Guides for selling your boat well.

Before you start

• Declutter every space you plan to shoot. Clear countertops, berths, and the cockpit, stow loose gear, coil the lines, and put personal items away.
• Let the light in. Open every blind, hatch, and port, and turn on the interior lights. A bright cabin photographs far better than a dim one.
• Wipe down. A quick pass over surfaces, glass, and stainless reads as a well-kept boat.
• Pick a calm, overcast day if you can. Flat daylight is kinder to a boat than hard midday sun.

Shoot the exterior

Walk the boat and capture her from every side.

• All sides from a distance: bow, stern, and both profiles, ideally from the dock or a dinghy so the whole hull is in frame.
• The waterline and topsides, so buyers can read the condition of the hull.
• The deck and cockpit: the helm, the seating, the hatches, and the deck underfoot.
• Deck hardware up close: winches, cleats, the windlass, and the rigging where it lands on deck.

Shoot the interior

Shoot each room from a corner. Standing in the corner gets the whole space in one frame and makes a cabin feel as big as it is.

• The saloon, wide, from two opposite corners.
• The galley, wide enough to show the counter, stove, sink, and fridge together.
• Every cabin and every berth, each from its doorway or corner.
• Every head, wide enough to show the whole compartment.

Shoot the systems

The mechanical spaces sell a well-found boat. Bring a work light or headlamp: engine rooms and lockers are dark, and a bright, sharp shot of clean machinery builds real trust.

• The engine, from a couple of angles. Shoot each engine on its own if you have twins.
• The electrical panel, the batteries, the charger, and the inverter.
• The tanks, the plumbing, and the bilge.
• Every system with more than one unit gets its own photo, so a buyer can see each one. Photograph each engine, head, and battery bank separately.

Light and timing

• Shoot in daylight. Overcast is ideal, because it removes harsh shadows.
• For exteriors, the hour after sunrise or before sunset is the most flattering light on the water.
• Keep the horizon level and hold the phone steady. Brace against a shroud or a bulkhead in low light.
• Shoot landscape for spaces and profiles. Save portrait for tall, narrow details.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Dark engine-room and locker shots. Add a work light and re-take. The flow will flag these anyway.
• Shooting toward a bright window, which throws the whole cabin into shadow. Put the light behind you.
• Leaving clutter, cleaning supplies, or personal items in the frame.
• Soft, blurry photos from a moving hand. Steady the phone and tap to focus before the shot.
• Tiny or heavily filtered images. The tool may gently correct exposure, but it never fakes or hides anything, so skip the filters and shoot sharp.