My name is Ken Banks and I own a company called Virtual203. We're based in Fairfield CT and specialize in shooting real estate. Finding really good photographers has been impossible, currently I only have two and we really need to double or triple that. We've tried using Indeed but its sort of not the type of place photographers are searching jobs. I know its also not the type of gig most photographers seek out, or specialize in and we really shoot a lot of high-end stuff so we really need some "seasoned" people. Other than Indeed, where else would be a good place to search for good candidates? I found this site today on my journey and so far it looks like an awesome site.
Hi Ken
Are you looking for in Connecticut or Nation Wide?
Please advise.
Just Connecticut and NY for now.
You might check this site: http://www.realestatephotographers.org/
Awesome!! Thank you so much!
Hi Ken, How do I contact you? Or you can contact me. I want more informations what iyou are looking for. Thanks Ken
203-767-7157 or Ken@virtual203.com
I can can't speak on behalf of the US photographers but in the UK, real estate photography has been relegated to the equivalent of unqualified labour. I see jobs for 20K per year - a secretary earns more. My point is that if they want professional work, they need to be able to pay professional rates.
Sorry to hear things are such a struggle there! Plenty make six-figs in the booming real estate markets in the US off RE work alone. It's so lucrative, it'll suck the art right out of you ;-)
If you are pay is competitive, then you should be able to find good photographers or train newcomers. Indeed, Google, Craigslist, Thumbtack, should all be good sources.
The tough part of real estate photography is finding new clients and coordinating the shoots, not the photography skills. Real Estate photography is about 30% of my business every year. I have talked with 3 national/regional RE photo companies in my area and none have offered me a rate of more than 50% of what I currently make. Most skilled photographers can easily make $100+ an hour, so if your rates don't cover that-that is the real issue.
And the hidden burden in RE photography is post production which normally is a 1:1 ratio. So when those RE companies offer $50-$60 an hour, the real yield is much less when you're spending an hour or more in post for every hour you shot.
All your comments are completely accurate, although my guys are definitely making more than 20k a year. Considering the field, we pay very good, better than any one of my competitors. My margins are razor thin in this business but we do a tremendous amount of volume. We also make decent money on floor plans, 3D tours, and video. Photography however is the most important service we provide in my opinion, and I pay my guys well. I don't really know the hourly but I would figure it's close to $80. They don't have to lift a finger and they're doing 6 - 12 shoots a week. Im contemplating outsourcing post production but I'm very concerned about consistency. There's no doubt this is a tough business and real estate agents are the hardest and cheapest people to work for which I can say, because that's my full-time job. However, you have to take into consideration the "life expectancy" of those photos. That house could sell in a day, or a year, or sometimes not even at all. I think its bullshit that we only charge $300-$700 for photos that should cost a hell of a lot more, but no agent is going to pay..
I agree with Scott Spellman, But if you Ken less than $100 per hr is not good business, I do Real Estate Photography for Airbnb and I can tell you I make this rate per hr, I shoot an entire home in 30min and drive another 30min to the next location, I shoot 10 houses per day and delivery the same day. Postproduction is easy if you shoot properly.
Take a look https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/7009981
I know an exceptional drone photographer in Greenwich who has experience in real estate. please email sschmaling1@gmail.com.
Regarding your reply on May 8th you definitely hit a lot of the issue on the head. There seems to be this black hole between what brokers need and what photographers need. $100 an hour is not good money (especially taking post-processing in account) for a shooter living in NYC because the cost of living is so high - but it can be tricky to get brokers to pay more given the nature of the business. Neither party is being unreasonable - just seems to be the current state of affairs.