Tom Keefe

This week, I photographed a new listing at 135 Prospect Park West in Park Slope. After shutting off the lights, I took one last look at the apartment and noticed how beautiful the natural light was, and I saw what I thought could make a great photograph. I knew it wouldn’t even closely resemble a traditional property shot, but as a photographer, it’s impossible to turn down the chance to capture an image that jumps out at you.

This main image is a 30 second exposure at f/22 or f/16. However, I had to flash the flowers on the nesting table because it was in shadow. I did this using the pocket wizard, which I am really into, and the Canon Speedlite 580EX II. I had a Flex TT5 on the Speedlite and the camera body, and I triggered the shutter and flash with the Mini TT1.

I really like the photograph. This apartment really has a great feel when the lights are off in the afternoon, and I hope that reads with people when they see the listing.

Here is an exterior shot of a new townhouse I am listing in Williamsburg in Brooklyn at 94 Jackson Street. I was really excited about photographing this house because I thought the brown siding would contrast really nicely with the warm interior lights - and I think it did!

This is a combination of 3 exposures. The first was taken to capture the sky about an hour before sunset, the second exposure was set to get the actual exterior of the houses just before sunset, and the final was taken when it was dark to get the interiors without any glare.

One of the pleasantly surprising results of starting a career selling real estate is that I’ve started to get back into photography. Most people are surprised when I tell them that I went to college for photography, but indeed, it is true. 

Recently, I watched this video on Strobist about real estate photography, and I was so impressed with the final images that I decided I needed to figure out the technique. Fortunately, this coincided with being home for Thanksgiving, my Dad completing his new house in Wisconsin, and my brother getting married to a photography teacher who is an ace with photoshop. I bought some new equipment, as used in the video, and set to work. I’m very happy with my first attempt and look forward to applying this to my listings back in New York City.