Real estate photography is both an art and a science. You have to have an eye for angles and lighting in order to flatter the rooms and layouts of the home or building. But there are also specific steps a real estate photographer must take before each and every photo is taken. Lines must be straight. Camera position must be at the most appropriate height. Light must be evenly balanced throughout the shot. It's not a simple point and shoot form of photography.

One of the challenges real estate photographers face is the large scale of dynamic range throughout most homes. Basically, this means that if you take a picture of a room with an open window, the brightness from the Sun is much brighter than the darkest area of the room. Situations like this create a difficult task for camera sensors to capture the entire range of light in the image. In order to remedy this, professional real estate photographers often use special methods to create HDR photos (High Dynamic Range). This method often involves taking three to five pictures at different exposures (brightness levels) and merging them together in post. The resulting image retains details in the brightest areas, as well as the darkest portions of the room or image.

Stories and Stills Real Estate Photography. Image taken in Woodside Plantation, Aiken, SC.

There are also flash methods in real estate photography that enable the exposure of the camera to be left low in order to maintain the details in the brightest areas, such as windows and lights. In this method, the flash fills the darker areas of the room with light, while the sensor stays in low sensitivity for the bright windows and lights. Determining which method to use is the key. It all depends on the room and the overall setting. Regardless, many images will still have to be adjusted in post when the editing takes place to give it that polished look overall.

Often considered the most important piece of equipment needed for a great real estate photography shoot is the wide angle lens. This lens enables real estate photographers to place the camera in corners and create images that show off the true size of a room. Since most people don't actually stand in corners of their homes, this often helps create images that make rooms appear large and open. This, of course, is great for real estate when you want to showcase your floor plan to potential buyers.

If you're in the market for a real estate photographer, contact us today. Very competitive prices and top quality images with the latest real estate photography methods.