Table of Contents

With the increasing number of online real estate transactions, it has become crucial to use high-quality exterior real estate photography to ensure your listing stands out. Fortunately, there are a few simple edits you can make to enhance the appeal of your photos and make them shine. 

In this post, we’ll show you 8 tips on how to create captivating exterior real estate photography that will turn heads and help accelerate sales.

Let’s start by taking a look at why you should never skip post-processing.

Is Post-Processing Necessary? 

Yes, photo editing is crucial to producing top-notch exterior real estate photography, as well as interior shots. Here’s why:

Firstly, professionally edited photos can make your listing stand out from the competition, attracting more potential buyers. 

By presenting the property in the best light possible, these high-quality images can hide any imperfections and create a strong visual impact.

But that’s not all. 

Real estate photo editing has another impressive benefit it can make a property appear larger and more spacious than it is. 

Through techniques like straightening and cropping, we can create a symmetrical and balanced image. Also, adjustments to brightness and contrast can make the space more inviting.

And let’s not forget about virtual staging. By removing clutter and personal items, we can help the home feel more neutral and appealing to potential buyers. 

A clutter-free environment allows viewers to envision themselves in the space, increasing their interest in the property.

Overall, real estate photo editing offers a game-changing opportunity to showcase properties in their most attractive and appealing way, helping your agent clients sell their listings faster and at a higher price.

8 Edits to Create Captivating Real Estate Photography

Let’s explore 8 effective techniques that will captivate potential buyers and make your exterior real estate photography irresistible.

1. Image Enhancement

It’s common for real estate photographers, regardless of experience level, to sometimes struggle with capturing the perfect image straight from the camera. 

But don’t worry, there are simple techniques you can use to enhance your images. And achieve the look and feel you’re aiming for. 

By adjusting brightness, contrast, sharpness, and white balance, among other aspects, you can take your real estate photos to the next level and create stunning visuals that will captivate your audience.

For more details, you can check out our blog posts on how to change exposure in Photoshop and how to color correct.

2. Object Removal

When it comes to editing real estate photos, you have the freedom to remove non-fixed items. This can be items like cars, garbage bins, electrical cords, and gardening equipment. 

This ensures a clean and distraction-free final image, allowing potential buyers to see every aspect of the house in detail.

On the other hand, if you want to add a touch of life to an empty room, there are subtle enhancements you can make. 

For example, adding:

  • A cozy fire in the fireplace
  • Displaying a movie screenshot on the TV screen
  • Or, placing fresh flowers in an empty vase can create a more warm and inviting atmosphere

To show you an example of object removal, check out our video tutorial on how to remove a car from a driveway in Photoshop:

3. Day-to-Dusk Editing

When it comes to exterior real estate photography, creating captivating day-to-dusk images, also known as Twilight editing, can work wonders in grabbing buyers’ attention.

Twilight photographs are visually appealing as they capture the enchanting “golden hour” during sunset, imparting a romantic and mysterious glow to your photos.

During this magical hour, you can snap breathtaking shots. These twilight shots radiate brightness, warmth, and irresistible charm to the property, leaving viewers utterly mesmerized.

But here’s the catch – this fleeting opportunity passes by in a flash, especially for exterior shots. 

That’s where twilight or day-to-dusk editing steps in as a powerful tool. It allows you to recreate that alluring, warm glow that only the golden hour can bestow.

To learn how to do this, you can check out our video tutorial on how to edit a day to dusk image

Have You Ever Thought To

Outsource Photo Editing?

Try it today with 10 free edits from three professional photo editors.

4. Sky Replacement

Picture this scenario: instead of dreary skies, imagine clear, sunny, blue skies. It’s a simple yet powerful fix that can completely transform the look and ambiance of any property.

Regardless of the weather during your shoot, implementing sky replacement techniques can elevate your images to a whole new level, making them appear warm, inviting, and captivating.

A clear blue sky can enhance the mood, showcasing your property in the most favorable light. And potentially even speed up the selling process.

Not only will your real estate images catch the attention of potential buyers. But with a clear, bright, and inviting sky, they are also more likely to visualize themselves living in the home, creating that emotional connection that can make a lasting impact.

The best part is, as a resourceful photographer, you won’t need to worry about unpredictable weather conditions or timing your shoot perfectly.

You can simply edit your images in post-processing. For more details, check out this video on how to replace a summer sky in Photoshop:

With a little bit of editing, you’ll have gorgeous, eye-catching photos that will delight your clients.

5. Virtual Staging

Imagine turning a lifeless, empty, or outdated place into a vibrant, cozy, and welcoming home with the magic of virtual staging. 

By adding photorealistic digital furniture and decor, you can help potential buyers picture themselves living in the space effortlessly. You can even use virtual landscaping to upgrade your backyard

It’s a game-changing and convenient method to enhance your listing photos and speed up the sale of your home.

With PhotoUp’s virtual staging service, you can get your images virtually staged in less than 48 hours, and the best part is that it only costs $20 to $30 per image. 

Learn more about this powerful technology and how easy it is to get started in our blog post on how to virtually stage a room in less than 5 minutes or check out our virtual staging demo:

PhotoUp Virtual Staging Demo

6. Grass Greening Exterior Real Estate Photography Editing

When it comes to exterior real estate photography, a well-manicured and healthy lawn can work wonders for your exterior home photos and instantly boost the curb appeal of any listing.

However, there may be occasions when you need to capture photos during the wrong season, resulting in unsightly dead or brown spots on the lawn. 

But don’t worry, the good news is that this can be easily remedied.

In our how to green grass in Photoshop video tutorial, we’ll explore some effective techniques and tips on how to address brown spots on the lawn, ensuring that your real estate photos always showcase the property in its best light:

7. Flambient Photo Editing

One technique that stands out is flambient photo editing. Considered an improved version of bracketed HDR images, flambient photography takes 2-3 shots to create one amazing image, going beyond simple exposure adjustments. 

Here’s how it works: you capture an ambient light shot, a flash shot, and sometimes even a window shot. Later, by combining them during the post-processing stage, you achieve a crisp, clean, and detailed image that looks stunning.

The key is to strike the right balance between flash and ambient shots, allowing you to harness the strengths and overcome the limitations of both approaches. 

By cleverly combining them, flambient exterior real estate photography produces outstanding results, revealing the true potential of each shot. 

To get started, you can watch our video tutorial on how edit using the flambient method:

8. Vertical and Horizontal Lines Editing

When it comes to architectural and real estate photography, having straight vertical and horizontal lines is crucial. 

But let’s face it, getting those lines perfect can be a challenge due to lens curvature or the shape of the room and objects inside the property.

This is where perspective correction comes to the rescue! 

By aligning distorted lines with the frame of the image, you can achieve a natural and cohesive look that draws the viewer’s attention to the key features in the photo.

With perspective correction, you can create captivating and visually appealing images that showcase the best aspects of the property. 

Even though this video illustrates how to fix verticals in Photoshop of an interior image, it can still be applied to exterior photos: 

And there you have it! We hope these editing techniques gave you the tools to create captivating images.

High-Quality & Consistent

Real Estate Photo Editing

Hire a dedicated editor with performance metrics from $7/hour.

Outsource Your Real Estate Photo Editing Needs to PhotoUp

If you’re pressed for time or prefer not to edit your real estate photos yourself, PhotoUp has the perfect solution for you. Our team of expert real estate photo editors is ready to assist you with their top-notch skills. 

With over a decade of experience in the business and a talented workforce spanning the globe, PhotoUp guarantees unmatched quality, exceptional service, and competitive pricing.

PhotoUp offers affordable real estate photo editing starting at $1.10 per image depending on your subscription level, delivered with fast turnaround times of 24 hours or less. 

Except for standard editing, our real estate photo marketing services also include:

We have everything you need to market real estate under one roof!

How to Get Started

Getting started using PhotoUp’s real estate photo editing service is super easy.

All you need to do is sign up for a free PhotoUp account, upload your images, choose export setting and turnaround time, get your images returned to download, and that’s it!

PhotoUp Real Estate Photo Editing Uploader

Check out our real estate photo editing uploader demo to see how easy it is to get started:

It’s as quick and easy as 1-2-3!

Say goodbye to the hassle of editing and let PhotoUp take care of your real estate photo needs!

Sign up for a free PhotoUp account today, and let our expert real estate photo editors make your exterior home photos look specular!

We hope this post helped you learn how to create captivating real estate photography. Before you go, you may also want to check out the following resources:

Stina Pettersson

Professional Blogger

Stina is an entrepreneur, digital marketer, and professional blogger who's passionate about real estate photo editing, being outdoors with her pup, and sweaty gym sessions. She loves the written word and has been writing for publications like Forbes and Thrive Global. Originally from Sweden, she's called South Florida her home since 2013.

Connect with Stina