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High Definition Real Estate Photography

by Jim Gross on August 26, 2010

Jim Gross of Real Property Videos

Jim Gross

Until very recently the option to getting great looking pictures involved a labor intensive process. The solution for a realtor or home owner that wanted pictures showing views through the windows was to schedule a sunset shoot with a photographer who would show up at sunset and wait for that 20 minute block where the outside lighting was just right.

Lightroom edits

Then high definition photography (HDR) began to evolve. This time consuming process involved taking 3-9 shots of the same view from a tripod at varying exposure levels. Dark exposures would show the window view better while light exposures would highlight the inside. These pictures would be combined through a roundabout process in various programs such as Photoshop,  Aperture or Photomatrix. The result would be the best details of all the combined images. The dark exposure would help to calm the inside light down while mountains and yards would “pop’” out the living room windows. Kitchens would look like something out of an architectural digest. High end photographers would often use this process delivering 8-12 finished photos. This process clearly left most semi-professional photographers and all non-professionals unable to compete with the clarity. The post processing time to do HD Photography has always been too intensive for low to mid priced photographers to justify offering.

A new type of HD photography has emerged on the real estate market known as Enfusing. This can be done with most any camera and is very similar to traditional HDR. There is a donationware based plugin developed by Timothy Ames for Lightroom Enfuse which makes it possible to batch process stacks of bracketed photos directly within Lightroom.

This opens up the arena now for mid priced real estate photographers to offer similar quality by batch processing groupings of images keeping post production time to a manageable level. Generally, post production is about one hour for every one hour of shooting.  Realtors, as you begin utilizing the services of a professional photographer make sure that they understand and have the ability to include high definition or enfusing techniques and most importantly that they are using a post production software such as the ones mentioned above prior to delivering your MLS pictures.

Jim GrossJim Gross, musician, virtual home tour producer and owner of the Virtual Tour Club cuts through misconceptions about using tours to help you transform your for sale listing into SOLD!

Visit our website at:
Virtual Tour Club
Contact Jim at 505-872-3531 or 1-800-894-7033
Follow Real Property Videos on Twitter Follow Real Property Videos On Facebook Follow Real Property Videos On Linkedin Follow Real Property Videos on Youtube Follow Real Property Videos On Google

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Subscribe: Real Estate Video Talk

From Musician to Real Estate Photography

by Jim Gross on August 23, 2010

The biggest question one might ask is why would someone switch gears from  a 30+ long career as a musician to start a new business photographing homes. Honestly, I struggle with that one daily, but there is something to be said for becoming too complacent in one’s job. When you can be sitting in front of 300 people playing “Malaguena” while having a casual conversation over your shoulder with the wait staff, things are just a little too comfortable.  Making the switch to real estate photography from a performing arts background feels good. About a year ago I purchased my first round of photography pro gear including a nice Canon, wide angle lens, lighting, pro tripod and computer post production software. Learning to shoot in high definition has been a real challenge. It’s back to basics… I can’t even chew gum and focus the camera straight. Frankly, I am loving it!
Music will always be a key component in my life. As we speak I am beginning my second flamenco album. Also key is my involvement to help improve the quality of music being used with virtual tour production. The popular platform I am using has chosen several of my pieces as well as other high end music production selections. The sound is one area where I believe I can make a real difference and help the virtual tour industry to raise the standards.

The music “business” has taken a huge hit in recent years with the advent of the iPod and dwindling CD brick and mortar stores. Seems that most record companies are so desperate that they have turned to suing people for copyright infringement as a major source of their income. Selling music is not a straight forward process anymore.

Real Estate has taken an equal hit causing agents to reinvent their marketing systems. This usually means a complete overhaul of online marketing sources such as Facebook, Twitter and online real estate sites such as Realtor.com. Because media can only take two forms online (sight and sound) it is vital to make sure that both of those are of high quality. Agents are turning to professional real estate photographers and the use of virtual tours to include motion and music. Most MLS systems now include a virtual tour media field for agents.

This has left a window open for photographers wanting to learn how to specialize in architectural photography. It’s not like shooting weddings or families. Homes don’t move, but lighting is a huge factor. A good photographer will walk room to room and decide how to deal with lighting and shadow issues that exist. During the day, light pouring into a window can fool the camera and “blow out” an entire room. So… it’s like starting all over again. The concentration, networking on photography forums and reading daily. Practicing shots in different lighting situations has become a daily routine. Getting tips from the many photographer friends I have made in the wedding industry has been a blessing. I even find myself being friendly to agents and home owners as I am excited about shooting their home. Career burn out can be a bad thing - change can be excellent… if it is for all the right reasons!

Jim GrossJim Gross, musician, virtual home tour producer and owner of the Virtual Tour Club cuts through misconceptions about using tours to help you transform your for sale listing into SOLD!

Visit our website at:
Virtual Tour Club
Contact Jim at 505-872-3531 or 1-800-894-7033
Follow Real Property Videos on Twitter Follow Real Property Videos On Facebook Follow Real Property Videos On Linkedin Follow Real Property Videos on Youtube Follow Real Property Videos On Google

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Music And Real Estate Virtual Tours

August 18, 2010

 

Jim Gross

There hasn’t been much content devoted to music chosen to make a virtual tour stand out. That is probably because most virtual tour providers don’t work in a music studio. My initial thought as I searched for real estate virtual tour platforms was that the music was vastly underrated. Music on tours ranged from [...]

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Preparing Your Listing for Photography

August 17, 2010

Preparing a house for a photographer can make all the difference between MLS  pictures that rock or ones that are disappointing at best. Good home staging would seem like a no-brainer for any new listing. Unfortunately, it doesn’t always happen that way. Larry Lorhman with photography for real estate posted on this subject last week [...]

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Let a Real Estate Photographer Edit YOUR Listing Pictures

August 13, 2010

There is no mistaking a home shot by a professional photographer when compared to an agent taking pictures of their own listing.  Even non-pros may know to turn on lights, fans and stay out of mirrors. The difference is clear in post processing of the pictures. Most professional photographers I know spend hours daily in [...]

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Making Your Real Estate Marketing Scream

June 24, 2010

Now that you have made the decision to get on board with some of the more commonly used on-line marketing tools you need to develop a consistent online marketing real estate system to use for each of your listings. The biggest mistake we see is agents that decide to use a photographer and virtual tour [...]

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Using Virtual Tours For Real Estate Marketing

June 8, 2010

As more realtors begin to use the virtual tour feature within the  MLS it is important to choose the best tour style for your particular real estate needs. With several styles of tours and different features available from each company, finding the right one can be a challenge.
The single most important issue is creating a [...]

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Real Estate Photography Tips For Realtors

June 2, 2010

I have wanted to revisit some basic real estate photography tips for agents shooting their own homes. The tours that I see contain many of the same problems which can be easily avoided or fixed  with simple inexpensive software such as Photoshop Elements. We all know that realtors wear many hats in marketing their customers [...]

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Get Top Search Ranking Using Your Domain Name

May 26, 2010

When we started our website, Real Property Videos, I wish I had known some of the facts that I learned over the course of the difficult climb up the Google ranking ladder. I finally broke down and bought a program that would take me thru each line of code and the whole listing of important [...]

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Marketing Homes Online

May 18, 2010

Bring your next listing to life. Agents need to consider local traffic, agent referrals and online buyers. Once you have created a system, you can duplicate it for each of your listings. I often hear agents say that for lower cost properties they will take their own MLS pictures or skip a virtual tour. However, [...]

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