texashill Loc: Texas Hill Country

I agree. In my area, they even use extreme wide-angle for exterior shots. They use great equipment; high dynamic range; but emphasising the foreground so strongly is not a good marketing photo in my opinion.

mallen1330 Loc: Chicago western suburbs

Camera on tripod half way between floor and ceiling perfectly level will help avoid perspective distortion. But not always. And you will get barrel distortion with wide angle lens. PaintShop Pro and Photoshop have automatic lens distortion correction -- they detect the lens you used from the EXIF data in your images. They also have functions to straighten and fix converging verticals. The software that comes with your camera may also have lens correction functions.

jwestman Loc: Grand Rapids, MI

Lightroom will auto correct for most lenses. Look toward the bottom of the develop panel.

Carl D Loc: Albemarle, NC.

Photoshop and Capture One both have good lens distortion correction.

cjc2 Loc: Hellertown PA

For interiors I would normally use my 14-24 lens, a tripod and a flash, or perhaps 2. Lightroom CC has a good HDR program which I use quite a bit; however, it should not be used in place of good lighting and I consider my goal accomplished when it's hard to tell that I used HDR. Since I must often shoot at a time of day that I wouldn't normally, I find HDR helpful. Keep in mind -- getting it right in-camera is the best way, even if not always possible. I don't normally do McMansions as of now, but I plan to use a drone for that work. I find most realtors tight with a buck (I am also a realtor) so I tend to shoot homes that will yield affordable prices for my realtor clients. Realty work is new "ish" for me as I've been doing it for only 9 months. My normal work is sports, portraits and events other than weddings. Have fun with it. Best of luck!

Fotoartist Loc: Detroit, Michigan

I shoot real estate professionally. Interiors are more difficult than exteriors. To keep verticals aligned vertically in the camera shoot level at the middle height between floor and ceiling. This principle applies to exteriors as well. If you can't do that, correct for it in post processing. For maximum wide angle shots I shoot with a 24mm lens on a full frame camera (Nikon D4s). For tight interiors as well as tight exteriors I shoot panoramas with the camera in the vertical position rotating on the nodal point using a nodal point bracket. I am able to capture an interior showing all four walls if I choose. Good lighting, staging, and housecleaning are all important. Proper technique and equipment is also important but a solid dose of expert Photoshopping goes a long way also.

Mud2

Take it wider than you have to, and crop out the edges, where the distortion is maximum.

amfoto1 Loc: San Jose, Calif. USA

#1.... Canon TS-E 17mm f4L.

#2... Canon EF 11-24mm f4L USM.

#3.... Canon EF 16-35/4L IS USM.

I also might give a Venus Optics Leowa 15mm f4 Macro lens a try. It has shift movement, but not tilt. Manual focus only, same as the TS-E 17mm.... but that's no problem for this type of photography.



That's a good suggestion and way to get by with a less wide lens... and have less distortion to deal with.

krvitali

I am a former professional photographer with 10 years shooting for commercial clients that has been a real estate broker for many. I shoot my own real estate as well as shooting for other select agents.

I recently jumped to full frame and after much research settled on the Tamron 15-30mm. It was half the price of the Nikon 14-24 with quality coming close if not beating the Nikon lens. The Tokina was definitely a budget choice but after research came to the conclusion it was an older design that has not been updated in years.

With that said the Tamron has been an excellent choice and has not been a disappointment. Most of my real estate shots are in the 20-24mm range as I do not want a lot of perspective distortion (making rooms elongated and appear larger than they are... buyers hate that!). I definitely can go ultra wide for small bathrooms and such so it is nice to have the 15mm.

For about 1200 bucks you can get one for your Canon. I believe the Canon 16 to 35 is a few hundred more. If you are truly serious about interiors I can tell you I will never use much past 28mm but boy 1mm can make a difference between 15-16mm in tight situations.

Alternatively you can never go wrong buying a premium lens from Canon.

Both Taken with the Tamron 15-30

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jdubu Loc: San Jose, CA

I have abandoned the ultra wide settings of my 16-35mm for the longer end to minimize distortion. In fact, I have relegated that lens back to the bag in favor of a 24mm TSe lens for most interior shooting.

I shoot interiors for portfolios of interior designers, builders and craftsmen.. not for real estate, so my focus is more detail oriented and the emphasis of a shot is a bit different than real estate. But the principles and tools available are really the same. I just have to spend more time setting up my scene with props and lighting. I also try to avoid perspective distortion when at all possible.

The majority of my shooting employs the 24mm TSE, but I do use the 17mm and 45mm TSE in that order depending on the view needed. I also keep a 16-35mm, 50mm and a 135mm for detail shots in my location bag. I take along 2 tripods with center columns that angle, a Manfrotto 410 geared head on one and a Ninja Nodal leveler with a pistol grip on the other. I used to use a nodal panoramic bracket and still bring it along as well as a 24" slider, just in case.

If you are looking for an inexpensive route, a 16-35mm is a good start. A sturdy tripod and precision adjustable head are a must to minimize distortion in camera (you and your clients will dictate how much distortion is acceptable). Ball heads take too much time fighting to get all the axis right at the same time. At least use a 3 way pan head.

Gene51 Loc: Yonkers, NY, now in LSD (LowerSlowerDelaware)

17mm TS - amazing lens, excellent for RE on a full frame camera. With that and the 24 T/S, you'll have everything you need for RE.

erickter Loc: Dallas,TX