Selling your house: 6 tips for taking successful photos

Are you one of those people who overlook the quality of the photos in their listing? Yet these images are the first ‘handshake’ with your potential buyers. Poor-quality photos are still common in property listings, and they can prove very costly…

Do you know how to prepare your property? How to take high-quality photos? Is a smartphone enough, or should you hire a professional?

If you want to sell your property under the best possible conditions, follow these six essential steps to ensure your photos are a success.

Step 1: prepare your property

Before even thinking about taking photos, you need to prepare your property properly. Help potential buyers picture themselves living there and imagine it as their home. There is nothing worse than showing photos of rooms that are cluttered, untidy or not very clean…in short, where it is obvious that someone is still living there.

Put yourself in the shoes of your ideal buyer! What do they want to see? Tidy, clean rooms. No personal belongings, especially items such as shampoo bottles in the bathroom! Declutter to create a sense of space. Instead, opt for tasteful staging: bouquets of fresh flowers, a bottle of wine, a fruit bowl… Make your property as welcoming as possible!

Step 2: choose the right features to showcase

Quantity does not mean quality. It is not enough to photograph every nook and cranny of your property and include 15 images in the listing. Select the most important rooms. When choosing the angles to photograph, make sure you create an atmosphere: the dining-room table set for a meal, the kitchen with attractive pans on the hob, the sofa facing the fireplace, the television area, the terrace with its beautiful view…

Experiment with lighting to showcase your property.

Remember to photograph charming little details too, such as attractive wall decorations or a work of art.

Step 3: use professional techniques

Have you put in all this work to prepare your property properly? Then now is not the time to neglect the photography. A smartphone is not designed for taking professional photos. You will not achieve the best possible results this way.

Instead, opt for a proper, high-quality camera. If you do not own one, ask a friend for help or hire a professional photographer.

Professional cameras with a wide-angle lens can capture larger spaces, even when there is little room to step back. Your framing should be horizontal and at eye level.

Avoid using flash and let in as much natural light as possible. Switch on all the lamps, use long exposures or increase your camera’s sensitivity.

A tripod is recommended to keep the camera steady and prevent blurred photos.

Beware of backlighting: never photograph a window straight on; always shoot it at an angle.

Step 4: take your photos over several sessions

Do not expect to get the best photos in a single session. Make the most of the weather: sunny conditions for outdoor photos, but overcast conditions for interiors to avoid excessive contrasts in light. Each room will require suitable lighting.

It is best to plan for different days and times of day to obtain the ideal shot of each room.

Step 5: edit your photos wisely

There is some excellent, easy-to-use photo-editing software available that can improve the quality of your images. Learn how to use it or hire a professional. At our agency, we use Lightroom, which gives us excellent results.

Remember, the aim is not to mislead! Lighting can sometimes be deceptive and make an image look different from reality. Editing will help give the photos an appearance closer to what visitors will see when they come to your property.

Step 6: arrange your listing photos in order of importance

Online users do not spend much time on each listing, especially when viewing it on a smartphone. The first photo, which will be used as the thumbnail, must appeal to them immediately.

So choose your lead photo and the first four images in your listing carefully. Showcase your property’s strengths from the outset.

If you follow all these steps, you should obtain attractive images that will help you stand out from the crowd. Your photos will reflect your professionalism and commitment, and present your property in the best possible light. They will help you attract the right buyers and improve your chances of selling.

So take high-quality photos to give yourself the best possible chance of success!