Why estate agents should use elevated photography in property marketing

I've been a fan of estate agents using elevated photography for some time now, yet so few have caught on to it.

Photos are one of the most important parts of your marketing arsenal and here's a technology that can make a big difference - solving problem shots, providing a better illustration of the plot for sale and perhaps even forming part of your agency USP.

Today, I have invited Mike Pearson who runs Aerosport Elevated Digital Photography to run through some of the benefits.

"To sell a property you will definitely need a photograph.


This means your camera skills, or those of a professional, will be tested to deliver the best image .. without compromise. A lot has been written about the value of good property photography and much can be learned from following good advice and technological advances have made the process easier. But making anyone property standout from the crowd needs more.


Internal photography is least difficult to master because inside your home conditions are stable all year round. Outside is a more hostile environment to work in with, rain, snow, wind, and occasional sunshine, they are all out there, yet this is the place where we are expected to get that one killer shot for the brochure, website and portals.

Notwithstanding the weather outside, there are more conditions to overcome. Low sun in winter, tree cover to in summer and fixed obstacles like street furniture telephone and power cables all waiting to spoil the view.

So can elevated photography solve all of these problems?

If your camera is hand held and ground based, it is a fact that the best you can do is walk around the property and choose the best perspective to avoid the obvious.

This is immediately a compromise, yet covers probably 99% of lead pictures.

If your normal hand held camera height is say 6ft being able to lift the camera to say 12ft doubles the options for alternative perspective.

Big elevations provide huge additional opportunities to place the camera in an optimum position, often avoiding all obstacles. Property on rising ground and with fences or hedges can almost always benefit dramatically. Standing anywhere on the ground will produce a near useless result. Elevate the camera and you can reveal the whole picture.

The golden rule for choosing elevation is not to get carried away, just because you can look down from 18 metres doesn’t mean you have to. Usually somewhere around the height of the eaves is good enough. This avoids plan views and the roof of properties monopolizing the picture. If you subcontract the elevated photography, the service provider will be very clever at using the camera position to advantage. Leaving you to concentrate of the interior or any ground level details.


Concentrate on avoiding a compromise in the end result. In the end you will be choosing just one as the lead picture on your web posting. This picture will be the front door to your extensive details, floor plans and more. If the web browsing public do not look at this one picture and say "wow" you may have lost a prospect. This is especially true of portal searches, which generally only offer a single thumbnail image for most entries.


Location, Location, Location


The number one priority in choosing a property is location. Elevated photography can do more in a picture than a thousand words, or so the slightly modified saying goes.

Ground based pictures like this one, which also shows the impact of what we like to call 'vehicle contamination', needs additional pictures or lots of words to reveal the value of this location seen at elevation. And don’t just think this applies to “nice houses”, what about apartments and compact developments.

One big problem with apartments is that vendors think the interior is the most important feature.. but any new owner can and probably will change the decor. Outside you are stuck with the view and location so make the most of it.

Elevated photography can cost as little as £80 so there is no reason to discount it as a positive marketing tool use it wherever the ground based alternative is compromised."

Mike Pearson

aerosportphotography.com

01252 680407