How to properly photograph a car for sale

Every driver strives to make his car as comfortable and stylish as possible. This is why car tuning is so popular today. However, such an update in a car dealership is a very expensive pleasure, which not everyone can afford.

We invite you to consider the possibility of tuning the car interior with your own hands. To do this, we will further describe several options for updating the interior of a vehicle, which have been tested by practice and time, and also do not require significant financial investments.

Hamann car interior tuning

Internal car tuning is quite labor-intensive, but very interesting work. The main difficulty of such an upgrade is the large number of structural elements, which significantly complicates the procedure for decorating the car’s interior in a single, clearly defined style. However, it is still possible to realize your plans if the desire is great and you have enough patience.

Shooting angle

To choose the right photography angles, it is important to understand what exactly you want to emphasize in your car.
If you want to give your car a menacing and commanding look, then it is best to take a photograph from a height just above the ground. Your main task is to emphasize the lines of the car in the frame and convey its volume.

Therefore, to present the car in all its glory, it is enough to take several photographs representing the car from all sides. Try to capture every detail of the car, for example, take these angles:

• Front, back, left, right views.
• View of the floor at a 45 degree angle from the front and back.
• View of the engine compartment.
• Trunk view.
• Large types of headlights and wheels.

Solution for small spaces

If you plan to create the interior of a beauty salon, you need to start with proper zoning. Sometimes this is very difficult to do in small spaces. Therefore, for such purposes it is recommended to use various design tricks to visually increase space.

Idea for a small beauty salon in design Source individdesign.ru

Design solutions in beauty studios Source artumstudio.arxip.com

Moving car shooting with wiring

How to properly arrange a garage sale
Photographing a car in motion involves shooting with tracking, that is, when you move the camera synchronously behind a moving car

This allows you to get shots with a motion-blurred background and a clear car, focusing the viewer's attention on the movement. Typically, such shooting is carried out in shutter priority mode, which allows you to automatically select the optimal aperture value

In this case, the shutter speed value is manually set so that the background is blurred in the direction of movement of the car, and the subject itself is clear and sharp in the frame. In general, shutter speed directly depends on the speed of the subject's movement, as well as how blurred the background you want to get. A blurred background ensures a dynamic plot.

When shooting with tracking, it is advisable to use tracking autofocus or manual focusing, which helps to get rid of errors in the operation of the autofocus system. You need to focus on the place where the car will pass, then follow the movement of the car and press the shutter button in the right place. In some cases, it is advisable to use serial shooting, because when a car flies past at high speed, you will only have a few fractions of a second to take a successful shot. This is where burst photography can help out. To obtain high-quality shots of a car in motion, you will, of course, need a more advanced digital camera, which, in particular, has the necessary shutter speed.

In conclusion, it is worth mentioning that photographing cars is a creative and exciting process in which a wide variety of experiments are possible. Each car, if you do not treat it only as a means of transportation, has its own character, which is expressed in its shapes, lines and individual details

For a photographer, it is only important to be able to discern this character. If you turn on your imagination a little, then in many cars you can even see some kind of animate creature - a dog, cat, insect or woman

Such fantasies can be a good help for playing out various non-standard plots and shooting genre photographs. If you get rid of stereotypical approaches, you can show the viewer in a car a male or female figure, the grace of a wild animal or the silhouette of a bird. Everything depends solely on your imagination and artistic taste.

General design principles

The main requirement for the design of a modern barber shop is a distinctive stylization of the room. This, together with the professionalism of the hairdressers, will attract a large number of clients. Rectangular rooms can be zoned using different types of finishes. In a square room, it is recommended to use the following design techniques:

1. Highlight each mirror with a vertical trim. It will allow you to increase the height of the walls, help clients focus on the work of the master and change their image.
2. Horizontal division of walls (for tiny rooms). Highlighting the top and bottom parts will help distract visitors from the tools stored under the tables.
3. Using eye-catching interior decor. A large inscription with the name of the barber shop, a large image of a man or woman on one of the walls will help to simply stylize the room.

Preparing the car for photography

How to choose the right used car

Your task is to show the buyer the “face” of the product, that is, to present it in the most favorable light - to veil the shortcomings and highlight the obvious advantages. Without preparing the car, doing this with a camera will be problematic. However, many ad sites, especially specialized ones, have a number of requirements for such photographs, so this is not an empty formality. You need to approach the photo shoot of your four-wheeled friend with the utmost seriousness and responsibility - in the end, this will save you from many unnecessary questions.

If you are used to washing your car at car washes at the cheapest rate, then in this case you will need to fork out more. You should personally check that there are no hints of dirt not only on open body parts, but also on the edges of the sills, the bottom of the bumpers, rear-view mirrors, and wheels. After washing, the car should be dried with compressed air - drips will in no way decorate the photo, and if the angle is wrong, they may even raise suspicions about the integrity of the body covering with all the ensuing consequences.

If the car sparkles and shines, you will be thought of as a zealous owner who takes care of it. This means that there is a high probability that even a very old car is in good condition and should be of interest.

Of course, putting the exterior of your car in perfect order does not mean that you should forget about the interior. Quite the contrary - often it is from interior photographs that final conclusions are made about whether it is worth making the first call. So a thorough interior cleaning should definitely be included in your price list. If the seat upholstery is dirty, it makes sense to order (or do it yourself) dry cleaning - you will be surprised at the results obtained. Car resellers, by the way, are well aware of this and do not spare money on such procedures, after which even a shabby car looks much fresher and younger.

Is it necessary to wash the engine compartment? Definitely yes, but fanaticism is not entirely appropriate here: a brilliant engine is more likely to arouse suspicion in an attempt to hide minor or major flaws in the form of leaking pipes or gaskets. So you should limit yourself to only cleaning the plastic protection of the power unit and the most visible attachments, including the expansion tank, battery and other components.

Gifts of nature

Let's start with the material itself.
To decorate the interior of a car, as a rule, only valuable types of wood are used - “noble wood”, such as Karelian birch, zebrawood, wenge, mahogany, rosewood, myrtle, walnut, elm - trunk and root. In general, the range includes more than 100 species. The variety of colors and patterns, thus, turns out to be incredibly large: from the lightest to the darkest shades, from barely noticeable to a clearly defined structure rich in lines. And if we add here the possibility of using primers and varnishes of different colors, we get a literally inexhaustible choice of finishing options. But that's not all. Nowadays, a material such as artificial (or reconstituted) veneer is becoming increasingly fashionable. It is done like this: valuable wood is crushed into small sawdust, which is then specially painted and glued into a “log”, from which the veneer is cut, just like from a regular log. This makes it possible, without going far from the naturalness of the material, to obtain shades and textures that are impossible in nature - for example, various green and blue colors, geometrically correct chess and stair patterns.

How to photograph the interior and exterior of a car

How to properly wash a car with a Karcher, by hand, in a car wash

A separate type of photography is photographing the car interior

Here you also need to pay attention to individual details. Shoot the windshield, focusing on a toy hanging in the foreground, or a rearview mirror that reflects a beautiful landscape

Take a few close-ups of the interior, and then move on to photographing the gearbox, speedometer, steering wheel and other integral elements of the car. Make sure that no detail is too dark in the frame, that is, you need to properly illuminate the interior of the car while shooting.

You can also try to take reportage photos from inside the car. It is best, of course, for this purpose to use a standing, motionless car, from which you will shoot interesting scenes with moving people or other cars. In this case, you can compose the frame in such a way that the city landscape or sketches from life are complemented by details of the car’s interior in the foreground. Here you will have to wait patiently until someone or something enters the frame, or arrange a staged scene.

A more difficult task is shooting from a car in motion. Here it will be difficult to get a well-thought-out shot; it will be a real spontaneous reportage photo. In addition, purely technical problems will arise related to vehicle vibration and, as a result, lack of sharpness.

To get high-quality photos from a moving car, you should use a few tips. Firstly, the car should move as smoothly as possible, without sudden braking or acceleration. It is better to shoot from a car on flat, calm areas, and not when cornering. Secondly, while holding the camera in your hands, you will need to take a comfortable, stable position in the car with reliable support for your hands or elbows.

Thirdly, since it is very difficult to achieve sharpness when shooting in motion, it is advisable to shoot in manual mode with the focus set to infinity. Naturally, to all this we must add that the photographer himself should not be driving when shooting. For traffic safety reasons, you should also not block the driver’s view and do not place the camera out of the window.

Style

First of all, it is worth determining the intended target audience based on the budget. Luxurious classic style is suitable for wealthy visitors to the salon. Elegant furniture, expensive accessories, restrained colors, ornate designs in the interior - all this will be the calling card of an expensive beauty salon with top-level service.

Modern or high-tech will attract the attention of dynamic young guys and girls. High-tech is well suited for small spaces. Metal, plastic, glass will create an atmosphere of conciseness and precision in detail. Mirrors will visually enlarge the room.

The ethnic direction of the salon immerses clients in a certain exoticism. Natural materials (wood, bamboo, rattan) and natural shades (sand, olive, blue, terracotta) give the interior a natural, natural beauty and evoke a woman’s association with comfort.

How to photograph your car for sale

Many people look at used car listings online.

The car must capture the buyer's attention. You are clicking on a link to see more photos, so the first image does not have to fully show the car

Or worse, there are a number of photos that come out blurry or were taken at night with a low-quality cell phone camera.

Poor photos will make your car less attractive to buyers, prolong the sales process and lead to customers who aren't quite sure what they want. You don't have to be an expert photographer to create effective photographs

You just need to know what to look for when you take a photo. The following tips will show you how to photograph your car to get more views. There are two important points we must make before we begin

Firstly, you need to wash your car. Make sure it is nice and clean and the wheels and tires are shiny. Secondly, raise the windows. This gives the car a smooth, finished look.

Use the right camera

Today, the most convenient option is to take your smartphone out of your pocket and use it to take photos of your car. And if you bought a smartphone in the last few years, this should be enough. But we all know what kind of photographs can be obtained on old devices. Grainy photos taken on an iPhone 3G or an old Blackberry won't work. Instead, use a digital camera, even if it is several years old. The image will be better than any old smartphone.

Golden hour

The car in the photograph will look different at different times. Don't take pictures of your car during your lunch break. The light is too harsh at midday and your photos will look washed out. Likewise, don't take photos at night because camera flash is a poor substitute for the sun. In photography, the "golden hour" is when the sun rises. Photos taken at this time are least likely to be overexposed, and the light at this time is warm, enhancing the colors in the photo. The golden hour calculator will help you determine the ideal time in your area. If your schedule doesn't allow for taking photos during golden hour, it's best to take photos between 7am and 9am. Of course, provided that the morning is clear. The location of your photo shoot can also help the car stand out among the crowded online listings. Try to find an isolated area or parking lot. This will allow your car to take center stage in the photos. If you have access to the sea, take photos there. A nearby park is also suitable. In extreme cases, an empty parking lot will suffice.

General design principles

Before starting renovations, you need to check your creative ideas with the standards that will have to be observed, because beauty salons often become targets for inspections by supervisory authorities. It is imperative to equip the procedure areas with proper lighting, use only fireproof materials for finishing and correctly position the filling. Any design should be based on “three pillars”:

• Functionality;
• Convenience;
• Practicality.

Before you begin the creative part of the work, you will have to perform a number of boring but necessary actions:

• Take measurements of the premises and photograph the rooms. The latter will simplify the task of filling it out, because having a photo at hand makes it easier to figure out the options;
• If redevelopment is planned, then you need to coordinate it with the architectural bureau and visit a number of authorities to obtain official permission;
• Then follows the selection of materials and calculation of their sizes;
• Only after this we decide on the style, furniture, and decorative elements.

The size of the room and the expected number of regular visitors also play a big role. For small economy class salons (less than 25 sq. m), which can even be located in an apartment, the design is usually thought out independently, and the repairs are carried out with your own hands. You can get ideas from the decoration of branded establishments, or find design examples in fashionable design magazines. In such cramped spaces, the furnishings should not pretend to be luxurious, since such a solution will not look elegant, but inappropriate. To create a stylish interior, owners of luxury beauty salons usually turn to design studios and shift this task onto the shoulders of professionals. This will be followed by approval of the finished project and its implementation. All the work will be done by experienced designers, but you will have to pay generously for such work. So the only question here is the budget.

Post-processing

In fact, this term involves performing actions aimed at improving the final result. But don’t think that you need to have thorough Photoshop skills to do this. Operations such as cropping, performed in order to get rid of unnecessary objects, as well as changing contrast/brightness and color balance, are performed in principle trivially, and in almost any graphics editor. And in most cases, this is quite enough to significantly improve the quality of the images. You should avoid retouching - using this technique means that you needed to hide something. And even if it was performed by a professional, traces of intervention will still not be completely hidden; an attentive user will notice this and draw the appropriate conclusions.

The level of technical equipment of modern smartphones is so high that in terms of the power of the processor unit, they are no longer inferior to laptops and even desktop systems. And yet, post-processing photos on your phone, even with a good application, is not convenient. So it’s better to do this on a computer: the results will be significantly better, and you will spend much less time. Many image editors offer a set of standard filters with which you can correct exposure flaws, adjust the white balance, in a word, achieve a more pleasant look for your photos. You shouldn’t get carried away - such delights can lead you very far from the desired result, and inexperienced users risk losing the original photos, and then the photo session will have to be repeated.

In general, your main task is to inform the buyer about the condition of the offered car. Even if the photographs contain some flaws, it is not at all a fact that they will affect the final decision. Moreover, raw photos will most likely be in the same style and tone, but haphazard processing with various filters will deprive the gallery of this advantage.

In a workshop

In terms of its technical execution, wood finishing has two main directions: finishing an element with veneer and manufacturing overlays, and even entire elements, from solid wood.
Veneer is used for trim on the doors and console, as well as the dashboard and dashboard. On small flat areas it is applied in single pieces, and on large and curved surfaces it is assembled from separate parts integrated with each other. Handles, inserts, the gearshift lever knob and the steering wheel trim are made from solid wood. The latter is assembled like this: separately, solid longitudinal halves are made for the upper and lower half rings, which are then tightly glued to the metal base. The entire technological cycle for finishing is as follows. The part is dismantled and sent to the workshop, where the previous coating is removed from it - down to the metal base - or the top layer is cleaned off if the element is entirely plastic. Then the dimensions are taken from the part prepared in this way, according to which the wooden part is made. It is fixed using a special glue either directly to the element or through a thin aluminum backing. The latter option turns out to be the best (but not always technically possible), since it compensates for the difference in thermal expansion and the different reaction to changes in humidity that the wood and the base have.

In addition to giving shape (size, configuration, etc.), wood processing is also carried out. First, the wooden part cut to size is sanded on special machines and by hand, while all roughness is removed from the wood and it becomes smooth. Then the part is coated with a primer, which can be colorless or contain a tint that gives the wood the required color. After this, it is dried in a special chamber and varnish is applied (also either colorless or containing a dye). Then it is dried again and finally polished - on a machine and by hand.

As for the quality resulting from the entire process, it depends on several factors. First of all, it depends on the quality of the wood itself, it must meet all standards for humidity, density and the presence of defects, as well as materials for processing - primers, varnishes, glue. The use of good modern equipment for processing - milling, polishing, grinding machines, painting and drying apparatus is also of great importance. Also a necessary condition is strict adherence to all the nuances of the technology.

But the key quality factor is the professionalism of the craftsmen. After all, any, even the most technically advanced equipment, you must simply know how to use it, not to mention the ability to make artistic carvings or inlays. The quality and aesthetics of the manufactured item ultimately depends on the craftsman. For example, to finish a large surface - a dashboard or console - it is important to beautifully join the pattern of parts of the veneer, which should “flow” and look solid - otherwise such a finish will look like a plank fence. At the same time, on light wood it is important to be able to adjust and hide as much as possible the joints - seams, which is very difficult to do even in the simplest part. In general, there are a lot of professional subtleties when working with wood, and the master must know and take them all into account.

Shooting angles

Let's move on to the most important thing - how to properly photograph a car for sale. Of course, in order to correctly convey the beauty of a particular model, you need to be a professional. Conveying volume and sweeping contour lines of a body is an art. But do we need it? Obviously, we do not intend to exhibit the car at a prestigious car show; our task is to provide the potential buyer with maximum information about its condition. And to do this, you need to photograph it from different angles so that you get a holistic impression of your car.

Here is a sample shot plan:

• along the perimeter – front/back, left/right;
• at an angle of 45-50° front/back and on both sides;
• close-up view of the open trunk/hood;
• photos of wheels, as well as bumpers with optics.

Panoramic photography is the only way to demonstrate that the car’s exterior does not contain any flaws. If you provide pictures of, say, only three sides, then suspicions will certainly arise as to why there is no fourth. Since the owner is probably hiding something...

The shooting height is not so important - here you have the opportunity to experiment. Usually photographs are taken standing. This is not the best angle, but it is quite acceptable. It's better to take pictures of the car from chest level. When taking side shots, it is desirable that the wheels look either straight, or are turned with the disk outward, but not inward. In short, the main idea is to show that you have absolutely nothing to hide, that the car, despite its age, is in perfect or close to it condition. The power of the impression made by appearance should not be underestimated - this, in general, is the strong point of all types of art.

Photos of the trunk are also important because they allow you to evaluate its volume and ease of use without forcing you to go online and search for it. Many advanced buyers will never agree to a purchase without assessing the condition of the thresholds, so photographs with open doors will not be amiss (if you have nothing to hide).

Having summed up all of the above, we can conclude that you will need at least a dozen photographs. In general, the “more is better” rule works here, but if you abuse it, you will end up with the same type of pictures, half of which will not carry any semantic or informative load. In addition, many advertising platforms impose restrictions on the number of photographs posted, so you will also have to take this into account, selecting only the best and most successful angles for display. Various artistic delights are not needed here - the photos should be informative so that a positive or negative purchasing decision can be made on their basis.

But there are exceptions here too

If your car is special, it is quite acceptable to focus the attention of those interested on the component that makes the car stand out from the mass of others by photographing it close-up. One photo will be enough, don’t get carried away

Most of the shots should show general standard shots.

Do you need a top view? In principle, such an angle will not hurt - such variety will be beneficial, allowing you to more correctly assess the volumetric structure of the machine. Remember that text, replete with technical details, is poorly remembered, unlike visual images - that’s how our brain works.

And one more important point. Is it necessary to photograph defects in a car for sale? If there are a lot of them, then it will not be possible to hide everything. You need to take this calmly - prepare for the fact that interested parties will appear, but you will need to reduce the price in order for the deal to go through. But even with isolated defects, there is no particular point in hiding them - you won’t have to make excuses during a personal meeting. If a potential buyer sees that you are being disingenuous, it will be much more difficult to negotiate. Of course, you shouldn’t overuse the description of shortcomings either - mention them in passing, and make them visible in the photographs, but without the possibility of detailing. In the end, visitors to such resources are well aware that the ideal vehicle cannot be found on the used car market - there will be flaws in any case.

The main idea of ​​a pre-sale photo shoot is to show that your car is very good, and this is what you should focus on. After looking at the resulting photos, you must decide for yourself – would you be interested in such a car? If yes, then you did everything right, even if not at a professional level.

How to organize lighting and choose a background

To photograph a car, it is recommended to choose a location where there is no bright direct sun, which creates unpleasant glare in the frame, or sudden changes in colors due to lighting characteristics. Even, diffused natural light that occurs in the morning or at sunset is best. At this time, the light is quite soft and falls at a slight angle. In some cases, it is worth using backlight, that is, photographing against the sun, when natural light will beautifully illuminate the roof and hood. Backlight allows you to further outline the shapes and lines of the car in the frame. But, of course, you shouldn’t shoot at noon, when the light is very bright, which leads to glare that appears in the photo as white, overexposed spots.

Interesting effects can be obtained by shooting in the evening or twilight, when the car's headlights, parking lights and turn signal are on. When building a lighting scheme, you should avoid bright flash, preferably using a softbox. The best option is, of course, diffused natural light, but if necessary, you can create artificial stage lighting using various light generators and softboxes. The main thing here is to make sure that there are no glares or reflections in the frame.

Choosing a place to photograph a car is one of the keys to success. Remember that the background should not distract the viewer from the car. For example, it is not advisable to leave other cars in the frame if you are filming somewhere in a parking lot. Ideally, the background should be chosen in such a way that it makes the car more attractive in photographs. There are a lot of options - shooting outdoors, in the city, on the highway or even in the studio. A great way to get more interesting car photos is to use light contrast wisely. In particular, a light-colored car resonates with a dark background and vice versa.

In fact, photographing a stationary car is more difficult than a moving one, since in this case you will need to be more careful in choosing the background and the desired angle, and building the overall composition. A car photograph should convey a certain mood or idea, and not just document the subject. Here you can’t just press the shutter button and click.

What is the price

And now about how much you will have to pay for everything.
Pricing is as follows: material plus labor cost. Wood can cost differently: for 1 cubic meter. m of walnut, for example, European suppliers ask from $2 thousand, and for 1 cubic meter. m Makassar - from $20 thousand. Accordingly, the complexity of the work can be different: the gearbox lever can be simple polished, or it can be complex in shape and inlaid. Meanwhile, in options without any special frills, prices turn out to be the most affordable. For example, finishing a console with Karelian birch veneer costs an average of $200 (100 for the work and about the same for the material). A polished gearshift lever will cost from $15 to $60, and from $150 if the shape is unusual. The steering wheel trim is more expensive - from $250 to $1 thousand and even more. They will charge $50-100 for door trims. By the way, it is interesting to emphasize this point - ordering an original part is on average 2-3 times more expensive.

Let us note that there is no upper price limit - you can make any artistic projects with wood, even the most technically complex ones, for which, of course, you will have to pay. But, of course, the finishing in this case will be appropriate - exclusive of the highest level.

Preparing to shoot a car

Most people don't do any pre-sale preparation, so they are forced to either reduce the price or wait weeks or months for a buyer.

In this matter, a lot depends on the photographer, but do not forget that the appearance of the car attracts the attention of a potential buyer more than the skill of shooting itself. The exterior and interior of the car must be in perfect order - without this there is no point in picking up photographic equipment, so you should start with careful preparation

Get your car in order before the photo shoot

Before taking photographs, you need to thoroughly wash the car and take care of its interior; do not spare money on a comprehensive car wash and cleaning; these costs will be fully recouped when selling

Remember, in the right photo the car should look like new in order to attract the attention of the buyer

Layout details

A special place in any beauty salon is occupied by the reception desk, where the reception desk with a friendly smiling girl is located. This is the very “face” who first greets guests. Even a small studio should have a lounge where clients can undress, make a payment, make an appointment or take a business card. The decoration of the salon reception is approached with special attention. Then the planning needs to be based on the range of services that will be provided in this room. The minimum set of a standard cabin includes:

• Manicurist's workplace;
• Salon;
• Separate room for pedicure.

If the beauty studio has expanded functionality, then the following are added to the standard “package” of services:

• Solarium;
• Massage room;
• Two separate places for body and face care procedures (lifting, eyelash extensions, hirudotherapy, peeling);
• Cosmetic salon;
• Universal aesthetic cabinet;
• Room for hair removal and depilation.

Additionally, consultation and treatment rooms can be included in this structure. In the common room, as a rule, there is only a hairdresser and a corner for a manicurist. All other treatment rooms are separated in separate rooms, since few visitors will like it when other clients admire their bare legs or the process of fighting acne on their body.

How to decide on the camera angle for a car

Even before you start shooting, you should carefully study the car you are going to photograph. It is worth looking at the car from different angles and from different points in order to evaluate what exactly you want to get in the frame and what details or contours of the car should be conveyed in the pictures. It is necessary to choose the optimal angle for shooting in such a way that it fully emphasizes the lines and shapes of the car. It is recommended to avoid taking full-face shots; it is better to take pictures from the side or at an angle to the car, so that the pictures give a more three-dimensional image of the car with emphasized lines. The perspective from below also looks interesting when you photograph a car with a wide-angle while sitting or even lying down. As a result, the car in the frame turns out to be more aggressive and predatory.

Don't forget to take close-up shots of individual parts, as many cars have attractive body shapes and unusual logos. After a few wide shots of the car, move on to photographing details, for example, the radiator grille, varnished surfaces, an interesting composition of headlights, wheels and side mirrors. Before you start taking close-up photographs of individual elements of the car, carry out the appropriate preparation - remove fine dust, unpleasant spots and stains from the photographed surface. Removing them during post-processing will take a lot of time and it is far from certain that everything will be successfully eliminated.

Tips for organizing space

Organization of space

1. Avoid panoramic windows in areas of hair coloring, pedicure and other “inconvenient” procedures;
2. Carefully consider the color of upholstered furniture and upholstery on chairs . Too light shades require constant care; even small drops of paint and varnish are visible on them. If the furniture is light in color, choose a washable upholstery material, such as leather or eco-leather;
3. Install more lighting fixtures . Each workplace is ideally equipped with a separate light source;
4. If the salon area is not large, think about mirrored walls - they will visually increase the space;
5. In the headwash area, there is often a problem with hiding pipes . A podium that will hide unnecessary details and visually highlight the area will help solve it;
6. Provide sufficient storage space . For working tools and products that should not be seen by clients, arrange closed cabinets, and open shelves for presentable bottles. The most important thing is that there is no dust or clutter in sight of customers.

Arranging a salon and creating a design is a pleasant activity, but it requires responsibility and diligence. Get inspired by the ideas of successful salons. Which of the presented interiors did you like best? Write your answer in the comments!

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Choosing a place and time for photography

Taking photos anywhere is a bad idea, but this is what many sellers do. And the point here is not a lack of taste - it’s a banal lack of experience and knowledge that affects

Meanwhile, it is enough to pay attention to numerous free advertisements (no matter what exactly) and compare them with professional advertising products - the difference will be huge, even if the same product is advertised

So in our case, the overall perception of not even the car, no, but the pictures themselves, depends on a well-chosen background. Moreover, such an assessment usually occurs on a subconscious level. The general rule of advertising photography is that the background should be as contrasting as possible. Convergence of tones is allowed, but it is desirable that in any case the background be monochromatic. It is difficult to achieve this simply on the street, given the fact that you will have to take pictures from different angles.

What you shouldn’t do is photograph the car against the backdrop of old shabby buildings, garages, avoid getting into the frame details that spoil the impression, such as garbage cans or poles covered with advertisements. There is also no need to go out into nature in search of a charming landscape: you are unlikely to find one anyway. It is enough to find an area adjacent to a flat and smooth wall, the color of which is discordant with the tone of the car. But in this case, you will have to rearrange the machine several times so that all the pictures turn out approximately the same.

The timing of filming is also important. Here, too, there is a general rule - the photo shoot should be carried out the day before the advertisement is posted.

Agree, studying photographs taken against the backdrop of snowdrifts when it’s July heat outside will raise reasonable suspicions that you’ve been unsuccessfully trying to sell your car for at least six months. And that this is very, very suspicious. So the photos on the bulletin board should correspond to the season in any case. And it's even better if they are neutral. This can be achieved by photographing indoors. For example, in an underground parking lot. The main thing here is that the lighting is at the level.

If photographs are taken outdoors, the first rule of a photographer is to avoid taking photos in bright sunshine. Even if it does not shine into the lens, there will always be objects that will reflect the sun's rays and lead to glare. So it’s better to choose a time either early in the morning or about an hour before sunset, when the intensity of solar radiation is minimal, but sufficient for high-quality photographs.

If it is not possible to take photographs in the morning or evening, it is enough to find a shaded area - for example, the north side of the building. Cloudy weather is considered a good time. Continuous cloudiness gives a very soft and even light. Remember that properly photographing a car for sale means hiding minor defects such as scratches as much as possible - in bright sunlight they are most likely to be visible. So you shouldn’t overuse the flash either, because it gives about the same effect. Also avoid placing the car in the shade of trees - it will not be uniform, and the result will be even worse than pictures taken in bright sun.

Another important rule is that there should be no conspicuous foreign objects in the photograph. This applies to other cars and passers-by as well.

The potential buyer's eyes should be focused only on your offer. If, due to camera shortcomings, pictures in the shadows turn out dim, you can also take pictures in the sun, but it must be behind you.

Professional car photography

The process of painting wood-like plastic in a car interior with your own hands

So, if we have a car with plain plastic and there is a desire to transform it, then why not.

First of all, all the parts that you want to paint to look like wood must be removed from their places. Naturally, it won’t be possible to paint them on site. Next, wash the parts, degrease them and coat them with a primer for plastic. After the primer has dried, cover the parts with dark brown paint and also wait until it dries. Now our background color is ready, we need to apply stains. When painting, we apply dark elements in an unusual way, namely with the help of smoke from disposable tableware. Yes, yes, we set fire to a disposable plastic fork or spoon, and the black smoke from the combustion will cover the dark brown background on the plastic. In the process of applying smoke, it is necessary to move the burning plastic evenly over the entire surface area. As a result, you should get uniform dark stains on a brown background. Next, we coat the resulting pattern with varnish to add shine to the surface and protect it from abrasion. It is best to use acrylic varnish from a can and coat the plastic several times, after each dry layer. A coating of 3 or more layers of varnish can provide that same protection. After the varnish has completely dried, we put all the parts in place.

For painting it is best to use aerosol cans. It is also necessary to paint in a clean and dust-free room, with a positive temperature. With the technology of applying dark stains, it is better to practice on a similar part, and only then proceed to their final application. The varnish must also be applied carefully and in a warm room. Experience and ability to work with materials, which comes with considerable practice, will be the key to the successful transformation of your interior plastic into a car. Before you do something like this, try your hand at some piece of plastic that is not part of your car's interior. Perhaps you will not be happy with this result. But restoring the original appearance by scrubbing the plastic with a solvent will be long and physically difficult.

Decorating a car interior with wood is a newfangled trend in car tuning.

There are more and more car enthusiasts who want to decorate the interior of their car with valuable wood species. This kind of business can become very profitable - after all, the cost of this “chic” is high, and your expenses are minimal.

Wood trim

- a sign of refined taste. In our artificial age, natural materials are becoming more and more valuable. After all, only natural materials - wood, leather, cotton - make you feel comfortable and allow your body to breathe.

Instinctively, people are drawn to natural materials. Especially if you have to spend most of your working day in the car. Comfort comes first.

For interior decoration, valuable wood species such as walnut, myrtle, mahogany, Karelian birch and others are used.

You can offer customers an endless variety of patterns and colors - from the lightest tones to rich dark shades. The structure of the tree can also be barely noticeable, or it can be pronounced.

In addition, the use of numerous impregnations and varnishes will make your work exclusive - no one will have a second salon like this, just as there is no second person like the owner of this car. After all, the interior decoration will exactly convey his taste and preferences.

With all the individuality of the approach to interior wood trim, there are also fashion trends here. For example, African style is in fashion now.

What to photograph

So a good smartphone is enough. The main thing is that the lens is perfectly clean and there is enough memory for several dozen pictures. However, compared to videos, photographs take up almost no space. On the eve of the photo shoot, you should also make sure the battery is fully charged, otherwise all your preparatory activities will go down the drain.

According to the general unspoken rules, you will need about a dozen photos from different angles:

Full front/profile view, ¾ back and front on both sides, rear photo and several interior photos.

Shooting around the perimeter is done in order to show the absence of flaws (at least visible ones), but the resolution of the photograph is of great importance here. Anyone interested in your car should be able to look at the photos in more detail without losing quality. A megapixel camera is clearly not enough for this.

Now a little about the smartphone camera settings. If you are not a specialist in photography, it is better to limit yourself to standard options - most smartphones use the “automatic” mode by default, which is capable of taking high-quality pictures, independently optimizing the settings within a limited range. If you try to switch to manual mode, in most cases you will not achieve a noticeable improvement in quality. But it’s much easier to worsen it - just seriously change one of the many parameters. And most often it is not possible to restore the original value, because you simply did not remember what and how you changed.

The only characteristic that is intuitive and that you can try to change is the brightness balance. It’s better not to play with contrast – here the line between acceptable and unacceptable is too thin.

Photographing the car interior

Photos of the salon

Judging the condition of a car only by appearance is an obvious bad manners

The seller should also understand this, so no less attention should be paid to shooting the interior. Here, too, there are standards - in particular, a close-up shot of the front part is considered mandatory, with the obligatory capture of both the dashboard and the center console

The photo of the rear of the cabin is also considered a de facto standard. But detailed photographs of the steering wheel, door cards, and upholstery are acceptable only if these parts are in satisfactory condition.

Please note that the lighting inside the car is not sufficient for high-quality photos, so this problem will have to be solved.

Four to five interior shots will be enough

Don't forget to take a photo of the dashboard so that the speedometer readings are clearly visible, this is important. If your car has a cool multimedia system with various gadgets, it’s worth displaying it too

When photographing, follow a simple rule - be sure to take repeated photographs, perhaps with a slight change in the angle or height of shooting

In this case, you will have the opportunity to select the best shots, and the likelihood of being left without an important angle will be minimized

Types of decorative overlays

The decision to change or update the interior trim of the car will not require moving all the instruments on it from the original dashboard. Most often, the interior trim is made of high-quality plastic, which in some cases is covered with leather or leatherette. They can also be made from:

But more often plastic is tuned to match these materials. These decorative elements are sometimes made individually for a specific car brand.

Wooden overlays

Wood-look interior trims do not require special care. They look aesthetically pleasing for a long time and retain their original appearance; they will be an excellent addition to the interior design. Modern industry offers a lot of options for interior wood trim - any of them looks presentable and expensive. Wood-look plastic overlays are characterized by a naturalistic texture and can be made to match the following species:

• Karelian birch;

  rosewood;

The wood interior palette, made of high-quality plastic, is very diverse and has many variations.

Carbon trims

You can also use carbon-look plastic trims. The choice of such products for car interiors is large in both color and design. They can be:

• red;
• gray color.

Such an update will refresh the interior and make your stay more comfortable. Previously, a 3D carbon fiber interior film with a checkerboard pattern was used. Nowadays, 4D film is increasingly being offered, which closely resembles the texture of real expensive carbon fiber. She has a three-dimensional drawing. Real carbon fiber is not used in the interior for several reasons - it is fragile, very expensive and is used when tuning the interior of premium cars.

Overlays for metal and metal decor

No less popular among modern car owners are decorative metal overlays and metal imitation for:

• dashboard;

They can be made of ABS plastic to look like aluminum or made of chrome or stainless steel. They are characterized by wear resistance, durability, resistance to temperature changes and high humidity. In addition to the fact that they can decorate the interior, these car accessories protect some of its elements from external influences.

Image quality

A few tips regarding photo quality:

1. The quality of the photographs must be taken using optics with a resolution of at least 2 megapixels, so it is advisable to take photographs with a camera. It is not at all necessary to use expensive equipment; it is enough to have an ordinary mirrorless camera capable of shooting in a wide range.
2. You need to photograph the car in landscape (horizontal) orientation, which will help present the car in a wider perspective.
3. The file size of the photo must be at least 400 kb and no more than 5 megabytes, since it may not meet the technical requirements of some automotive sites.
4. The image must be in JPG or PNG format.

If you cannot sell your car within 2-3 weeks, we advise you to review the images and replace them with more colorful and high-quality ones, because a person receives most information through vision, which is very important when selling a car

Choose a camera with good shooting quality

If you follow the tips above, you will be able to present your car with more accurate and high-quality photographs, which will contribute to its speedy sale.