Frequently Asked Questions

Service Areas:

Palm Springs · Palm Desert · Rancho Mirage · Indian Wells · La Quinta · Cathedral City · Indio · Coachella · Desert Hot Springs · Yucca Valley · Joshua Tree · Twentynine Palms · Landers · Pioneertown

Booking & Scheduling

  • You can book directly through our online booking page or our mobile (iOS or Android) app. Enter property details, choose your package and select a time.

  • We recommend booking at least 48 hours in advance to ensure availability, we accept appointments several weeks out.

  • We do accommodate same-day and next-day bookings when our schedule allows. Due to the tight turnaround, a rush scheduling fee may apply for bookings confirmed within 24 hours. If you need a shoot quickly, contact us directly and we’ll do our best to make it happen.

  • Yes, weekend shoots are available at no additional charge. Holiday availability is limited but may be possible depending on the day. Feel free to reach out directly if you need coverage on or around a holiday.

  • Travel within the High Desert and Coachella Valley is included at no additional cost. Properties outside that range may incur a travel fee, which varies by distance and direction. Areas toward L.A., for example, typically fall into our higher travel tier due to traffic. If you’re unsure whether a property qualifies, feel free to enter the address on the booking page to get the rate.

  • Absolutely. You can book directly through our website, client portal, or mobile app:

    All bookings are tied to our live calendar, so you’ll see real-time availability and receive instant confirmation — no need to call or wait. Many agents even book appointments while still on-site with their clients.

  • Yes. You’ll receive an email confirmation immediately after booking with all the shoot details. Then, one hour before the appointment, a reminder text is automatically sent to help ensure everything is ready on time.

Preparation

  • Visit and download our Prep Guide to ensure the property is photo-ready before your shoot.

  • Not necessarily — many agents provide lockbox access or meet us briefly to unlock the home.

  • Yes. I’m able to access properties using combination lockboxes, and Supra lockbox access may also be available depending on the listing. If using a gate or special entry, please include the access details when booking so everything runs smoothly on-site.

  • To get the best results, we recommend following our Prep Guide, which is designed for agents to easily share with homeowners. It includes tips on decluttering, lighting, and staging to help ensure the property looks its best on camera. You can view it online or download a printable PDF version from the same page.

  • Yes. — We offer a comprehensive Prep Guide designed for agents to share with sellers before the shoot. It includes room-by-room tips to help homeowners get the property photo-ready.

    A downloadable PDF version is also available on the same page for easy printing or emailing.

  • We’ll make light adjustments as needed — such as moving a trash can, tucking a cord, or straightening small items — to help clean up a shot. However, we don’t move furniture, rugs, shower towels, or handle personal tasks like making beds or doing dishes. For the best results, we recommend following our Prep Guide before the shoot.

  • If a property isn’t fully ready at the scheduled time, we’ll still proceed with what we can — such as shooting exteriors or completed areas — to avoid triggering the late cancellation fee. If a return visit is needed to finish the shoot, a reshoot fee will apply. We’re happy to work with you on timing to make the most of each appointment, so please let us know in advance if you anticipate any issues.

Shooting Process

    • Listing Photos

    • Drone Photos

    • 2D & 3D Floor Plans

    • Virtual Dusk

    • Twilight Photography

    • Walkthrough Videos

    • Matterport Tours

  • A standard listing photo session typically takes about 1.5 hours on-site. This can vary depending on the size of the property and any add-on services selected. A detailed time estimate is provided at checkout when booking through our website, client portal, or mobile app:

  • Yes — rush delivery is available for an additional fee. Please request it when booking.

  • We typically photograph the front and rear exteriors along with all primary living spaces — including the kitchen, living room, bedrooms, bathrooms, and any key features.

    Garages, sheds, closets, or unfinished spaces are not included by default but can be photographed upon request. If you have specific areas you’d like covered, just let us know when booking.

  • These areas aren’t included in our standard coverage, but we’re happy to photograph them upon request. Just let us know during booking if you’d like them included, and we’ll make sure they’re captured.

  • Yes. When the listing is part of a gated or planned community, we include photos of community amenities like pools, parks, or clubhouses when accessible. We’re also building a growing library of local community images that agents can freely reuse. If a specific community hasn’t been photographed yet, we’ll capture it during the appointment whenever possible.

    If you’d prefer exclusive, custom-shot community photos for a particular listing, a separate fee applies — just let us know during booking.

  • Absolutely. Highlighting the features that made a homeowner fall in love with the property can make a big difference in how it connects with buyers. While we encourage you to share any specific requests during booking so we can plan ahead, we’re happy to accommodate reasonable requests on-site as well — as long as the shots are safe, practical, and capture the space as intended.

Delivery

    • Photos: Delivered the next business day after the shoot. (Large properties may require additional time.)

    • Videos: Delivered within 2 business days. (Large properties may require additional time.)

    • Floor Plans: 2D next business day. 3D 2 business days.

    • Matterport: Delivered next business day.

  • You'll get a branded client portal with download options for MLS and print along with access to any of the floor plans, virtual tours, or media packages. All media is also available via our mobile app.

  • There’s no set limit. We include as many images as needed to fully showcase the property, not document it. That might be 25 for a small condo or 70+ for a large home with multiple features. Every listing is different, and our goal is always to deliver complete, high-quality visual coverage without cutting corners.

  • A standard listing photo appointment includes high-quality, professionally edited interior and exterior photos, plus a complimentary basic 2D floor plan (layout only, no measurements).

    Everything is delivered to your client portal the next business day in both MLS-ready and high-resolution formats.

  • Yes. Through the client portal, you can download your photos in both high-resolution and MLS-ready formats. You’ll also have the option to enter a custom size if needed — the system will automatically resize and export your images to match your specific requirements.

  • Yes. We provide both branded and unbranded versions of your marketing materials — ideal for MLS compliance and promotional use.

    To apply branding, agents must upload their logo, contact details, and other assets to their client portal in advance. Once branding is set up, it’s applied automatically to future projects.

  • All photos and floor plans are hosted in your client portal for easy access anytime. You can view, download, resize, and re-share your media as needed. While we recommend keeping a backup, your core files remain available as part of your client account.

    Marketing kits and property websites remain live for one year and can be extended directly within the client portal. 

    Matterport tours are hosted for 90 days and can also be extended for a small hosting fee — just let us know before the expiration date.

Editing

  • Both — We use a blend of HDR and flash techniques (Flambient) for clean, true-to-life images.

  • Minor edits like sky replacements or TV screens are included. Major edits to be quoted separately.

  • Every image is carefully edited using a combination of HDR and flambient blending for natural, true-to-life lighting. Standard editing also includes color correction, exposure balancing, vertical and perspective adjustments, and hand-blended layers for consistency. We also replace skies and clean up TV and computer screens by default to ensure a polished final presentation.

  • HDR (High Dynamic Range) blends multiple exposures to balance bright windows and dark shadows, giving a well-lit image without blown-out highlights. Flambient takes it a step further by combining those HDR exposures with flash shots. This gives us greater control over color, clarity, and sharpness, resulting in cleaner, more polished images — especially in rooms with tricky lighting or dark finishes.

  • Yes — we make a point to preserve window views in every room using advanced flambient techniques. Our process balances interior lighting with what’s outside the window, without the overdone “window pull” look common in basic HDR. If an agent prefers a brighter or more dramatic window treatment, we’re happy to adjust the edits to fit their style.

  • Yes. We offer virtual staging for $25 per image or 5 for $100. We’ll select a style that best matches the room and property unless you request something specific. Just let us know if you have a preference, and we’ll tailor the look accordingly.

  • Yes. We offer both options:

    • True twilight photography is available as a $200 add-on and typically includes 3–5 images captured on-site during sunset.

    • Day-to-dusk editing is a digital sky replacement applied to 1–2 images and is available as a $50 add-on — or included with all listing packages at no additional cost.

    If you’re not sure which is the best fit for your property, feel free to ask — we’re happy to advise.

  • Yes. Minor adjustments like brightness, color balance, or exposure tweaks are always included at no additional cost. If you need more involved edits — such as object removal or custom retouching — we handle those on a case-by-case basis and will provide a quote before any additional work is done.

  • Small distractions may occasionally be removed at our discretion during editing at no additional charge — especially if they affect the overall image quality. For specific or more involved object removal, this is handled case by case and quoted before any work begins. Please note that these edits may extend the standard delivery time.

  • Yes. Fireplaces are digitally lit to give a warm, inviting look in photos. For TVs and computer monitors, we apply a subtle black gradient by default to keep the focus on the room without distraction. If you’d like a specific image added to a screen, we’re happy to accommodate that upon request.

Payment & Invoicing

  • Payment is due upon delivery. You’ll receive an invoice with your media. You can even pay multiple invoices together in your customer portal.

  • For fastest access to your media, payments can be made online via credit card through your customer portal.

  • Standard listing photography is $225 and includes full interior and exterior coverage along with a basic floor plan. If you only need exterior or drone-only photos, options start as low as $125. For agents looking for a complete marketing solution, our bundled packages range from $400 to $825 and offer $50–$75 in savings compared to booking services individually.

  • Yes. A basic 2D floor plan (layout only, no measurements) is included with every interior photo shoot when conditions allow. If you’re looking for more detail, we offer a Premium 2D Floor Plan upgrade that includes measurements, fixed furniture, and a printable home report. Upgrades to Premium 3D floor plan renders and floor plan videos are also available.

    • Basic Floor Plan – Included with most interior photo shoots. Shows the layout only — no measurements or furniture.

    • Premium 2D Floor Plan – Includes room measurements, fixed furniture, and a printable home report in PDF format — great for marketing and client reference.

    • Premium 3D Floor Plan – Adds a 3D visual rendering of the space based on the Premium 2D plan, giving buyers a more immersive perspective.

    • Floor Plan Video – An optional upgrade to the 3D Floor Plan that creates a dynamic video walkthrough of the rendered layout.

  • If video is added before the appointment and we still have availability, we’ll include it at the standard add-on rate. If video is added after the shoot is completed and requires a return visit, it will be billed at the standalone price to cover the additional trip. To guarantee bundle pricing, we recommend adding video at the time of booking whenever possible.

  • Yes. We offer three listing packages — Essential, Premium, and Complete — that bundle popular services at a discounted rate compared to booking everything individually. You’ll save the most by choosing a package, but all add-on services are also available at a discounted price when paired with listing photos.

    We also offer referral incentives that can earn you additional discounts. Ask for details when booking or visit the client portal to learn more.

  • Yes. The client portal allows you to select and pay multiple open invoices at once with a single payment — no need to handle them individually. It’s fast, secure, and ideal for agents managing multiple listings.

  • Yes. Invoices and payment receipts are automatically generated and available anytime through your client portal. You can view, download, and print them for your records, making it easy to stay organized for tax or reimbursement purposes.

  • No sales tax is charged, as digital photography services are not taxable in California. However, additional fees may apply in certain situations — including travel outside the High Desert or Coachella Valley, rush editing, last-minute scheduling, and late cancellations.

    There are no late payment fees, as all orders must be paid before downloading through the client portal.

Licensing

  • Yes — your license covers marketing the listing across print, web, and social platforms. Purchase the Media Kit for a website and to generate social media posts.

  • No — each license is for the specific property photographed. Resale of the media is strictly prohibited.

  • No. All media remains the property of Hi-Desert Photography and is not considered work for hire. Upon full payment, you receive a non-exclusive, non-transferable license to use the images for marketing the specific property and for your own self-promotion — indefinitely. Any use by third parties (like builders, designers, sellers, or buyers) or for resale or redistribution is not permitted without prior written approval.

  • Yes — we provide a homeowner preview link that agents are encouraged to share with their clients. Homeowners are welcome to keep the photos for personal use or memories, but they may not use them for any marketing, resale, or commercial purposes. Builders and other third parties may only use the media with written permission and a separate licensing agreement from Hi-Desert Photography.

  • No. The license granted is non-transferable and applies only to the original agent or brokerage that purchased the media. If the listing changes hands, the new agent must purchase a separate license to use the images. This ensures fair use and protects the value of the work for all parties involved.

  • Yes — you may continue using the images for self-promotion and portfolio use after the property is sold or rented. The license allows indefinite use for your own marketing purposes, including social media, websites, and print materials. However, the images may not be reused to re-list the property or transferred to another agent or third party.

Other

  • Yes — fully insured with general liability.

  • Yes — Part 107 certified along with additional insurance for drone flight.

  • Please provide at least 24 hours’ notice. Same-day cancellations may incur a fee. If you are rescheduling with at least 48 hours notice, you can even reschedule your own appointment in your customer portal or in the mobile app.

  • We’ll work with you to reschedule exterior, drone, or twilight sessions. Interior shoots can often proceed as planned.

  • Tours are hosted for 90 days by default. Extended hosting is available for a fee upon request.

  • Media is hosted indefinitely, sites and social media kits are hosted for 12 months from the delivery date. You can renew any sites or social media kits from your customer portal.

Still have questions? Contact us and we’ll be happy to help.