What real estate photography costs in Northern Virginia.

Publicly posted prices in our area

Each row is what the company's own homepage showed when we checked on October 25, 2026. "From" prices are starting points for the smallest homes or most basic package.

The spread is real: an entry-level photo package in our area runs from just under two hundred dollars to a few hundred, before drone, video or 3D.

Why the same house gets different quotes

Starting prices hide differences in what's included. When comparing, line up:

• Photo count: 15 photos and "unlimited" are very different products.
• Home size limits: many prices apply only up to a certain square footage.
• Delivery time: next-day versus 24 hours versus same evening.
• Editing: hand editing, window pulls and sky replacement included or extra.
• Travel: free within a radius, per-mile beyond it, or "ask first".
• Drone: included, add-on, and whether the company handles airspace authorization near DC.
• Licensing: what you can do with the photos, and for how long.

Typical add-on costs to budget for

Beyond the base package, most listings add one or two extras. At KONAH, from our booking system: drone stills $50, a drone video clip $100, a Matterport 3D tour with floor plan $125, a 2D floor plan $75, virtual staging $40 per image, virtual twilight $35 per image and a vertical social reel $150. Other companies price these differently; compare the bundle you'd actually buy, not the base price alone.

What drives the price up

• Larger homes, which take longer to shoot and edit.
• Twilight, which needs an evening visit.
• Video and cinematic films, which take hours of editing.
• 3D scanning, which takes time on site.
• Rush delivery.
• Distance, for companies that charge travel.
• Drone inside the DC restricted zone, where the authorization takes planning, though not every company prices that separately.

What usually isn't worth paying for

A higher photo count than the home needs, aerials of a condo unit with nothing to show from above, or a 3D tour on a small, simple rental. Spend on the things that change buyer behavior: a strong primary photo, complete coverage of the main rooms, and the one extra that suits the home (drone for land, twilight for a lit landscape, a floor plan for an unusual layout).

Who pays for listing photos

In most Northern Virginia transactions the listing agent orders and pays for the photography as part of their marketing, though arrangements vary by brokerage and listing agreement. Some sellers pay directly, especially for rentals and FSBO sales. Our guide do realtors pay for listing photos? covers the options.

Questions to ask any photographer

1. How many edited photos are included, and is there a size limit?
2. When will I get the photos?
3. What editing is included?
4. Are there travel fees to this address?
5. Who handles drone authorization near DC, Quantico or the airports?
6. What license do I get, and can my seller use the photos?
7. What happens if the weather is bad?
8. Can I see a full delivered set, not just a highlight reel?

How to compare quotes fairly

Build the same order everywhere: say, 30 photos, drone stills and a floor plan for a 2,800 sq ft home in Lake Ridge. Ask each company for the total including travel and any fees. Then look at full sample galleries from homes like yours. The cheapest quote and the best value are often different companies, and the most expensive isn't automatically the best. You can build KONAH's version in seconds with our instant quote tool.

Prices nationally

National marketplaces and franchise networks publish their own city-by-city price pages. They're useful for a sense of scale, but local companies often include things national ones charge for, like airspace planning around Washington, and vice versa. Always compare the specific package for the specific home.

Turnaround, rush and same-day delivery

Speed has a price too. Next-day or 24-hour delivery is now standard among the companies we checked, but same-evening edits and guaranteed same-day delivery usually cost extra. At KONAH, photos are delivered within 24 hours as part of every package; a rush edit (same evening) is $50 and guaranteed same-day delivery is $100. If a listing has to hit the MLS by Thursday morning, booking the shoot a day earlier is often cheaper than paying for rush.

Monthly plans versus per-listing pricing

Agents and teams with steady volume sometimes move from per-listing pricing to monthly arrangements. Some companies offer volume discounts or team accounts; others sell monthly content plans that bundle listing media with social video. KONAH's monthly content plans start at $600 a month and include scripted short-form videos and photos every month. Whether a plan beats paying per listing depends on how many listings you do and how much social content you need; run the numbers for your last six months.

A sample budget for a typical listing

Take a 2,800 square foot single-family home in Lake Ridge with a decent yard. A sensible order might be a photo package with drone, a floor plan and one virtual twilight for the hero image. At KONAH's current prices that's Photography + Drone at $250, a floor plan at $75 and a virtual twilight at $35. Add a vertical reel for social media at $150 if you're promoting the listing hard, or step up to Listing Launch at $450, which bundles photos, a reel, drone and a social kit. Build the same order at two or three other companies and compare totals, inclusions and sample galleries side by side.

Cheap photos have a cost too

The lowest quote can still be the most expensive choice if the photos cost you showings. Dark rooms, tilted walls, blown-out windows and a missing primary bedroom make buyers scroll past, and a listing that sits collects price-drop questions. Before choosing on price, look at a full delivered gallery from a home like yours and ask yourself whether you'd click on it in a search result.