What a Brighton property photographer can do for estate agents

Chandlers Wharf - Lewes

They're industries that every single person in this country will have some sort of interaction with at some point; it would be hard to imagine life without them. Photography - turning a page in the newspaper and your eye catches the nearest image, you drive down the street and see a product advertisement on a bus stop shelter; its main principle: to attract attention, to explain a story, to channel desire. Real estate (or property if you wish) - how would we live without the agents that work endlessly to find us the dream home we've always wanted. It is an industry where it doesn't take long when walking down any street in the UK before the logo and branding of a local agent enters your view. In fact, there are now around 9500 estate agents in the UK, and that number is increasing.

It has become increasingly important in the last for years for estate and letting agents to keep their head above water in the recent recession. Last year, there was in increase of 57% in the number of estate agents that had to close their doors due to feeling the credit crunch, yet their numbers continue to grow, making it perhaps one of the most competitive industries in the country. This is the time where managing directors and marketing directors alike, sit down and discuss how to put their business a cut above the rest. The answer many stumbleupon, professional photography.

Professional photography has been used in the real estate market for years, though recently there has been an explosion in popularity, and with good reason. With 97% of property searches coming in online now, it is imperative for agents to have an immediate impact with their property portfolio to entice homebuyers to their business. It takes just 4 seconds for a home buyer to make their opinion on a property prior to actual viewing, it is within those 4 seconds that dictates if the agent gets a shot at a sale, needless to say, these 4 seconds are perhaps the most import seconds an agent has to deal with.

Its in the job of the photographer to make sure all aspects of a photoshoot are managed correctly in order to make that property as attractive as possible to give the agents a fighting chance at a viewing and subsequent sale. Composition, angle, height, exposure, contrast, brightness, colour, white balance, lighting, shutter speeds, apertures, focal lengths - these are just a few variables a photographer must consider when taking a photo, the majority of these words being a bit of a mind boggle to the average agent! If you think that shoot taken with your brand new iPhone 5S will suffice because of its "8mp, f/2.2, 1.5 micron pixel, dual LED true tone flash", think again.

On average, property on the market with photos taken by a professional will have a perceived value of 12.9% higher, have a 3x the chance of selling and receive around 7x the number of viewings compared to standard, non-professional photography. The question agents must ask themselves, in this economic climate, is it worth missing out on those figures? I think not.

By Ross Gumbrell

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