PART I
Digital cameras and editing software continue to get better and cheaper, yet most Realtors continue to post photos on the multiple listing service that appear mediocre at best (vomit-inducing at worst). Photos are taken with little thought to lighting or composition, and many listings sit there with no pictures at all.
This should come as grievous news to home sellers, since the National Association of Realtors reports that quality listing photos are still the number one best marketing tool to get your property sold quickly.
Here is the list of 10 major blunders that we find appear most often in the MLS.
10. Photographs with date stamps
This probably stems for the desire to assure prospective buyers that the pictures accurately represent the property in its current condition. However, this really does look bad, especially when the date on the photo is more than a few months old!
The bright yellow date lets you know just how old this photo is, in case the wall-to-wall Thomas Kinkade wallpaper didn’t give it away.
9. Crooked photos of the property
Given the abundance of free photo editors that will straighten your pictures for you, there’s really no excuse for this anymore. I suspect these are all posted by sadists who relish the thought of people turning their heads at uncomfortable angles.
Either this agent was suffering from the throes of vertigo, or he hadn’t yet discovered the “rotate image” button that came with his free camera software.
8. Blurry and out-of-focus photos
Some agents can’t be bothered to turn on their camera flash, much less use a tripod or Google what the ISO setting does. They should at least take several shots of each room to guarantee one is usable.
This is what it’s like to be drunk in the living room at 10:00 AM.
7. Exterior photos taken into the sun
No home, no matter how lovely, can look its best in this light. The same is true for photos taken when the sun is directly above. Timing the photo shoot for early to mid morning or mid to late afternoon ensures this doesn’t happen.
Nice house! Is that yellow or beige?
6. Interior photos with bad tint
Really, this could be fixed with a basic crash course in how to use a modern camera. Barring that a little touch-up with photo-editing software. Nothing turns a buyer off faster than pictures tinted sickly orange or putrescent green. Okay, that’s not really true, as we will see in the next week’s post.
The kitchen looks so warm and inviting. In a dire, depressing kind of way!
If you think those pictures are bad, just wait until next week’s post when we cover part 2 of our Top Ten Crimes Against Photography. We’ve saved the best for last! See you then.
Have some personal experience with one or more of these? Like, comment, or share below.
Leave a Reply