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Hi everyone, I'm in the process of starting a real estate photography and videography company in Southern California. The company will have the following services
- Photography
- Videography
- 360 Tours
- Drone Photos & Videos
I would like to know what real estate agents most value from a company that offers such services. If you have experience with a company that provides these services, is there something you wish they offered, that they currently don't? Do you find that individuals in this particular industry take too long to complete their assignments? Do you find that they are not flexible enough in terms of availability? Any annoying or unprofessional behaviors that would or have caused you to stop using such services?
Any advice or suggestions to make us a better company would be greatly appreciated.
Hi everyone, I'm in the process of starting a real estate photography and videography company in Southern California. The company will have the following services
- Photography
- Videography
- 360 Tours
- Drone Photos & Videos
I would like to know what real estate agents most value from a company that offers such services. If you have experience with a company that provides these services, is there something you wish they offered, that they currently don't? Do you find that individuals in this particular industry take too long to complete their assignments? Do you find that they are not flexible enough in terms of availability? Any annoying or unprofessional behaviors that would or have caused you to stop using such services?
Any advice or suggestions to make us a better company would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you for your time.
Immediate response to requests for a shoot.
Clear pricing.
Punctuality.
Show up clean, neat, and respectful of the clients.
Quick turn on your product. Next day at the latest. At least, give a good date and hit it every single time.
Turn on all lights and put the toilet seats down. (In Other Words, you might have a guide for agents and homeowners: How to Make The Most of Your Photo Shoot.)
Show your portfolio.
Getting started, you might do several for free to have a good portfolio to show. It would be an investment in your business and give you 8 or 10 to show.
Immediate response to requests for a shoot.
Clear pricing.
Punctuality.
Show up clean, neat, and respectful of the clients.
Quick turn on your product. Next day at the latest. At least, give a good date and hit it every single time.
Turn on all lights and put the toilet seats down. (In Other Words, you might have a guide for agents and homeowners: How to Make The Most of Your Photo Shoot.)
Show your portfolio.
Getting started, you might do several for free to have a good portfolio to show. It would be an investment in your business and give you 8 or 10 to show.
I would add to that . . .
High quality product (I don't want good photos/videos I want THE BEST photos/videos for my clients) and being willing to get your hands "dirty."
My dream photographer would have a good eye for staging as well and if something needed to be moved/removed to improve a photo they would do it. If a bed is unmade they would make it instead of shooting the photo of an unmade bed. I would LOVE to have a photographer that I can trust enough to just send to a house and not feel like I have to be there to oversee the process.
Immediate response to requests for a shoot.
Clear pricing.
Punctuality.
Show up clean, neat, and respectful of the clients.
Quick turn on your product. Next day at the latest. At least, give a good date and hit it every single time.
Turn on all lights and put the toilet seats down. (In Other Words, you might have a guide for agents and homeowners: How to Make The Most of Your Photo Shoot.)
Show your portfolio.
Getting started, you might do several for free to have a good portfolio to show. It would be an investment in your business and give you 8 or 10 to show.
All of this.
So I generally show up to prep the house for the photographer. I have one who will move things for the shot, but the others do not. I only use them when my favorite photographer can't do it.
If you are going to do this and be good
Remove the exterior trash cans before shooting the house.
Wind up the hose that the seller forgot about and is splayed all over the grass
Put the toilet seat down
Remove the trash cans from bathroom shots etc
You get the idea...
For me, the biggest difference in photographers is the composition of the photos. I find that most real estate photographers don't compose the shots well. Don't make rooms appear larger than they are. Don't take weird angles and shots that don't make sense. No bowling alley shots, unless the house really is like that.
Don't over-process the photos so that the 70's gold carpet is a different color. Make the photos LOOK like the house actually is.
Remove the exterior trash cans before shooting the house.
Wind up the hose that the seller forgot about and is splayed all over the grass
Put the toilet seat down
Remove the trash cans from bathroom shots etc
You get the idea...
This is what I meant by a photographer who's willing to get their hands dirty.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Silverfall
For me, the biggest difference in photographers is the composition of the photos. I find that most real estate photographers don't compose the shots well. Don't make rooms appear larger than they are. Don't take weird angles and shots that don't make sense. No bowling alley shots, unless the house really is like that.
Agreed! What's with the close up shots of the running faucets? Nobody cares to see that. This isn't high art. It's marketing.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Silverfall
Don't over-process the photos so that the 70's gold carpet is a different color. Make the photos LOOK like the house actually is.
I'm seeing a lot of photos with inaccurate colors lately. Sometimes, the photographer (usually an amateur) doesn't take the time to calibrate the white balance of the camera. Sometimes, it's someone sending a photo to one of those overseas processing companies like Box Brownie and they always end up over saturating the photo and it looks fake.
Our MLS now allows up to 100 photos.
I shudder to think of the "artistic" stuff that may get uploaded to fill in 100 spots...
Oh wow. We are at 42 which seems like plenty except for acreage properties where you might have a lot of out buildings and really large homes. 100 seems excessive.
Oh wow. We are at 42 which seems like plenty except for acreage properties where you might have a lot of out buildings and really large homes. 100 seems excessive.
Heck.
I can't get past the 11 photos of running water before the house is under contract sight unseen.
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Nobody cares to see that. This isn't high art. It's marketing.
