A wide-angle lens in a small space always means distortion. This distortion can happen in many ways. Vertical lines no longer appear vertical. Horizontal lines slope to one side. Objects in the background appear smaller, compressed, and farther away than they really are. Objects in the foreground appear bigger and longer.
Retouching can’t fix everything. So it’s imperative that the photographer do their best to minimize the inevitable distortion. Make sure the camera is level and carefully placed at the proper height. Compose the image to optimize for vertical and horizontal lines. Use a long enough focal length to minimize distorting near and far objects. Leave enough space around the edges to allow for correction during the editing process.
It’s easier to correct vertical lines than horizontal. So correcting in-camera for horizontal lines is critical, yet not all photographers do it.
Retouching photos of homes and buildings is done manually because artificially intelligent (AI) software can’t do this. At least not yet. AI software can’t correct perspective, converging lines, uneven exposures, colour casts, or anything else that a real estate photo might need.
More information on my photo retouching services.
