Real Estate Photography Pre-Shoot Checklist (Free PDF)

This is the real estate photography pre-shoot checklist I send every Patorama client — what to do in the 24 hours before the shoot, room by room, and in the final hour before I arrive. Properly prepped properties shoot in half the time, cost less, and look noticeably better in every photo.

Use the printable PDF if you'd rather walk the property with a copy in hand, or work through the full list below. It covers owner-occupied homes, tenanted and empty properties, twilight shoots and rural blocks — everything we photograph across Canberra, Queanbeyan and the surrounding region.

Download the free pre-shoot checklist PDF →

Prep is where strong results start. 113 Perry Drive in Chapman went to market with our full set — interiors, exteriors and drone aerials — and sold for $1,231,000 in February 2026. Buyers judged that home on its photos before they ever drove past it. Every item below exists to make those first seconds count.

The pre-shoot checklist at a glance

Mow the lawn, front and back — edge if you can
Move cars off the driveway and hide the bins
Wash windows and mirrors
Declutter every surface: kitchen benches, vanities, bedside tables
Make every bed and clear the floors
Hang clean matching towels, toilet lids down
Hide pet gear, cables, remotes and personal items
Sweep the porch, tidy outdoor furniture, roll up the hose
Open every blind and curtain
Turn on every light, turn off fans and TVs

That is the whole job in ten lines. The rest of this guide breaks it down room by room, covers the situations that need a different plan — tenanted, empty, twilight, rural — and lists what we can and cannot fix in post.

The 24 hours before

Declutter every surface. Counters, side tables, bedside tables, the top of the fridge, the bathroom vanity. If something has been sitting on the same spot for six months, it doesn't need to be in the photo. Boxes or storage tubs work fine — the goal is empty surfaces, not perfect placement.

Wash windows and mirrors. Streaks and dust catch the light in ways the eye misses but the camera doesn't. Inside and outside if you can manage both.

Mow the lawn. Front and back. Edge if you have the equipment. A freshly mowed lawn changes the look of an exterior shot more than any post-production trick.

Move cars off the driveway and out of view from the street. Park around the corner or in the garage. The driveway is part of the kerb appeal.

Hide the bins. Roll them around the back, into the garage, or out of any sightline. Council bins on the kerb instantly date a photograph.

The room-by-room pre-shoot checklist

Kitchen

Clear every benchtop except 1–2 considered items (a bowl of fresh fruit, a single chopping board, a coffee machine if it's part of the design)
Hide tea towels, sponges, dish soap, hand soap
Remove all magnets, photos, school notices, calendars from the fridge
Push the kettle and toaster out of frame or away in a cupboard
If bin lids are visible, swap to a discreet pull-out or move it temporarily

Bathrooms

Remove every personal item from the vanity — toothbrushes, deodorants, hairbrushes, shampoo bottles
Put the toilet lid down (always)
Hang clean, matching towels — not the ones you actually use
Remove bath mats unless they're in really good condition
A single styled plant or a folded hand towel is enough — restraint reads as luxury

Bedrooms

Make every bed — properly, hospital corners if you have it in you
Clear bedside tables completely or down to 1–2 items (a single book, a small lamp)
Open curtains and blinds fully unless there's a specific reason not to
Remove laundry, baskets, pet beds, kids' toys (we shoot kids' rooms more leniently — tidy, not perfect)
Master walk-in robes: photos may include a partial view, so close the doors or tidy the entrance

Living areas

Plump cushions, fold throws neatly across an arm of the sofa
Remove remotes from view (lined up in a drawer is fine)
Hide power cables and chargers wherever possible
Open blinds for natural light, but turn off ceiling fans (the blades blur)
Hide pet bowls, beds, leads

Exterior

Sweep the front porch, entry, and back patio
Roll up the garden hose, put gardening tools away
Tidy outdoor furniture — close umbrellas, square up chairs
If the pool is on view: clear the pool, vacuum if you can, put the cleaning robot away
BBQ covers on, gas bottles tucked behind
Replace dying potted plants — they don't photograph well

The morning of the shoot

One hour before I arrive:

Open every blind and curtain. Natural light is the foundation of every shot.
Turn on every interior light — including lamps, pendant lights, under-cabinet lighting. Mismatched warm/cool bulbs are fine; I'll balance in post.
Turn off ceiling fans and TVs. Blank screens photograph worse than off ones.
Take the dog for a walk. Or arrange for them to be elsewhere. Pets in the photo are a coin flip — usually I prefer to clear them out.
Last sweep: any final stray items, dishes in the sink, anything you'd rather not see captured.

Things photographers can't fix in post

Worth knowing what's actually impossible after the shoot:

Cars on the driveway. Removing them looks fake. Just move them.
Dirty or streaky windows. The streaks are in the reflection — they can't be selectively removed.
A mowed lawn vs a long lawn. Long grass photographs as unkempt no matter what we do.
Open vs closed toilet lids. Always closed.
Light fittings that don't work. Replace the bulb before I get there.
Disrepair. Cracked tiles, peeling paint, broken fittings — photoshop can hide some of it but it usually shows.

Things we will fix in post

So you don't need to worry about:

Sky replacement. Grey overcast day? We can replace the sky on exterior shots.
Lawn enhancement. Slightly patchy lawn gets a green-up in post.
Dust removal. Spots on surfaces, small dust marks, minor cable clutter — all editable.
Lens corrections. Wide-angle distortion, perspective straightening, all standard.
Minor object removal. A power point, an air vent, a small wall blemish — usually fixable.

If you're short on time — priority order

Two hours total? Do these in order:

Mow the lawn (30 min)
Move cars off driveway and hide bins (5 min)
Make all beds + clear bedside tables (15 min)
Clear all kitchen benchtops (15 min)
Clear all bathroom vanities + toilet lids down (10 min)
Open every blind, turn on every light (5 min)
Anything else: living areas, exterior, declutter surfaces

Preparing an empty or tenanted property

Not every shoot is an owner-occupied home that can be styled on the morning. Two situations come up constantly and both need a different plan.

Empty properties. An empty house photographs colder and smaller than a furnished one, because there is nothing to give the eye scale. Vacuum or sweep every room, because bare floors show every mark. Clean the windows properly, since there is no furniture to distract from them. Remove leftover hooks, blu-tack and stickers. If the property is genuinely bare, consider virtual staging on the main living space and the master bedroom rather than the whole house — buyers respond to seeing how one or two key rooms work, and over-staging starts to look artificial.

Tenanted properties. Give tenants written notice with the exact date and time, and be realistic about what you can ask of them. Most tenants will tidy, but they will not deep clean or move furniture for a sale they did not ask for. Send them the short version of this checklist rather than the full list, focus on benchtops, floors and beds, and arrange for pets to be out. If the tenancy is heavily furnished with the tenant's own belongings, talk to us beforehand so we can plan angles that work with the furniture rather than fighting it.

Preparing for a twilight shoot

Twilight photography runs to a hard deadline. The usable window is roughly 20 to 30 minutes after sunset, and once it is gone it is gone. Everything on this checklist needs to be finished before we arrive, not while we are setting up.

Replace any dead globes, especially in visible pendant lights and lamps
Turn on every interior light, including wardrobes, rangehood and under-cabinet strips
Switch on garden lighting, pool lighting and any step or path lights
Close flyscreens and security screens where you can, since they read as grey haze against a lit interior
Clear the pool and remove the cleaning robot before dusk
Have the cars moved before we arrive, because there is no time to shuffle them later

Rural and acreage properties

Larger properties need preparation across the whole holding, not just the house. Aerial coverage will show everything inside the boundary, so what looks minor at ground level can dominate a drone frame.

Move machinery, trailers and unregistered vehicles out of the main sightlines
Tidy the yards around sheds and stables — these appear in almost every aerial
Mow or slash near the homestead so the immediate curtilage reads as maintained
Close shed doors unless the interior is genuinely a selling point
Move stock to a paddock that flatters the property, or out of the shot if the ground is bare
Tell us where the boundaries run if you want boundary outlines added to the aerials

Seasonal notes for the Canberra region

Canberra's climate changes what preparation matters. In winter the sun sits low and the days are short, so we shoot tighter windows and interior lighting carries more of the load — check globes and clean the windows, because low light is unforgiving of streaks. Frost also flattens lawns, so a green lawn is not always achievable and that is fine.

In summer, watering the lawn in the days before the shoot makes a visible difference, and it is worth checking whether any water restrictions apply. Gardens are at their best, so tidy the beds. Autumn is the strongest season for exteriors in this region because of the colour, but it is worth clearing fallen leaves from the driveway and lawn on the morning.

If you are still weeks out from the shoot, start with the room-by-room guide to preparing your home for sale — it covers the bigger jobs this checklist assumes are already done.

Frequently asked questions

What is a real estate photography pre-shoot checklist?

It is the prep list a photographer sends before a shoot so the property is ready the moment they arrive: decluttered surfaces, made beds, open blinds, every light on, cars and bins out of sight. Ours also covers tenanted, empty, twilight and rural properties, and you can download it as a printable PDF at the top of this article.

How long does prep typically take?

1–2 hours for a well-presented home, 3–4 hours if the property is being lived in actively and hasn't been tidied for a shoot before. The PDF version above breaks it down into time blocks if that helps.

Should I bring in a professional stylist?

For prestige listings above $1.2M, often yes. The stylist does what this checklist does, but also brings furniture, art, and accessories that elevate the property's perceived value. For most family homes the checklist plus 1–2 hours of your time is enough.

What if I can't get the lawn done in time?

Let me know — we can either reschedule or shoot tighter compositions that avoid the worst of it. Wide exterior shots are where lawn quality shows; close-up entrance shots are more forgiving.

Do you provide the checklist as a PDF?

Yes — link is at the top of this article. Print it, share it with the vendor, work through it together if helpful.

What about virtual staging for empty properties?

If a property is empty or sparsely furnished, virtual staging is an option that adds furniture and styling in post-production. It costs roughly $40–$80 per image and works best on neutral, well-lit empty rooms.

How do I prepare a property for a real estate photoshoot if it's still tenanted?

Give written notice with a specific date and time, and send tenants a shortened checklist rather than the full one. Ask for clear benchtops, made beds, clean floors and pets off site. Do not expect furniture to be moved. If the property is heavily furnished with the tenant's own belongings, tell us before the shoot so we can plan around it.

Should the lights be on or off for real estate photos?

On, in almost every case. Lamps, pendants and under-cabinet lighting add warmth and depth, and they read as a lived-in home rather than an empty box. The exception is a bright midday exterior-led shoot where the interior lights add nothing. For twilight, every light in the house goes on.

What time of day is best for real estate photography?

It depends on which way the property faces. East-facing homes photograph best in the morning, west-facing in the afternoon, and twilight suits properties with good outdoor lighting, a pool or a view. We work the time around the aspect of the house rather than booking a default slot, so tell us the orientation when you book.

Do I need to be home during the shoot?

No, and it often runs faster if you are not. We just need access and somewhere for pets to be. If you would rather be there, that is fine too, but the prep should be finished before we arrive rather than happening around us.

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