01It’s Time We Talked About Rental Photography
Hello, I’m Matthew Evans, the photographer behind The Property Photo Guy. For the past 17 years, I’ve been helping estate agents across Somerset, Bristol, and Bath make their sales listings shine. We’ve all seen the transformation – long gone are the days of a few quick snaps on a compact camera. Now, professional photography is rightly seen as an essential marketing tool to sell a property. But I’ve noticed a strange disconnect: when it comes to the lettings side of the business, we often seem to rewind the clock ten years.
Just last week, I was browsing Rightmove for a friend, looking at rentals in my own patch of Somerset, and I was genuinely shocked. I saw a lovely two-bedroom cottage, full of character, being marketed with photos that were dark, tilted, and had the agent's reflection in a mirror. In a sales market, this would be unthinkable. So why is it still so common for lettings? The rental market is more competitive than ever, and I believe lettings agents and landlords are missing a huge opportunity by not investing in the same high-quality marketing they use for sales. It’s time to give rental listings the professional images they truly deserve.
The New Reality of the South West Rental Market
The rental landscape has changed dramatically. A few years ago, you could put almost any property on the market and have a queue of tenants waiting. Today, things are different. While demand is still incredibly high, tenants have become more discerning. The rise of high-quality Build to Rent (BTR) developments, particularly in Bristol, has completely reset expectations. These developments offer professionally managed blocks with amenities like gyms and co-working spaces, all marketed with slick, magazine-quality photography. They are selling a lifestyle, and private landlords are now competing with that.
This ripple effect is felt across the region. In Bath, where the historic housing stock is a huge draw, tenants are looking for properties that blend character with modern comforts, and the photography needs to reflect that. In the towns across Somerset, from Taunton to Yeovil, the competition for good tenants is fierce. A poorly presented listing will get lost in the noise. Rightmove’s own data consistently shows that listings with professional photography receive significantly more clicks and enquiries [1]. When a potential tenant is scrolling through dozens of options, your first impression is everything. A professional set of images makes your listing stand out, conveys quality, and tells the tenant that this is a property managed by a professional, caring agent and landlord.
The Simple Maths: Reducing Void Periods with Better Photos
Let’s talk about the most direct financial benefit: reducing void periods. Every week a property sits empty costs a landlord money. It’s a simple calculation, but one that’s often overlooked when landlords try to save a hundred pounds on marketing.
Let’s break it down for a typical three-bedroom family home in a popular part of Bristol, say Southville, with a rent of £1,500 per month. * Weekly Rent: £346 (£1500 x 12 / 52) * Cost of a 2-Week Void: £692 in lost rent, plus council tax and standing charges. * Cost of Professional Photography: A one-off investment of around £150-£200.
If those professional photos help you find a tenant just one week faster, the landlord has already saved nearly £500. The return on investment is immediate and substantial. When you present it to landlords in these simple terms, it’s not a cost; it’s an insurance policy against a costly void period. The photos can be used for years, across multiple tenancies, making the ROI even more compelling.
The Technical Difference: What a Professional Brings
Many agents and landlords trust their phone cameras, and while they have improved, they simply cannot compete with professional equipment and expertise. It's not just about having a 'good camera'; it's about the craft of making a space look its absolute best.
- Equipment: I use a full-frame camera with a specialist wide-angle lens. This allows me to capture the entirety of a room without the distortion that phone cameras often create, making spaces look smaller or oddly shaped. The larger sensor also captures far more light and detail, resulting in cleaner, crisper images.
- Lighting: This is perhaps the biggest differentiator. A room might have a bright window and a dark corner. Your phone will either expose for the window (plunging the room into darkness) or the room (blowing out the window to pure white). I use a technique called 'flambient' photography, blending multiple exposures with off-camera flash to create a single, perfectly balanced image that looks bright, natural, and inviting – just as you'd perceive it with your own eyes.
- Composition and Staging: I know how to find the best angle in every room. It's about showing the relationship between spaces, highlighting key features, and creating a sense of flow. I'll make small adjustments – moving a chair, plumping a cushion – that make a huge difference to the final shot.
- Post-Processing: Every photo I deliver is professionally edited. This isn't about making the property look like something it's not. It's about ensuring perfect colour accuracy, straight vertical lines (a common phone photo failing), and a consistent brightness and feel across the entire set of images. This professional polish is instantly recognisable to prospective tenants.
Attracting a Better Calibre of Tenant
Beyond the immediate financial return, the quality of your marketing has a direct impact on the quality of the tenants you attract. Think about it from the tenant’s perspective. A listing with dark, out-of-focus photos suggests a landlord or agent who cuts corners. It creates an unconscious bias, an impression of a property that might not be well-maintained. If the marketing is lazy, what will the gas safety check be like? Will they be responsive to maintenance issues?
Conversely, a bright, professional set of images signals quality and care. It attracts tenants who appreciate a well-looked-after home and are more likely to treat it with respect. These are the tenants who report maintenance issues promptly, look after the garden, and are more likely to stay for the long term. For a landlord, a reliable, long-term tenant who looks after their asset is worth their weight in gold. It means fewer mid-tenancy issues, a smoother checkout process, and a property that’s in better condition for the next let.
Justifying Premium Rents in a Competitive Market
In a market where rents are at a record high, tenants want to see value for their money. If you are marketing a premium property – perhaps a stylish apartment in Bath city centre or a large family home in the Chew Valley – you need to justify that premium rent. Professional photography is essential for this.
It allows you to showcase the high-end finishes, the sense of space, and the lifestyle the property offers. It’s about capturing the morning sun streaming into the kitchen, the cosy feel of the living room fireplace, or the stunning view from the balcony. These are the emotional triggers that help a potential tenant connect with the home before they’ve even stepped through the door. This is standard practice in the sales world, and it’s just as critical for premium rentals. When a tenant sees a property presented like a high-end sales listing, it immediately elevates its perceived value and helps to justify the asking rent.
Tailoring Your Approach: From Student HMOs to Executive Lets
Of course, not all rental properties are the same. The photography needs for a student House in Multiple Occupation (HMO) in Weston-super-Mare are different from a luxury corporate let in Bristol’s Harbourside.
- For HMOs and Student Lets: The focus should be on clarity, space, and the communal experience. Wide-angle shots of the bedrooms are essential to show they can comfortably fit a bed and desk. Bright, clean photos of the kitchen and living areas help to sell the social aspect of the house. It’s about showing a clean, safe, and functional living space.
- For Premium and Family Lets: Here, it’s about selling a lifestyle. You need to capture the feeling of the home. Detail shots of quality kitchen fittings, beautiful garden shots, and "hero" images that capture the main living space in the best possible light are crucial. Twilight photography can be particularly effective for high-end properties, adding a touch of drama and sophistication that makes a listing truly stand out.
- For Rural & Holiday Lets: For properties in the Somerset countryside, it's about selling the location as much as the house. I'll capture the views, the garden, and the local setting. For holiday lets, the photos need to be even more aspirational, showing the experience guests will have – the cosy log burner for winter breaks, or the sunny patio for summer escapes.
How to Upsell Photography to Your Landlords
As a letting agent, you are the trusted advisor to your landlords. The conversation about professional photography is an opportunity to demonstrate your expertise and commitment to getting them the best result. Here are a few talking points:
- The ROI Argument: "Mr/Mrs Landlord, a professional shoot will cost around £150. Your property is £1,200 a month, so every empty week costs you £275. If these photos help us let it just four days faster, you’re already in profit. Plus, we can reuse them for years to come."
- The Tenant Quality Argument: "We find that better presented properties attract a better quality of tenant. The type of person who appreciates good marketing is also the type of person who will look after your property as if it were their own."
- The Competition Argument: "The rental market is very competitive right now. We'll be up against 20 other similar properties. Professional photos will make your listing stand out, get more clicks, and ultimately, get it let faster."
You can also bundle it into your management packages, offering a "Premium Marketing" option that includes professional photography, a floor plan, and perhaps even a short video tour. This not only provides a better service to your landlords but also creates a valuable new revenue stream for your agency.
02Ready to Elevate Your Listings?
The lettings market has evolved. It’s more professional, more competitive, and more focused on quality than ever before. It’s time our marketing caught up. Investing in professional photography for your rental properties is no longer a luxury; it’s a fundamental tool for reducing void periods, attracting better tenants, and achieving the best possible rent for your landlords.
If you’re an estate agent in Somerset, Bristol, or Bath and you’re ready to see the difference professional photography can make to your lettings portfolio, I’d love to have a chat. Let’s work together to make your listings stand out and get the results your clients deserve.
References
[1] Rightmove, "Why professional photography is a must for property listings" (General industry knowledge, specific article may vary) [2] The Property Academy, "Home Moving Trends Survey" (General industry data) [3] Zoopla, "Rental Market Report" (Regularly updated reports on the UK rental market)
