Beginner Newbie

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Hi all, excuse the newbie post, but I’m after some general advice if possible.

I’m an estate and letting agent (boo, hiss, etc.) and I’m about to set up on my own. I want to take decent photos of the properties I’m offering but I’m not sure on the best equipment to achieve this.

Obviously I want a DSLR and a reasonably wide lens, but beyond this I’m a bit clueless.

I have had some basic training in shooting property (very basic) but I am very much a beginner. So I’d also be interested to know where’s the best place to learn the basics of using a DSLR (books, courses, YouTube?)

Any advice you can give is greatly appreciated.
 
Personally I'd purchase a Semi pro DSLR, something like a Nikon D500 with a wide angle zoom 16~85. Though you could buy a fairly inexpensive DSLR if you don't need images that have huge mega pixels

A small set of step ladders for Front of House images so you don't have to tilt the camera up as much to get the whole property in. Also when you take shots inside large rooms you could use the steps in one corner. The telephoto could be of some use to highlight detail in rooms with desirable features especially bathrooms and ensuites

Or you could just rent a camera and lens for a weekend and see how you get on with it.http://www.procentre.co.uk/rental-cameras-dslrs.php

There are colleges and places that do courses there's plenty of youtube videos if you just type in architectural photography it would be a good start
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OtZAku_co3w
 
Thanks, that’s helpful.

Whilst I want the images to be decent quality, they aren’t going to be blown up to any great size. Printed brochures are a bit of a thing of the past (except for the very high end market) and most people will be viewing the pictures on a tablet, phone or computer screen.

The business I used to be in used a DSLR with a cheapish wide angle lens. I think it was 10-18mm. Is that too wide?
 
Recent thread on this https://www.talkphotography.co.uk/threads/point-and-click-for-real-estate.686291/

Quick summary - for run of the mill properties, you'll need a wide lens, but the camera doesn't matter much. Plus a flash and some knowledge of how to bounce it and balance the light, and also some basic post processing skills.

Edit: the next step up for more expensive properties is a big jump, highly skilled and time consuming.
 
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The mistake you are making is thinking that the camera is really going to help you. Its not, not without all the skill and knowledge beforehand.

Yes, cameras and lenses make a huge difference, but if you don't know what you are doing and think you can just press a button then you are barking up the wrong tree.

You'll need a tripod. You also need to know how to process and edit images.

Basically if you want high end, pro grade images, then leave it to the professionals. If however like a number of estate agents you just want basic photos, then quite honestly any camera will do.
There are lots of estate agents I work with who take images with their phones for a lot of the properties and just get me in to shoot the high end ones.
But at the same time there are other estate agents I shoot for that are hovering up lots of properties because customer perception is so much higher based on the results of pro photography.
 
Entry-level dslr fine for purpose. As for stepladder - if outdoors, converging verticals can be moderated in software (but that might be another skill to get), and if indoors, i'd be inclined to just stand on a chair ...

Lighting is another matter - learning to assess what's there, and modify it if necessary. One aspect is trying to balance room lighting with outdoor daylight as seen through any windows in shot. Not easy, but any attempt might be benificial.

Search the forum for references to this - there might be some.

Forget about integral camera pop-up flash - nasty shadows. Camera-mounted add-on flash almost certainly yes, but there are ways of diffusing it to avoid the previous danger.

I understand that you are not trying to be a master photographer, but for your images to be functional they'll have to render the properties as credibly as possible to buyers.
 
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I've just completed my first real estate job, my equipment was a Nikon D3300. Tokina 11-16mm. Nikon 35mm f/1.8 for details. I bought a speedlight for the shoot from Amazon that worked really well to just brighten up some darker spaces and of course a tripod.

Make sure you get a cable release shutter/remote shutter as you don't want any vibration on the tripod when shooting.

I watched a few of Mike Browne's videos on Youtube for some helpful tips:
especially the small things like checking, double checking and checking again everything in the viewfinder for any mess and small things that may distract.
 
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