Photographing Atlanta Rentals

The savvy owners of this gorgeous midtown condo wanted photographs of their home before it became a rental.  They had lovingly cared for the home and were unsure about when they were going to actually put it up for sale.   It looked its best right now and photographs needed to be taken today.

Enjoy the photos, it's already rented!

Liz Lopez Photography

3 weeks to sell Brookwood Hills home in Buckhead

I received an email from home owner, Leo Welf in mid October.  He had been searching  for an Atlanta based real estate photographer to photograph his home.

He owned a beautiful updated Brookwood Hills home and wanted it to show that way in listing photos.  He knew the impact listing  photos can make. He also knew that the buyer's first impression (photographs) was vitally important to getting the home viewed (clicks) and shown.  Almost 90% of home buyers start their search on the internet and it's there where the buyers are shopping.  

I photographed his home in late-mid October and the home was sold by Nov. 12th.  So what did he do to get it sold? Keep reading!

Here's a quick run-down.

1. Hired a Real Estate Photographer - Leo hired a photographer who specializes in 

Real Estate Photography - Me.  He saw my website and really liked my work and the services I offered. His house had some customized and updated features and he wanted to make sure he had the best photos possible.

2. The Virtual Tour was a big part of his marketing plan - A virtual tour needs to be more than a slideshow.  Buyers want info about schools, shopping, local hangouts, etc.  My virtual tours include this info,  are mobile ready, have extra large photos, captions, floor plans, agent info, email, and is easily accessed in one place. Buyers could even email him from the tour.  Check out Leo's virtual tour here.  The virtual tour that I use have their own web address.  

                                 Flyer 1

3.Created a flyer with impact - Keep it simple.  One borderless page, with 1 to 3 photos should do the job.  The flyer I designed has lots of impact and directs them to the virtual tour.  I designed two flyers but Flyer 1 made the cut.

                            Flyer 2

4. Attached the virtual tours URL to the For Sale sign - An easy to remember virtual tour link was hung on the for sale sign. Leo used 46montclair.com and simply redirected the original www.AtlantaRealEstateTours.com/9161 link. When someone drives by they can easily view the photographs and access the home's info just by entering the web address.  I checked the virtual tour stats and Leo's tour was viewed almost 400 times in the first 3 weeks. 

46Montclair.com

Hope I've given you some real estate marketing ideas for 2013.  Shoot me an email with any questions, I'd love to help you.

Liz Lopez Photography
Liz@atlantarealestatephotography.com
404-402-8991

A Gem of a Mid Century Home

One of the things I love about photographing Atlanta real estate is discovering these pockets of homes with timeless architecture.  Ken Hedrick of Prentiss Park Staging staged this home to fit the design but also gave it a highly sought after updated look.  It's ready to move in but the only question is, 'Shaken or stirred?'

3535 Regalwood, Atlanta - GA

Liz Lopez Photography
404-402-8991

Why does my home look like a teepee?

I'm sure you have seen photos of listed homes where the sides are falling inwards and looking like the beginnings of a teepee.  Houses have vertically straight up walls so why are they falling in as seen in the photo A ?

Photo A

This is usually caused by photographing the house at street level and tilting the camera and/or leaning back to capture the entire house thus causing the sides to lean inwards.  This home in particular sat about 10 feet higher than the street. The exterior shot is your most important photo, the 'money shot' and it needs to look its most attractive to get those initial clicks and stand out. 
The e-curb appeal. Remember, over 90% of buyers begin their home shopping on-line and have expressed that photos are the most important tool when looking for their potential home. In photo A the sides would have been leaning in much more but it's reflexive for me to use a ladder when I am photographing an exterior (more on this later).

How do you correct your verticals so your exterior shots look their magnificent best?

Photo B

There are many different methods to correcting verticals and I've only listed just a few that I've used or experimented with.

Solutions

1. Shoot from a ladder to give yourself the height and perspective that's needed but be careful and make sure the ladder is on level ground. I use a 4 foot ladder because it's light enough for me to carry with one arm and I feel safe at that height. The 6 foot was heavier and I was just too uncomfortable balancing and trying to hold a camera.

2. Use the PAP method - Pole Aerial Photography.  Special equipment will need to be purchased and it will take some practice on use. Your camera is connected to an extension pole and you can shoot as high as 15 feet up. I'll be writing  a blog about this method in later posts so stay tuned.

3. Straighten the verticals in your post production work.  Specialized software can be purchased or if you're adept with Photoshop, verticals can be corrected there.  Make sure you have enough room around your photo to work with because when you do all your vertical straightening in post, sometimes quite a bit of the photograph is cropped out.

 ...  and my favorite

4. Hire a Real Estate Photographer. They have invested in tools, training and software to get the job done. 

What did I do for photo B?  I used a hybrid method from the solutions listed above.  As mentioned earlier, I immediately pulled out my ladder for the shot so no photos were taken from street level. I would have liked to use a pole but bad weather was threatening and I needed to shoot before the rain hit.

I use a 4-foot ladder. It's light in weight and it gives me the extra height I need in almost all exterior shots. I got three extra feet from the ladder so now my camera is about eight feet from ground level.  I was still  two feet short and I do want to fix or correct as much as possible in the field.  Like most photographers I would rather be shooting your beautiful listings than sitting in front of computer editing photos ... but I still needed a couple more feet.  I raised the camera above my head making sure to keep it level, set my camera in live view, centered the house, and hit the shutter release and ended up with photo B.  I then performed some minor edits and voila, photo B. I did have to straighten the verticals slightly in the post work but nothing compared to if I had not used my hybrid method. 

Want to see a virtual tour of this beautiful home, click here?

Feel free to call or email with any questions you may have about your photos.



Liz Lopez- lizlopezphoto@medotcom
404-402-8991

Selling a Home in 3 days

Selling a home in 3 days!  ... And for a $105,000 over ask. ... And it was the Broker's home.

What real estate agent wouldn't love to have a listing perform like that?  I photographed Ben Hirsh's home of Hirsh Real Estate and as he says in his blog, he was determined to follow the advice he gives to his sellers. Ben wrote 4 Ways to Sell Your Home in 3 Days and it includes some very savvy marketing rules. Of course, I love rule number 3 - 'use a pro photographer who specializes in real estate'.  Thank you Ben!    



Still not convinced?  Here's a couple more articles written in national newspapers about the importance of Professional Real Estate Photography and what it can do to get your listings viewed and sold.   

Get a Picture Perfect-Home Sale 

"Photography is at the center of all your marketing," says Brian Balduf, chairman of VHT, a provider of photography services to agents and brokers in the Chicago area. "It's not just documenting that there is a house for sale. You want people to say, 'What a house,' " and be motivated enough to take action, he says."

Quality Photos Make All the Difference in Marketing Your Home   


  

  


Liz Lopez Photography
404-402-8991

Atlanta Multifamily Photo Postcards

Atlanta has some beautiful multifamily properties and I've been lucky enough to photograph some of them.  Right now is a perfect time to shoot apartment communites because of everything that's in bloom and the skies that can be so heavenly looking. A perfect frame for your properties.

Liz Lopez Photography
Specializing in Real Estate and Mulitfamily Photography
www.AtlantaRealEstatePhotography.com

760 Southfield Lane, Alpharetta 30004 - Create Buzz with Great Real Estate Photography

I could go on and on about this home but ... it's already under contract. Yup, Ben Hirsh of Hirsh Real Estate wanted great photography to help with generating some buzz for this home. It worked.  The home was under contract the same weekend it was put on the market.  Marketing at its finest! 

Here's a few photos I took but don't fall in love with the home, it's going to have a new owner soon!

Liz Lopez Photography
Specializing in Atlanta Real Estate and Interiors
www.AtlantaRealEstatePhotography.com
404-402-8991