How to Prepare a Home for Listing Photos

The night before

Prep is easier split across two days. The evening before the shoot, handle everything that takes time: clear every countertop down to two or three intentional objects, remove refrigerator magnets and family photos, take down the shower curtain if it's dated, and put away laundry baskets, pet bowls, and litter boxes.

Replace any burned-out bulbs and — this matters more than people expect — make sure the bulbs in each room match in color temperature. A single warm bulb in a room of daylight bulbs shows up as an orange stain in the final image.

Morning of the shoot

Turn on every light in the house, including closets, range hoods, and under-cabinet strips. Open every blind and shade to the same height. Move all vehicles off the driveway and out of view from the street.

Do a fast final pass: toilet lids down, trash cans hidden, kitchen sink empty and dry, towels folded or replaced with fresh white ones, and cords tucked out of frame.

Room by room

Kitchen: nothing on the counters except a bowl of fruit or a cutting board. Remove the dish rack, soap bottles, and paper towels.

Living areas: pull furniture 4–6 inches off the walls, fluff and karate-chop the pillows, and remove one piece of furniture from any room that feels crowded — rooms photograph smaller than they feel.

Bedrooms: hotel-crisp bedding, nightstands cleared to a lamp and one book, personal photos removed.

Bathrooms: counters completely empty, fresh towels, no bath mats on the floor.

Exterior: mow, edge, coil the hose, sweep the walk, and pull the garbage cans out of sight.

What I handle on arrival

Light styling is included in every shoot. I'll straighten a rug, angle a chair, adjust shades for even light, and move a lamp for a better composition. What I can't do in the time available is deep clean or declutter — that hour belongs to the seller, and it's the highest-return hour in the whole listing process.