Interior shots of homes for sale: I am an active real estate agent in need of practical advice on photographing the inside of America's homes. I have found plenty of examples and...

jokatz Loc: Lexington, SC

I am an active real estate agent in need of practical advice on photographing the inside of America's homes. I have found plenty of examples and articles about the homes of rich and famous but not for our average homes that we live in. What have you found to be the best lens' size, the best flash setup, daylight vs night time, perspective, etc. Any and all thoughts and experience are appreciated. Thanks from a long time lurking Newbie, Joe Katzenberger

riverlass Loc: northern California

Hi Joe, Welcome to UHH.
I look at Trulia and Zillow all the time. It's a habit that keeps me occupied for hours. I sold real estate, here in California, for a very short time and old habits die hard.
I'm noticing a horrible trend to take super wide angle photos of houses and interiors that look distorted and strange... and don't show the homes to the best of their ability.
I recommend a prime lens like my Tamron 10-24mm and a separate speedlite flash. I have the Tamron and I love it. It's a great wide angle lens and isn't as expensive as the Nikon.
It would also be a good idea to tell us what camera you have.

Linda From Maine Loc: Yakima, Washington

Definitely daytime with curtains open, if there are pretty views through the windows - such as towards the backyard... as long as the light isn't so bright that it affects your interior exposure. I used a 24 or 28 mm (I can't recall) prime lens for my Canon SLR film camera and just the flash that attached to shoe on top. Later when I had a Canon Rebel DSLR, I used the 18-55 kit lens. The built-in flash wasn't good for large rooms, though.

Have as many interior lamps and lights on as possible. Make sure space is uncluttered. Highlight architectural details of the house, not stuff that won't be there when it sells - such as just a wall with a couch - or a bed. Don't take flash shots directly towards mirrors or windows.

Besides the two websites already mentioned, view images on realtor.com in the price range of homes you're listing. Best of luck!

jokatz Loc: Lexington, SC

Thanks for the quick replies and suggestions. I am presently using a Canon 50D with a Sigma 28-70 & Tokina 12-24 lenses. In place of the the on board flash I have a Speedlite 430EXii.
A challenge I have is the different kinds of light. Daylight through windows, incandescent, fluorescent and flash. I an getting some ugly results (sorry UHH for the reference to ugly!).
For fun, I like doing street photography with a Fuji X100 and have even considered selling out and getting a XE-1. On my short bucket list!

riverlass Loc: northern California

Linda From Maine wrote:

Definitely daytime with curtains open, if there ar... (show quote)

This link might help too:
http://www.scantips.com/lights/flashbasics5b.html 8-)

BHC Loc: Strawberry Valley, JF, USA

jokatz wrote:

I am an active real estate agent in need of practical advice on photographing the inside of America's homes. I have found plenty of examples and articles about the homes of rich and famous but not for our average homes that we live in. What have you found to be the best lens' size, the best flash setup, daylight vs night time, perspective, etc. Any and all thoughts and experience are appreciated. Thanks from a long time lurking Newbie, Joe Katzenberger

Joe, this may seem like an over-simplification, but too often I find it's a major reason for lost sales. Simply this: If the home isn't ready to show, it's not ready to photograph. You say you are an agent; are you a Realtor? If so, you are aware how a listing that is not prepped for sale will sit on your books until the listing expires. If you have such listings, photos won't help. Photograph only your star listings!

As far as lenses go, I would advise available light shots with a Tokina 10-24 f/4 (assuming you have an APS-C DSLR.

Blurryeyed Loc: NC Mountains.

Here are a couple of links that you may find useful, dedicated to real estate photography professionals, they discuss lenses techniques etc. Wide angle lenses are important, but just as important is post processing to correct the distortions of those lenses. Even lighting is often achieved by the use of multiple flash units, correct exposure of the windows and outside views are as important as the correct exposure of the rooms themselves, be it done with HDR techniques or through proper use of flash. Post processing is very important if you want to achieve professional results.. All these things as well as recommendations are talked about on these sites.

http://photographyforrealestate.net/

http://www.flickr.com/groups/photographyforrealestate/

zerobeat

Several years ago I was faced with that question. I already owned a Canon crop size DSLR. Purchased a 10-22 lens for it, and never looked back. The lens is very sharp and I had no trouble shooting a 24' x 40' in one shot.

If you happen to own a more expensive full framed camera, then a 16 x whatever will do the same thing size wise, although more expensive.

Without question, get a quality tripod to go with it. With a tripod you can eliminate most lighting needs with longer exposure. Will look more natural usually. Just learn how to operate the "pick your focus/exposure" points to lessen the camera being fooled by outside light.

Old Redeye Loc: San Mateo, CA

I take multiple shots, overlapping and combine them in Photoshop to minimize distortion. Taking separate photos of the window and walls, with exposure set separately renders good results, using the same layer/mask methods. Of course, the use of a tripod is imperative. More time consuming than shooting a single wide-angle, but far better results. NAPP has some good tutorials on this subject.

Blurryeyed Loc: NC Mountains.

jokatz wrote:

I am an active real estate agent in need of practical advice on photographing the inside of America's homes. I have found plenty of examples and articles about the homes of rich and famous but not for our average homes that we live in. What have you found to be the best lens' size, the best flash setup, daylight vs night time, perspective, etc. Any and all thoughts and experience are appreciated. Thanks from a long time lurking Newbie, Joe Katzenberger

Another thought is spend your time on doing what you do best, selling homes and attracting new listings, pay a pro to photograph the homes, dedicate your time to the the things that produce the best results, Properly done a home shoot will consume anywhere from 3 to 4 hours or more of your time depending on how good you are in post.

PhotoArtsLA Loc: Boynton Beach

Without powerful strobes which cost thousands of dollars, real estate interiors are the stuff of gelled (for color matching) windows and shooting at dawn or sunset, with high f/stops, wide to very wide angle lenses, and a tripod. The exposure might be several seconds. (Don't get me started on tripods...)

This Interior Used 2400 Watt-Seconds of strobe, pulsed to build exposure over several "snaps." This is pro stuff, which I was and continue to be.

Big Owl Loc: Sydney, Australia

Blurryeyed wrote:

Another thought is spend your time on doing what you do best, selling homes and attracting new listings, pay a pro to photograph the homes, dedicate your time to the the things that produce the best results, Properly done a home shoot will consume anywhere from 3 to 4 hours or more of your time depending on how good you are in post.

Could not agree more. I did real estate photography for about 5 years and it was amazing the amount of agents that did not realize the value of a professionally shot property until the sales started to climb.

Effate Loc: El Dorado Hills, Ca.

Blurry eyed, red eye, you guys need to get more sleep!

rmalarz Loc: Tempe, Arizona

jokatz wrote:

I am an active real estate agent in need of practical advice on photographing the inside of America's homes. I have found plenty of examples and articles about the homes of rich and famous but not for our average homes that we live in. What have you found to be the best lens' size, the best flash setup, daylight vs night time, perspective, etc. Any and all thoughts and experience are appreciated. Thanks from a long time lurking Newbie, Joe Katzenberger

Joe,
I've done interiors. Here's what I use. Tripod, Nikon D700, 20mm f/2.8, and available light. There is so much textural information that is captured with available light that just gets overpowered by flash.

On the rare occasion that I have used flash, it's been off camera, out of sight, and placed where a normal light would be. This gives the visual impression of the room being lit naturally.
--Bob

Bram boy Loc: Vancouver Island B.C. Canada

jokatz wrote:

Thanks for the quick replies and suggestions. I am... (show quote)

you are really doing some wrong if your not getting the results you want .
with the equipment you have you should be getting very good results. if your
not . then you need to learn how to use that equipment . do you know all there is to know about the 50D. intakes a while to get it all . I'm still finding things . and I have had this camera for five years