8 tips when shooting a home

Before even picking up the camera, you need to know that not only is cleaning the house important, but thinking about what time of the day the house is best lit is also essential. This is what we call "finding the most beautiful light".

Ideally, the interior and exterior light should be as balanced as possible so your photos present a uniform appearance, without large areas of shadow or highlights that often, in real estate photography, look unaesthetic.

To do this, ask your seller when the sun hits the property perfectly. Mobile apps also exist to help you know if the sun will be out or not the day of your photoshoot.

Whether it’s for rent or sale, make sure all the rooms are clean and nicely arranged. You want to give a welcoming look to your photo. To go even further, you can think of a dominant colour palette and play with the elements that decorate the house accordingly.

In my case, I like to show different textile elements like rugs and cushions, because I love them and they look cosy. I also like indoor plants a lot. I'm sure you also have your own preferences.

You should always take your basic equipment for every photoshoot: a camera and a tripod. It’s the perfect combination for straight pictures – which are mandatory to create impact on your ads. Learn more about why you should always use a tripod in my previous article.

If you don’t have a camera, don't worry. Smartphone solutions like Nodalview are perfect for real estate photography. As well as giving you flexibility and high quality rendering for all your photos, it can help you when shooting in dark areas like bathrooms or garages.

Make a plan. Knowing how many photos you’ll need for each room will make you feel confident when arriving on the day of the shoot. You wouldn’t want to come back to your office and realise that you’re missing one or two shoots that would’ve helped you sell or rent your listing.

I always like to create a front shot of the room and two shots that show side views. After the front shot, I go to two selected angles of the room and photograph – so that I get at least three shots of each room of the house. Of course, this depends on the dimension of each room I’m shooting and sometimes just one shot is enough.

Just as you’re thinking about the amount of photos you want to take during your photoshoot, you also need to also prepare the format you’ll take them in.

Portrait format is becoming more and more requested, it adapts perfectly to the screens of our smartphones, and it looks perfect on social networks like Instagram. For ads, landscape format should still be your go-to but, next time you shoot a property, think ahead and take a couple of vertical photos to put on your social media.

If the property is in a nice neighbourhood, the outdoor photos you take will add a lot of value to your ads. If it’s located near a beautiful beach or in a mountain area, don't hesitate to take some pictures of the surroundings.

Your clients will be delighted to see everything they can do if they buy or rent your listing and it will definitely be an important factor in their final decision.

Even today, I’m surprised to see how many listings don’t include this type of outdoor photography and believe me, having them in your listing will make a big difference.

The internet and new technology have brought multimedia content into our lives. If you already have the Nodalview solution, welcome to the new digital era! The Nodalview platform lets you create HDR images, videos, 360º panoramas and virtual tours. I’m already researching and trying it out to be able to add a video to my photographic report in addition to my photos.

My last piece of advice is to have fun, create and have a good time every time you photograph a property. I do it all the time and I think my clients notice it.

If you show your seller your enthusiasm and professionalism, they’ll appreciate it and remember you. Never forget that a strong and qualitative customer experience is key to getting more clients and listings.

These are my eight tips today, do you have any more you’d like to add? I’m open to all your questions and suggestions.

And if you want to go further, we created a free guide with all the steps to follow to fully prepare a property before a shoot. Download it here.