The camera doesn't forgive clutter the way the eye does. Walk through a room and your brain edits out the phone charger on the counter, the pile of shoes by the door, the half-open closet. The lens captures all of it.
Thirty minutes of prep the night before a shoot can be the difference between photos that stop a scroll and photos that don't. Here's exactly what we recommend — room by room — to get the most out of your Pioneer Pix session.
The night before: whole-house
Start here before going room by room. These take the most time.
- Turn on every light. Interior, lamps, under-cabinet strips, pendant lights — all of them. Mismatched color temperatures get corrected in editing, but dark corners don't.
- Replace any burned-out bulbs. A single dead bulb in a chandelier reads clearly in a photo.
- Open all interior doors to create depth and flow between rooms.
- Clear surfaces. Counters, tables, and shelving should hold no more than 2–3 intentional objects. Everything else goes in a closet or a box in the garage.
- Hide cables and power strips behind furniture or tuck them out of frame.
- Move cars out of the driveway. A clear driveway makes the exterior shot — and the aerial — significantly stronger.
Kitchen
The kitchen sells the house. It gets the most attention in listing photos, so give it the most prep time.
- Clear the counters entirely, then add back one or two accent pieces (a bowl of fruit, a small plant, a cutting board).
- Remove everything from the front of the refrigerator — magnets, notes, kids' drawings, all of it.
- Clean the stovetop and hide the dish rack, dish soap, and sponges under the sink.
- If there's a visible trash can, move it to the garage for the shoot.
- Run the dishwasher the night before so it's empty and closed.
Living room
- Straighten all cushions and throw blankets.
- Tuck remotes inside a drawer.
- If there's a fireplace with a gas switch, we'll let you know if it's worth turning on — in winter or overcast shoots it adds warmth; in bright Florida sunlight it often competes with the natural light.
- Pull back curtains fully to maximize the window light.
Primary bedroom
- Make the bed hotel-style: crisp, layered, no visible pillows from the night before.
- Clear nightstands to one lamp plus one object max.
- Close closet doors.
- Put away any medication, personal items, and toiletries from dressers.
Bathrooms
- Take everything off the counter: toothbrushes, soap dispensers, makeup, razors. Store it under the sink.
- Put out a fresh, rolled hand towel as the only visible item.
- Put the toilet lid down.
- Remove bath mats if they're worn.
- Clean the mirror — it will be reflected in the photo.
Outdoor spaces and the exterior
The exterior shot is the first thing buyers see in a listing. The aerial (if you've booked drone photography) shows the full lot, roof, and proximity to water or golf — so the roof and yard matter too.
- Mow the lawn and edge the beds the day before, not the morning of, so the clippings are cleared.
- Put away hoses, sprinkler heads, garden tools, and trash bins.
- Arrange patio furniture neatly — or remove pieces that are worn.
- Clear the pool deck and skim the pool surface.
- Put away kids' toys, sports equipment, and pet items.
The morning of the shoot
- Open all blinds and curtains fully.
- Turn on all lights — including the ones you thought wouldn't matter.
- Make sure pets are secured away from the shooting areas.
- Leave 10–15 minutes before the photographer arrives to do a final walk-through.
If you've booked a 3D Matterport tour, give yourself an extra pass through the home — every closet the scanner enters will be captured in the walkthrough, so light those too.
A note on virtual staging
If the property is vacant and you're adding virtual furniture, the prep checklist is shorter — clean surfaces, clear trash, and make sure all the lights work. Empty rooms actually photograph better than partly furnished ones because there's nothing to compete with the space itself.
Questions about what to expect on shoot day? We walk through this with every client before we arrive. Book your shoot and we'll send you a prep reminder the day before.