap shots most people get with this
equipment. Start by holding the camera in the landscape mode. Hold
it straight so the lines like door and window frames are not crooked.
This can be corrected with a program like Photoshop, or, if you
don't want to spring for that, GIMP is an open source free program
you can download that does a nice job. Hold the camera at about eye
height to get a normal perspective. We will talk about flash when we
get to lighting. A tripod can be helpful if you aren't real steady
with the camera.
Preparing the house
It should go without saying that the
should get a good cleaning AND decluttering. You don't want to see
fingerprints on shiny surfaces like glass or counter tops. You may
want to rearrange the furniture to make better pictures. Don't worry
that you can't watch the TV from the staged location. It's
temporary!
Clean the magnets, kids pictures and
recipes from the refrigerator. Everything should look as close to
new and as generic as possible. You are showing a house that is for
sale, not your home. Clear off the counter tops but put a few
accessories out that add some color. This can be a nice dish towel
or pitcher or anything that would be interesting in the kitchen.
This same thinking applies to the
bathrooms as well. Toilet seats should be down. If the shower
curtain has seen better days, it may be time to replace it. Mirrors
clean and toothbrushes, toothpaste and shavers up away.
Along with having clean windows, taking
the screens out of the windows will give you cleaner pictures.
Blinds and curtains should usually be open to get as much natural
light as possible for your pictures. Doors between rooms are should
also be kept open. Ceiling fans and televisions should be turned off
to avoid distracting elements in the pictures.
Taking the pictures
A little planning will help insure you
don't miss the home's best features. Start out with a shot list and
check them off as you work your way around the house. Take a couple
pictures in each room. Don't include small powder rooms or closets,
unless there is a unique selling feature. Do include mud rooms,
utility rooms and entry ways.
You don't always have to shoot from a
corner. At doorways or through doorways lends some interest and
perspective. Remember to hold the camera straight to minimize
crooked doorways and windows. Get a closeup featuers you want to
emphasize.
Don't forget the exterior. A straight
on shot from the street usually isn't the best view. Step off toward
the side a bit and shoot from an angle. Include the back yard and
features like a pool, barbecue area, deck and anything else that the
buyer may find of value.
Don't be afraid to take a lot of
pictures. You won't use them all, but you have the opportunity to
pick the best ones.
Lighting
Here we have a brief discussion of
color temperature. Not all light has the same color. This variation
is what is referred to as color temperature. Sun light, particularly
toward sunset has more of a redish cast to it. This is said to have
a warm temperature. Flash is whiter and is a cooler temperature.
Some LEDs even have a slight bluish tint. This is not a complete
listing as you can get light bulbs in various temperatures – such
as daylight bulbs.
We will discuss the mixing of daylight
and artificial light because different types produce different
impressions. As with vertical line distortion, color can be
corrected within reason. Just be aware that pictures taken with
natural light, table and ceiling lights and flash will look a little
different. Warmer temperature light give the place a more homey feel
where the whiter flash gives a cooler more distant feeling. Sometimes
you will have good natural light from the windows but some darker
shadows that need to be filled in. Use flash as needed to fill this
in. If you are unsure, take pictures with various type of light and
see which looks the best.
Lighting is where we see one of the
greater differences is between the camera phone and professional
equipment. Pros can bounce flash off of walls and ceiling for a
softer, less direct appearance.
Some of the most dramatic exterior
photos are taken at dusk with the interior lights lit to give the
place a warm and inviting appearance. This can be a little tricky,
but may be worth the attempt. Otherwise most photography should be
done on a sunny day to maximize the natural light coming through the
windows.
Final Thoughts
There are a couple more cautions before
you start your project – several things to be aware of. Be careful
of windows and mirrors that you don't get reflections of yourself in
the picture. You are not for sale, neither are pets. As cute as
they can be, animals should not distract from your pictures. Look
out the window before you take your photographs. Are there cars or
other distracting items that will detract from the picture. If so,
move them. Taking pictures for flyers, ads and maybe videos is not
rocket science, but it requires attention to details. Study
professional work like Better Homes & Gardens, see how the pros
frame their pictures and what the lighting looks like. You can't
help but take better pictures by emulating them,
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