No condo owner or property manager should have trouble finding tenants in sought-after markets like Miami. However, you must do everything you can to showcase your property’s best features and attract prospective lessees willing to pay more than the previous ones. If you want to garner high volumes of inquiries about your listings, leverage interior design photography.
8 Tips to Capture Stunning Interior Stills as a Nonexpert
Although anyone with a phone and image filters can take decent snapshots, you can’t capture what’s unique about your rentals by simply pointing and shooting. Use these eight tips to create a gallery of compelling real estate photos to attract new tenants without hiring a pro:
1. Know the Basics
Familiarize yourself with photography 101. Research vital concepts — such as exposure, focus, depth of field, composition, focal length and sharpness — and understand the differences between various camera settings and modes to prepare yourself for the shoot.
Although you don’t have to go down the rabbit hole to be up to the task, learning more than the fundamentals to increase your visual literacy helps. For example, the rule of thirds is a commonly used strategy that works great for balanced shots in real estate photography. Appreciating the role of white balance, grasping the exposure triangle, using histograms to adjust image brightness and calculating hyperfocal distance will make it easier.
2. Invest in Proper Equipment
While today’s ordinary phone cameras would make 20th-century photographers envious, they have glaring limitations and aren’t always sophisticated enough to compensate for a lack of excellent technical skills. Good-quality snaps have a conversion rate 94% higher than mediocre ones, so source pro-level gear to enhance your shots.
Your arsenal of tools should include a digital single-lens reflex camera, a wide-angle lens, a tripod and portable lights. Look for local photography equipment rentals to save money and avoid the hassles of gear ownership.
3. Maximize the Golden Hours
Take photos during the first hour after sunrise and the last before sunset. Professional photographers love these times of the day because the natural light is neither too intense nor weak. Scheduling your shoot when the Florida sun is low in the sky allows you to naturally produce vivid and saturated imagery.
4. Identify Captivating Features
Determine the items or spots to shoot. They should be the details that make your condo rentals stand out. These can be gorgeous floors, high ceilings, intricate molding, high-end smart devices or arresting chandeliers.
Deciding what to highlight early on lets you plan your shots accordingly to draw tenants’ attention toward the positives.
5. Stage the Space Thoughtfully
Be mindful of all the elements in your pictures. They should complement one another and contribute to what you’re trying to sell — a lifestyle. Setting the stage can help prospective Miamian renters envision themselves in the space.
The area inside the four corners of the camera screen is prime real estate. Ensure your stills play down the cosmetic defects you want to deemphasize. They shouldn’t contain anything that feels out of place to minimize visual distractions — such as personal belongings, excessively religious symbols and family photos. Clean and declutter to eliminate eyesores.
6. Take Wide Shots of Every Room
Use a wide-angle lens to make interior areas appear roomier, especially when your rentals have limited square footage.
Everybody loves more space — almost 50% of the people who dislike their homes complain about cramped rooms. Posting something that looks claustrophobic can repel prospective renters. Seemingly airy rooms can persuade interested parties to reach out, even if you disclose your rentals’ exact floor areas.
7. Capture Dramatic Close-Ups
Make your focal points the star. Apply what you learned about composition and depth of field to render centers of interest more impressive. For example, use a shallow depth of field to make your subjects sharper than their backgrounds and more interesting.
8. Avoid Common Post-Production Errors
Put the finishing touches to your shots moderately. Post-production’s goal is to enhance photo quality, not alter the imagery. Manipulating various properties of the snapshots can make the edited versions look unrecognizable next to the originals, inadvertently misrepresenting your rentals.
Use Interior Design Photography to Attract New Tenants
Taking striking images of indoor spaces is the key to putting your rentals’ best face forward. Interior design photography is challenging, but these tips equip you with adequate knowledge to produce powerful visuals without spending a fortune.
Evelyn Long is a writer that specializes in housing market trends. She is also the founder of Renovated Magazine, where she writes essential resources for renters and homeowners. She has contributed to several other sites like the National Association of Realtors and Realty Executives.