There are varying reasons why hiring the services of professional real estate photographers is considered important to a real estate business. These professional and highly trained individuals are the people equipped to see every detail of the project that an untrained eye may not see. Having a professional and well skilled photographer at your side will not only save you time and money but he could also share his or her invaluable wisdom in the process of selling a real estate property in the modern era.

But when you are just a beginner in the real estate business, you’re bound to make numerous photography mistakes. Those mistakes could be beneficial if you really want to master the art of selling. There is no reason to commit mistakes but there’s always room for improvement. Hiring the services of an amateur real estate photographer will always show signs of amateurism. Therefore, they are prone to commit common mistakes that will eventually discourage clients.

Below are the 9 common mistakes an amateur real estate photographer should avoid.

1. Amateur photographers converge verticals and place incorrect horizontals

The convergence of verticals and incorrect horizontal placements are just two of the common issues made by those people who are just beginning to make real estate photography as their bread and butter. These problematic issues are familiar mistakes associated with camera angles in taking exterior photos which can be noticeable when using wide-angle lenses.

2. Incorrect white balancing

White balancing is the removal of unrealistic color casts to make objects appear white. One of the most obvious signs of incorrect white balancing is that the photos don’t give the true color of the space. Amateur photographers have no eye on the use of numerous light sources that give different temperatures. If this is the case, the use of proper flash should be done in order to overpower multiple light sources.

3. Work may suffer from lens distortion

Amateur photographers often rely much on cheaper photography equipment. The use of cheap lenses will render problems in the post-production adjustment. Commonly known as the “Fisheye” lens, the subject being too close to the lens can cause distortion. Professional real estate photographers make sure that proper distancing is observed relative to the subject.

4. Where is your list?

Real estate photography is usually fast paced. Especially when budgets are low, clients are always in a rush in getting the job done. It is the assignment of the photographer to list down all the possible areas because each property has unique details. Always start with the fundamental shot list before proceeding to the more modified piece of work. Having your own list will gain you the feedback you need from your clients and this will be ideal in creating your market.

5. Toilet seats are open

This is a very common mistake an amateur photographer normally commits. Leaving the toilet seats open is not good especially when presenting to prospective buyers. So before taking photos inside the ‘Do not disturb’ area, it is important to close the toilet seat first before taking photos.

6. Hot flash marks

Areas identified with hot flash spots are distractions that are not pleasing to the eyes. Light sources like on-camera flash, ceiling lights and strobes can cause flash glare. Usually, these hot flash spots appear as reflections in mirrors, windows and glasses. Water can also cause glares when the outdoor shoot is done on a hot sunny day. To answer this concern, the use of light diffusers like umbrellas can bounce your flash off.

7. Post-production tone mapping mistake

Real estate HDR photography are oftentimes over-processed. While post-processing is an essential tool for the artistic conceptualization of the image, this is not basically what you are really aiming for in real estate photography. This is a common mistake when hiring the services of an amateur real estate photographer. Unknowing during post-processing, they use invalid settings for tone mapping. This occurs when raw images are batch-processed, or only ambient exposures with no flash or proper lighting took place during the shoot. In order to fix this issue, proper lighting space is recommended.

8. Hard shadows appear

Just like when hot flash marks appear, the use of umbrellas to diffuse or bounce back can be suggested when rooms look dark. When this happens, dark shadows occur. These shadows can also create dirtier ambience on the walls and ceilings. Minimize the use of on-camera flash or avoid shooting the flash upfront without diffusing it.

9. Lacking the needed preparation before the shoot

It is important to have a complete housekeeping and decluttering of the area before a shoot happens. Areas and spaces must be organized in order to get the attention of the clients. A clean and well-organized area is very pleasing to the eye. Every real estate listing that you have must be orderly and cleanliness must always be preserved.