Using Top Sub $1000 DSLRs For Real Estate Photography
What would a good real estate photography setup be if you were purchasing today? CNET currently rates the Nikon D80 and Canon EOS Rebel XT as the top DSLRs under $1,000. Both of these cameras are in the top 5 best selling DSLRs in the US. Top selling is a good data point because popularity is in fact a voting process where buyers are voting with their money. I think either of these DSLRs would be a good choice for a Realtor or someone wanting to get into real estate photography. However, remember from my post on choosing a camera for real estate photography back in August, real estate photography requires a wide-angle lens and an external flash.
Frequently when you purchase cameras in this price range a “kit” lens is included (usually 18-55mm zoom) which is not wide enough for real estate photography. If you are going to use the camera only for real estate you could just purchase the camera body. But, for all around general photography the kit lens is just fine just don’t use it to shoot interiors. For real estate interiors I would purchase a Sigma 10-20mm zoom which you can get with either Nikon or Canon mount. This lens is wide enough to get nice open feeling shots of even small rooms; it’s a very popular lens with real estate shooters.
For an external flash unit I would purchase a Canon 580 EX II for the Canon or a SB-800 for the Nikon. These flash units have plenty of power and will give you the benefits of shooting automatic flash, which if you just starting out makes life simpler. As you progress in your lighting skills you will eventually want to use multiple flashes, off-camera in manual mode but automatic on camera flash is a good starting place. It is far better than no flash at all.
The complete kit comes in a just under $2,000 which you might feel is steep but I submit that as a Realtor shooting listings you should not be doing your own photography unless you have a setup like this. If you do have this kind of camera setup (and learn how to use it), and promote the fact that you supply quality photography to your sellers in listing presentations you’ll get more listings. Trust me, sellers respond to good photography in listing presentations!
Drew Meyers
Posted at 21:06h, 03 December$2 grand seems like a fairly large investment for an agent. Does anyone know what percentage realtors handle their own photography?
Ken @ Realivent
Posted at 21:47h, 03 DecemberLarry, I’ve recently read about the Canon EOS 40D. Which one would you recommend for real estate photography ? EOS Rebel XT or EOS 40D ?
Larry Lohrman
Posted at 22:53h, 03 December@Ken,
The 40D is the newest low-end DSLR Canon makes. It cost ~$1300 for just the body. It is much newer and faster technology than the Rebel XT. If I had the money I’d go for the 40D but there is nothing that the 40D has that is required for real estate photography. The main issues for real estate photography are the ultra-wide lens (Sigma 10-20mm) and the external flash (580 EX).
Larry Lohrman
Posted at 23:03h, 03 December@Drew,
Based on what I see in my wife’s office and the Realtors I talk to I would guess that in the Seattle area 70-80% of Realtors do their own photography. It’s the upper-end listing agents that have photography done professionally.
Brad Coy
Posted at 17:20h, 04 DecemberI have a Nikon D50 with the standard 18-55 lens. Some times I take my own photos and hire out for $100 a pop on others. The time saved and quality is almost always worth it. Unless you are going to get some other recreational use from the camera, I highly doubt it’s worth a purchase. IMHO
Larry Lohrman
Posted at 18:45h, 04 December@Brad,
I’m not sure I understand your comment. Are you saying you don’t think it’s worth the extra money to purchase a wide-angle lens and a external flash?
Brad Coy
Posted at 19:14h, 04 December@larry,
My mistake… low blood sugar to blame. I think the whole package is a great investment if you are going to use the SLR for recreational photography as well as work. If you enjoy photography that much, then doing your listings is a cinch. The work involved is a bear when you think about it and I agree that you should not be doing it without the right set-up. Great post on an important subject. Agents please don’t subject us anymore to cell-phone shots of toilets.
john
Posted at 20:23h, 04 Decemberim using canon digital camera .. its 14000 philippine money and ts not good .. i will buy a new digicam next year
Tyler
Posted at 11:35h, 07 DecemberI have come to realize that it really doesn’t matter how good of a camera you have. It all depends on the lighting. I used a 3.2 megapixel point and shoot camera for the longest time and the pictures turned out great. When shooting outside, you just have to catch a good day or photoshop it.
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Larry Lohrman
Posted at 12:15h, 07 December@Tyler,
You are absolutely right. For RE photography the major two factors are using a wide-angle lens and lighting (using an external flash). The # megapixels and all the other new features are of very little consequence.
The reason I don’t recommend point-and-shoot type cameras is that only a hand full of them have wide enough lenses and almost none of them will trigger an external flash except via optical triggering from their built-in flashes.
You can get by without a flash if you are able to do some photoshop work (I did it for years) but having at least a 24mm (35mm equivalent) wide-angle lens is essential.