trusted-photography

Best Way To Prep Before Your 360 Photographer Shoot

Sun, 08 Aug 2021 02:46:22 GMT

Hi, Garry here. Thanks for dropping by...

In my role as a Google Trusted Photographer creating virtual tours for businesses, naturally I'm often asked “What preparation do I need to do to be ready for the photo shoot?”

It's really pretty simple. You just need to think about how you want to portray your business and how you would want others to see it. Check out the tips for what to do below.

The first shot we take is on the street so if you have sign written vehicles it would be great to have that parked out front if at all possible.
Look at your front entrance. Clean windows, remove cobwebs, remove garbage bins and any litter.
Come inside and take a good look around. Remove any cobwebs on walls or ceiling. Dust shelves if necessary. I shoot the imagery in high quality and people can zoom in, so be aware of that.
Where applicable ensure shelves are stocked, with no large empty gaps.
Garbage bins and waste paper bins although necessary, are not a great feature in a virtual tour so remove these from site if possible.
Both in residential real estate and commercial properties places look better with the lights on so go ahead and turn all lights on.
Unless you are a cash and Carry Warehouse kind of business or the cartons are particularly worth showing off, cartons and other cardboard boxes are best hidden from view.
People in shots or no people in shots? This can be a tough choice.

Google generally prefers not to have people in the virtual tour and I personally tend to agree. The features and layout can be easily portrayed, and an empty space allows the online searcher to easily put themselves in the room and imagine being there, rather than being distracted by the heavily tattooed man or the woman with purple hair.

Another point by not having people present at the time of the shoot is that the process is usually much quicker. We can be in and out in the minimum time causing less distraction and disruption to your regular working day.

If you are a busy café or other type of business that often has lots of people in, and we can't shoot it outside of trading hours then we just have to do it that way. You are required to generally advise your patrons that “the Google photographer is here and we'll be shooting footage for Google maps.” We can blur faces ensuring privacy anyway.

I am certainly happy to do it either way and occasionally we have done staged shoots where for example the mechanic is leaning over a car or the staff of a busy service department are all at their seats at their pc. It’s also fine if you as the owner and your staff want to be in the shoot.

So there you have it. A few simple tips to make sure we capture a great virtual tour of your shop, showroom, café, gym, restaurant, childcare centre, club, salon or any other business that wants to increase traffic through the door.

That’s all I have for now but I promise I will try and come up with more stuff soon

Wishing you and family keep safe and well.

Why Now Is The Best Time To be Utilising A Trusted 360 Photographer In Your Business

Sun, 08 Aug 2021 02:40:55 GMT

Wow! Are we in challenging times or what?

The whole Covid-19 problem just doesn’t seem to be going away any time soon and as I write this, we are in lockdown, so unless you are an “essential worker” it’s pretty much stay at home for us all.

You are on my website so you obviously know I create 360⁰ virtual walk through tours of businesses, but what I really want to push home to you is that just how important one of these tours is to your business in these Covid times.

Of course it depends on your type of business but I wanted to share this example with you relating to child care centres as I’ve had several enquiries from them in the last week or so.

I have shot a number of child care/Early learning Centres, and right now those with a tour are reaping the benefits of having had a virtual tour created, as prospective parents can comfortably take their own private tour of the premises, in their own time, and in the safety of their home, and on the other side, the business owner doesn’t have to take unnecessary chances as to where that person has been and where the other people have been who they may have been with.

Compare that to not having a tour- As you know, in lockdown we can’t go out to look at a venue for a birthday party or wedding, and the same goes for a child care centre. Naturally, when choosing a suitable place for your child you want to take a tour of the facility, check out the features, the quality and get an overall feel for the space and size. Well unless they have a 360⁰ virtual walk through tour, you’re not going to get that experience any time soon.

Even a video, although fantastic for the place, is only for a set time in a set direction the recorder wants to take you. You can’t stop, spin around or zoom in on a particular are of interest, like you might do if you really visited the place.

We certainly hope this dreadful virus won’t keep us locked down forever but if you have a child care centre (or currently any other venue classed as an essential service) I urge you to book this as soon as you can if you want to maximise the potential of filling your places in these troubled times.

Stay safe and well!

Carr's Creek Schoolhouse 1882 Grafton

Sat, 07 Nov 2020 02:02:33 GMT

This meticulously decorated property in Grafton

One of the many things I love about doing what I do is when you get to shoot great businesses and meet genuine and lovely business owners.

If you're heading north and looking for a place to stay, and a lover of antiques and old world charm then the Carr’s Creek Schoolhouse, (which was built in 1882) is a beautiful place to stay in Grafton on the mid north coast.

The Schoolhouse became a private residence in 1964. The current owners and wonderful hosts Deborah and Herman Claassens have meticulously decorated this beautiful and peaceful property, which will sure to delight anyone who visits.

You can take a walk through this beautiful property and enjoy the full Google virtual tour here

You can see more about the property at www.carrscreekschoolhouse.com

The Clog Barn Coffs Harbour

Fri, 30 Oct 2020 01:47:50 GMT

I recently had the pleasure of meeting John Hartsuyker, the son of Tom Hartsuyker at the institution that is the Clog Barn in Coffs Harbor when I was requested to create a 360⁰ virtual tour for the premises.

What a great place this is. Tom started the business in 1984 which included a caravan park. Not only do you get to see the finished works and demonstrations of the art of clog making but you definitely need to go outside and take a wander through the Miniature Dutch Village that Tom started creating all those years ago and still works on to this day.

Pick up some terrific souvenirs, watch clogs being made, tour the miniature village, grab an excellent snack and coffee, and even stay right on the premises in their holiday park.

Take a look below what a 360 degree tour of a business looks like and better yet, if you're ever heading through Coffs Harbour, pop in and take a look yourself in person.

Update From Google regarding your Business Listing

Mon, 13 Apr 2020 08:09:55 GMT

Limited Google My Business functionality due to COVID-19

The following is the reply from Google in regards to changes to your Google My Business account over the course of the next few months:

During the unprecedented COVID-19 situation, we are taking steps to protect the health of our team members and reduce the need for people to come into our offices. As a result, there may be some temporary limitations and delays in support as we prioritize critical services.

Our current focus is on the quality and reliability of information on Google Search and Maps. We want to ensure users and business owners have access to essential features like whether the business is open or has special hours. Learn about best practices for affected businesses, and what you can do to keep your customers informed.

Please take note of these temporary product changes:

Business information edits
Newly created listings
Claims, and
Verifications

Our support team will manually review new listings, claims, and verifications for critical health-related businesses. While we prioritize these critical services, please expect a delay for publication of new listings, claims, and verifications for other types of businesses to Google Search and Maps.

Thank you for your patience. We are working as quickly as possible to restore full functionality to Google My Business. We will provide further updates as they become available.

Hunter Valley Motorsports

Thu, 11 Apr 2019 10:53:50 GMT

Hunter Valley Motorsports is inviting all their online customers into the store to see their huge range of parts and workshop.

Hunter Valley Motor Sport has invited their online customers to come check out the huge workshop and spare parts they have available via our interactive walkthrough tour

Amanda's On The Edge

Thu, 11 Apr 2019 08:59:52 GMT

Amanda’s on the Edge is filled with heart and family, with fun and of course fabulous food. Born of Grandma’s dream – a whirlwind woman who created a cooking school in her days and always said, “When I have my restaurant…”

Jasmine Greens Park Kiosk