Are you thinking of selling your home in Traverse City or the surrounding areas? Wondering if your agent is correct when they tell you they are going to save money on photography and just shoot photos of the property with their iPhone. We encourage you to think again. Professional photography is 100% the way to go as well as an agent who understands its value.
The Competitive Edge
While an iPhone can take some great pictures of your children, vacation or favorite dessert, nothing beats the artistic and staged perfection that a professional photographer can bring when photographing your home. Whether there are many or few homes on the market, you need yours to stand above the rest, not fall into the clutter. Professional photographers have an understanding of appropriate lighting, access to wide-angle and other specialty lenses to make rooms feel larger, a handle on composition that flatters the space and of course editing in post-production. Of the core components that make professional photos distinct from amateur photography, the most important categories of distinction are Composition, Lighting, and Editing.
Composition & Perspective
Have you ever tried taking a picture of a small room with your smartphone and see the results? Not pretty, right? While some of the newer phones do have wide-angle and telephoto lenses, it’s most important that the person using them knows their full potential. The various lenses a professional photographer carries with them can accommodate both tight and large spaces. When paired with a professional’s artistic approach and skill set, you are able to give viewers an experience of the home that is close to the naked eye and appealing to viewers.
Additionally, a professional will understand the importance of the photo’s composition. A balanced image that is clean and crisp gives the viewer the creative freedom to imagine themselves in the space. A professional can create a light and airy feeling that makes a room pop on film.
Lighting
Speaking of lighting: A professional photographer can walk into almost any situation and transform the available light into the perfect warm and inviting glow that will capture your prospective buyer’s interest. A photographer is able to utilize both daytime and evening light to shoot those perfect, magazine-quality pictures you see across all of our listings. Outdoor sunset shots are featured with lake homes, while neighborhood homes are shown as “white-picket-fence” shots during the brightest time of day. Photographers know when to incorporate indoor lighting and also when to stick with sunshine through the windows and doors. Opening blinds, doors, and turning off yellowed lights are all part of a formula that photographers are geared to quickly solve.
Shooting the home is only half the battle. The rest of the magic happens behind the scenes, at a computer. Tying a theme throughout each picture gives a home a mood and cohesiveness. Like many Instagram pages, your home will pick up more traffic when that theme is reflected throughout the home, whether in filters or in decor.
In the chaos of moving out of a home, oftentimes some paraphernalia is left behind. Sometimes it isn’t even caught until after photos. Runaway cables, sporadic wall smudges, and even kids refrigerator magnets can be erased from a picture and allow passage to a buyer imagining their potential new home.
Things as simple as the tint of lighting can affect the shot. Seeing a home that is washed in yellow can be a big turn off! Photographers can work something as specific the lighting to the theme designated to your home.
The Brick & Corbett Difference
Going through the process of documents, signatures, planning, and marketing can be rendered useless if your photos aren’t up to par. When buyers fly through Zillow listings, it is the photographs that capture their attention. Like a glossy magazine, a home’s photography has to paint a picture of what life would be like in this beautiful home. You have one chance to make a first impression, so make sure that your initial handshake is strong and different from the pack.
Learn more about how Brick & Corbett is different here.