Guide
How to photograph a vacation rental that books
A listing photo has to sell a house once. A rental photo has to sell the same house every weekend, to somebody comparing forty others on their phone. That changes what I shoot.
01
Guests book differently to buyers
A buyer wants to understand a floor plan. A guest wants to know what their weekend feels like. Those are two different sets of photographs, and shooting a rental the way you shoot a listing is the mistake I see most on rental profiles around the valley.
In practice that means fewer wide empty rooms, more of the pool at the right hour, more of the outdoor space, and at least one frame of every single bed in the house.
02
Guests count the beds before anything else
Guests count beds before they look at anything else, because that is what decides whether their group fits. If a bed is not photographed, most people assume it does not exist.
That includes sofa beds, bunks and the daybed out in the casita. Photograph them made up and ready, not folded away.
03
The pool is the product
Around here the pool sells the booking. It wants shooting when the sun is high enough to light the bottom of the water but not so high that the surface turns to white glare, and again after sunset if the yard has lighting.
A twilight frame of a lit pool with the mountains behind it is the most effective rental photograph I take. It is a $200 add on and it is worth it on almost any property with a pool and exterior lights.
04
Outdoor space counts as rooms
Guests treat a patio, a fire pit and an outdoor table as usable rooms, especially here where most of the year is spent outside. Photograph them as rooms, not as background.
Set them the way a guest would find them. Cushions on, table laid, umbrella up, loungers straightened. An empty concrete patio photographs as an empty concrete patio.
05
Stage it as arrived, not as lived in
A rental should look like the moment a guest walks in, not like somebody lives there. Personal photos, mail, medication, laundry and the owner's toiletries all come out.
But do not strip it to nothing. A kettle and two mugs on the counter, a throw folded on the sofa, towels rolled by the pool. Small signs of a life about to happen read as welcoming. A completely bare house just reads as empty.
06
Shoot the first photo last
Your cover photo does most of the work, and it is usually the pool or the best outdoor frame rather than the living room. Decide which one it is on the day, once you have seen how the light moved.
It is worth reshooting a rental every couple of years, or any time you refurnish. Guest expectations move, and a profile still showing 2019 furniture reads as a house nobody has looked after.
If you are between a listing shoot and a rental shoot, tell me how the property earns its money and I will tell you which one you want.
- Steven
Questions
How to photograph a vacation rental that books: common questions
How is this different from a listing shoot?
More time on site, more photos, and a different emphasis. Listings sell layout, so they favour wide clean rooms. Rentals sell an experience, so they favour the pool, the outdoor space, every bed, and the details a guest will actually use.
How many photos does a rental profile need?
35 to 45 for most homes. Airbnb and VRBO both reward complete galleries, and guests scroll much further than buyers do. A profile with twelve photos loses to one with forty, all else equal.
Do you shoot for Airbnb and VRBO specifically?
Yes. Files are delivered sized for both, with a horizontal cover frame that works in their thumbnail crops. Tell me which platforms you list on and I will make sure the cover image works on each.
Can I use these photos if I sell the property later?
You get a licence to use them for that property, so using rental photos in a future listing is fine. I own the copyright, which is standard. What the licence does not cover is passing the files to another owner or agent for their own use.
Should I get twilight photos?
On a property with a pool and any exterior lighting, almost always. It is a $200 add on and it usually becomes the cover photo. On a rental with no outdoor lighting, spend the money elsewhere.
What areas do you cover?
The whole Coachella Valley. I shoot regularly in Palm Springs, Palm Desert, La Quinta, Rancho Mirage, Indio, Cathedral City, and Desert Hot Springs, and I am happy to travel anywhere in the valley at no extra charge. There is a page for each city and service below with the details for that area.
- Real Estate in Palm Springs
- Real Estate in Palm Desert
- Real Estate in La Quinta
- Real Estate in Rancho Mirage
- Real Estate in Indio
- Real Estate in Cathedral City
- Real Estate in Desert Hot Springs
- Events in Palm Springs
- Events in Palm Desert
- Events in La Quinta
- Events in Rancho Mirage
- Events in Indio
- Events in Cathedral City
- Events in Desert Hot Springs
- Headshots in Palm Springs
- Headshots in Palm Desert
- Headshots in La Quinta
- Headshots in Rancho Mirage
- Headshots in Indio
- Headshots in Cathedral City
Ready when you are
Ten years of shoots across the Coachella Valley. If you would rather talk it through than read another list, that works too.
Book a rental shootKeep reading
- How to prepare a house for listing photosNearly everything that makes a house photograph well happens before I get there. This is the list I wish every seller had the night before, written out so nobody has to guess.
- The best time of day to photograph a desert homeDesert light does not behave like light anywhere else, and scheduling a shoot as though it does will cost you the photographs you were after. This is how I plan around it.
Let's plan your shoot
Let's get your shoot started.
Pick what you need photographed and add your name and email. That is all I need to reply, usually within one business day.