Never photographed a house before? You've got this. Take the photos yourself with the phone already in your pocket, then let us handle the cleanup and editing — that combination can look surprisingly professional. The catch: editing can transform light and color, but it can't re-aim the camera. So this guide is simply "how to give us the best photos you possibly can" — a few habits, a shot list, and you're set.
Sometimes you need photos today, or the listing doesn't justify a full shoot. Shoot them yourself, then hire us for the cleanup and editing — that combination can look surprisingly professional. But it only works if the source photos are good: editing can transform light and color, it can't re-aim the camera. This guide is "how to give me the best photos you possibly can" — the same phone workflow I use myself for certain shots — plus CubiCasa floor plan scanning and your editing options afterward.
You already know which end of the camera points at the house — this is how I run mine. The speed run below is the sequence; the rest is what I capture and why, floor plans with CubiCasa, and exactly what I need back from you if you're shooting on my behalf. Steal anything useful.
This page is unlisted — it's shared by direct link only, so feel free to save it or pass it along to someone who'll use it well.
This is how I move through a house fast without missing anything. The trick is that the floor plan scan doubles as your prep walk, and shooting backwards through the house means you always know what's left.
The parts below this explain the why behind the shots — flow, scale, amenities — and the phone technique if you're ever without your rig. This section is the sequence.
Shoot the front and approach while the light's consistent and before any cars move around. Then head inside.
Walk the whole interior in one big circle running the CubiCasa scan — phone upright/vertical, the opposite of photos. While you walk: lights on, fans off, blinds open, doors open, lids down. You're doing the floor plan and the prep check simultaneously — two jobs, one loop.
While scanning, capture the in-app photos of the dishwasher, sinks, laundry hookups, furnace, water heater, and other appliances — CubiCasa attaches them and a report with those images becomes available with the floor plan. Thirty extra seconds now saves everyone an email chain later. And I recommend joining CubiCasa Pro — it's worth it if you're doing this regularly.
Scan's done — flip the phone (or grab the camera) horizontal, turn around, and shoot your way back. Every room is already lit and prepped ahead of you, and when you reach the front door you know you've covered everything. No mental map, no missed rooms. If the agent or client is willing to move items ahead of you, say yes — delegate the physical cleanup. Time is money.
Step out the back: rear exterior, remaining sides, deck/patio, yard.
Aerials happen on your way out, and only if you hold a Part 107 and the client actually paid for drone. Then GTFO to your next shoot.
Photos and the CubiCasa scan both. Don't sit on cards overnight. Shooting for Hounds & Houses? Just upload and flag the job — editing, floor plan processing, and delivery are all taken care of on my end.
A note on editing: I run photo editing through CubiCasa as well — but that pipeline isn't open to everyone, so your mileage may vary. If you don't have access, Route A below (send them to us) gets you the same result.
This works both ways: if your agency's calendar breaks — vacation, illness, overflow — I cover 1–5 day stretches, white-label, in your workflow.
Coverage DetailsThink of this as giving the editor good bones. A modern phone produces genuinely workable photos if you control the three things that ruin most amateur shots — height, level, and light — because those are exactly the things no amount of editing can fix afterward.
Rule #1 — before anything else
Yes, the "wrong way." Every photo, every room: horizontal. MLS, Zillow, and every portal crop for landscape images — a vertical room photo is a wasted room photo. The one exception: CubiCasa scans stay vertical. The mantra is vertical to scan, horizontal to shoot. (Grab a few verticals at the very end for social if you want them.)
Hold the camera around 4 feet off the floor — roughly chest height. Eye-level shots make rooms look small and show too much ceiling. Countertops should read as a thin line, not a runway.
Turn on the camera grid (Settings → Camera → Grid) and keep the phone perfectly level — not tilted up or down. Tilting is what makes walls look like they're falling over. Square up to a wall or shoot from a corner showing three walls.
Lamps, overheads, under-cabinet, range hood — all of it. Open every blind. Turn off ceiling fans (they blur) and TVs. Mixed light is better than dim light on a phone sensor.
Tap the important part of the room, then drag the exposure slider down slightly so windows don't blow out to pure white. Make sure HDR is on (it usually is by default) — it's doing the bracket-blending a pro camera does.
Sounds silly; fixes more hazy photos than any setting. Your phone lives in pockets and hands — give it a shirt-tail wipe before every house.
Digital zoom destroys quality — step closer instead. The ultra-wide lens fits a whole room but bends the edges; use 1x when you can, 0.5x only for tight bathrooms and to show layout, and keep the phone level when you do.
Phone flash creates harsh hotspots and dead shadows. If a room is too dark, add lamps or shoot at a brighter time of day.
Lean against a door frame, hold the phone with both hands, and use the volume button as the shutter. Take two or three of every shot — one will be sharpest.
Don't clip the edge of the sink, the corner of the island, or half a vanity out of frame — a cut-off feature can't be added back in editing. Step back or adjust your angle until the whole thing fits. Watch for pets in frame, cords, trash cans, and toilet seats up. (Your reflection in a mirror? That one we can remove in editing — but avoid it anyway.) Run the photo-prep checklist before you shoot; it covers the rest.
That's the whole reason Part One matters: nail the framing and height, and we can make a phone photo look remarkably close to professional. Miss them, and no editor — human or AI — can save the shot.
You're not taking 25 random pictures. A buyer scrolling your listing is silently asking three questions: How do the rooms flow together? How big are they really? And what does this house have that others don't? Every shot should answer one of them.
Check shots off as you go — progress saves on your phone, so use it while you walk the house.
Shoot the whole house in one pass so the light stays consistent
Buyers can't walk the house, so your camera does it for them. Shoot the journey, not just the destinations.
One photo per room hides its size. Opposite corners reveal it.
These are the shots that stop the scroll. If it's in the listing copy, it needs a photo.
Two minutes in the driveway beats a 40-minute drive back.
CubiCasa turns a five-minute phone walkthrough into a professional floor plan with square footage (GLA). Buyers consistently rank floor plans just behind photos — it's the cheapest listing upgrade there is.
Download the CubiCasa app and sign in. Scanning works on any modern phone — LiDAR (iPhone Pro) helps but isn't required.
Prep the house first: every interior door open (closets too), lights on, walkways clear. The scan maps what it can see.
Start at the front door and walk the whole floor in one continuous scan — slow, steady, phone held upright/vertical at chest height (the opposite of photos: vertical to scan, horizontal to shoot). Pan gently at doorways so the camera sees into each room as you enter it.
Cover every space: step at least a body-length into each room including closets, pantries, baths, laundry, and the garage. Don't backtrack fast or spin — smooth movements make clean plans.
One scan per floor. End the scan at the stairs, then start the next floor as a new scan; the app stitches them. A typical home takes 5–10 minutes per floor.
Upload on Wi-Fi and submit. Standard turnaround for the finished plan is about 24 hours (rush options are faster).
Straight-off-the-phone photos are usable, but editing is where "fine" becomes "wow." You have three options, and the right one depends on the listing and the clock.
Hire us for just the editing — your phone photos get the same professional treatment our shoots do: exposure blending, color correction, vertical straightening, window pulls, sky replacement, reflection removal.
Upload to an AI enhancement service — or paste photos plus the order-notes prompt below into ChatGPT or Gemini — and get results in minutes: auto HDR look, brightening, sky swaps, even decluttering.
Shoot carefully with the tips above and post as-is. Modern phone HDR already does a lot of quiet work for you.
The style target for every route is the same: MLS-natural — clean and bright, never artificial — and do not alter permanent fixtures. The test is simple: would a buyer standing in the room feel misled by the photo?
Rules vary by MLS — when in doubt, check yours or disclose the edit in the listing.
Shoot following Part One. If your phone offers it, turn on the highest quality format (iPhone: Settings → Camera → Formats → ProRAW or "Most Compatible" at max resolution; Android: full-res JPEG/RAW).
Don't pre-edit or filter anything — send originals. Editors work best from untouched files.
Name or note anything specific: "pull the backyard green," "twilight the front exterior," "remove the for-sale sign reflection."
Send the full-resolution files — not texted/compressed versions. Use a link-based transfer (Google Drive, Dropbox, WeTransfer), never MMS.
This is what I actually send with an editing order — and the same text works as a prompt for ChatGPT or Gemini. I use human editors, AI-enhanced editors, and the chatbots depending on the job; sometimes Gemini nails a set that trips up ChatGPT and vice versa (haven't found the pattern). Multiple ways to the same-ish result — the notes keep them all on target.
Editing style: MLS-natural — clean and bright, never artificial. Do not alter permanent property fixtures.
Core & Essential Edits (auto-approve all required fees)
Aggressive De-Cluttering (additional fees approved up to $25 — set your own override limit)
Ensure a clean, "model-home" aesthetic. Keep all existing furniture, rugs, and room decor intact. Strictly do not alter permanent property fixtures.
The $25 de-clutter baseline is deliberate — it's an easy upsell line item. Adjust the cap (or the override) to your own workflow.
Then genuinely — go shoot it. That's why this guide exists, and with our editing on top, your photos will look great. No hard feelings, only good listings.
Then genuinely — go shoot it. That's why this guide exists, and Route A means your phone photos still get a professional finish. No hard feelings, only good listings.
You've got this either way — but when a client needs more than you offer, or your calendar's full, this is what my stack covers. Send them my way and I'll take care of them.
But some things a phone can't do no matter how well you hold it — and a few of these also change where a listing shows up, not just how it looks:
Lot lines, acreage, roof condition, and neighborhood context — the shots that sell land and location. Licensed, legal, insured.
A 24/7 open house. Out-of-town buyers walk the property at midnight and show up already sold.
Our CubiCasa pipeline produces polished, dimensioned plans — and on several real estate sites, listings with them get better placement, not just better looks.
Because we deliver through Aryeo, your media plugs straight into Zillow's ecosystem — improving how your listing shows and performs where buyers actually scroll.
Walkthrough videos and social reels through our trusted video partners — one point of contact, full production.
Dusk exteriors that stop the scroll, and digital furniture that helps buyers feel a vacant room instead of measuring it.
"I don't try to sell homes —
you shouldn't try to take pictures."
— David · 2,500 homes and counting
One booking covers photos, floor plan, and anything above — shot, edited, and delivered next-day, without you having to remember a single tip on this page.
One booking covers photos, floor plan, and everything above — next-day delivery, consistent quality across every listing, and your brand looking like your brand. Your time is worth more than a light switch loop.
Referrals get taken care of — and if you're shooting for me, you already know the drill: upload, flag it, done.