January 2020 | Graphics Cycle

Things to Consider While Choosing Photo Editing Services

By Graphics Cycle on January 24th, 2020 in Image/Photo Editing

Some basic but important factors to study before choosing an image editing company. Things that you should know while outsourcing your photographs to others. Hello everyone, hope you guys are doing well. I am here with another blog. At this point, I will talk about the factors you need to know if you want to outsource your photos.

Before getting started, let me ask you, “Are you thinking of outsourcing your images for the first time?” “Are you seeking for the best image editing service?” But thousands of options are getting you in trouble.

If yes, then go with this blog. Without wasting your time, let me start today’s article. We all know that business trends are changing every day. Most business houses are going online and they are keeping options for online shopping.

As a result, they need a lot of photographs to maintain their business. They need to showcase the photos of their products with an attractive look. Otherwise, they cannot grab the attention of the clients.

Moreover, professional photographers also have to outsource their images. Because they cannot handle everything alone. They also get in trouble about selecting image outsourcing companies. So, I am here to help you with this matter. Here you go.

Do you need editing services? Well, this is not a rhetorical question. We can answer the question with so many facts and data. The first thing is, that photographers cannot deny the importance of image post-production editing.

In the initial part, a photographer can handle taking photos and editing them. Apart from this, there are some other reasons why you need photo editing services.

Things To Consider While Choosing Photo Editing Services

01. Experts Help

You may be passionate about photography but not editing. So let the expert do it because they can guide you about post-production photo editing services. If you take this responsibility on your shoulder it will produce a bad result.

Workflow: To keep the workflow you cannot perform all the tasks alone. Because later it will become an obstacle to your workflow.
Save Enough Time for Your Family and Business: If you don’t edit photos, it will save time. You can save enough time for your family and business.
Grow Your Business: To grow a business you have to work more. In that case, you should outsource the editing task to some other companies. Otherwise, your business will not grow as expected.

02. Networking

To get more work you have to build a strong network. For that, you have to give more time to that. A strong network building requires a huge effort. To ensure that effort you should search for a good image editing company. Therefore you can give more time to network building.

Through this strong network, you can find people who are doing photo editing outsourcing job work. So, these are the reasons why you need this service.

Let’s move on to the matters that you should take care of while outsourcing image editing.

Determine your needs. Selecting a random image editing company without knowing your needs will not be a good idea. If you do that you might end up having poor service. So, it is wise to determine what kind of photo editing services you need.

If you feel confused about your own needs then it’s better to consult with a possible photo editing service provider. The fact is, you cannot get all the services from one single service provider. Some may provide you with Raster image editing whereas others provide vector conversion.

Product photo editing is the strength of some companies. For example, clothing and electronics have different textures. These two types of photography require different types of expertise.

According to your needs, you can select the company. Once you are done with determining your need, collect information about the available services.

Try to know which companies are better at providing the editing you want. Make a list of potential companies you might work with. At this stage, you have to consider the things that I have discussed here in detail.

03. Browse Their Website

Browsing the website of any company is the primary source of getting information about it. Every website contains all the details of the services they provide.

You can get an overview of their services, pricing system, turnaround time, the capacity to process images, etc. So, before deciding on your service provider browse the websites of probable companies.

04. Customer Reviews

Do you know the best company that offers photography post-production services? Maybe you do, but you may not know the company that can please you. Thousands of people are opening photo editing businesses these days.

Well, if you want to know which company is doing well, read the customer reviews on their websites. Yes, you cannot depend on the mere word of mouth or buzzword. You need to check out for the real scenario.

Not only the small companies but also the renowned companies require a check. You will get an overview of their performance there in the comments. Go and check their social media platforms and read thoroughly how people are responding to them.

Nevertheless, you should contact the reviewers directly. Nowadays there are a lot of paid reviews available. If everything goes well, include them in the list of probable working partners.

05. Sample Work and Experience

Now have a close look at their sample works and experience. You can have a glimpse of the quality of work from their sample works. Find their sample works on their website or social media.

A page with before and after versions of their sample work will be there on the website. Also, figure out how many years they are in the business.

From these photos, you can guess the quality of their work. Do it carefully. Along with that, check the software they use.

A good company will always update them with time and adopt the best software. Moreover, you can go for a free trial at first. And then decide if you will work with them or not.

06. Turnaround Time

Understanding the urgency of the customer is a basic criterion for a photo editing company. They have to work according to the sharp deadlines of their customers. For instance, the Wedding photo editing Service Company has to follow the deadline strictly.

Notice if the company has a big working team. If yes, they can meet the deadline you have. They can give the output faster. Apart from that, look for a 24/7 support team. Through the support team, you can have any questions answered and share your views or suggestions.

Having a client support option is a sign of a good work ethic. Professional photo editing service providers follow the deadlines and appreciate customer suggestions. When you find a company that prioritizes customer needs, you should make it a long-term partner.

07. Security

Security is a big concern for anyone. Before adopting outsourcing for professional photographers or e-commerce businesses, ensuring security is a must. The company should have a secure means of uploading and downloading images.

You should check their quality certifications. Make a nondisclosure agreement if there are any vulnerable photos of children or women.

08. Pricing

Are you thinking of saving money for your company? Well, everyone wants that. That’s why people look for something cheaper. What if you get a cheap photo editing service with quality work?

In that case, you should reject them. You can never compromise with quality if you want to grow your business.

Working with such companies may save you money momentarily, but you will lose clients eventually. While fixing a price for taking photo editing services you should keep these matters in mind.

09. Payment System

Besides pricing you have to confirm the payment method. You should know how overseas companies handle and submit their invoices. Get all the information about the associated fees for international transfers. Never go for any unrecognized payment method.

Always stick to internationally known payment systems like PayPal, Venmo, Visa, Mastercard, etc. They ensure security through a multiple-layer security system.

10. Revisions

When your service provider completes a project, you may not be satisfied with that. And you want the images to get checked again and have a retouch.

In this part, you can judge how the company is. They should be very friendly with revising the images multiple times. They will not ask for any extra payment for the revisions. Finding a good image editing service is not an easy task.

But if you do proper research, this can be a piece of cake. After all the points I raised above, there should not be any trouble finding an image editing service. Nevertheless, I have come up with some basic questions that can help you along the way.

Ask:

How much experience do they have?
How do their past clients rate them?
Do they process all kinds of image editing?
Do they have free trial options?
Is their pricing policy compatible with your budget?

Conclusion

So, before ending the article I would like to ask you “Don’t you think this is a proper way to find the best image editing service?” Well, the opinion may vary from person to person. However, you can have a clear direction towards selecting your image editing partner after reading this. Just follow the instructions I discussed. Best of luck with that. Go ahead.

Graphics Cycle

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Real Estate Photography Important Tips For Beginners

By Graphics Cycle on January 24th, 2020 in Photography

Over the past decades, it is a common phenomenon to search for everything online. Real estate photography is not something different in this regard. Thanks to the internet now you get everything in one platform.

Well, do you know real estate photography is not as simple as it seems? You might get embarrassed if you are not well prepared. You cannot ignore the fact that the better prepared you are, the more efficient your result will be.

I know you don’t want to make silly mistakes as a beginner. To help you out in this matter, I have come up with some important tips for beginners. Without further ado, let’s get down the business.

Real Estate Photography | Essential Tips for Beginners

Selling a house? High-quality photos are key to attracting buyers. This guide gives new real estate photographers essential tips to capture bright, clear, and inviting images.

01. Pick An Accurate Time

One thing where the real estate photographers get messed up is the timing of photo shoots. Selecting a perfect time for shooting is important. It may look okay to shoot real estate photos at any period of the daytime. But to take advantage of natural light, pick the time according to the weather conditions.

Try to avoid cloudy days for shooting. Choose the time that will be perfect for your photo. Ask your clients about their preferences.

Some people prefer sunset while others may love the bright sun above the structure. So, make sure the shooting time is suitable for the customer’s demand.

My suggestion to you would be, to keep the house in front if you are shooting during sunset. This angle will give better lighting for your photo shoot. The point is, that you cannot deny the fact that natural light is significant in shooting architectural structures. So, while going to shoot real estate properties, try to use the natural light as much as possible.

02. Visit the Property Before Shooting

Before starting the shooting visit the house at least once. And take some preliminary photos to know in detail about the rooms, the façade, back yard, etc. Don’t make haste if you want a better result. Some newcomer photographers start shooting at the first visit.

As a result, the whole property comes to them as a surprise. This results in bad-quality photography. That’s why I think it is one of the crucial tips for beginners that they visit the house beforehand. However, when you have some initial photos of the house, make sure you don’t forget to analyze each of the photos. Securitize all the shots carefully.

This will help you focus on the small things you could have missed at first glance. After finishing this you should get ready for the final shoot.

03. Set Creative Angles

Some things are beyond the limit of photography tips. In that case, you have to be creative. For instance, Camera angles. In this type of photography, angles play a crucial role. Don’t get cliché while choosing the right angle. Brainstorm and find out some innovative angles for shooting the interior.

Try to do something that most photographers do not do. If you are shooting a room. You can take the photo from the door. It will let you focus on the maximum part of the interior.

Thus you can show the entire room and the spaces inside it. The same idea goes for exterior shooting. You have to apply your creativity to the maximum level. Only then you can hope for a better output.

04. Let the Light Come

Everyone has to admit that there is no alternative to natural light. The sunlight is unreplaceable. So, when you are going to shoot make sure that there is enough light inside the house. You can open the blinds and windows. To enhance the effect of natural light use reflectors and LED panels.

Natural light makes the photos look more realistic. Clients can have a clear idea about the actual look of the house. You can easily highlight the small details. Metals and small artistic features of the furniture will not skip the sight.

05. Switch the Lights On or Off

I don’t know if you will agree with me or not, but in my opinion, a house without lights looks haunting. If you take shots without lights the same thing can happen to your photograph. Not only this, but lights prove that everything in this house is functioning and it is livable.

This is very primary advice that you should switch the lights on before shooting. This will make things lively. You can give your photograph a luxurious look with additional light. Well, it is another way to look at it.

You can use different techniques of switching on and off to get different effects. If you want to give your pictures an impassive look then go for turning the lights off. Your objective will determine whether you should turn on the lights or not. However, you have to remember about the light temperature correction during the editing.

06. Color Temperature Fixing

No matter how perfectly you take shots, if your color temperature is wrong this will ruin your photo. A wrong color temperature hits the eye at first glance. And it creates a bad impression. Image quality can be hampered by many factors. Wrong color temperature is one of them.

You should know how to fix light temperature. As a new photographer, if you haven’t yet learned it, do so as soon as possible. For example, if you are shooting in a bathroom, there can be an unpleasant yellow tint from the reflection of artificial lights.

To remove this, just move the orange or yellow slider as long as it doesn’t turn plain white. It occurs because of the combination of LED, halogen, or CFL lamps with natural light.

07. Choose the Right Camera

You cannot use the same camera for different kinds of shooting. The same camera for every kind of shoot might work as a rescue but it is not a good option. Especially in shooting real estate properties, you need a specialized camera. I would suggest you go for a full-frame camera. The full-frame camera can cope with a lot of light whereas the cropped sense is not able to do so.

Yes, I agree that for a new photographer, it might not be possible to buy spare cameras. If this is the case, then go for the interchangeable lens camera. Thus, you can turn your ordinary camera into perfect for real estate shooting.

08. Have Enough Accessories

Little things can turn into an Achilles’ heel for you. I am talking about photo shooting accessories. You should always keep in mind that the importance of accessories is not to be taken lightly.

For instance, keep some extra batteries. When your regular batteries will go dead in the workplace then you will need them. No matter if you use them often or not keep some extra batteries in your bag.

Moreover, you might need a sandbag to give support to your light stands or umbrella. Another important tool is a small step ladder that you can move from here to there with one hand. Along with these, be careful about some other accessories.

Such as white-balancing tools, spare memory cards or hard disks, cleaning kits, tripods, etc. Any problem related to these things can cause a waste of time and unnecessary trouble. Consequently, your client can get dissatisfied. So keep that in mind. You can prepare the camera gear the night before shooting.

09. Fix a Reasonable Price

It is a bit confusing for the newcomer real estate photographer when it comes to real estate photography pricing. This is a huge field of work and is considered one of the highest-paid jobs.

So, when setting prices consider these factors. Study the real estate photography business first. Take the information about the current real estate photographers and compare your works with their works. Then come to a concluding amount that you will charge.

10. Camera, Lenses, and Other Settings

You have already known many things from the tips I shared about clicking real estate photos. Now it’s time to get some camera-related tips. Well, when it comes to camera it covers many things. Such as the camera settings, lenses, flash, tripod, shutter speed, aperture, and filters. Let’s start with that.

A. Wide-angle Lenses

You should use wide-angle lenses. Because as a real estate photographer you have to take shots from different angles of the object to cover as much space as possible. A wide-angle lens will help you to do this perfectly. It will help you to visualize the room larger than the reality.

B. Using Flash

Usually, we see that the standard flashes are not that strong. These are not compatible with taking professional images. They cannot highlight important details. You should add some external flashes to your camera toolkit.

C. Using A Tripod

Using a tripod can make your tasks easier. It is a vital part of real estate photography equipment. In low light, you need a tripod to avoid the blurry look and get good sharpness. Camera height is crucial for shooting both inside and outside. A tripod can help to determine the camera height.

D. Polarizing Filters

These usually fit in front of the lenses. It darkens the skies, helps cope with reflections, and overpowers the brightness from the lake or sea surfaces. Make sure the filter you use is a circular polarizing filter. Use it taking the filter off around 50% to 75% of the light.

E. Aperture Setting and Shutter Speed

Shallow depth is good for focusing on some objects. Otherwise, f/7.1 to f/9 is a standard aperture value. The normal shutter speed should be between 1/60 and ½ a second. The amount of light in the room will determine the value.

F. ISO Settings

Too much ISO value can make your photography full of noise, similarly normal ISO value can make it eye-soothing. To make the best use of ISO value you should experiment with your camera and find out the perfect value. Just remember one thing, a higher shutter speed requires a higher ISO value.

G. Managing White Balance

White balance removes the unpleasant color cast in photography. To make a proper balance of this, you have to consider the color temperature and the light source. To avoid the gloomy look of the house, it is important to care about real estate photography’s white balance.

11. Lighting

Well, believe it or not, wrong use of light can make your real estate photos spooky. If you want to give the objects a lively look then make the best use of light. It’s not that easy to shoot some empty rooms. Only the proper use of light can make them lively.

The homebuyers will be attracted to the property if the image gives enough view of the property. Some common lighting challenges that professional photographers face are:

Placing the interior lights in the right place
Confusing the window light with interior lights.
Using the same technique for bathrooms, living rooms, or kitchens.

To get you out of these problems I have come up with some simple tricks here. In the future, we can discuss these facts in detail but here, get a glimpse of the tricks.

Make the best use of existing lights.
Use multiple wireless flashes.
Set a suitable time.
Use high and dynamic range.
Use bounced fill flash.

12. Use Props

Keep a fruit basket on the table along with a bouquet while shooting the dining hall. Do not use multiple colors. Go for single-color fruits and flowers. Keep clutters, and trash bin out of the frame.

13. Composition

Any form of art requires a touch of composition to make it classy. It encompasses the whole idea of photography. From shooting to editing. The term composition is described differently by different people. To some people, photography composition aims at making photography more aesthetic, pleasing, and gratifying.

However, the intention of the composition may vary according to the needs of the photographer. The same assumption goes for real estate photography composition. Depending on the customer’s need, a photographer accomplishes his composition of real estate images.

14. Take Photo Editing Services

The photography business is increasing day by day and the photographers are getting busier. As a beginner, you may get less amount of work but get ready for tone order shortly if you do well. As a result, you will not get enough time to edit your photos.

In that case, you can take photo editing services. They will help you to get the final photo you need. It will cost you from $2-$10. There are numerous simple to advanced-level techniques to edit images. You can choose any option you want.

15. Make A Quick Turnaround

Your aim always should be to make your clients delighted with the services. One of the ways to make the clients delighted is, to make a quick turnaround. Make sure you don’t miss the deadline. Always try to deliver before the deadline.

Don’t Miss Out

Conclusion | Real Estate Photography

Well, I am at the end of this article. Hope this has been a helpful one for you, isn’t it? Before wrapping it up, I would like to remind you that you need to be consistent in this field. Be creative in thinking, never rush, and try to make the best use of what you have.

If you want to be a professional real estate photographer, I hope these tips can be helpful. Wishing you luck as a beginner in this world of photography.

Graphics Cycle

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How To Shoot Best Interior Photos

By Graphics Cycle on January 24th, 2020 in Photography

Do you get surprised at the photos you see in real estate magazines? Moreover, these may seem impossible for you to shoot. Because you think shooting the interior is trickier than the exterior. If this is the scenario, this article will teach you “how to shoot best interior photos”.

Here I have brought some pro tips that can help you to take your interior photography to a whole new level. After reading this article you will know a lot about how to take interior photos for real estate.

Before going to the main point I would like to ask you, do you have any experience of shooting any real estate? If yes, then you must have some idea about the interior shoot. For those who are new, let me tell you some basic facts about interior photography.

What is Interior Photography

The term “interior photography” refers to shooting the rooms, kitchens, bathrooms, or any spaces inside the house. Though Interior photography is a part of real estate photography is a bit different from it. Interior shooting requires more attention, time, energy, and focus.

How To Shoot Best Interior Photos

Let me tell you some tips on “How To Shoot the Best Interior Photos”.

01. Before The Shoot

First, talk to your client. Ask them what kind of interior photographs they want from each of the rooms. Make a plan on how you will execute the whole task. Another important part is visiting the place beforehand. Visiting the property will allow you to know the place better. You can have a detailed idea about the place.

I know you do not want to miss any small but important objects. You can mark those objects so that you don’t miss any of them while shooting.

Focus on every corner and make a proper plan. Notice the orientation of the building. By this, you will get an appropriate idea of where and how the sunlight enters the room.

You can decide where to shoot with low light. You can prepare your camera gear according to your needs as well.

02. Use Natural Light

Interior photography lighting is a major discussion in the field of photography. The most common advice that you will find online is, to use natural light as much as possible. Using natural light is, of course, the best idea.

The camera doesn’t work like our eyes. Cameras don’t work like our eyes. A camera cannot capture light always as it is. In my opinion, natural light is ideal to make your photographs more realistic.

But you can use flash to fill the shadows and the dark corners. Before using flash try it on the wall and make sure it doesn’t reflect.

Sunny midday when the sun is right above the head is the perfect time for shooting interiors. Because during this time, long and bright spots from the sun don’t streak through the window.

Do not forget to switch the lights off. I repeat keep lights off. Shooting in natural light will give you an excellent result.

03. Don’t Go Too Wide

We all think that a wide-angle lens takes the best photos. But when it comes to taking interior real estate photographs you need to rethink it. You can check out that in interior design magazines.

Professional Photographers prefer wide-angle, especially in real estate photography. In real estate photography, the purpose is to show the wide spaces. But it is not the same for interior shooting.

Interior photography is all about showing the designs. Considering this fact you must be an interior photography lens control expert. Because interior photographs require tighter compositions. For this, I would suggest that not go wider than 24mm.

The width of the course will depend on the space inside the house. But if you have enough space where you can take the photo from a distance and use a tight lens, do that. Therefore, you can minimize the possible lens distortion.

04. Composition

Composition is the key factor in photography. Interior photography composition is something that your camera alone cannot do. The term composition covers a vast area. I said vast because it includes many things.

Photographer’s knowledge of the camera, his artistic sight, and his eye for composition. Apart from that, the composition also includes using color, balancing temperature, leading lines, depth of the field, etc.

What you chose to keep inside the frame or exclude from the frame and how did you manage to do so? A photo is not just a document, rather it is a work of art. Photography composition helps a photographer to make interior designs stand out.

The clients also want to highlight the designs. So while shooting interior be careful about this matter. Without proper composition, a perfect shot, a beautiful location gets ruined.

I am going to discuss a little more about composition. The fact is, there is no particular way of photo composition. You always have to improve yourself. I just can help you with some tips that you can use, to begin with.

Otherwise, it is up to your ability to make a photograph better, catchy, and spellbound. Here you go with the tips:

Use the rule of thirds
Symmetry
Leading lines
Use of depth
Size equals power
Don’t follow any fixed rule

You might get confused with the last tip. Yes, I have kept this intentionally. Because composition is such a thing where you can apply many rules. If the photograph is praiseworthy then your technique will also get admiration.

05. Use layers

Working with layers is a common tool in photo editing programs. Interior photography requires the full attention of the photographer throughout the whole process. The literal meaning of layers is the process of overlaying one image or effect on another.

Using layers is more advantageous than making direct adjustments to the original photo. Using layers allows you to edit your photos temporarily without losing data.

Usually, we see that each time the image loses a small amount of data when we change the image adjustment. Moreover, editing photos with layers lets you edit selected parts of the photo.

06. Using Depth in Interior Photography

In this type of photography, it is essential to create depth with the furniture and styling items. You can create a luxurious look with this. Think of yourself as an audience. Then look at the photo and notice if your eyesight gets distracted by any unwanted object.

Things like this happen when the f-stop is not consistent with the item you want sharp. Interior image f-stop ranges from f8 to f-16. If you want to create depth you should go to lower f-stop.

07. Shooting Raw

RAW files are the untouched or unedited versions of the images. You can compare it with the negatives of the photo. Most cameras can shoot RAW nowadays.

The RAW image lets you have firm control over your final image. When you shoot RAW it allows you to adjust the white balance and set the photo size.

08. Remove Clutter

Well, everyone knows this little fact about photography. Removing clutter is a must. You must talk to your clients about what exactly they want to show. Then it would help if you made a plan on how you will show them. Prepare the photo space according to the client’s demands.

Don’t just ask what to do and how to do it. They have invested in your expertise. So show that to them. You can give some recommendations to them about what they should remove from sight.

09. Use Vignette and Detail

Taking wide-angle photographs is more popular in real estate photography. But when it comes to shooting the interior it’s better to go for vignette and detail. By this, you can get the attention of the viewer to the objects.

You can attract the audience even to the smallest nooks of the rooms. They can have a clear idea about the inhabitant’s interests. Interior designers, builders, and architects get a strong marketing message.

10. Make Room

As an interior photographer, you know how important it is to have enough space. And you may not get the space you need in every house. Moreover, in the same house, the kitchen and living room have a different amount of space.

In that case, you have to make space for yourself. Especially while shooting in bathrooms and kitchen you may get stuck with the walls. When situations like this arise don’t hesitate to move staff as you need to make room.

Going with the wide-angle lens in the small room produces fish-eyed photos. That’s why I suggest you move the staff that is creating an obstacle on your way to take a perfect shot.

For instance, move the tub plant if you have to place the tripod there. Similarly, you can move anything from your way to make room to have enough space for shooting.

11. Use Bracket

We often see that there is an excessive amount of light while shooting the interior. A photographer must overcome this issue of uneven lighting.

To our eyes, any particular scene may seem pretty. But the same scene becomes ugly in a photograph. Because the sky reflects too much the object becomes dark. Our eyes are much ahead of cameras in terms of coping with different kinds of light reflections.

So, how to overcome that limitation? Well, that’s where you need to bracket the exposure. Bracketing allows you to take three photos in three different settings.

The first one is with the camera recommended setting. Then the second one should be with underexposure. Then take the final one with overexposure settings. Therefore you can have three different exposures and blend them later.

12. White Balancing

The quality of your photo largely depends on this matter. I am talking about the impact of white balance in interior photography. White balance determines the warmth of a photo. In the previous days, it was hard to reach a reasonable point about white balance.

Now you can easily buy a cardboard color checker card. A color card shows if your white balance is accurate or not. Following some simple steps, you can have a perfect white balance.

13. Post-production Editing

Well, when you are done with all the shoots, then comes the editing part. Photography post-editing software is one of the most important parts of photography. The term is well-known to all professional photographers.

Interior photography editing is a time-consuming and tedious task. That’s why most photographers tend to outsource their photographs. If you have enough knowledge of photo editing then you can do it yourself.

But if you are getting too many orders, you will face trouble managing those. Then I would suggest you take a photo editing service.

Conclusion | How To Shoot Best Interior Photos

In conclusion, it is wise to say that you have to be very creative while shooting interior photos. As photography is a form of art you cannot overlook the importance of creativity. All the tips will go in vain if you cannot find the best angle to shoot. Shooting inside the house is slightly different from shooting outside.

Interior photographers have to focus on the details of the objects. So while shooting, keep that in mind and try to bring the best way possible to make the photos excellent.

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