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PFRE is the original online resource for real estate and interior photographers. Since 2006, it has been a community hub where like-minded professionals from around the world gather to share information with a common goal of improving their work and advancing their business. With thousands of articles, covering hundreds of topics, PFRE offers the most robust collection of educational material in our field. The history of real estate photography has been documented within these pages.
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Image banner for the February 2024 PFRE Photographer of the Month Winner Art Ibewuike, with a featured image of his winning photo titled "Living Room or Family Room""

Congratulations to Art Ibewuike, February 2024 PFRE Photographer of the Month! The theme this month was "Living Room or Family Room". Art Ibewuike - #895 Paul-Dan Dragoman - #898 Peter Wingfield - #900 Here's what Art has to say: Thank you so much for ...

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For over a decade, photographers from around the world have participated in PFRE’s monthly photography contests, culminating in the year-end crowning of PFRE’s Photographer of the Year. With a new theme each month and commentary offered by some of the finest real estate & interior photographers anywhere, these contests offer a fun, competitive environment with rich learning opportunities. 

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PFRE prides itself on the depth and breadth of the information and professional development resources it makes available to our community. Our goal is to help real estate and interior photographers be successful while bringing the community together and elevating the industry as a whole.
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How to Set Up Umbrella Lighting for Photography

02/09/2021
No Comments
Do you need help controlling light for real estate photos? We're sharing tips on how to set up umbrella lighting for photography.
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How to Set Up Softbox Lighting

30/08/2021
Do you want to improve exposure in your images? Check out our guide on how to set up softbox lighting for real estate photography.

What Is Parabolic Lighting?

25/08/2021
No Comments
What is parabolic lighting? We're explaining how parabolic lighting works and how it benefits real estate photographers.

Real Estate Photography Lighting Tips

15/03/2021
No Comments
In this article, we're giving you real estate photography lighting tips so that you can capture high-level interior and exterior photos to get potential clients to buy your clients' properties.

How Do You Use A Flash To Light Interiors?

19/02/2021
10 Comments
Rhett asked the following question: Can you tell me what the most popular settings for shooting interiors are? Also, how would you set your flash and would you use a Gary Fong Light sphere? Shooting interiors I usually shoot at f5.6 and white balance in Auto. then set my SB-700 to TTL. What do you think is […]

How to Shoot Dark Wooden Spaces

10/09/2019
7 Comments
Dan in California, writes: "I'd like to hear how most of you deal with wood. Wood on the ceilings, wood on the walls, wood on the floors. Many homes I shoot, and some commercial buildings have cedar or knotty pine ceilings, including more and more of the $1 million+ homes I work on. I also […]

Do You Shoot with Interior Lights on or Off?

14/12/2018
13 Comments
Sometimes when you try shooting with the interior lights off, you may notice that the rooms look a bit less inviting. If you shoot with the lights on, you may get some less impressive features forcing you to Photoshop the lights off. So do you shoot with interior lights on or off? Do You Shoot […]

What Are the Best Light Diffusers for Shooting Large Rooms?

21/11/2018
5 Comments
Discover the best diffusers for shooting real estate interiors and learn different approaches to using flash lighting.

Does Anyone Use an Independent Light Meter to Shoot Interiors?

05/11/2018
9 Comments
?David in Alabama asked the following: I've recently been reading about the Sekonic C-700 color and light meter. It seems like an amazing tool with great potential for PFRE users but how would you best use a device like this to sort the perennial problems of WB and color accuracy in rooms with multiple light […]

Shooting an Empty Room with a Bright Window and Shiny Floors

01/08/2018
14 Comments
Steven in Jersey says: A few months back, I had a photo shoot in an empty house with wood floors. In post-processing, I noticed what a poor shot it was. Recently, this happened again. The dark/light extremes and exposure are really kicking me in the pants. In post, I can bring the exposure up but […]

Lighting for Real Estate Photography Video Series by Scott Hargis

13/03/2018
9 Comments
I was talking to Malia Campbell who shot the video for Scott Hargis's now famous real estate photography lighting video series. She reminded me that I am going on 6 years since she and Scott released this fantastic video series. For those of you who are just starting out in real estate photography and want […]

How Do You Control Glare and Reflections on Interior Windows?

14/11/2017
11 Comments
Darren in Northern California says: Is there a particular technique or tactic to reducing glare and reflections on interior windows during twilight photo shoots? I capture a few exposures (ambient and flash fill) and then brush them together in editing. Often times, the views beyond the window are obstructed by interior reflections. Window glares and […]

Do Any Real Estate Photographers Use LED Lights Rather than Flash?

06/10/2017
7 Comments
Earlier this week a reader asked: Does anyone use LED lights so that you can see how everything looks before shooting (aka not relying on flash lighting)? I don't have any direct experience using LED lighting but I would speculate that in general, continuous LED lighting wouldn't be that much of an advantage for real estate […]

How Do You Light and Photograph a Large Interior Space?

19/07/2017
9 Comments
in Iowa asked: I have been asked to photograph the interior of a commercial property. I went there in advance to see how I would set up my lighting, but honestly I'm having a hard time coming up with a plan. It is a gym with huge open spaces and very high ceilings. I thought […]

Why You Can't Use Auto Exposure Bracketing When Using a Flash

12/07/2017
5 Comments
Ron in Northern California says: I love your resource here. I have a Canon 5D MKIII with 600EX-RT speedlite and ST-E3-RT trigger. I've been shooting for a couple of months using brackets and Lightroom HDR. I had some color consistency issues and after reading some your posts on using a manual flash I added flash […]

How Do Real Estate Photographers Deal With Dark Colored and High Gloss Walls?

08/04/2017
7 Comments
in South Carolina asked: Shot a higher end house the other day and encountered a tough scenario: black walls, dark wood, lots of windows. Any tips or tricks for shooting black walls? Flashes were doing very little at full power. Also in the same house, high gloss red paint! I left the flashes in the bag […]

Is Compositing Ambient and Flash Shots in Photoshop for You?

18/03/2017
16 Comments
recently asked the following: I would love to know via a poll how many real estate photographers do a Lightroom to Photoshop composite process vs. lighting the way Scott Hargis does where you spend much less time post processing.  I see so many tutorials on YouTube for compositing, and it seems like it's a very big […]

What is The Preferred Way of lighting Rooms Without Windows?

10/10/2016
4 Comments
Vida in Kranj, Slovenia asks: What is your preferred way of lighting rooms without windows? Having elaborate lighting to mimic windows is often impossible due to small spaces and also misleading. Rooms with one strong light overhead are lighted terribly with ugly shadows and colors. Using bounced flash is often flat and just not soft […]

What Are Your Secrets for Getting Great Window Pull?

22/03/2016
17 Comments
Here are some quick and easy ways how to get great window pull in any room. Use these techniques effectively and enhance your real estate images.

How Do You Deal With Mixed Color Temperatures In Interiors Photography?

08/01/2016
10 Comments
John wants to know: How others fix white balance issues on white ceilings. Color casting from adjacent walls, interior lights of varied temperatures and some sunlight all make for a challenging fix. I have been adjusting by using local adjustments brush on the ceilings and using WB tool, a little desaturation and increasing brightness. Wondering […]

How Do Real Estate Photographers Handle Window Blinds?

25/02/2015
21 Comments
Today Kelly asked me: How do most real estate photographers handle window blinds? Do they raise them all the way up to let in more light and show the view? Open them at an angle? Open them completely but not raise them? I think It's impossible to make any blanket statement about what to do with […]

Do Use A Diffuser For Real Estate Photography? Which One?

17/04/2013
19 Comments
In the last year or so I've had several readers tell me how much they liked the Graslon Prodigy Dome Diffuser for real estate photography. I must admit that I'm not a big user of diffusers that attach to your flashes. Probably because I learned everything I know about small flashes from Scott Hargis so […]

Interior Lighting With Multiple Strobes: By Scott Hargis

24/07/2007
57 Comments
First of all I need to point out that this is Scott Hargis's post. Like many of you I've been admiring the way Scott uses a hand full of strobes to light a room to look like an Architectural Digest shoot and still keep the time to shoot a hole home within a few hours. […]
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