HD Estates

Author: Claire Wright

  • Real Estate Photography Camera Settings: The Essentials

    Real Estate Photography Camera Settings: The Essentials

    Different kinds of photography utilize different kinds of techniques. When you’re dealing with people, you need direct them and pose them in a certain way in order to achieve the look that you’re going for. With real estate photography, you have to take a different approach. Since your subjects are spaces, you need to style the space and use specific real estate photography camera settings to achieve the kind of look that depicts the property and its market.

    If you want to delve into real estate photography, make sure that you know the essentials in order to deliver the best photos.

    Tools You Need

    Before you start shooting, you need to have the equipment in real estate photography. Start off with a digital SLR or a mirrorless camera that you can use manually. Having a good camera will give you an advantage when shooting on location. You have full control with a manual camera so you can adjust the settings as needed. Make sure that you have a wide-angle lens ready to be able to capture big rooms or properties. This is a mainstay in real estate photography and is a good investment. You also need a sturdy tripod and an external flash system or lighting to fill in the dark areas of the space.

    Having all these gears ready will set you up towards a good shoot. This ensures that you have all the bases covered.

     

    The Best Camera Settings for Real Estate Photos

    Knowing the best setting to use, especially when you’re using a manual camera. If you’re a real beginner, then you might want to spend some time in familiarizing yourself with the different settings and buttons in your camera. This ensures that you know which buttons to use in order to get the results.

    • In-camera HDR mode –HDR photography is a basic when it comes to real estate photography. This creates images with more depth and details. If you’re new to photography, you can use the in-camera HDR setting instead of shooting and editing photos on your own. This lets the camera blend three different exposures automatically to get an HDR photo. Unfortunately, the image will not be as professional-looking as the other HDR photos. However, this is a good option for starters who want an HDR photo will no effort.

    • Bracket image shots – Bracketing is a technique that’s widely used to achieve HDR. By using this setting, the camera takes three pictures at three different exposures. One will be at 0, the other will be at -3, and the last one will be at +3. You’re getting a wide range of lighting situations with this setting. The photo in -3 will have dark interiors but crisp windows while the image with 0 will be your neutral image. The +3 photo will provide a well-exposed image, especially on the darker parts of the room. You have to take these images into your software and blend these three together to create an HDR image. This allows you more control in how your image will look after.

    • Lower ISO – In shooting real estate, it’s best to stick with around 100 to 400 ISO. Anything higher than 400 usually creates grain in the images. Shooting in these ISO settings will give you a crisp and sharp image.

    • Aperture of F7.1-11 – Opting for a mid-range aperture gives you clear results, especially when you’re using a wide-angle lens. With lower apertures, you get sharper areas in the middle and some soft focus on the outer parts. The middle ranges of the aperture give you a perfect balance in order to create sharper images with the wide-angle lens.

    • Self-timer – This setting will come in handy to avoid shaking the camera if you’re pressing the shutter manually. This prevents any blurs on the image.

    • RAW setting – Shooting in RAW gives you higher quality of images. Since the information on RAW photos is not compressed, you are able to correct certain problems and make proper adjustments.

     

    Top Five Cameras Used For Real Estate Photography

    In line with camera setting, having the best gears in real estate photography can make a difference. Using professional equipment allows you to take better shots and produce high-quality images.

    The following cameras are top cameras that you can use for real estate photography. These allow you great control in taking the photos so you are able to mix and match settings.

    1. Panasonic Lumix GH5 – This is a great camera that is perfect for capturing 4K videos. It has a 20.3-megapixel sensor that creates high-quality images, as well. The camera has a good image stabilization feature that reduces the motion blur and an advanced autofocus system for steady images. It also has a good grip and design to it.

    2. Canon EOS 5D MIV – This full-frame camera from Canon is built with a 30.4-megapixel sensor. Since it is a full-frame camera, it can capture more light and a larger part of the scene. It comes with a high-resolution sensor and an ISO range of 100 to 32000. You can also shoot 4K videos with this camera at 30p or 24p.

    3. Nikon D750 – This is another full-frame camera that has a 24.3-megapixel resolution. The D750 is Nikon’s most affordable full-frame camera. It has a tilting screen that may be convenient for certain shots. It has a built-in Wi-Fi compatibility and connectivity. You can also shoot HD videos with the Nikon D750.

    4. Sony Alpha a7R III – This mirrorless full-frame camera has a powerful 42.4-megapixel sensor that creates images of up to 7952 x 5304 pixels. It comes with a native ISO range of 100 to 32000 and a touchscreen tilting LCD. This has an advanced hybrid AF system and an amazing body-based image stabilization that minimizes motion blur and is useful for shooting in low light.

    5. Fujifilm X-T2 – This is a great all-around mirrorless camera that’s at par with other DSLRs for real estate photography. It has a 24.3-megapixel sensor that can produce high-quality images. It’s smooth and easy to use and comes with a 325-point autofocus system that’s great for shooting in low light and in reducing motion blurs.

    The good thing about these cameras is that these are flexible and can be used for different types of photography. If you’re a photographer who wants to play around, then you can do so with these cameras. No matter what or who your subject is, you can use your camera to suit your needs.

     

    Real Estate Photography Tips

    Aside from using the best gears and the best settings when shooting real estate, you also need to have a few tricks under your sleeves in order to have a better session. Here are some tips that can help you in making your photo shoot smoother and easier:

    • Use a tripod – Don’t underestimate how useful a tripod will be in photo shoots, especially in real estate photography. Propping your camera on your tripod keeps it steady on long exposure shoots. This allows you to handle low light scenes and creates no motion blurs. This also makes you flexible especially when you are dealing with a challenging space to shots.

    • Lightstands are your best friends – Having extra light stands will come in handy when you need light in a certain part of the room. Instead of relying on a countertop to place your Speedlight, a sturdy light stand will keep your light in place.

    • Preset editing – Have some handy presets for real estate photography ready when you just want some quick fixes and editing. There are presets that you can purchase or download for free. Just make sure that you look for those that suit real estate photography of the kind of look that you’re after. This might take a lot of testing and experiment on your part. However, it pays to find one that works for you. You can also create your own preset that you can use for all your shots. This readies all your preferred editing techniques in just a single button so you can quickly edit photos.

    • Be mindful of your verticals – It is often hard to keep your lines straight, especially the verticals in your image. As a real estate photographer, however, you need to be mindful of the vertical lines. Use the levels in your camera to keep your verticals straight. You can also edit this in Photoshop by using the transform feature. Make sure that you align windows, doors, cabinets, or wall edges on your photos.

    • Extra batteries – It’s a newbie mistake to forget extra batteries on a shoot. Always bring two or more batteries for long shoots just to make sure that you got everything covered. You don’t want to keep on charging after a few hours just because you forgot to bring extras. This ensures that you have a continuous shoot and that you’re making the most out of your time.

    • Be flexible – Lastly, it’s important to be flexible when doing real estate photography. There will be times when the weather and lighting conditions won’t go as planned. You might need to return to the property to do a second photo shoot or to work with what you got by using the available light that you have.

  • Getting Started with Real Estate Photography: Tips and Guide

    Getting Started with Real Estate Photography: Tips and Guide

    Real estate is a lucrative industry that every photographer would want to dabble their hands into. This industry is competitive and there is money. Photography plays an integral part in selling real estate properties. Businesses are willing to spend money in order to capture images that will sell properties like pancakes.

    If you want to test out the waters, you need to be familiar with the industry first and understand the requirements of real estate photography.

    What is real estate photography?

    Real estate photography is focused on creating images for property listings or advertorials that will be used by homeowners or real estate brokers in selling.

    Creativity and delivering images that reflect the property in the best light some of the things that real estate photographers need to have. The main goal of the photos is to sell the property fast. They need to entice prospective buyers to visit the property and purchase it right away.

    There is something to understand with the industry, however. Real estate is a very fast-paced industry. Often, photos only have a few days to last while the listing is still on. Once the property is sold, the photos will be taken down and replaced with new ones for another listing. However, this shouldn’t mean that you won’t deliver the most amazing photos to your clients.

    Define your target market

    Just like other photography businesses, you need to know your target market. Are you going to cater to customers only in your area or are you willing to take out-of-town projects? Are you set to doing local real estate photography or are you ready to take on big national projects?

    It is important to study the industry in your area first and find a segment that you can fully service. Do you think there are no photographers that are servicing directly to homeowners? Is there an opportunity in shooting for big real estate brokers? Do you want to have business with the small brokers in your area?

    Understand what the market needs and where your specialty lies. This will allow you to position your brand properly while also making sure that you keep the business running.

    Outsourcing your real estate photography business

    If you’re a photographer who wants to cover a lot of ground, then you might want to consider about outsourcing your work. This allows you to service different industries and expand your business. This also takes work off your hands so you are able to focus your efforts on the more important things, such as growing your business and booking more clients. This can come in handy once you get booked a lot and you don’t want to say no to these opportunities. This also lets you grow your business even if you’re not doing everything on your own.

    You need to have a set of considerations to keep in mind when outsourcing your work. You cannot just hire anyone to do the work for you. It is important to find one with valuable experience and expertise in photographing and editing real estate. There is a lot of work needed in real estate photography. You have to be assured that you’re giving the work to someone who has been in the industry long enough to know the work that’s needed. Another thing is that they need to replicate your style. This is a must in order to have a consistent look in every property that you’re assigned to shoot. Since they are shooting under your name, they need to provide you with photos that are quite similar to your own. You may want to provide them with guidelines and pointers in shooting and editing photos in order to get the output that you want. Lastly, you need to work with a budget. Since you’re outsourcing, make sure that you are not losing money by hiring other people. Find those that can give you quality while also allowing you to earn a little through the project.

    Hiring an agency like HD Estates or a freelance photographer for outsourcing

    When it comes to outsourcing the real estate side of your photography business, there are different options available for you. For one, you can hire an agency or a freelance photographer to do the job. What’s the difference?

    An agency, like HD Estates, usually provides a complete line of services to customers. They have an entire team of photographers and editors who will process the images from the photo shoot down to post-processing. Agencies have skilled and highly-experienced team members and use the best equipment and software in providing their services. They are able to copy your style of photographing and editing so you have a consistent look no matter who took the photos. However, most agencies have fixed rates in shooting projects. They already have a set amount for every type of service that you would need. But, the payment is worth it once you get the kind of photos that your clients love.

    With freelance photographers, you might need to take a good look in your area in order to find a good one. You need to find the ones who can help you produce the kind of images that you want. Experience and portfolio are two things that you need to consider with freelance photographers. You might also want to find one that’s able to copy your photography preferences and can produce the kind of edits that you would need. This is the case especially when you’re dealing with clients whom you’ve worked with in the past. You want to make sure that you create consistency even if you’re outsourcing. This might need some trials to find a photographer who can get your taste. This can be the challenging part of hiring freelancers. However, freelancers often have a flexible price point which can work for you if you have a budget in mind.

    What makes HD Estates a reliable partner in your business?

    HD Estates is the number one real estate photography company in the country. They provide a wide range of services from photography to aerial images or videos, high-definition videos, 3D scan, and even websites.

     

     

    They have trained and skilled architectural photographers with experienced editors that ensure you get amazing images for your clients. These are like magazine-cover photos that you can use for listings to ensure that the property will sell fast.

    The company offers flexible packages to suit your needs. You can choose the kind of photography that you want, be it standard, high-definition, or luxurious high-definition photography. You can also choose the specific photo count that you need and add other services, such as cinema, aerial photography, and 3D walkthrough among many others.

    The flexibility and the quality that you get with working with HD Estates is what you need for your business. This is the kind of agency that you want to work with in order to deliver the quality that you need for your customers. They are reliable when it comes to producing high-quality images and you’re assured that your customers will keep coming back to book you for future projects.

    The best real estate photography companies in the US

    Partnering with the best real estate photography companies is a must if you’re interested in growing the business. This also ensures that you are able to provide the best service and high-quality images to your clients and never lose their business in the future.

    flash photographer

    If you’re looking to outsource the real estate photography of your business, here are the best real estate photography companies in the country:

    1. HD Estates.

    HD Estates is based in Seattle and is the top real estate photography company in the country. They provide HD photography, HD cinema video, and marketing software to help you sell properties faster. They are a full-service agency with a skilled and experienced team that will help you meet your goals.

    2. J Fuerst.

    This agency provides excellent photography services at affordable rates. They provide a unique business process where you can book instantly and get the photos the next day after the photo shoot schedule. J Fuerst is a premier real estate photography company that ensures you work within your budget.

    3. VHT Studios.

    This real estate photography company has a nationwide network of editing specialists and photographers that ensures that you get the service that you need wherever you are. They have been around since 1998 and is continuously providing convenient photography services. They are a full-service agency for those in the real estate industry.

    4. Home Snappers.

    They are a family-oriented company that values the relationship they build with clients. Home Snappers offer different photography packages depending on your needs. They also have different services, such as aerial photos and videos, walkthrough videos, virtual reality tours, and cinematic videos among others.

    5. Full Frame Creative Agency.

    The company has offices in Seattle, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Portland, and San Diego. They don’t just service real estate but also shoots different structures. They are a full-service agency that offers photography services, videos, marketing consultations, and 3D tours among others.

  • Importance of Real Estate Video Editing

    Importance of Real Estate Video Editing

    There are countless reasons why you should consider using video in your real estate business. Using video as marketing strategy is perhaps the best way to capture the true spirit of the property. In this way, you can offer your potential clients the feel and the look of the area that you are selling. This is the reason why professional assistance for real estate video editing is very important.

    An assortment of video services these days is readily available in the Internet. As part of marketing technique, every real estate sales agent reaches out the support of property video and video editing company because real estate video production offers more aesthetics than what a still photo can do. In utilizing the benefits of video production, there becomes an easy connection as to where to locate the rooms, spaces, and other important areas of the property.

    Real estate video is today’s most essential method of marketing. Many real estate agents, realtors, and brokers turn to the creation of videos because they believe on the type of influence videos can offer. In presenting properties, every video should be engaging enough in highlighting nearby communities, thus presenting the kind of lifestyle and personality the property is surrounded with.

    Everyone loves to see attractive clips. Everyone believes that creating video is a great way to market one’s personality. Owning a collection of property videos in your listings will only make every buyer visit your site. Presenting professionally made videos will make these clients realize you are so dedicated to your profession. This is a plus factor in terms of attracting buyers.

    Video editing jobs are very common today. For properties to be sold fast there are numerous photo adjustments to be made just for one particular video. A real estate video editor should look at some parts of the video to ensure that there are characters of the clips that needed to be changed. With the technology that can be run at the very tip of our fingers, video production and editing are very easy tasks to do.

    Since video production is important in marketing the property you are selling, so is video editing. One can use his/her smartphone by just simply holding the phone horizontally. Holding the phone in a horizontal manner will make the video being shot in full frame. Video creation should also consider the time of shooting, especially in the interior. Because a video is created by means of a smartphone, it is proper to edit them using a laptop or a desktop aided by the best editing software available.

    Reasons Why Real Estate Video Editing is Important

    Hiring the services of professional video editors will make your real estate videos look more professional. They can make your videos high-quality ones which will create vehicles for a higher chance of potential buyers visiting your site. The sole purpose of video editing is to make the video stand out in the listings. High quality videos, especially when they look professional, make your listings more appealing to the buying public.

    photography for real estate

    Everyone else can create videos easily because most of us own smartphones. But not everybody can edit videos especially when using high-end editing software. Editing is a work that involves color enhancement, resizing, placing in proper angles, correcting of blacks and whites, and many more. In this way, properties are sold faster than videos that are not properly formatted.

    When videos are properly edited, it really gives you the competitive edge. And when they are seen at your video listings, it only shows that you have the marketing advantage over the rest. You are the ones setting the standards in showcasing real estate properties in a whole new perspective.

    Videos are very important to display the sentiments, feelings, and thoughts of prospective buyers. As a real estate agent, you can also work on the testimonials of these people because testimonial videos have a big impact to help get new people promoting your real estate business. You can also create a series of informational videos about the property not only to give additional knowledge to customers but to impress the clients in general.

    There are also buyers who want to know the type of neighbors they will have once they buy the property. Developing a community video will help the buyer see not only the house he buys but also the surrounding neighborhood. Most real estate buyers want to know the establishments around the property which include schools, hospitals, parks, supermarket, and many more.

  • Why is Photography for Real Estate Important to Sell Your Homes Fast?

    Why is Photography for Real Estate Important to Sell Your Homes Fast?

    For a real estate agent to become good in selling his properties, he needs to present compelling images to his clients. It also includes the excellent communication skills he uses in enticing clients. The present generation of sales agents, real estate brokers, and realtors find the Internet a good place to market real estate properties. But with the over saturated number of people using the Internet as a marketing vehicle, it is far better to negotiate face-to-face to prospective buyers.

    It would be advantageous to have real estate photographs that can either be presented personally to targeted clients or to be uploaded to personal websites or social media. As of the moment, social media is considered the most powerful tool in digital marketing. Although real estate is considered a big gamble to sales agents, it can be a big boom when the business is marketed properly.

    The idea of real estate photography is to present the images of the property. This is for the reason that the agent try to impress the clients to show the details and various angles of the said property. These photographs are needed to be processed to its best quality. Enhancement of photos requires the services of the different photo-editing applications, tools, and techniques because this job is very critical.

    Real estate properties can be photographed both from the outside and at its interior. In as far as photo outlook is concerned, there are many techniques that will make photos look great. There are modification skills that needed to be developed to get familiarized about proper blending of interior colors.

    Photo editing jobs are very common today. For properties to be sold fast there are countless photo adjustment to be made just for one particular image. A photo editor should look at some parts of the photo to ensure that there are characters of the picture that needed to be changed. He can also change the blend of the contrast at the same time.
    For a wide-angle view, consider the topographical area of the property. A panoramic photo can represent a bigger view of the property. But panoramic photography entails continuous overlapping images. In doing so, photo editors needed special imaging software to stitch several sections together.

    In the practice of real estate and architectural photography, real estate agents photograph houses, buildings, and commercial real estate companies to be subject for different kinds of marketing purposes. Some owners wish to advertise their properties – hotels, gyms, restaurants, studios, etc. – for promotional purposes only. A real estate photographer sometimes needed to work with interior designers to make the properties more attractive as possible.
    Some photographers will shoot and edit images using different software applications and programs. With the tasks of photographing architectural and real estate structures, the work is quite unique but this is very important to hastily sell the properties. Being sensitive to landscape photography and aimed at selling homes quickly, photographers needed to be sensitive to spatial aesthetics. A real estate agent must realize that he also has to reach to potential clients as part of executing the business tasks more importantly in reaching out to old and new clients. He must have a network with fellow photographers, must attend real estate meetings, and other relevant events that will allow shooting schedule perfect.

    Importance of Photography to Sell Home Fast

    Photography to Sell Home Fast

    It is a truth that whenever homes are listed using professional images, it tends to sell faster. There are proofs that real estate photography helps selling homes 50% faster as compared to homes without images. Because the images involved in the listing of your homes have great positive impact to selling the property, most real estate agents and brokers turn to photography for this specific yet valuable reason.

    • More professional look.

    A real estate agent wanted his real estate images look more professional. High-quality images can give more avenues to a more selling possibility. Because of the stiff competition in this industry, all the images a real estate puts in the listing must stand out. To look professional means you gain more confidence in presenting and selling the property. Using photographs will not only get your listing the attention you need, it also makes your property more appealing.

    • Time-saver.

    Shooting of images, editing, resizing, and uploading of photographs will consume more time than you imagined. With the help of a professional photographer, it gives you little stress. Real estate photographers can shoot, edit, upload, re-size and do the correct formatting of the image, thus will help in selling properties fast.

    • Gives competitive edge.

    People who are selling their homes who use professional photography in listing have the marketing advantage. This is because showcasing their homes using better images has a faster chance of selling potential. The technology we have today made it easier for clients to search on the Internet to look for new homes. Online listing is one of the most practical ways to promote the real estate properties being sold and at the same time, it can attract potential buyers.

  • The 7 Essential Tools in Real Estate Photography

    The 7 Essential Tools in Real Estate Photography

    Just like camping outdoors, you will not go out and do not bring your tent, camping stove, sleeping bag, first aid kit, and other important equipment. In the world of real estate photography, there is more than just camera and lens. Just like any photographers, people engaged in real estate photography wanted to produce stunning photos that sell.

    Whether you are a beginner or a professional photographer, you still want to learn many details of the business. And when it comes to real estate, you do not only need to produce quality photos to make in real estate listings. The very equipment you will be using makes all the difference.

    Building business reputation is what every owner is protecting as well as developing. And starting any business for that matter is time-consuming. Especially for real estate photography, you will not only take a lot of effort to find potential clients but you need a better equipment to run the business smoothly. Choosing the right camera equipment, reading books and articles and improving technical skills are the basic necessities of a good real estate photographer.

    Important Tools of a Real Estate Photographer

    As a real estate photographer, you must carry the following equipment as your arsenal to start the rigorous battle of the business.

    1. High-quality Camera

    Budget is always the usual problem when it comes to acquiring high-quality camera. This is the most crucial single equipment needed by every photographer. But having this kind of camera does not necessarily mean that you need to buy an expensive one to produce great photos.

    When buying a camera, it is advisable to pick a camera with a large full frame sensor that will create a 1:1 ratio. Take note that anything less than 1:1 ratio will create a loss of space. It would be a plus if the camera has an automatic exposure bracketing feature.

    2. Wide Angle Lens

    As important as the camera, choosing a wide-angled lens is very advantageous when it comes to real estate photography. Using a wide-angled lens camera will let you shoot the whole perspective of the shot especially when shooting the interiors of a cozy room. One of the effects using a wide angle lens to the viewer is that it makes him feel that he is actually inside that room.

    3. Tripod

    The tripod is an indispensable item for a photographer. It is an indispensable item. With the use of sliding snap pieces in extending the legs of the tripod, it can be useful in taking a shot at a low shutter speed to be able to let enough light come in. Even professional photographers find it very hard to hold the camera without being shaky. With the help of a tripod, it always keeps the shot at camera level.

    4. Photo Editing Software

    There are many editing software that are commonly used not only by real estate photographers but also by people engaged in similar business. This editing software such as Photoshop, Enfuse and Lightroom may be very popular to most people nowadays – those updating their websites, their You Tube subscription, students making assignments, and many more.

    To improve real estate photographs, these programs are being used to improve digital images, correct minor mistakes, or eradicate blemishes. Adobe’s Photoshop is the most popular editing software which is very essential to a photographer’s exact envisioning of his shots.

    5. External Flash Items

    Every camera has a built-in pop-up flash. But this camera feature is not sufficient especially for giving great atmosphere to real estate photography. The proper setting for a real estate shoot, especially in the interior part of a house, needed extra flash. This is important if there is no extra light around.

    This external flash can easily be mounted directly on every camera. You can also have the option to place multiple flashes around an area inside a house. With the use of multiple flashes, it can light particular parts of the image you want to shoot.

    6. Light Meter

    A light meter is an apparatus that selects the correct exposure for a photo. This equipment allows the photographer to choose the perfect aperture and shutter speed. Having the correct aperture and shutter speed will allow the camera to take maximum exposure. With the help of a light meter, it allows proper exposure for all photographic scenes.

    7. Photography Website

    Digitization is the culprit why a website for real estate photography is important. This is not part of the gear you are bringing to the site. It is also not the equipment you are using during photo shoot but it is self-explanatory why one needs to have his own website. Having the right tools and equipment is essential it is also viable to have an online space in the Internet.

    Having an attractive website is what entices clients to visit it. Make it a point that the template you are using for your website will offer a correct and complete package for every individual visiting your website.