Preparing Your Home
Pre-Appointment Information
• Please have all people out of the home during the photo shoot and contain pets in the garage or out of sight. Our cameras use wide angle or 360 degree lenses that make them difficult to hide from. Also, our photographers can do their absolute BEST WORK without distractions.
• Essential photo shoots should typically take between 30 minutes and 2 hours depending on the chosen services. We will be photographing both the inside and outside of the home, including all of the major rooms. We normally do not photograph the garage unless it has special features. Other areas we tend to avoid are closets and laundry rooms unless asked. If they are visibly exceptional, we will most-likely photograph them.
• If there are special features of the home that are not obvious, please let us know about them so we can include them in the shoot.
Exterior
• Remove all vehicles from driveways.
• Move garbage cans so they cannot be seen from the street.
• Remove all garden tools including hoses and sprinklers.
• Mow and/or rake yard.
• Sweep driveways, sidewalks and patios.
Interior
• Clear or minimize countertops in kitchen and bathroom areas.
• Remove photos, notes and papers from the refrigerator.
• Turn ceiling fans and televisions off.
• Declutter rooms which may be excessively furnished. They do not photograph well.
• Make all beds and tidy bedrooms. Make sure all clothes are hung up, or put out of sight.
• Remove piles of newspapers and magazines and boxes.
• Tuck all indoor trash cans out of view, preferably in the garage.
Things To Remember
• Check light bulbs. They are often either not working or are a variety of different color temperatures.
• Stainless appliances tend to show fingerprints and streaks. Clean these appliances the day before so you can give it another try if it doesn’t turn out the way you’d like it to look.
• There’s nothing wrong with sprucing up a front yard with some nice plants and bark for ground cover.
• Curtains and blinds often need attention. We’d prefer to not have to touch them as they are often non-functioning and we will just make things worse!