[photopress:15.jpg,full,alignright] Night photos have become very popular here in the Seattle Area. Used mostly for high end homes, rather than this price range of $599,900.
I’m thinking a digital camera is likely not the best way to take these, though this one didn’t come out badly for an “extra” shot. Looks fairly appropriate for Halloween. If anyone has any tips on how to best take a photo in the dark with all of the lights on, please post them here.
And before Galen asks, yes. I broke my own price tier rule on this one because I already market tested it at $600,000 to $650,000.
A tangent to this is to take pictures before you HAVE to. Trying to get a shot on a rainy day when the house goes on the market in 2 days is not ideal. Consider sunsets, interesting light, etc. (an example: the lighthouse gallery on my referenced URL)
Thanks Patrick,
That is one of the reasons I hate the mls rule that says a listing MUST be entered within 24 hours of the listing being signed. It promotes agents taking those rainy day photos to comply with the rule.
There are three options to the rule. One is to ignore it, two is to always get a letter from the seller saying “Are you KIDDING ME!?! 24 hours to get my house and photos and everything that goes with ready!? The third is to work on the listing without a contract, and then get the contract signed when it is ready to go. I use one and three 🙂
The rule is so that the listing agent can’t show it and sell it before other agents have a chance to show it. Nothing wrong with rules of play between agents and agents…until they make NO SENSE WHATSOEVER to the consumers involved.
Ardell, the trick to a good night shot is a tripod or some other sturdy surface, a long shutter (digital point and shoot or fancier) and dusk. Take the picture when the lights in the house are slightly brighter than the sky or a little after that. You might still need photoshop to fix up the results.
“digital point and shoot or fancier”? I have two versions of the Canon PowerShot. An A510 and the older A60. Are these OK?
Check to see if they have a night mode or let you set the longest shutter speed. If they have a night mode, try it out by taking a picture in your house with the lights off tonight – you should hear a click, a long pause, and another click.
The A510 can expose for up to 15 seconds, which should be way more than enough (source: http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/specs/Canon/canon_a510.asp). Put it on night mode and see what you get.
Hi, I’m from Fremont in Ballard area. Somehow, I stumbled upon your blog. Are all of you selling real estate online? I really want to learn…
Btw, it’s a nice photo.
Thanks. We’re a “group blog”. Some of us are agents. Some are techies. Some are lawyers…a mixed bag.
What do you want to learn?
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Ardell,
I have followed the old Compuserve Photography forum http://community.compuserve.com/n/pfx/forum.aspx?nav=start&webtag=ws-photography for more years than I care to count, and I have obtained a tremendous education in Photography there. If and when you have some free time, start reading through their message Board Folders, I think you’d like it.
Night or Day, houses will have trouble selling very soon. You should use an open minded lens so you can see.
Lance,
In any market we have houses that are hard to sell and houses that are easier to sell. I started in the business during a time when it was VERY hard to sell anything.
Right now we are in a market where buyers need to feel confident in the “value” of the house OR just blown away thinking this is “the one” and just have to have it. There are a lot of properties that don’t meet either of those criteria that are falling between the cracks.
Ardell, the mls will allow you to get a listing signed with a delayed input into the multiple with a letter from the seller allowing this, though the mls has to upload the listing. Then it’s hard to time uploading the pictures so they’ll be there the minute the lisitng is active, but it is possible.