Six questions to ask your real estate photographer.

1. "What's your turnaround time, and what happens if it slips?"

Looking for: A specific number (24h / 48h) AND an answer for what happens if it slips. Professional studios commit to SLAs. Hobbyists say "a few days" and dodge accountability.

2. "Can I see three shoots from the last month — not the portfolio highlights?"

Looking for: Consistency. Portfolios are best-of. Real month-over-month output shows whether they can deliver the same quality on your listing that they delivered on the showcase home. A studio refusing this request is a red flag.

3. "What's the licence on the images?"

Looking for: A clear written answer. Professional studios give you a perpetual, non-exclusive licence for the listing marketing, with clear rules around portfolio use. Beware of photographers charging a "re-use fee" 6 months later when you repost the same listing.

4. "What happens if the weather is bad on shoot day?"

Looking for: A reschedule policy without extra cost. Professionals know weather happens and factor it in. Amateurs either charge a cancellation fee or shoot in bad light and then try to "fix it in post".

5. "Who actually does the editing?"

Looking for: The photographer OR a named in-studio editor. Outsourced batch-editing to an overseas editor with no property eye is why so many listing photos look green, over-saturated and hyperreal. A studio that controls the edit controls the quality.

6. "What's NOT included?"

Looking for: A clear, written list of exclusions. Professional studios tell you upfront: raw files not included, additional travel fees where applicable, re-shoots covered only on weather. Hobbyists omit this and then surprise-invoice you mid-project.

Bonus: the tell

Ask: "What was the last listing you walked away from, and why?" Anyone who's never said no to a listing is either a beginner or desperate. A studio worth hiring turns down bad-fit work — because saying yes to everything dilutes the average.

How we answer these

24-hour standard turnaround, 48-hour max. Recent shoots available on request. Perpetual non-exclusive licence in writing. Free weather reschedule. In-house editing. Exclusions spelled out in every quote. And yes, we've turned down listings — see our FAQs for the list.

Related posts