Professional Photography Studio
How to Find an Expert in Real Estate Photography – Or Any Field
Do you need help Finding an expert Real Estate Photographer? When you’re searching for an expert real estate photographer, you want to find one that has experience. Better yet, you want a photographer that is an undisputed expert in their field. How do you go about finding an expert in a specialized field of photography–or any industry, for that matter? There are a variety of factors to look for, we’ll break each one down for you.
How many years of experience does this professional have?
For this first question, you want to look at general experience. If you’re hiring a social media manager, for example, how many years of marketing experience do they have overall? If the professionals you’re reviewing have less than 3 years of experience, they’re relatively new. Does this mean they’re not good? Not at all. It just means they have not developed an eye for the things long-term professionals in their field have.
If you’re looking for a real estate photographer, how many years of photography experience do they have? If you’re looking for someone to clean homes, how many years of cleaning experience do they have? This is the first question.
How many years of specialized experience does this professional have?
Now this is where you really sift out the experts from the rest. The person or business you’re considering may have many years of experience in financial planning, for example. But if you’re looking for retirement planning, how many years of specifically planning for retirement and working on IRAs and other retirement specific products do they have? Clearly, the person who is immersed in the specific field is the one that you would trust the most.
At Northern Virginia Real Estate Photography, we’re proud to offer over 25 years of experience in real estate photography and architectural photography.
We have been photographing homes and properties as the real estate market has shifted. If you want a listing photographed you want to have a real estate photographer do it, not a photographer that generalizes or does a lot of family portraits. Nor do you want a photographer that only does weddings. Why? Photographing a property requires a completely different skill set than photographing a headshot or portrait.
An experienced real estate photographer knows how to make rooms look spacious and bright, open and inviting but still true to life. They know the right angles, the right lenses to use, and the best lighting to make it pop and not make it look washed out or dark and uninviting. An experienced real estate photographer can also use tools such as drones to get bird’s-eye view photographs of properties, allowing viewers to see the entire property at a glance. They can also use video and 3D Virtual Cameras to immerse the viewer in the property to get a better feel for the layout and functionality.
What kind of content is shared on their website and social media?
Here’s one of the easiest ways to find exactly how much of an expert the professional you’re looking for truly is. What do they share on their website and through social media? Experts in their field share information with their followers freely, understanding that providing information that is valuable is an important service. Experts will also share valuable content that does not directly relate to just getting a sale. Value-added content is the term for this, and it helps to build trust and further establish them as an expert in the industry.
In real estate, examples of value-added content could be sending out checklists for seasonal maintenance that homeowners should do on their home, sharing articles about DIY projects around the home, landscaping suggestions, ways to manage pests, and interior design features. When your followers see that you’re sharing information that does not directly benefit your business bottom line, they begin to think of you as an expert that truly just wants to help others.
What does this professional offer?
An expert Real Estate Photographer will likely be able to provide an array of complimentary services to boost their primary skill set. For example, Northern Virginia Real Estate Photography offers video tours, floor plans, virtual staging and virtual tours, websites, print and marketing materials, in addition to standard listing photographs. In any industry, most experts at a minimum have a trusted list of referrals to provide these complimentary services if they don’t offer them directly.
What associations do they belong to?
Professionals in any field have a number of associations that they can belong to that will provide further credibility to their position. For example, most realtors belong to the National Association of Realtors at a minimum. Some also belong to the Women’s Council of Realtors or the local county Association of Realtors.
Northern Virginia Real Estate Photography is proud to be a member of the following professional organizations:
Bright MLS, PPA-Professional Photographers of America, and BestRealEstatePhotographers.com
Do other community business members go to this person for collaboration?
Watch for community events and collaborations where one business does something in partnership with another. Seeing the professional you’re considering hiring involved in these types of partnerships is a big sign that other professionals know them, trust them, and like them.
What type of reviews does this professional have?
Reviews are another way to establish if the person you’re considering working with is an expert in their field. Nowadays, with internet access at our fingertips, reviews are very easy to find. Besides their website, you can also check for reviews on Google, Facebook, and Yelp, along with other smaller, fee-based review sites, like Angie’s List.
When you’re making an investment in your business, such as the type of investment you must make for top-quality marketing material, you want to be sure you have the best professional that you can get. You want the expert in the field. Northern Virginia Real Estate Photography is proud to be an expert that you can trust to help you with your real estate marketing needs.
