2026-08-04
What to Photograph for a Moving Quote
Photograph every room you are emptying, plus closets, large furniture, appliances, and access constraints like stairs or long hallways. Good light and full-item framing beat artistic shots. Clear photos help a Toronto AI quote count volume accurately so your price matches the real job—not a guess.
Room sweep first
Stand in each doorway and capture a wide shot that shows floor coverage. Then take a second angle if furniture stacks deep. Include bedrooms, living room, kitchen, bathrooms with storage, office, basement, locker, and balcony bins. Forgotten storage is the number one volume miss.
Do not tidy into another room to “make it look empty.” Move-out volume is what you will pay for. If something stays, move it out of frame or note it in text.
Large and awkward items
Get closer shots of sofas, mattresses, wardrobes, treadmills, pianos, glass tables, and TVs. Include a sense of scale—standing nearby or showing the full outline against a wall. Note brand or size in a caption if you know it. Disassembly needs (bed frames, desks) should be mentioned in notes even when the photo is clear.
Appliances: photo the model area if possible and say whether they are included. Laundry machines on upper floors without elevators change labor a lot.
Closets and packed density
Open closets. Boxes already packed should appear in frame so volume is not invisible behind doors. Wardrobe boxes versus garbage bags change handling time. If you are mid-pack, say so—the quote may need a buffer for remaining loose items.
Access photos that save arguments
Photograph the stairwell if it is narrow or spiral. Capture the distance from typical truck parking to the entrance when the curb is hostile. Show elevator size if you have one and are unsure it fits a sofa. These photos support access modifiers instead of verbal optimism.
Building loading docks and service elevators deserve a shot of signage or the bay if allowed—rules often matter as much as dimensions.
Video walkthrough tips
A slow 30–60 second walkthrough per floor works well. Narrate briefly: “This dresser stays,” “This gym rack comes.” Avoid whip pans. Pause on specialty items. Upload video plus a few stills of the hardest pieces.
What not to bother with
Artistic detail shots of décor you are discarding. Blurry night photos. Screenshots of marketplace listings for items already sold. Focus on what crosses the threshold on move day.
After you upload
Review the AI inventory list. Remove stayers. Add misses. Confirm floors and elevator fields. Only then trust the mid price enough to accept a lead.
Phone settings that help estimators
Use HDR if it keeps shadows readable. Avoid heavy beauty filters. Shoot in landscape for wide rooms when it captures more furniture per frame. Wipe the lens—smudges look like soft inventory and force higher uncertainty.
If you use a wide-angle lens, step back so proportions stay honest. Ultra-wide distortion can make sofas look smaller than they are, which underprices the job.
Labeling in captions or notes
When uploading, add short notes: “office closet packed,” “piano stays,” “locker B-214 included.” Notes beat ambiguous photos of identical white boxes. If an item is rented and returning, say so.
Specialty categories to isolate
Create a mental group for fragile, high-value, and heavy. Photograph those with an extra close-up. Mirrors, art, marble tops, and aquariums need explicit handling flags. The quote engine and the crew both benefit from early warnings.
Privacy and what to blur
You may blur documents, mail, or children’s faces before upload. Do not blur the furniture you want priced. Remove prescription bottles and unrelated paperwork from surfaces when practical.
Re-shoot checklist after decluttering
If you donate half the living room after the first quote, re-shoot and re-run. Old photos inflate price and confuse crews who arrive to a lighter home—or worse, crews who planned labor you no longer need but still scheduled.
Try this yourself
Take a daylight sweep of your rooms, upload the set, and run ClearMove’s free AI quote. Adjust the inventory once, then read the truck and crew line items before you book.
More context: how much a move costs in Toronto and apartment quote factors.
Frequently asked questions
How many photos do I need?
Enough to cover every room and every large item—often 15–40 stills for an apartment, more for a house.
Is video better than photos?
Video is excellent for flow; stills are better for exact item review. Using both is ideal.
What if the lighting is bad?
Open curtains, turn on lights, or wait for daytime. Dark blur forces conservative (higher) uncertainty buffers.
Do you store my photos forever?
See our privacy policy. We retain media as needed to quote and fulfill the move, then follow retention rules.