Top 12 tips when taking photos of properties

1. Ensure your camera has a wide-zoom (E.g. 28mm-70mm) lens so you can take good interior and exterior photos

2. Take 15 minutes to learn how to use the camera properly – especially flash & exposure settings – Learning how to half-press the shutter for correct exposure then recompose will give much better results than just point & shoot!
3. Set camera to 1600 x 1200 pixels and ISO 100-400
4. For houses, try to show the depth of the property in the photo if possible
5. Try to avoid taking photos when the sun is behind the property as the property will come out dark – choose a different time of day. As a minimum ensure you freeze exposure for the property not the sky behind!
6. Make use of wide-angle lens with interior photos
7. Set the flash to ‘Always on’ for interior shots, especially when the shot has a window in it – to prevent the room appearing ‘dark’ due to under-exposure (caused by camera adjusting for the brightness of the light coming through the window). For large rooms use a more powerful flash.
8. Ask Vendors/Landlords to get the property ready in advance of your visit including clearing clutter for interior shots and anything undesirable for exterior shots (dustbins etc).
9. Ugly vans on driveways are not ideal – ask vendor to remove for the photo; especially if view of garage is obscured.
10. For unattractive properties use interior shots or ‘views’ from the property or a nearby point of interest (Park etc)
11. Make the effort to squeeze into the corner of a room to get as much in as possible
12. Avoid showing PILONS if possible but DO NOT Photoshop them out of any image – it is a breach of the PMA!