Before requesting five kitchen angles, write five things a buyer needs to see. If you run out of questions after three, a fourth overview may simply repeat the first.
Use this keep/drop list during the walkthrough. The examples describe a hypothetical kitchen with an island and adjoining dining area; skip any item that does not apply to your property.
K1: Main overview
- Question it answers: Where are the island, counters, and major appliances?
- Keep it when: The principal working arrangement is readable.
- Drop or replace it when: Replace rather than duplicate an overview that hides the arrangement.
K2: Reverse overview
- Question it answers: What is behind the camera in K1?
- Keep it when: It reveals a pantry entrance, second work area, or other missing feature.
- Drop or replace it when: It shows the same cabinets from the other end.
K3: Dining connection
- Question it answers: How does the kitchen relate to dining?
- Keep it when: The shared edge or route is visible.
- Drop or replace it when: K1 already establishes that connection clearly.
K4: Storage demonstration
- Question it answers: How does an unusual storage feature work?
- Keep it when: An open view explains something a closed door conceals.
- Drop or replace it when: The feature is ordinary storage with nothing new to explain.
K5: Finish detail
- Question it answers: What deserves a closer look?
- Keep it when: Texture, edge treatment, or joinery is lost in the wider view.
- Drop or replace it when: The crop mainly isolates decorative objects.
A worked shortlist
Suppose K1 shows the island, range, and dining table, but the pantry sits behind the camera. Keep K1 and K2. Drop K3: the connection is already covered. Add K4 only if the pantry's interior arrangement is worth documenting. K5 remains optional. The resulting list could be two, three, or four views; the room determines the answer.
For any open-storage photograph, name who will operate the door or pullout. That turns “show the pantry” into an executable request rather than a decision left unresolved on shoot day.
Describe geometry concerns precisely
“The kitchen looks distorted” is difficult feedback to act on. Does a cabinet edge bow, or do upright lines lean toward one another? Adobe distinguishes lens-related bowing from perspective convergence caused by camera tilt in its lens and perspective correction guide. Point to the specific edge when requesting a review; do not ask to stretch the room.
Brief to send: “K1 must explain the island and appliance arrangement. Add a reverse view only if it reveals the pantry connection. Please prioritize those relationships over additional similar angles.”
A quick walkthrough check
Before finalizing the shortlist, walk the route between the kitchen and dining area and identify what each chosen view must include. If the island hides a useful connection, flag that relationship rather than simply asking for another angle. For the storage view, confirm that the owner is comfortable showing the contents and that the door or pullout can be opened safely. A detail photograph should explain a finish or construction feature, not compete with the overview that establishes the room.
Bring the final keep/drop list when you contact Sam about your property photography. Mark the essential views separately from optional details so the priorities are clear before photo day.
From Sam Reed’s property photography portfolio; editorial illustration, not a Same-Day HDR sample or a case study of this article.
