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Shooting real estate is just the beginning. A talented editor can take a plain property photo and make it stunning with the help of real estate photo editing. 

With careful adjustments, you can elevate even an excellent RAW shot to something truly spectacular – adding effects and creating better visuals no matter the time of day you’re shooting. 

Professional real estate photo editing can generate that wow factor that will capture buyers’ attention and make them want to visit a property.

Let’s take a look at how to recognize a high-quality real estate photo editing service after first answering what real estate photo editing is and why it is essential for marketing real estate.

What Is Real Estate Photo Editing Really?

Real Estate Photo Editing by PhotoUp
Real Estate Photo Editing by PhotoUp

Simply put, real estate photo editing is the basic enhancement and correction of images to make them look eye-catching. 

Editing real estate photos is a critical part of transforming those unassuming shots into captivating imagery with the help of basic enhancement and correction to more complex modifications. 

An expert photo editing provider like PhotoUp has advanced editing skills and can be trusted to give you the best output. Let’s look at why this is important next.

Why Are Photos Important in Real Estate?

Real Estate Photo Editing by PhotoUp
Real Estate Photo Editing by PhotoUp

In today’s crowded real estate market, presenting a property in its best possible light is absolutely essential. 

Quality photographs of a listing can make all the difference when it comes to grabbing potential buyers’ attention and making an impactful first impression.

For example, research suggests that over 90% of home shoppers are beginning their search online and the first point of contact with the property is through the images showcased online.

And 68% of potential buyers say that great photos made them want to visit the home. Additionally, homes with high-quality photos also receive 47% higher asking prices per square foot. 

In other words, professional real estate photography translates into more views, showings, and higher asking prices- critical elements for any savvy homeowner looking to sell their home fast for top dollar.

How to Recognize High-Quality Real Estate Photo Editing 

Except for checking how long the real estate photo editing provider has been in business and reading about other customers’ experiences on review forums, you can spot if you’re working with a professional editing company by the services they offer. 

A high-quality real estate photo editing provider will most likely offer more advanced editing services like the following:

Virtual Dusk

Virtual dusk or twilight real estate photo editing is a technique that can bring life and romance to your property photos, transforming them from regular daytime images into beautiful twilight images. 

This creative approach creates captivating visuals that grab the attention of potential buyers. The colors used in virtual dusk imagery are also softer and more subtle than those used in daytime photography. 

Virtual dusk editing can be particularly effective in creating an aesthetic appeal as it contrasts against vibrant blue skies and lush green foliage – something that can really draw an audience in and help you highlight the best features of the property.

Digital Decluttering & Virtual Staging

In today’s modern real estate market, virtual staging and decluttering technology can help sellers bring out the best in their properties and increase their value significantly – ultimately netting them more money from their sale.

Virtual decluttering is the process of digitally removing items from a photo that make it look cluttered or messy, like areas with too much furniture or personal items. This can make the space appear bigger and more inviting, helping buyers see its full potential. 

On the other hand, virtual staging involves adding digital furniture and decor to a photo of an empty room, which helps buyers envision how the space would look if it would be fully furnished. 

Virtual staging helps buyers imagine a home in their ideal style and layout, further enticing them to make an offer. 

These tech-savvy strategies also give sellers a competitive edge over other listings that don’t have any virtual staging or decluttering features included in their images. 

Virtual Renovation and Landscaping

Just like virtual staging, virtual renovation is the process of using 2D and 3D design to update structural elements of a home like flooring and wall paint, drywall or ceiling, making room remodels, and more.

It can even be used to make improvements to the landscaping and boost the digital curb appeal of a property. This will improve the overall appearance of the home, which can help you sell it at a higher price. 

Virtual Landscaping by PhotoUp
Virtual Landscaping by PhotoUp

Overall, digital renovation and landscaping give buyers an idea of how their future home can look and help them imagine themselves living in the home. It gives the space character and a warm and inviting feel!

Additionally, homeowners who are thinking of making renovations to their homes can also use virtual renovation to help them see the new, improved design of their home in its final glory. 

They will be able to see whether their desired changes will look the way they’d planned or visualized, saving them both time and unnecessary expenses.

Fast & Affordable

Virtual Staging Service

Interiors. Landscapes. Commercial. Virtually transform any space.

Sky Replacements

Nothing is more inviting than seeing a beautifully clear blue sky with warm sunlight and birds circulating in the air. 

Making a sky replacement can make a huge difference and have a remarkable effect on prospective home buyers.

Not only will they be much more receptive to the property, but they’re also likely to spend longer looking at the photo if the sky is clear, bright, and welcoming.

More specifically, a clear blue sky will show off properties in a whole new light, which can help to accelerate a sale.

Plus, photographers don’t have to worry about the weather or choosing the best time of the day. Instead, they can set up a shoot and take their photos at a time that suits them the best.

360° Virtual House Tours 

360-degree virtual house tours are quickly becoming the go-to choice for real estate agents and property owners looking to market and sell their properties in the most effective way possible. 

With the use of immersive 3D walkthroughs, potential buyers can have an almost real and live experience of visiting the property from anywhere in the world. Perfect in persistent COVID-19 times!

Through a panoramic virtual tour, viewers can explore every corner of a home, from its living room to its bedrooms and bathrooms, providing them with an accurate representation of what they would see in person. 

Additionally, 360-degree virtual house tours can be tailored to appeal to certain audiences by showcasing features that might be particularly attractive to them. 

The use of such technology also allows potential buyers to visualize themselves living in a space, which helps them make faster decisions when it comes to making an offer on a property. 

It is clear that 360-degree virtual house tours are an incredibly effective tool for marketing and selling real estate as they provide potential buyers with an immersive experience without them ever having to leave their own homes.

Floor Plans

2D Floor Plans by PhotoUp
2D Floor Plans by PhotoUp

Floor plans may seem boring at first glance but they are excellent tools to market real estate. Potential buyers can see the exact layout of the home and look at the measurements of each room.

They can easily judge whether their furniture would fit in the space or if they may need to make upgrades or downgrades. 

A professional floor plan editing service can turn rough sketches into stunning, three-dimensional renderings that will help property owners realize their property’s potential on the market. 

HDR Editing

HDR is an abbreviation for High Dynamic Range — the exposure ranges between the darkest and the lightest parts of an image. 

Most real estate photographers want to shoot HDR, especially for interiors because it showcases the house in a detailed and realistic manner.

That said, in most cases, the HDR editing process needs at least three images. The first one is to capture a mid-range exposure shot, with the second image for highlights, and the third for the shadows.

The multiple images are then layered together. The final image, a blending of different exposures, creates a single image with an overall correct exposure and better detailing.

HDR is popular among real estate photographers because the result is an accurate and robust image of both the interior and exterior of a home. 

Image Enhancements

A professional real estate photo editing service should also be able to offer more simplistic image enhancements such as:

  • Color corrections
  • Horizontal and vertical line adjustments
  • Editing exposure and brightness 
  • Making noise reduction
  • Grass greening
  • Object removal 
  • And much more.

Enhancing colors, adjusting white balance, and sharpening details help to create bright and crisp images that show off their professional finish. 

Keep in mind these simple touch-ups can make or break the views of your property photos.

Keep It Natural

An expert editing service knows the difference between making image enhancements and photo manipulation

The latter is typically not recommended in real estate photography since you should keep your images as natural-looking as possible to avoid misrepresentation and buyer dissatisfaction.

For example, the buyer would not be happy to see that big silo/water tank behind the house (in the picture above) when arriving at a physical showing. Because that structure was removed from the listing image, this would be a misrepresentation of the property.

You need to make sure your editing provider creates a more natural look in order to make the photos believable. 

The goal of real estate photography is to sell properties, not create an unrealistic presentation that will make buyers disappointed and angry when visiting the property in person.

High-Quality & Consistent

Real Estate Photo Editing

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

Try Professional Real Estate Photo Editing With PhotoUp!

To sell a property faster, you need to create a feeling that home buyers can’t resist. PhotoUp has more than 10 years of experience doing just that! 

PhotoUp employs several hundred photo editors around the world, making it hard to match their quality, service, and pricing.  

Our expert team can handle any photo editing job — big or small, simple or complex for affordable prices, starting at $1.15 per image.

You may also be pleased to know that you can find everything you need for your real estate marketing needs under one roof, as PhotoUp also offers additional services such as: 

Best yet, you’ll also get access to our user-friendly software, so you can upload and receive photos, and send instructions and feedback. As well as track and manage team members and clients, store final images, and more!

All you need to do to get started is sign up for a free PhotoUp account, place your first order and your photographs will be delivered back to you in less than 24 hours.

PhotoUp Real Estate Photo Editing Uploader Demo

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

As you can see, getting your images professionally edited is an easy and quick process!

Sign up for a free PhotoUp account, and ensure the highest quality real estate photo editing!

We hope this blog post helped you learn how to recognize a professional real estate editing service. 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.

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