Exteriors
Do it justice, it’s the first image prospective buyers see
Once prospective buyers decide their price range and the number of bedrooms they need, the very first thing they’ll look at in their pile of details, or Internet lists, are photographs of elevations, closely followed by photos of interiors and gardens, floor plans and finally descriptions. It seems logical therefore, that agents should make certain that their homes stand out from the competition by making a good fist of their photos, especially those of the outsides. This is critically important when there are fewer buyers around.
There are several considerations when photographing an exterior, the first of these is light. There isn’t much you can do to control outside light; you can’t make the sun shine when you want it to, but you CAN predict the best time of day to take a photo, and you can also, with some small degree of certainty, use weather forecasting to help you decide which day to take your camera out for the best pictures. Two good tips: firstly, you can use Google Map and the Hybrid button, which overlays an aerial photo on to a map, to help you identify the property and its orientation to the Sun. You know that the Sun rises in the East (on the right side of the screen) and sets in the West, (unsurprisingly on the screen’s left side). Photos are best taken with the sun behind the camera’s lens/over your shoulder, rather than in front of it. So if, for example, you have a property with the front facing East, then it’ll probably be best to take that photo in the morning, because if it’s taken in the afternoon the Sun will likely shine directly into your lens - not a great look! Where a property’s front faces due North, there will be extreme difficulty especially in the winter when the sun is shining. Therefore, you’re probably better off taking it on an overcast day so that the elevation won’t appear in deep shadow - which it will be all day.
One of the best site’s I’ve found for weather forecasts is http://www.metcheck.com. I’ve found it to be pretty accurate, and it’ll tell you what weather you might expect at three-hourly intervals, based on your nearest large town. So the combination of Google Map and Metcheck can help you to avoid wasting time taking photos in bad weather and at the wrong time of day.
A good tip for taking an exterior photo is to walk from one side of the house to the other, taking in the elevation, and what lies behind it. You’re looking for the aspect that looks aesthetically the most pleasing. Things to look for are opportunities for framing the elevation with the branches of a tree in the foreground or flower-heads perhaps. Look too at minimising the impact (without altering the photo) of a property that lies to the rear. Less obviously, you’re also looking for shapes, particularly that of the roof. For example, if you’re photographing a modern house that has a low-pitch roof, then particularly if the drive slopes down from the front to the road, if you get too close to the elevation the roof will appear as though it is flat. To overcome this, if possible you might try taking the photo from further away. The further away you get the more of the roof you will start to see, the better your photo will appear. Alternatively, take the photo from a stepladder, or better still, hire a mast photographer.
It’s the smallest things that can make the biggest difference to the effectiveness of a property’s photo. Attention to detail such as opening curtains, moving bins, bikes and cars from driveways can mean the difference between a photograph that attracts interest, and one that achieves the opposite effect. Ideally the front door should be in shot if at all possible - it’ll make the property look more inviting than if it is obscured by a bush or worse, a car! Most elevations look best when taken at a slight angle rather than flat-on to the elevation. If there is strong sunlight with tall trees creating very strong shadow, then you may be better off taking the photo at a time when the Sun is directly overhead, so that the trees are not able to cast their shadow.
There’s no rocket science involved here. All you really need to do in order to consistently take great photos of property exteriors, is to plan ahead and know your camera. It’ll also help if you take several photos, because in my experience, there’s usually one that is better than all of the others; and when you’re shooting digital, there’s no reason not to.
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