{"id":69056,"date":"2016-01-12T09:35:00","date_gmt":"2016-01-12T15:35:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.premiumbeat.com\/blog\/?p=69056"},"modified":"2016-01-12T12:49:02","modified_gmt":"2016-01-12T18:49:02","slug":"how-to-shoot-cinematic-real-estate-videos","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.premiumbeat.com\/blog\/how-to-shoot-cinematic-real-estate-videos\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Shoot Cinematic Real Estate Videos"},"content":{"rendered":"

Real estate videos are highly specific projects that can have a huge impact on the targeted\u00a0audience. Here are the must-take steps to creating cinematic real estate videos that actually sell property.<\/h2>\n

Cover Image via\u00a0RUHM Luxury Marketing<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

Real estate is a visual medium, so photos and video are crucial to sales. This includes everything from home sales, luxury office space, or extravagant vacation rentals. Pictures are crucial to websites<\/strong> that showcase homes for sale, hotels, and even places listed on sites like Airbnb<\/a>. But often, real estate agents find themselves needing to showcase bigger properties<\/strong> in bigger ways. This is where real estate video has seen huge growth<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

In this post, we will cover the basic rules of real estate video production<\/strong> and the three main types of real estate videos<\/strong>. By the end, you will have a solid understanding of what it takes to make a must-see\u00a0real estate video that really impresses your potential buyers.<\/p>\n

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The Basic Rules of Real Estate Video Production<\/h3>\n

For your typical real estate property, aim to keep the final video under three minutes<\/strong>. Don’t waste your buyer’s time, as many are just flying through listings until they find something that catches their attention. The video\u00a0can be longer if the property is a multi-million dollar facility<\/strong> that has plenty to show off. That said, it still should not go over eight minutes. A real estate video that has a length over 10 minutes is a waste of time and investment<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Now that you know you should be sticking to a tighter schedule, be sure to only highlight key features and amenities<\/strong>. It’s easier to put the type of fixtures in the description than it is to show them in the video. You can even throw in a quick voiceover<\/strong> that talks about some of the tiny details like the floors and windows.<\/p>\n

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\nImage via Shutterstock<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

Be sure to shoot wide as often as possible<\/strong>. Close up shots of decor and furniture are not helpful, as those things\u00a0don’t come with the property. Viewers should be able to see the entire room and imagine their own belongings inside. Give a feel for the space<\/strong>, not the material items already inside.<\/p>\n

While the property should be the main focus, you can include some quick shots of the neighborhood<\/strong> and nearby stores or\u00a0restaurants. By doing so, you add incentive to living or working in that area<\/strong>. That said, don’t get carried away with everything outside of the property. Your goal is to sell the real estate in the video. Keep your focus there.<\/p>\n

\"How
\nImage via Shutterstock<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

When it comes to cinematic real estate videos, the toughest\u00a0part is lighting<\/strong>. This includes natural lighting, built-in property fixtures, and lighting kits. To really WOW<\/em> the buyer, the lighting needs to match the ambience<\/strong>. You will find that shooting during the middle of the day in a home with huge windows is going to be a pain.<\/p>\n

The trick to lighting comes down to the time of day and proper color temperature<\/strong>. The golden hour is the best time to shoot<\/a> property, because this allows your viewers to see inside and outside of the windows at the same time. Otherwise, you will have blown out windows – meaning the windows will be full of bright white light.<\/p>\n

If a room doesn’t have enough light, use a lighting kit to fill the room<\/strong>. We have previously covered the fundamentals of lighting and color temperature<\/a>.\u00a0That said, you don’t have to have a big, expensive kit. There are plenty of cheap alternatives to adding the right amount of light<\/a>. Just make sure the lighting is complementary to the room. A bedroom should have a warm inviting feel, not be harshly lit to look like a hospital operating table.<\/p>\n

\"How
\nImage via RUHM Luxury Marketing<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

Now that we have covered the inside of the property, what about outside? The best thing to do, once again, is to shoot wide. This doesn’t work for every property, as is depends on the look of the neighboring properties. The best look will come from setting the camera up on a tripod<\/strong>. You can also shoot wide at a low angle<\/strong>\u00a0to\u00a0give a very impressive look to any facility.<\/p>\n

You may be tempted to use a drone to capture impressive aerials. You really shouldn’t do this. Drones should only be used if you have an FAA Section 333<\/a> exemption.<\/strong> Your work on these videos classify as commercial work. This makes drone use illegal \u2014\u00a0at least<\/em>\u00a0until new drone regulation passes<\/em>.\u00a0You face a penalty from the FAA when using a\u00a0drone <\/strong>in commercial work.<\/p>\n

While on the subject of penalties, don’t forget to license your music!<\/strong>\u00a0Don’t spend all that time making a real estate video for it to be pulled by YouTube for a copyright violation<\/strong>. Luckily for you, you already found this site. The added benefit of using a PremiumBeat<\/a> track is a song’s multiple use. Meaning if you absolutely love one of our songs, you just have to license it one time \u2014 then you can use it in all of your real estate videos.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Three Types of Real Estate Videos<\/h3>\n

\"How
\nImage via Shutterstock<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

There are essentially three different types of real estate videos <\/strong>–\u00a0which really tie into the property\u00a0value. The more expensive the real estate,\u00a0the more luxurious the video should be. Standard real estate videos with use either a slide show <\/strong>or virtual tour<\/strong>, where high-end\u00a0homes and vistas will often use a documentary-<\/strong>style approach.<\/p>\n

Now, you can certainly make a documentary-style video for a standard home, but a real estate agent\u00a0won’t have as much return on their investment<\/strong>. The reason the documentary approach is used on expensive homes is the larger budget to sell the home.<\/p>\n

Needless to say, any real estate video should accomplish two main goals. It should\u00a0showcase the property for sale<\/strong>, which should in turn help sell it quickly. \u00a0It should also create a\u00a0call-to-action<\/strong> to send potential buyers to the real estate agent. Even if the property featured in the video sells right away, the real estate agent can potentially get more customers that are looking for similar properties<\/strong>. The call-to-action can be as simple as listing the real estate agent at the end of the video or throughout the video on lower thirds.<\/p>\n

1. Slide Show<\/h4>\n

The slide show is the easiest<\/strong> and most popular style of real estate video. In fact, a majority of these videos only use photographs. Since they are so simple, you’ll need to make your slide show real estate videos stand out. Add\u00a0motion graphics<\/strong> to make the video pop. If you don’t have much experience, try using a template<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Our friends at RocketStock<\/a> make excellent After Effects templates. You literally just drop your photos and videos into the template<\/strong>, and you have instant added production value<\/strong>. Here is an example of their Skyline template<\/a>, which was designed for property promotions.<\/p>\n

https:\/\/vimeo.com\/126140631<\/p>\n

2. Virtual Tour<\/h4>\n

The virtual tour showcases an entire home<\/strong>, room by room. This can be done with photographs and\/or video<\/strong>. It can also be done in 360 degrees, which allows buyers to experience the home themselves.<\/p>\n

In this video from Stockworth Realty<\/a>, the call-to-action immediately shows up<\/strong> in the beginning with a contact and phone number. Then the real estate video jumps into a nice brief intro<\/strong> to the property. You will then see that a majority of the video is shot wide<\/strong>, while the close ups only give a look at detail \u2014 like the granite countertops.<\/p>\n

There is also plenty of movement on a slider<\/strong>. This keeps the shots from being too static. If you aren’t going to be moving the camera \u2014 then you should probably just take photos. The video then ends with a second call-to-action to visit the website<\/strong>\u00a0and lists the agent’s contact information. All of this is done in under three minutes.<\/strong>\u00a0It’s an excellent example of what a real estate video should be.<\/p>\n