Frame by Frame #1: Townhome In Jacksonville

📌 1. Know the Property Lines

With townhomes, it’s critical to understand what structure belongs to the unit you're photographing. The opening photo created confusion by placing the center of the frame on a dividing wall between two units, visually suggesting that the adjacent townhome was part of the listing.

Tip: When shooting exterior shots, your framing should leave no doubt as to which portion of the building is being featured. A tighter composition or a compressing zoom shot would have made the subject clearer.

Especially if drone photos are part of the package, the camera photos should care more about a tighter shot of the specific unit.

🏠 2. Establish the Unit with a Clear Hero Shot

We were missing a “hero shot” of the front entry—something that frames just the subject unit clearly and makes it obvious to the viewer what they’re buying. Wide shots can be great, but they shouldn’t cause ambiguity.

Tip: Anchor your shoot with 1–2 unmistakable shots that isolate the home, especially when it shares walls or a driveway with other units.

📐 3. Composition: Center vs. Symmetry

In the kitchen, some shots were almost—but not quite—centered. This gives a subtle off-balance feeling. Take the time to align your camera body with the center of the scene, not just where the lens is pointing.

Tip: Find the visual midline of the room (between two walls or corners) and physically position your tripod so the shot is truly symmetrical when symmetry is your goal.

🧊 4. Fridge Confusion is Real

One photo included a black vertical element that turned out to be a fridge, but the viewer wouldn’t know it without seeing the fridge door. That ambiguity weakens the image.

Tip: Always include enough visual cues to identify appliances clearly. When in doubt, step closer or shift angles to make the identity of key features obvious.

🛋️ 5. Don’t Let Patterns Kill Variety

A sequence of six shots all used the same left-wall–dominant composition. This creates visual fatigue. While consistency is good, repetition without variety flattens the experience.

Tip: Vary your approach: shoot from different corners, flip the perspective, or change the foreground/background emphasis to keep the flow dynamic.

🚪 6. Doors, Hallways, and Viewer Psychology

In one great shot, an open door allowed the viewer to visually “travel” through space. That’s a win. In another, a random door left ajar in an exterior photo caused mental friction—why is that door open?

Tip: Open doors can add flow and depth if they’re intentional. Unintended open doors confuse the narrative—close them or compose them deliberately.

🛑 7. Watch the Lens Distortion & Angles

Toward the end, several shots showed mild barrel distortion or misalignment—common with wide-angle lenses. Not tragic, but worth noticing.

Tip: Double-check your verticals in post and consider stepping back to minimize distortion when possible.

🧠 Final Thought: Who Are You Shooting For?

Agents pay the bill. But your true audience is the home shopper. If your photos help someone fall in love with the space—if they can imagine themselves there—you’ve done your job.

Tip: Keep the buyer’s experience front and center. Does every photo answer their unspoken questions? Does it orient them? Does it invite them in?

This post is part of our commitment to providing feedback in the open, serving not just our team but anyone working to level up their real estate photography.