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We are tired of saying it, and you must be tired of hearing it: images are essential to the success of your apartment. And this isn’t just empty words: pictures sell! We saw it in the results of our recent poll, and we keep seeing it every day. And that is why, even though it might be a bit of an effort to take new pictures of the apartment, we can guarantee the rewards are worth it. But before you jump head first into a full renewal of your picture gallery, make sure you take these 7 key points into account for best results:
1. Quantity
We’re not asking for 50 pictures of the bathroom… but it’s imperative to have at least one picture of each room. Don’t hesitate to take photos from different angles, so the clients can get a feel for the room layout, and get them to picture themselves holidaying in the apartment.
2. Don’t Hide the Nicest Parts
If the apartment has a terrace, it needs to be in the picture gallery. And of course, don’t hide the swimming pool, if there is one, or that wonderful hammock hanging in the garden. The small details are also important and they can get the traveler interested in our apartment. We obviously need to include pictures of the beds, kitchen and living room area, but giving them our own unique touch is bound to get our audience wanting to know more about such a special place. A vintage clock on the kitchen wall, or a bouquet of roses and a bottle of wine on the bedroom table are tried and tested examples that always work well.
3. Introducing the Property
When travelers look at our pictures, they should be able to feel at home at first glance, as they discover what awaits them at the apartment… It’s very important to pay close attention to the details of any furniture and appliances we’re choosing to display. Small touches such as not leaving the toilet seat up, ironing the sheets, not showing any personal objects, and having the apartment look sparkling clean are all points in our favor that travelers will surely appreciate.
4. Lighting
Anyone with a basic knowledge of photography knows that the defining factor between a high-quality picture and a bad picture is lighting. Light is our best ally when it comes to making the various rooms in the apartment stand out, shine more brightly, and look more pleasing to the eye. Play with the light coming from lamps, windows, the sun, and even shadows to improve your pictures. A small but powerful piece of advice: avoid using the flash feature or taking pictures against the light to prevent that homely feel that makes the images look less professional and authoritative.
5. Wide-Angle Lens
Wide-angle lenses are widely available nowadays, a technology consisting in a lens that opens wide enough to increase the field of view and capture roughly the same area we can see with the naked eye; in other words, the pictures are taken at a wide enough angle to be able to capture the entire room. If you don’t have a camera with a wide-angle lens, don’t worry as you can use any camera or Smartphone to produce the same effect. Just take the pictures from one of the angles in the room to give it a sense of roominess.
6. Quality & Size
Let’s get a bit more technical now. Uploading pictures on websites damages them, and it’s important to have them in the right format before uploading them. Be careful to avoid any pixelation and make sure all pictures are high resolution, large enough, and in JPEG or PNG format. All picture size and format requirements are specified in the “Multimedia” section of the Extranet.
7. Order of the Pictures
Travelers waste little time looking at apartments where the first image they are confronted with is the toilet; this is no secret. The order of the pictures within the gallery is a subtle matter; it’s the art of getting the traveler to stay on our ad and browse through all the images. We recommend using a picture of the main area as your cover photo, followed by those of the bedrooms, kitchen, bathroom, and so on. Obviously, when it comes to properties with a swimming pool, terrace, or any unique feature that sets them apart from the rest, it is vital that you use that as your cover photo.
