Property Photography 101 : Camera, Composition, angles and lighting
As we all know a picture is worth a thousand words, and in the property industry, a photograph can make or break your potential deal.
EFFECTIVE COMPOSITIONS
Walk around the room and identify the best view points. Often these are aiming from one corner of the room into the other, or from a perspective which conveys space or the flow from one room in to another.
Always shoot your photographs in the horizontal or landscape orientation whenever possible. The human eye sees the world in a roughly a 4:3 aspect ratio, though the standard ratio is moving to 16:9. Our brain finds the horizontal/landscape views more pleasing.
The two qualities that home buyers are always looking for are space and natural light. That’s why it is very important to keep space and natural light in mind when composing your photographs. If you don’t have professional equipment or a very steady hand, pictures taken without a tripod in natural light will look dark and blurry. So it’s best to invest in at least a tripod, it allows you to shoot at slower shutter speeds to take advantage of natural light while still keeping images sharp.
KNOW THE PROPER ANGLES
The angle at which you are showcasing the various rooms in a home is extremely essential. Before worrying about angles, the key rule in real-estate photography is that all your vertical lines should be vertical. This is achieved by aiming your camera perfectly horizontal — no slanting the camera one sided.
Moving on to angles. When shooting in a kitchen, it is best to shoot from chest height (often midway between the floor and ceiling). This is because most of the cupboards run from the floor up to the ceiling and this will showcase the top of the work surfaces. As for the living room and bathroom, where most objects like the furnitures are beneath hip height, it makes more sense to shoot from just below the hip.
Last but not least, always photograph a room from more than one view point. This ensures that you can review your images later and make a more confident decision on which perspective works best.
AVOID USING FISHEYE OR OTHER TRICKS
Yes, we know that there is a trend right now in real estate photography to shoot properties with poor quality fisheye lenses. Not only does the photos look ridiculous and ugly, it’s also deceiving the potential buyer. Why? Because making a space look larger than it is by using a lense that distorts the area is not going to increase a buyer’s interest.
You will be over-promising them and they are going to arrive to the viewing with high expectations. Best to use honest photos of the space.
INVEST IN A WIDE ANGLE CAMERA LENS TO EMPHASISE SPACE AND CREATE A SENSE OF DEPTH
Doesn’t mean you can’t make a space look bigger without using fisheye lens, a wide angle camera lense can capture the full essence of a space. It allows for a wider shot which gives a true sense of both depth and detail.
On a side note, HDR photography is highly recommended as it allows you to stand out from the crowd. HDR takes several exposures of the same photo and combines them giving you professional photographs that look rich and full of dynamic shades.
FORGET MEGAPIXELS AND BUY A FULL FRAME CAMERA
At the end of the day, it’s about the sensor size and not megapixels. It is the most important criteria to consider when purchasing a new digital camera. Larger sensors mean better image quality, better low light performance, but more importantly, a wider field of view that allows you to capture more of the room in your picture.
USE A TRIPOD
Most homes look much more appealing when shot in natural light. However, if you don’t have professional flash equipment or a very steady hand, photographs taken without a tripod will look dark and blurry. Tripods will allow you to shoot at slower shutter speeds to take advantage of natural light while still keeping images sharp.
credit & source : http://blog.bumbung.co
Leave a Reply