To get started in real estate photography, you can get by with a DSLR camera, a wide angle lens and a tripod. With some time and experience I have learned what the best tools are for me to do my job well and efficiently.
Camera
Nikon Z6
The biggest reason I switched from my D750 camera to Z6 mirrorless was the weight of the gear I was carrying around in my bag all day, every day. Nikon mirrorless cameras are significantly more compact and lightweight compared to DSLR, while maintaining the image quality Nikon is known for. I love my Z6 and would definitely buy another Nikon mirrorless in the future.
Lenses
Nikon Z 15-30mm f/4
I bought this lens specifically with real estate photography in mind, and in my opinion there’s no need to opt for the bulkier, more expensive f/2.8 version of this lens (which I have also tested out). For wide real estate shots you’re generally shooting with aperture settings between f6.3 and f/9 so using a faster lens isn’t that beneficial.
Nikon Z 24-200mm f/4
This lens is a great all-rounder lens that I mostly use for detail shots of unique property features or staging vignettes.
Flash
Godox AD200Pro TTL Pocket Flash Kit and X-Pro-N Transmitter Wireless flash trigger
For me, a flash or speedlight is essential to get my images looking the way I want them to. Blending together ambient and flash exposures means the lighting looks more even throughout the room.
Tripod
Manfrotto 055XPROB & MHXPRO-BHQ2 Ball Head with 200PL plate
I got this tripod second-hand when I first started shooting real estate. I wanted a solid, tall tripod that wouldn’t move when taking multiple exposures. I have replaced the ball-head once since I got it and love it, despite how weighty it is.
Extra stuff
Sensor swabs and lens cleaning wipes
You never know when you’re going to need to clean dust spots off the sensor (quite often, if you’re switching lenses all the time!) And lens cleaning wipes help remove any accidental fingerprint smears from the front of the lens.
Extra memory card
Just in case I forget or fill up the first one.
Extra battery
In case I have forgotten to charge the first one, or have a particularly busy day when it runs flat.
Grid paper notebook and pencil
Part of my job is to draw property floorplans. Though there are a handful of apps for this purpose I’ve found them to be fiddly and limiting and prefer to measure and draw the floorplans by hand and get them digitised afterwards. This used to be one of my least favourite parts of the job, but I’ve sketched so many floorplans at this point that I have learned how to identify the best starting point and what to look for that might catch me out, and now I quite enjoy it.
The bag I use to carry all this around is the House of Flynn Mini Evermore.
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