New to Photography. Question about settings.

[clark77494]

I just purchased a Canon EOS Rebel T5 to do Real Estate photography. For outside photos I want to set it to ISO 400, f/5.6 and let the camera determine the shutter speed. On the inside I want to set the camera to f/7.1 ISO 200 wih no flash, and also let the camera determine the shutter speed. I have a tripod so slow shutter speeds should not be a problem. I have a 18mm-55mm lens that came with the camera. I have two years video production training so I know how to setup a motion picture camera, just never took stills except with my Iphone.

[RobertTheFat]

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@clark77494 wrote:

I just purchased a Canon EOS Rebel T5 to do Real Estate photography. For outside photos I want to set it to ISO 400, f/5.6 and let the camera determine the shutter speed. On the inside I want to set the camera to f/7.1 ISO 200 wih no flash, and also let the camera determine the shutter speed. I have a tripod so slow shutter speeds should not be a problem. I have a 18mm-55mm lens that came with the camera. I have two years video production training so I know how to setup a motion picture camera, just never took stills except with my Iphone.

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Canon's more expensive cameras give you the option of defining sets of settings, so that you can set them all with one turn of the mode dial. But I've never seen a Rebel with that feature, so I think you'll have to change those settings manually when you go indoors or outdoors. Check your manual, of course, to be sure I'm right about that.

[Waddizzle]

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@clark77494 wrote:

I just purchased a Canon EOS Rebel T5 to do Real Estate photography. For outside photos I want to set it to ISO 400, f/5.6 and let the camera determine the shutter speed. On the inside I want to set the camera to f/7.1 ISO 200 wih no flash, and also let the camera determine the shutter speed. I have a tripod so slow shutter speeds should not be a problem. I have a 18mm-55mm lens that came with the camera. I have two years video production training so I know how to setup a motion picture camera, just never took stills except with my Iphone.

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For serious professional work, a Rebel T5 will require careful shooting to get professional results.  With a Rebel T5, I would not let ISO get above ISO 200, if you want to achieve critical focus, sharpness and low noise.  The T5 does begin to show noise at ISO 400, while not much, it is there and you would need to be removed in post.  While the noise can be easily removed, your sharpness will suffer a bit.

I own a T5, and it is a great little camera, provided I keep the ISO at 100.  The 18-55mm lens that comes with the T5 camera kit, is not professional grade.  You will always want to shoot at ISO 100 with that lens.  You will always want to manually focus the lens using Live View, also.  It is a rather fragile lens, also.  It lacks manual focus override, and many new users will accidentally turn the focus ring, instead of the zoom ring, which throws the autofocusing motors out of alignment.

If you're doing professional real estate work, then I suggest that you consider a better lens.  I'd recommend the super wide angle EF-S 10-22mm f/3.5-4.5 USM lens.  It has image quality that rivals Canon's "L Series" of professional grade lenses.

Finally, invest in a professional grade tripod, one with a detachable, interchangeable head.  You will not find a professional tripod at the Big Blue Box store.  I recommend looking on line at retailers like B&H Photo Video.  I recommend getting one that can support close to 20 lbs, if not more.  Tripods tend to shake and vibrate in the wind.

[clark77494]

Waddizzle,

I did purchase a Canon EF-S 10-18mm f/4.5-5.6 IS STM Lens for $279.00. Also, I have a sturdy Tripod that I use with my Sony FX7 Mini-DV camera. The Tripod that came with the Canon kit was questionable. I will take your advice and shoot it at 100 ISO. The professional photographer I used for Real Estate is using a Canon EOS 5DS-R camera. It seems he must have had a more sensitive CMOS sensor since my camera is taking 1-2 seconds per shot. Versus his less than a second at f7.1 at 200 ISO. I am using Corel PaintShop Pro X6. Which probably wouldn’t do it for wedding photography. Neither would the camera for that matter. I will send you the link to the house I’m shooting tomorrow once it is completed. The Professional photographer charged me over $2,000 last year and had a two week waiting list. We had a lot of redoes last year since the contractor said the house would be ready and I would schedule the shoot two weeks out and the contractor would be behind. This way I can photo them as soon as the houses are completed and not have a scheduling problem. My contractor said the Professional Photographer only took 20 minutes to complete the house.  

Clark

[RobertTheFat]

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@clark77494 wrote:

Waddizzle,

I did purchase a Canon EF-S 10-18mm f/4.5-5.6 IS STM Lens for $279.00. Also, I have a sturdy Tripod that I use with my Sony FX7 Mini-DV camera. The Tripod that came with the Canon kit was questionable. I will take your advice and shoot it at 100 ISO. The professional photographer I used for Real Estate is using a Canon EOS 5DS-R camera. It seems he must have had a more sensitive CMOS sensor since my camera is taking 1-2 seconds per shot. Versus his less than a second at f7.1 at 200 ISO. I am using Corel PaintShop Pro X6. Which probably wouldn’t do it for wedding photography. Neither would the camera for that matter. I will send you the link to the house I’m shooting tomorrow once it is completed. The Professional photographer charged me over $2,000 last year and had a two week waiting list. We had a lot of redoes last year since the contractor said the house would be ready and I would schedule the shoot two weeks out and the contractor would be behind. This way I can photo them as soon as the houses are completed and not have a scheduling problem. My contractor said the Professional Photographer only took 20 minutes to complete the house.  

Clark

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For no good reason except curiosity, which of the photos in the link you posted were taken by a professional?

[clark77494]

The outside photos. The inside photos were taken by the Realtor.

Clark

[clark77494]

Robert,
The Outside Photos. The inside photos were taken by the Realtor.
Clark,

[Waddizzle]

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@clark77494 wrote:
Robert,
The Outside Photos. The inside photos were taken by the Realtor.
Clark,

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Those inside photos are terrible, IMHO.  They look a bit rushed.  The camera does not look like it was carefully leveled, at all.

[ebiggs1]

clark,

You got good advice and you got bad advice in this thread.  I am going to guess you know which.

"No problem for the T5 and no problem getting professional Real Estate photos with ANY modern dSLR."

This is correct.  You have all you need with the addition of a good tripod.

Av is the answer.

One thing I will add is be careful with the 'sliders' in post.  This is a case of less is more.  Just because a little looks good doesn't mean a lot looks better.

[clark77494]

Ebiggs,

I noticed that some people said I need a high-end rig to take professional quality photos. The way I see it is my realtor was using an IPhone to take snapshots of houses to put online. I figured an $800 DSLR would be a major improvement over an iPhone. The IPhone is great for taking snapshots to show my contractors what needs to be fixed and to Email over the photo, (something a DSLR camera can’t do.) The one thing I did notice about the T5 is you can’t change the aspect ratio. It has the setting, except it shows you a box inside the viewer of what in the photo will be removed. I guess the higher end cameras can change the aspect ratio automatically.

When a person looks at my houses online there not going to care that the photo is square instead of 16:9. Some Realtors think a picture is a picture and why spend the money on a DSLR? In a tight Real Estate market, photos can get you more showings. I proved that by using a Professional Photographer. When the Professional Photographer took photos I would go from 1 to 2 showings a week to 10-12 showings a week!

Clark,