Best Cameras For Airbnb Pictures

A picture speaks a thousand words so your camera should speak highly of your property. No matter how much time and effort you spend on upgrading your property to make it perfect unless you show off what you have created, nobody is going to be interested in booking you. Marketing 101 is to Show, Don’t Tell. When you are all done with your room’s design, consider how you are going to photograph the property for your Airbnb listing. We have collected all the tips of the trade from our experience to create the most beautiful and most appealing photographs to woo potential guests.

Here are the features you should look for in a camera for taking your pictures:

1. Auto Bracketing feature: Lighting is one of the most important aspects of a well-shot photograph. The lighting has to be perfect to set the right mood. The guest’s curiosity should pique at the first sight of the property. The catch here is that one photo exposure is not enough to get the perfect shot. Auto Bracketing is a feature that lets you shoot several shots in quick succession. They can then be combined into a composite using specialized software.
2. Tripod: A tripod is required to get a steady shot at a set height.
3. Wide Angle Lens: Since photographing interiors tend to make them look cramped, it is recommended to use a wide-angle lens when taking pictures of confined spaces. It makes the photographed space look bigger. Though this may seem deceptive, it is a common practice while photographing homes. Ask any real estate agent how it works!
4. Shutter Release: This ensures that the camera does not move slightly between multiple bracketed shots.

Recommendations from Amazon:

Canon Powershot SX420: This one is great for a budget as it comes with a 42X zoom with an equivalent focal range for even wide-angle and telephoto perspectives. It doesn’t need a separate lens for the wide-angle shots. It can take continuous shots at up to 2.2 fps which will work for multiple shots. It comes with a tripod.

Nikon D3500 DSLR Camera: This one comes with a specialized wide-angle lens. This kit doesn’t include a tripod. It is slightly more expensive but it comes bundled with software to correct your photos after you have taken them. You can get this and buy a separate tripod and save money on a photoshop subscription. 

Canon EOS Rebel T7i: If you find the hobby interesting and decide to go all-in, this high-end device should have everything you need to take the perfect pictures for everything for properties to people to nature and everything else in between. It comes with all the lenses you need for a wide range of subjects and conditions. This one also comes with wifi and Bluetooth connectivity to connect to your devices wirelessly.

Precautions to take:

If you are on a budget you can always use your phone to capture pictures. You just have to configure the right settings in the camera app. You can even get the wide-angle and tripod attachments to give you the angles and depth required for taking a great property pic. A good camera app can even let you create composites from various images without having to load the images into a computer.

Clean your house first. Make sure all knick-knacks are in their proper place. There shouldn’t be any clutter lying around and cabinet doors should be closed. All items should be hidden away in their proper place behind a storage unit. An unorganized and disheveled room is an instant turn off. Beds should be neatly made. All the furniture should be in its proper places, preferably making neat straight lines, flush against the wall. Fabrics should be neat and not crumpled. Wall hangings should not be crooked.

Make sure the space to photograph is well lit. If you are taking daytime shots, adjust the window curtains and blinds to let in just the right amount of light through. Take some sample shots to get a sense of how the lighting looks through the eyes of the camera. If you are looking for a bright and warm shot, midday is the best time. If you are looking for something moody and softer, late afternoon when the sun is about to start its descent is a good time. If you are taking outdoor shots, pick a time so that the sun is behind you when you take a picture of the property so that you don’t get blinding glares in the photograph.

Angles are very important. You want to make sure that you have straight lines merging at a focal point. Pick a point of view that gives the room some depth. Property pictures can end up looking flat if the right reference point is not chosen.

You can always go in and fix the pictures later in photoshop by either finding someone knowledgeable about how to use the software or outsourcing it on a site like Fiverr. Don’t worry if you think correcting a photo is cheating. Marketing materials are usually exaggerated everywhere. There is nothing unethical about a slight touchup.

Though it might seem like a big investment to invest in a camera just for the sake of a few pictures, you should remind yourself that this is just one of the costs of doing business. It is also not a large expense compared to the cost of upgrading an Airbnb. You can also use it on other properties or for personal use once you are done taking pictures. The camera will pay itself off in a year’s time due to the surge in bookings from your amazing pictures!

Photography may seem overly technical and it is! If all this seems gibberish at first, you are right! We learned how to take good photographs by learning this skill. It takes time but it is worth it! You can learn more about this on your own time or if all of this is overwhelming for you, consider hiring a photographer for a couple of hours. A well-placed ad on facebook groups or local classifieds should do the trick.

Love,
Scooch and Steve