When I first started hiring a professional photographer to shoot our real estate listings about 6 years ago, very few REALTORS® in my area (Kelowna, BC, Canada) were doing it. I probably wouldn't have done it either, but my good friend (who was an accomplished photographer) was branching out his practice and specializing in architecteral real estate photography. Back then, the real estate industry was still buzzing on the high of our 1990's revelation that we could buy our own digital camera and load our pictures right on MLS® without having to develop them.
Nowadays, a number of REALTORS® have adopted using a professional photographer to take pictures of their listings. Some agents do it because it's convenient, but most do because it impresses their clients when they bring a professional over with his/her fancy equipment to capture all the perfect angles in just the right light. These are both valid reasons but the reason why I think it is an absolute "must" for real estate photography to be handled by a professional is a little more strategic...
In today's world, people shop differently; differently than they did even 5 years ago. They shop for music differently, clothes, cars, insurance, and yes, houses. When I first became a REALTOR® 10 years ago, home buyers would look either online or in the paper at the current inventory of homes. Depending on where they were looking, they would see 1 to 4 pictures of each home. Their information sources wouldn't tell where the home was located on the street, what all the rooms looked like, what the nearby homes looked like, or what the FSA score of the nearest school was:). Because of this "lack" of information, buyers behaved differently; they didn't have the information to make educated decisions about homes that fit their criteria until they had actually seen them so they would physically visit all the homes that fit their criteria and compile a "short list" based on what they had physically seen.
With todays accessable information and online tools, buyers are comfortable making big decisions using the information they find online. Consumers buy expensive used cars online and then fly accross the continent to pick them strictly using online information. People buy elabarate vacations strictly based on the online recommendations of strangers. Just as shoppers are used to getting the feel for the items that they buy online before they decide to buy them, home buyers expect to make their first visit to your home using their computer or mobile device, and they will decide whether they want to view your home in person based on what they see and how it makes them feel. That's right, the "shortlisting" process described above now happens in a very big way before they ever step into the door of your home.
So what does this have to do with professional photography? In light of the information above, my job in effecticely marketing a property is to present it in its best light so that it has the best chance of being "virtually shortlisted". Indoor pictures taken with a "point and shoot" camera by an amateur usually look small, dark and off-colour. Professional skill and high quality equipment can capture an indoor space like your eyes capture it, with the natural light and openness that your eyes naturally see. Nowadays, homes that have just a few photos online or bad photos create from buyers like: "what are they hiding" or "yuck". Even if these reactions may be based on an inaccurate or incomplete impression, buyers are prepared to write you home off due to these feeling without thinking twice.
If you've shopped for a home, you've no doubt seen the "1 Picture Wonder" listings or the "Did That Guy's Camera Just Fall on the Floor and Accidentally Go Off" pictures. When you consider that each one of these properties represents someone who wants to sell their home and has important reasons to do so, it's sad that these properties are being so poorly presented. When you analyze how the dynamics of today's marketplace, it seems like a bit of a no-brainer...
In case you haven't already guessed, every one of my listings is captured by a professional photographer and presented online with 21 high resolution images. Everything I do as part of my comprehensive marketing plan is for a reason and has strategy behind it. If you need a down to earth REALTOR® the Kelowna (British Columbia, Canada) area who is professional and experienced, contact me.
Grant Wiebe 250-869-2279 grant.wiebe@century21.ca