A recent study found that people can "tell whether a photograph was made by a professional or an amateur 90 percent of the time."

The research project included 52 participants and tracked their eye movements while they viewed 200 news-related photographs, half made by professional photojournalists and half submitted by amateurs (user-generated content).

The eye movements of study participants were tracked with a device that allowed us to record and analyze complex and statistically significant findings: what people were drawn to in a photograph, how long they looked, if they read captions, and more. Participants had the opportunity to view as many as 200 photographs and captions. Nearly 20,000 eye movements were annotated and studied.

While this experiment focused on photojournalistic content, some findings also apply to commercial uses like real estate photography. As noted above, for example, viewers could easily tell the difference between the professional and amateur photographs.

In addition, viewers spent more time looking at the professional photos and were twice as likely to share them with others. This correlates well with research done in the real estate industry showing that listings with professional photographs receive 61% more views (than those without professional photos).

What does this mean for you?

If you're selling a home, professional real estate photographs earn more attention—and attention is exactly what you need to sell your clients' homes.