Talk of the Town: Selling your home? Make it picture perfect!

It used to be that selling your home was all about “curb appeal,” in other words, the first impression someone gets when they pull up to your curb. A house that looks unattractive from the street won’t sell, the mantra goes.

These days, it’s all about “pix appeal,” which translates to the attractiveness of the photos you post online!

According to MSN, 80 percent of home buyers used the Internet last year to search for a home, and nearly 25 percent reported that the Internet is where they first found the property they purchased, according to a National Association of Realtors survey.

Photographs are powerful tools. Good ones can entice buyers; poor ones can turn them off.

Follow these tips to create flattering photos of your property:

Lighten up. For exterior shots, shoot in the middle of the day when the sun is shining and the sky is blue, says Gregory Haberstick, who trains professional photographers for Foxtons, a real-estate company serving New York and New Jersey.

For interior shots, Bill Bayless, a real-estate photographer in Damascus, Ore., suggests turning on all the lights and using a flash. “The flash adds in all of the correct colors and fills in the shadows, making the room look brighter,” he says.

More is better. Local photographer Jerry Marrion, who submits many photos to the Green Valley News, has also photographed local real estate, including homes in Tubac. Jerry knows that home buyers want to see more than just the front of the house. Buyers also want to get a look at the living room, kitchen, dining room, family room, master bedroom/bathroom and the backyard, Photos should reflect your residence’s best features, such as a home theater or an exercise room.

For condos and apartments, include shots of amenities such as a pool, tennis court or gym, says Kevin Grolig, a real-estate agent with Llewellyn Realtors in Rockville, Md.

If your home has a spectacular view, say of a beach, lake, mountains, park or golf course, by all means post photos of it, says Ron Luxemburg, a photographer in Pasadena, Calif.

Get a clear shot. Remove clutter from an area before photographing it. Clear counter space and remove fridge magnets, children’s toys, dirty dishes and other distractions.

Go pro. If you’re planning to use a real-estate agent, ask to see his or her photography first. Find out whether the agency uses professional photographers. Some companies use pros at no additional cost to the seller.

If you are selling without a real-estate agent or aren’t handy with a camera, hiring a professional real-estate photographer may be the way to go.

Give it your best shot. Quality counts when taking photos, and cell-phone cameras don’t cut it. A camera with a wide-angle lens is ideal, but “point and shoot” digital cameras also can do the job.

For a clear photo, place digital cameras on a tripod or something solid so the camera is steady when the shutter goes off.

Set the camera on its highest resolution. If you decide to just use the photos online, you can always decrease the resolution. Never use fewer than 72 dots per inch for online photos.

Edit. Improve a shot using basic photo-editing software. Crop out ceilings or unnecessary background. Adjust the brightness or contrast.

A number of Web sites make editing a snap and some are free. Try Snipshot.com, Picnik.com and Pixenate.com.

A summer must for those who wish to travel without leaving Green Valley.

Mary Lou Prince and Patty Christiena Willis will present a program of music, storytelling and song called, “Light in the Woods,” Sunday, July 27, at 3 p.m. at the Community Performing Arts and Learning Center, 1250 W. Continental Road, on the Pima Community College campus in Green Valley. Tickets are $15. Call 398-9191 for tickets and more information.

Through music, storytelling and song, you will be transported to a village that hovers between the clouds and the deep valley below. "Light in the Woods" grew out of many years spent living in the beautiful harsh climate of the Japan Sea coast. "Light in the Woods" was also performed during “An Evening with Dr. Andrew Weil” at the Royal Theatre in Victoria, British Columbia, in May 2005.

The artists’ previous collaborative work has been called “the great East-West event of the Edinburgh festival by the Sunday Times of London.

Mary Lou Prince (piano) began composing at age five and after a formal education on music that included a year with Nadia Boulanger, she immersed herself in the music of Japan, mastering the koto and soaking up indigenous music throughout north and south Asia.

Her many years spent in an old farmhouse with no insulation to shield her from the raging wind and thunder deepened her connection with nature and inspired her CD—"Light in the Woods."

Through her poetry, Patty Christiena Willis (poetry, lyrics) will lead the audience on a journey into the music. She will tell you of the heron waiting in the sunset and about the day they saw the forest dance.

Prince and Willis recently directed the very successful musical, “Frida’s Colores” for the Tubac Center of the Arts Summer Program. Starring students, with guitar accompaniment by Aaron Burger, Prince wrote all original music and Willis wrote the libretto for a story surrounding Mexican artists Frida Kahlo and her husband, Diego Rivera.

J.A. Jance, one of Tucson’s best-known authors will visit the Joyner-Green Valley Library, 601 N. La Canada Drive, on Thursday, Aug. 7, at 2 p.m. to disciuss her latest book, “Damage Control,” due out later this month. The author will begin by discussing her novel and books will be available for purchase and signing following the author’s talk. The event is free and open to the public.

Jance, a New York Times, bestselling author, has numerous works featuring Southern Arizona and involving the character Cochise County Sheriff Joanna Brady. The library stop in Green Valley is part of her latest book tour.

Speaking of books: There were a lot of calls regarding “Angela Ewing’s Pub Grub & Posh British Fare,” a wonderful recipe book I talked about several coloumns ago. Here is where to get it locally: The Book Shop in the Green Valley Mall, 2nd Look Books on La Canada and Tumacookery in Tubac.

Stupid Criminals Hall of Shame or If They Only Had a Brain:

Rules for bank robbers: According to the FBI, most modern-day bank robberies are “unsophisticated and unprofessional crimes,” committed by young male repeat offenders who apparently don’t know the first thing about their business. This advice is offered to would-be bank robbers, along with examples of what can happen if the rules aren’t followed:

Pick the right bank. Don’t follow the lead of the fellow in Anaheim, Calif., who tried to hold up a bank that was no longer in business and had no money. On the other hand, you don’t want to be too familiar with the bank. A California robber ran into his mother while making his getaway. She turned him in.

Don’t sign your demand note. Demand notes have been written on the back of a subpoena issued in the name of a bank robber in Pittsburgh, on an envelope bearing the name and address of another in Detroit, and in East Hartford, Conn., on the back of a withdrawal slip giving the robber’s signature and account number.

Avoid being fussy. A robber in Panorama City, Cal., gave a teller a note saying, “I have a gun. Give me all your twenties in this envelope.” The teller said, “All I’ve got is two 20s.” The robber took them and left.

Don’t advertise. A holdup man thought that if he smeared mercury ointment on his face, it would make him invisible to the cameras. Actually, it accentuated his features, giving authorities a much clearer picture. Bank robbers in Minnesota and California tried to create a diversion by throwing stolen money out of the windows of their cars. They succeeded only in drawing attention to themselves.

Take right turns only. Avoid the sad fate of the thieves in Florida who took a wrong turn and ended up on the Homestead Air Force Base. They drove up to a military police guardhouse and, thinking it was a tollbooth, offered the security men money.

rford@gvnews.com | 547-9740