The internet is a hub for real estate commerce. I’m stating the obvious, right?
It’s a visual medium, so as a landlord who’s trying to fill a vacancy, you have to make your pictures count.
If you skim Craigslist, or any online rental bulletin board, you’ll see that many of your competitors are using smart phone pictures. And that’s great news! You can easily out shine them by placing better photos in your ad.
Honestly, it’s best to have professional photos taken. Hiring someone who understands lighting and the other thousand nuances that go into a good picture will be money well spent.
HOWEVER, if that’s not practical, the next best thing is for you to use your smart phone or tablet with a wide angle lens.
The wide angle lens helps you show off tight spaces, which are usually the kitchen and bath; the most important rooms in your unit.
Let me show you the difference. Look at the following normal and wide angle photos I took with my iPhone. 4.
The left photo was taken without a XCSOURCE Clip + Wide Angle Lens and the right hand side photo was taken with it. The right photo was cropped on top and bottom. The picture taken with lens shows more of the room and also makes it look larger. By using the lens you can more accurately depict what a small room looks like in reality.
Note to self: Close the toilet lid next time
Let’s look at the kitchen now.
You can see for yourself again, the photo taken 
with the lens (right hand side), highlights my kitchen and is definitely more appealing.
I cropped the top and bottom of the right side picture to get rid of some shadows.
RECOMMENDATION
If you’re not going to hire a professional photographer, then be sure to get a clip on lens that you can use with your smart phone. This is the absolute minimum you should be doing.
Knowing how to market your housing offering is a crucial part of a successful landlording business. Marketing can quickly become the center of your world when you have a vacant unit and you’re in a panic over covering the mortgage.
Don’t wait for a vacancy to take action; dig your well before you need it. The lens I use only costs $13 which is an insignificant price to get a leg up on your competition. Buy it now so you have it when you’re scrambling to fill a vacancy.
Plus, if you use this link to buy a lens from Amazon, you’ll be supporting the Leading Landlord blog. Thank you in advance, I appreciate it.
Now go – be proactive.
Great idea, Al. We did something similar on our last vacancy, we used ‘panorama’ mode photos. While some of the perspectives were a little strange/skewed from being in a small space, it did show off the room layouts and amenities better than normal photos. I can see how the wide angle lens eliminates the strange perspectives while showing off a bit more of how the house is actually set up.
Thanks for chiming in Paul. Yes, wide angle seem more life like. Just be prepared to crop image some.
Well… you are on the right track. Good photos increase your pool of prospective tenants. That said, be sure to pay attention to lighting and add some interest with diagonal lines and color. Also, please close the toilet lids! 🙂
Nice tips, especially on the toilet.