Ethical and Practical Real Estate Image Editing

Ethical and Practical Real Estate Image Editing

Now, with more dependency on digital technologies, selling or buying a property largely depends on the quality of images presented on the real estate agent’s website. On such sites, properties are listed with their images and features. The purpose of these images is to generate sales by letting the potential buyer have an accurate view of the property before making up their mind to schedule a showing.

Therefore, the images shown to the buyers must depict the reality of the property. If an image is misleading then the buyer will most likely reject the property and the real estate agent will also lose the trust of their client. It is very important to keep in mind that image editing for real estate photography should only be done to enhance the beauty and also capture the potential buyer’s eye while not misleading the buyer by portraying something different from reality.

Is Real Estate Photo Editing Unethical?

Real estate photographers have to present images that can push the buyers to move ahead and visit their desired property. For this purpose, real estate agents commonly outsource real estate image editing services to make changes in images in ways that make them more eye-catching or appealing. Doing this is often necessary because camera lenses do not always make images look as real as they look to human eyes. Therefore, under such circumstances, image editing for real estate photography becomes a necessity and it is considered ethical and practical.

On the other hand, images should not be altered in such a way that they do not present the property truthfully. Making changes in an image that involves removing or adding permanent objects can be a deceitful tactic. Such kinds of modifications in real estate photos misrepresent a property and misguide the buyer. In these instances even if they like the property because of its photographs they will most likely never choose it after taking a tour through the property due to the misleading photos. Altering real estate photos to bring physical changes is completely unethical.

Some people consider the advantages of photo editing in real estate industry unethical from every perspective. However, it is a matter of opinion. The reason is that our eyes and brain function differently so they can adjust according to the light in the room and see the real colors. But the same is not the case with cameras. Photos need adjustments to create an image that is near to the reality of the property. Also, indoor lighting conditions or outdoor weather can affect the colors of images so they may need to be adjusted by real estate image editing services providers to look real and natural. Therefore, such services should be considered useful and ethical.

Real Estate Image Editing Services That are Ethical

Moderate editing that is done to enhance the image effect but not to misguide a buyer is ethical and useful. Some of the prominent examples of real estate photo editing services that are considered ethical are given below.

Examples

Color Adjustment

No doubt technology has evolved a lot but still, camera lenses do not work how a human eye works. Our eyes and brain coordinate with each other to create a focused and clear image through the retina. However, cameras do not work in the same way. The color temperature, amount of light, and other similar factors distort the real colors and often create color casts that alter the shades. Image editing for real estate photography is essential under such situations because dull and boring colors can represent properties poorly and mislead the buyer.

Removing Temporary Objects

The real beauty of a place can be badly affected by some displeasing objects placed in the area. Objects like clutter, outdated decorations, wall clocks, etc. should be removed so that images can nicely present the room or space. Removing these temporary objects that will be removed later by the seller anyway is not unethical in any way as it is not misleading the buyer.

Removing Furniture

As it is previously stated above, temporary objects should be removed. Therefore, removing furniture from the pictures by using different real estate image editing services is also ethical. Eliminating furniture will show the total area of the room and will let the buyer have a better idea of a room’s space.

Sky Enhancement

Image editing for real estate photography is acceptable if it is done to enhance the beauty of the sky. A lot of times cameras do not present the sky the way it is in real life. Oftentimes it is either due to too much brightness or a lack of lighting. Also, the weather is constantly changing and is not permanent. So enhancing the sky is not misleading as its only purpose is to make the image more realistic.

Real Estate Image Editing Techniques That Should be Avoided

As technologies keep evolving, software such as Photoshop has made it very easy for professional realty editors to make changes in images easily. There are certain things in image editing for real estate photography that should be avoided to prevent misunderstandings concerning the property’s features. It is unethical to make the following edits in real estate photographs.

  • If the captured property has unappealing buildings or other areas in its surroundings then removing them is a deception. A buyer must be aware of the appearance of neighboring buildings. So, eliminating the surrounding buildings to conceal the truth about that neighborhood would be unethical.
  • Similarly, changing colors so that the new color is different from the original one is also an unethical approach. If the paint color of a room is red then using real estate image editing to alter this red color into white or some other shade will cheat the buyer of a realistic viewing.
  • Removing permanent marks from walls, removing wires, and other such things is also considered unethical.

Concluding Remarks

Enhancing the beauty of the property by transforming images in such a way that no deceitful modification is done is considered ethical while editing real estate photography. It is a photographer’s legal responsibility to provide their listing agent images that are not misleading. To beautify the existing features of a property real estate image editing services can be used in such a way that is ethical and necessary to successfully close the deal for your potential clients.

 

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