Real-Estate Photography is ignored because of other, more popular types of photography. People think photography is limited to taking pictures of people and nature; it is not. Whenever you look at a house online, the chances are that the photograph was taken by a professional. Not only is this career fun it is also profitable; here is how you can become a Real-Estate Photographer:
How do you become a Real-Estate Photographer?
It is not all that different from any other photography job. You need to have all of the necessary equipment and some experience with Real-Estate Photography. It does not have to be a professional experience; you can just take pictures of your friends and relative’s homes to get your name out there.
Once you have that little bit of experience, you can approach real estate agencies and homeowners and ask them to let you take pictures of the house(s) that they want to sell. It does take a while to get going but it is no different from any other jobs. You start small and work your way up.
Is it Profitable?
It depends; the niche itself is active and growing, so the issue is not with the demand. The problem lies with the skills and experience of the photographer. If you cannot take high-quality pictures and you ask for high prices, the fact of the matter is that no one will hire you. If, on the other hand, you work hard and take good pictures, you can ask for a fair amount of money and reap the benefits of the industry.
Almost every company selling any product will hire a professional photographer; why would Real Estate be different? They hire photographers to make the house look as good as possible for the clients. Unlike other industries, good pictures make them more profit because they can ask for a higher price if the clients like the photographs.
So, there is no question that the niche is profitable; it just depends on the photographer.
Should I work for free sometimes?
Yes, you have to. Even a degree in photography will not help you bypass this, although you do not need one to begin with. When you are starting out, you have to work for free to build up your skills and experience. Once you have a little bit of experience, you can start earning some money.
Some professionals might disagree, but we believe that if you have no experience and you ask for money for your first job, you will likely not get it. If you ask for money after you have the experience, it makes perfect sense.
Full-time or Part-time?
It gets difficult to manage this career if you do it part-time. Apart from the time you spend on the shoot, you also need to edit and deliver the edited pictures to your clients. Eventually, you will either miss a shoot or lose sleep over this work; either one is equally bad news.
This is worse when photographers start out; you have no margin for error because you are trying to get your name out there. Missing a few shoots or not delivering the photographs on time is not a good image to have right at the start.
Doing it full-time right from the start is not recommended either unless you have enough money saved up to sustain yourself for the year or two you use to make a name for yourself.
What should you charge per house?
This is, sadly, something that you will have to figure out for yourself. The price will change for each house depending on a few factors. The factors being the property itself, the location, the experience you have, the brand you are working with, and how much you are spending to work on the shoot.
Like we mentioned before, although the prices will change depending on the client, you will sometimes have to work for free. This is just a part of the way to success. If you have settled on a fixed price per house and you are not getting enough work, you will have to decrease it. On the other hand, if you are getting too much work and feel like you are getting burnt out, increase your prices.
Hopefully, this blog helped open up the possibility of becoming a Real-Estate Photographer for you. It is a profitable job but only for those willing to work hard and make a name for themselves at the start. Of course, you have to maintain that name so you cannot slack off after a while. It is not all good news but if you want to become a photographer, this is definitely a unique and fun niche that people overlook.