Pictures are literally the window to your rentals; they’re key elements of your listings.

Compared to traditional, long-term rentals, vacationers cannot visit your properties before renting. It is then essential for you to highlight your houses’ or apartments’ best points thanks to quality pictures. Every detail counts, when it comes to photography.

We asked Marc Julien, professional photographer since 2008 and specialised in the vacation rental industry, to share with us his best tips to help you take the best pictures of your properties.

6 must-know tips for your pictures

• First of all, provide yourself with the means to taking great pictures! Don’t randomly pick a camera. Forget about smartphones, choose a quality digital camera.

• 1m20 / 4ft: the “Golden Number” of pictures! Don’t take pictures standing up, or too close to the ground. Photos taken 1m20 / 4ft up provide an ideal shot over your rentals’ rooms.

• The tripod, a good photographer’s secret weapon: your pictures won’t get more or less intentionally vague with this tool, your camera remains stable when shooting and you save time.

• Avoid fleeting images: position yourself in a corner of the room, rather than back to the wall. Snap the opposite angle to get the best camera angle.

• Watch out for backlighting, especially if the room you’re photographing has a window. When snapping inside, you can also use the HDR mode on your camera. This will optimise both the quality and light of your shots.

• Tidy up your rental! Whether you think this last piece of advice is just a detail, or logical, allow us to insist on it. If your property isn’t at its best when shooting, potential travelers may deduce that it will remain the same when arriving at your place, and that your rental isn’t fitted for their needs.

Which mistakes should you avoid when shooting?

No detail should be left apart when photographing! Clean up, shoot, start again. Take all the time you need to ensure you’ll get the best picture quality possible.

Watch out for mirror reflections! That’s the kind of detail that makes all the difference. Check every reflection, especially on ovens, fridges, kitchen furniture… Not to forget bathrooms and their large mirrors.

You can use a remote triggering system, and learn how to use a picture editing software such as Photoshop or Gimp.

A few more tips

You should also know that using a good camera isn’t enough to take good pictures. Ask a professional retailer how to pick the right lens, fitted to your needs.

When adding the pictures to your listings, carefully choose how to display and position them. The potential traveler should feel like he/she is visiting the property: start with the living-room, then the kitchen, the bedrooms and finally the bathroom, not to forget the outside -garden, patio, surroundings. Don’t add over a dozen pictures.

You can also adapt your listings to the season, especially when it comes to the outside. Renting a mountain chalet? Take pictures of your chalet and its surroundings covered in snow and start over when spring comes, highlighting what makes holidays in the middle of nature so attractive.

Pictures should be taken at the right time. Is it raining or cloudy? Postpone your shooting and start again when the sun is back. Nothing beats natural sunlight when it comes to creating value for your vacation rentals.

As you see, one doesn’t become a professional photographer overnight. You’ll need to take into account a great amount of details, if you want to stack all the odds in your favour.

Competition is getting increasingly tough in the vacation rental industry. You can also make use of the services of a professional photographer, specialised in this area. You’ll then benefit from the best tips and tricks for your listings.

We would like to thank Marc Julien, professional photographer specialised in the vacation rental industry, for these tips and tricks. You too can call on Marc Julien’s experience for your properties. Visit his indoor shots gallery for a better overview of his work.