Ive been in business for 3 years now, started by shooting homes for realtors. I am also a graduate from Brooks Institute, I have shot over 200 listings in the last 3 years. While it made up alot of my income my first year, it is not my focus. My best realtor client who hires me the most, actually coined the phrase you need to dumb yourself down and not overthink it. i was shooting on a 1dsmark II with 16-35/2.8 on raw and doing massive color corrections, sometimes making tan walls white when i started.
well shooting so much i have learned alot, but i cannot think like a realtor. please help me do so but without the lobotomy i am convinced that they do not need a professional photographer but just a camera operator, an uncle bob or MWAC or a highschooler, just the smallest step above what they can do themselves.
i am currently shooting a home, most of them being $700k-1.4M, on a 1d3 Sraw files, 2.5MP (i never have needed more even for 8x10 prints, they are always pleased with the quality), with a 12-24mm lens and 580 flash (balancing for as dark as a window exposure as possible for lake views or otherwise balancing it for a natural look), editing them (just for best angle and tests) and providing them on cd of 25-35 images optimized for exposure, contrast and color balance in both full res and 400x600 for $290. this is up slightly from about a year ago when it was $260 for 20 shots after the request for more photos, its quite a value these days. i have about 2 hours of my time total in shooting/processing a home, plus car mileage/wear-tear and computer/cameras to maintain.
i am curious to know your rate and package and the details of how you shoot for your price. i hope to hear back and learn how to do this the fastest and most efficiently so they can get what they really want- it for peanuts... but still have it be worth my time. i will probably keep my current package but might consider an economy package from your replies of how to do it even quicker.
as i type this, i get $100/hr for commercial work, in a small town, where the stupiest excuse for a photog charges $85 and the top too expensive studio is $135, i am right in the middle and honestly produce just as good as work s the big guys. how about shooting jpgs for realtors...do you? what do they think of the quality...perhaps i can shoot the home in like an hour + a lil of computer work, just resize them for internet and be in and out in 1.5 hours and charge like $200.
thank you much for your help.