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Best Digital Cameras For Real Estate Interior Shots

Taking interior shots of houses and commercial buildings for real estate purposes poses a number of challenges:

1. Most consumer digital cameras have a lens with focal lengths starting at 35mm, which does not cover a wide enough angle to show off an interior properly;
2. The interior may not be lighted well enough.

These two challenges can be addressed a number of ways, e.g.:

1. Take a number of panoramic shots and later stitch them together;
2. Set up professional studio lights.

The above solutions are not very practical for the majority of real estate sales agents and interior designers who need an easier and less time consuming alternative.

Fortunately, there are alternatives:

1. Purchase a digital camera that comes with a wide-angle lens as standard (at least 28mm) or that accepts an optional wide-angle converter (be aware that converters may cut off your viewfinder view, in which case use the LCD monitor to compose your shot);
2. Ensure the digital camera also accepts a powerful external flash which provides the full wide-angle coverage.

The following non-DSLR digital cameras and accessories are presented for your consideration as a starting point for further research. Of course, purchasing a DSLR and the appropriate wide-angle lens is now an affordable option. As usual, do your own research and try them out at a store (try for a similar indoors situation) before you purchase. In alphabetical order of manufacturer:

	Canon EOS Rebel T1i / 500D 15.1 megapixels 18-55mm (28.8-88mm equiv.) 3x optical zoom and Max. Aperture F3.5 with IS Kit Lens Accepts optional external flash units Optical Viewfinder DSLR with interchangeable lens HD Video more... 128.8 x 97.5 x 61.9mm / 5.1 x 3.8 x 2.4 in. Approx. 480g / 16.9 oz. camera body only
	Canon PowerShot G10 14.7 megapixels 28-140mm equiv. 5x optical zoom Max. Aperture F2.8 Accepts optional external flash units Optical Viewfinder more... 109.1 x 77.7 x 45.9mm / 4.30 x 3.06 x 1.81 in. Approx. 350g / 12.3 oz. camera body only
	Canon PowerShot SX1 IS 10.0 megapixels 28-560mm equiv. 20x optical zoom Max. Aperture F2.8 Accepts optional external flash units more... 127.5 x 88.3 x 87.7mm / 5.02 x 3.48 x 3.45 in. Approx.585g / 20.6 oz. camera body only
	Fujifilm FinePix F200EXR 12.0 megapixels 28-140mm equiv. 5.0x optical zoom Max. Aperture F3.3 Low Light capability more... 97.7 x 58.9 x 23.4 mm / 3.8 x 2.3 x 0.9 in. Approx.175g / 6.2 oz. camera body only
	Fujifilm FinePix S100fs IS 8.0 megapixels 28-400mm equiv. 14.3x optical zoom Max. Aperture F2.8 Accepts optional external flash units Accepts filters more... 133.4 ×93.6 ×150.4 mm / 5.3 × 3.7 × 5.9 in. Approx.918g / 32.4 oz. camera body only
	Leica M8 Digital 10.3 megapixels Interchangeable wide-angle lenses available Optical Rangefinder Viewfinder Accepts optional external flash units more... 139 x 80 x 37 mm 545 g
	Nikon D5000 12.3 megapixels 18-55mm (27-82.5mm equiv.) 3x optical zoom and Max. Aperture F3.5 with VR Kit Lens Accepts optional external flash units Optical Viewfinder DSLR with interchangeable lens Vari-angle LCD HD Video more... 127 x 104 x 80 mm / 5.0 x 4.1 x 3.1 in. Approx. 560 g (1 lb. 4 oz.) without battery, memory card, or body cap
	Olympus E-620 12.3 megapixels 14-42mm (21-63mm equiv.) 3x optical zoom and Max. Aperture F3.5 with Kit Lens Accepts optional external flash units Optical Viewfinder DSLR with interchangeable lens Swivel LCD more... 130 x 94.0 x 60 mm / 5.11 x 3.70 x 2.36 in. Approx. 475g / 1.04 lbs without battery, memory card, or body cap
	Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH1 12.1 megapixels 14-140mm (28-280mm equiv.) 10x optical zoom and Max. Aperture F4.0 with Kit Lens Accepts optional external flash units Optical Viewfinder DSLR with interchangeable lens Free-angle LCD HD Video more... 124 x 89.6 x 45.2 mm / 4.88 x 3.29 x 1.78 in Approx. 385g / 13.58 oz （Body only）

Other digital cameras you may want to consider but that do not accept optional wide-angle lenses or external flash: Canon PowerShot SX200 IS (28-336mm equiv.), Canon PowerShot SD960 IS (28-112mm equiv.), Nikon Coolpix P90 (26-624mm equiv.), Nikon Coolpix S620 (28-112mm equiv.), Olympus SP-590UZ (26-676mm equiv.), Panasonic Lumic DMC-ZS3 (25-300mm equiv.), Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS1 (25-300mm equiv.), Olympus Stylus 9000 (28-280mm equiv.).

DSLR prices have gone down quite a bit but remember that a good wide-angle lens can sometimes cost as much -- or even more -- than your DSLR! But if you can afford it, a DSLR paired with an appropriate wide-angle lens is the way to go.

Are your indoors shots coming out underexposed (too dark)? One reason might be that it's just too dark and your digital camera cannot handle it (i.e. missing the ability to use slower shutter speed, faster lens, larger aperture, higher ISOs, more powerful flash). Also remember that if a bright light source (such as a window or patio door) is included in the picture, be sure to expose for the interior not the bright light source [point the center of the camera to a dark area, half-press shutter release button to lock the exposure, recompose, and take the picture].

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