Good-looking interior and exterior photographs make a major impact on marketing a home, says Issaquah, Washington digital camera aficionado and Realtor Larry Lohrman.

"The old adage, 'If you can't see it, you can't sell it' translates into today's Internet marketing environment as, 'The better it looks on the Web, the faster it sells,' he says.

These are understatements that Lohrman gets, but many Realtors still don't seem to understand. Marketing a home always include photography, yet many Realtors avoid learning this skill as if it will cost them more then they'll make from it.

There are many instances in which a digital photograph taken by a Realtor can assist with the quick sale of a property. A buyer's agent can snap digital photos to send to buyers to preview a home, or while accompanying buyers who wish to recall their favorite features of selected properties. Naturally, those pictures can't be used for marketing purposes, as that would be against state regulations to market another agent's property without permission, but a few handy pictures can help expedite a decision by the buyers.

Listing agents, waiting days for professional photographers to appear, can start to market properties immediately by emailing digital photos to their MLS, their networks and their own buyers, and replacing the photos later with the pro's. Additional photos can be used as a lead capture tool to pique buyer interest in online homes, especially if the buyers can only see the additional photos by registering their contact information.

So why won't agents learn to carry and properly use the camera?

Among many reasons, sellers often aren't prepared at listing time to have their homes photographed. Also, agents see themselves as agents, rather than marketers for the home, preferring to delegate jobs like photography to someone else. The greatest reason, though, may be lack of confidence in their photography skills. Many agents recognize that they are so unskilled at photography, they can make a home look much worse through poor photography - darker, drabber, and smaller.

Even a few tricks of the trade can elevate an ordinary photo into something that will appeal to buyers, suggests Lohrman, a retired techie turned Realtor.

"Wide-angle, wide-angle, wide-angle!" says Lohrman. "The thing that most people making recommendations to agents don't realize is that all "off-the-shelf" digital cameras are virtually worthless for doing good interior photography. For an agent purchasing a camera, the availability of a wide-angle converter is the only important consideration! Mega pixels, memory size, etc don't make any difference in comparison."

Lohrman also recommends opening doors and windows, turning on lights and photographing the home at dusk when the light inside is brighter than outside, yet there is still enough light for outdoor views to show through the windows.

Published: January 13, 2005

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Blanche Evans is the award-winning senior editor of Realty Times, the Internet's leading independent real estate news service. She is featured daily on the Realty Times Video Network in the "Realty Viewpoint" segment. Blanche has been named one of the "25 Most Influential People In Real Estate" by REALTOR Magazine, and has been twice recognized as a "notable." In 2005, she was named "Top Reporter Covering the NAR" by Delahaye-Bacon's. Blanche is a renowned author of five real estate books. Her newest, Bubbles, Booms and Busts: Make Money In Any Real Estate Market, McGraw-Hill, was rave-reviewed by The New York Times. She was also selected from hundreds of real estate experts to contribute to Donald Trump's book, Trump: The Best Real Estate Advice I Ever Received: 100 Top Experts Share Their Strategies, Rutledge Hill Press, and is featured on page 68. Order Now Review - Honors In 2006, Blanche was selected among scores of candidates to author two consumer real estate guidebooks for the National Association of Realtors: The NAR Guide to Home Buying, and The NAR Guide to Home Selling, Wiley & Sons. She is currently planning two new books for the NAR and its members.       Known for her keen insight into real estate industry issues and for her ability to make complex subjects easy to understand, Blanche is a sought-after keynote and continuing education speaker. Real estate organizations from MLSs, to brokerages, to franchisors, to associations hire her to provide up-to-the-minute analysis of real estate industry news and advice on how to improve revenues. Her passionate delivery, peppered with stinging wit, is a huge hit with audiences and fans. Don Klein, CEO Greater Nashville Association of Realtors, Blanche Evans, Richard Courtney, president 2007, GRAR "The GNAR membership meeting last week featured Blanche Evans as the keynote speaker. Her comments and insights resonated extremely well with those in attendance and we have had many requests for copies of her PowerPoint Presentation. She was a terrific part of the membership meeting and convention program!" - Don Klein, CEO Greater Nashville Association of Realtors Coverage from WSMV, Nashville - 8-14-2007 That Interview Guy - Get Inside The Head Of Today's Generation 2007 AE Institute Session - To purchase 2006 AE Institute Session - Parts 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 HouseValues Mastermind call - Parts 1 2 Blanche's fireside chat with Jeremy Conaway, HAR - Click here. To contact Blanche, email her at . For more articles by Blanche, click here.