Do's and don'ts for photos?

[katienana]

Im thinking little things like keeping the lid down on the toilet...What are the top tips for getting property photos taken? About to list my flat and never sold before. Desperate to move! Agent coming on monday and I.will have 3 child free hours to get the place looking desirable!

Make sure all rooms being photographed are as clutter free as possible

And garden has been cut/ tidied up

Don't have trailing cables or extension leads showing or things poking out from under beds. Anything on top of kitchen wall units or wardrobes needs to go. It makes it look as though there isn't enough storage.

Do get a stunt pineapple
Don't forget to uncover your swimming pool
:D

Could you helpful people have a look at our photos on Rightmove. I like the downstairs pics, especially the kitchen but not sure about the bedroom ones, granted they are decorated to suit the tastes of our children and the agent made the best of what he had

http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-60425941.html

What low cost immediate improvements could we make?

Move your bins so they aren't the star attraction in the photo of the front of your house or back garden.

Remove family photos.

@DurhamDurham - there is no sense in order of the photos: it jumps all around the house. So sort that out first to flow round.

The lighting of the photos needs improving in the pictures. You can tell whoever has taken them isn't a photographer - too much focus on the large pillar in the kitchen diner, for example, the bedrooms all appear to shot from the door frame so there's no sense of the space.

The mirror in photo 20 needs moving as it is dominates the picture in a distracting way. Take the bathmat off the bath and the towel off the radiator and just have one on the towel ring.

Your house is really well-presented, tidy and clean looking, but the photography lets it down.

Thank you wow that's really helpful, it's difficult to be objective when it's your own home but having another look I can see that you're right

I was thinking I would get a basket of green apples for the kitchen to contrast with the red DeLonghi appliances.

I wished I'd ironed the bedding. It looks really creased. And I never iron anything!

Well-stocked stunt fruit bowl and fresh flowers give the impression of a home someone cares about.

You've obviously staged it well, and have made sure the beds are properly made. ( a personal gripe of mine!)
I would only move the tulips in the kitchen, not a natural place to have a vase of flowers!

I agree with PP about removing photos if there a lot, but do leave a little bit of personal stuff and colour.

If any of your furniture is really a bit big for the room try and store it, for example in the loft.

Try to have rooms set up as they are in the listing e.g. Have chairs and a table in the dining room even if actually you eat in the kitchen and that area is the office. Apparently lots of people don't have the imagination to see a dining space if it is something else on the photos.
(I can imagine this one being hard because you do need the office stuff somewhere even though you are trying to sell your house.

Can you get to look at the photos before they are displayed? I've seen some photos taken from really odd angles or when only shows photos of two rather than the three bedrooms listed - makes me wonder what they are hiding.

Point taken, they're dead now anyhow

Get rid of all the black towels in the bathroom. They get in the way of seeing the suite.

Get rid of all the black towels in the bathroom. They get in the way of seeing the suite.

But the suite is hideously old and decrepit. I'll have to trust you on that one and go for it.

We cleared almost everything off the kitchen surfaces, except for magimix food mixer, toaster and fruit bowl. Tea towel got put in a cupboard, kitchen bin got put in the garden!

Decent towels in the bathrooms, hung or folded really neatly. Get rid of any clutter from bathroom - no bottles of shampoo etc on show, unless a couple of nice fancy ones.

A vase or two of flowers put somewhere noticeable, but not centre stage.

We put all toys in the shed, boot of car, cupboards, anywhere we could really! Other than a very neat and tidy child's bedroom, we pretty much erased any trace of our 3 year old! Appreciate that won't be on everyone's agenda though.

If you have a shoe rack, and it can't all be dumped in a cupboard somewhere, make sure there are only a few pairs of shoes on it so it's not over-crowded. Same with coat hooks.

Also, make your beds really neatly. I straightened out the duvet, folded it down at the top so it sat nicely against the pillows, then tucked it under the mattress along each edge of the bed. It looked so much neater.

Thanks Bebe !!

Anything on top of units like the kitchen or wardrobe needs to be taken away as it screams no storage.

I don't was to know that you use toilet duck, Colgate or dove or any other form of toiletries so put them away.

Don't have trailing cables showing. Shows plug sockets are lacking.

If you have a lot of photos take them away

Put toys away unless they are in a child's bedroom.

Bin out of the way

Car out of the drive.

Grass and garden nest and tidy

Great tips, with a 4 year old and 1 year old I think the boxes of crap idea will definitely be happening!

Katie apologies for hijacking the thread, I should have said that I thought the tips people gave me could prove to be useful for you too so I hope you don't mind