Before you pick up a piece of litter or a
rotting tree branch in the front yard, take a few minutes to get pictures and
some video.
When I started renovating, I had an old timey
camera that I’d brought with me from the 1900s, one of those relics that kept
me from having a look at my photos until I’d picked them up from the pharmacy
photo center.
Today, it’s easy to get good shots from multiple
angles and record some video with your phone, plus you can confirm that you
have images and film worth saving right away. The value of photos and a little
video may not be totally clear yet, but I guarantee you'll be glad you squeezed
in a few moments for this step.
All of the sellers have allowed me to walk the site with my camera, getting the exterior pics and video before we sat down to sign all the papers. In fact, doing Step 3 as soon as possible after we have our signed agreement has always felt like just another way of letting the owners know I’m committed to buying their manky house.
I'll admit that my strategy of doing this step early has a potential down side, a pitfall I fell into once. After taking the outside pictures and film prior to becoming the legal owner, I forgot to go back and do the inside later, before I got to work on the interior. In my defense, the occupants were renters for a while, and I didn’t want to disturb them. However, the big point is, I don’t have the room by room, inside, before pictures of this project.
After you start making progress, you’ll naturally begin to forget what you bought. In addition, even if you’re family and friends aren’t from Missouri, but somewhere close by, you’ll still want to be able to show them what you started with during your rehab and after you’re finished.
However, more important than proof for others is the reality that you’ll need the pictures and video for yourself. Anything eating up your time, requiring so much effort and attention, will have moments when you pause to ask yourself what you're really doing and why you're doing it. These pictures will serve as a small payoff in the middle of your adventure, when you’re tried, sore, and dirty. They’ll help you to regain your focus, reminding you of how far you've already come.
Many times, I have heard home renovators share with
some remorse that they forgot to take pictures before they started. Learn for
them, and heed my advice. Invest a few minutes for this step. Click away and
push that button to record. Delete diligently as needed and come up with a
system of organizing these recordings throughout the project so you won't have
to be overly concerned about taking too many. I promise, you'll be glad
you took plenty of pictures and at least a little video.
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| Before - With the gray color, the smoke stain from the fire, and the dark blue trim (that looks almost black) this house was dark. However, it still conveys plenty about what I started with. |
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| During - It's plain to see that progress had been made, but clearly, still had a ways to do. |
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| After - People will see how things look when you're done, but with the final pictures you'll be able to show them in the future if/when you move, or thousands of miles away as they review your achievement online. |
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