Everyone will tell you that photographs are vital when selling your home. They are the window into the lifestyle your home can provide and the attention-grabbing hook, to make buyers take a closer look!
Surely, your agent can just pop along and snap a few shots on their latest smartphone camera? Well, no! Your agent isn’t a professional photographer. They may well be able to take a few photos of the rooms than suit social media; and part of their role is to advise you on which photographs ought to be used in your marketing material, but getting the best possible shot to start with? We think not, and in our opinion, this is definitely one to “leave it to the experts”!
So why do we at Alexander Gibson use a professional photographer in your bespoke marketing?
- A pro sees shots everywhere. Unlike an amateur, who will generally just get one or 2 shots of every room, a pro will see a creative shot in the turn of a banister, or across a garden feature towards the sunshine. He is trained to look for the shots where they occur, not snap what’s there.
- A pro will see what an amateur won’t. When he has a tripod set up, he can evaluate the shot in a considered way, using his vast experience and move things out of the way that may hinder: be it, the dog’s bed, a laundry hamper, or even a rubbish bin, yes we all have them, but we don’t all need to see them in beautifully crafted photos.
- A pro can deal with light levels. How often do you look at photographs of houses on Rightmove, where the windows are just white boxes? This is what a pro calls ‘blown out’ and it is because an amateur doesn’t have the expertise to cope with dark corners and light streaming through the window, at the same time.
- A pro takes his time. He has allocated a certain amount of time for the shoot, often several hours, and will walk round the property and plan the shoot carefully in his head. He takes account of where the light falls, and its path over the course of the shoot.
- A pro will add ambience. He knows when to turn lamps on, and when to rely on natural light from windows and doors. He is adept at capturing atmosphere like rainbows through those ornate windows or roaring fire.
- A pro has professional integrity. His job is solely to get the very best shots possible of your home. For an agent, it’s just one part of a very complex jigsaw in creating elegant, bespoke marketing material, with poetic descriptions and visual branding of your home. A professional photographer can instead dedicate himself to the job of capturing those perfect shots.
- A pro will deliver an exceptional finished result. It can easily take almost as long to edit a shoot as it does to take the photographs in the first place. There are so many intricate details to a photograph that can only be done by a professional, with the right equipment and software, that an agent just simply doesn’t have.
There is also the very important matter of timing, seasons and keeping up to date. Some homes can look incredibly enticing from the outside with a blanket of snow covering them, or tastefully decorated for the festive season; but all too often, an agent will take 1 set of photographs and then fail to update them. If your agent has taken photographs with your home lit up for Christmas, but your house is still on the market in Spring, it is a clear indicator that your house has been on the market for a considerable time.
Perhaps it’s not even the change in seasons; perhaps you have redecorated since the photographs were taken and now wish to show off the new décor? Or maybe that old dilapidated outbuilding in the background of your photo has since been removed? Whatever the changes that have taken place, its vital that your agent sends the photographer out again to keep your marketing fresh and up to date!
At Alexander Gibson, we always use an experienced, professional photographer to ensure that we get it right the first time, and are always happy to keep him busy if something has changed! If you would like us to review your marketing and let you know how we could improve things, please feel free to drop us an email at talk@alexandergibson.co.uk with the details or simply give us call.