How Car Dealership Photography Can Maximize Vehicle Sales

Gone are the days of grainy newspaper classifieds. CDK data shows that nearly 90% of shoppers are enticed to start their sales journey based on quality photos from a dealer’s website. Age demographics don’t matter, either. Photos are important to the majority of every age group. Pictures illustrating a car’s features can also help save everyone some time.

An interested buyer doesn’t have to ask whether a vehicle has navigation if a map is visible on the screen. It’s good for the dealers, too, who want to move cars quickly. Our data also shows it costs dealers as much as $50 for every day a vehicle isn’t merchandised (aka promoted or advertised). That’ll add up quickly across your inventory.

As the average number of days vehicles sit on lots reaches pre-pandemic levels, effective marketing has become crucial. That’s why CDK included an AI-powered photo tool in the new Vehicle Inventory Suite. It includes:

• Mobile-First Capture: This allows you to snap and upload high-quality images using a mobile device wherever the car is on the lot or service drive.
• Instant Studio-Quality Photos: By using AI, Vehicle Inventory Suite enhances images with crisp color, guides users to deliver perfect angles, and cleans up or erases backgrounds.
• On Brand, Every Time: Adds your dealership logo automatically to every photo if desired.
• Time-Saving Descriptions: Auto-written vehicle details highlight key selling points for faster buyer engagement.

These features get vehicles online and merchandised within minutes — not days.  

Vehicle Inventory Suite photos are generally high-enough quality to remain on your site even if the car doesn’t sell immediately. However, if those early photos need to be replaced, more extensive photography is still an easy, low-cost way to attract customers. Here are some car dealership photography tips to consider:

Dedicate Space and Equipment for Quality Photography

You don’t need to create an indoor photo studio, but you should still think about lighting and background. A plain wall — perhaps one with a prominent dealership logo located above the vehicle — works well. Think about lighting; having the sun to the photographer’s back is best. A south-facing wall will make this easiest if you’re in the northern hemisphere.

You won’t have to invest in an expensive camera for your team since modern cellphones have good lenses, sensors and processors that can snap sharp photos. A recent iPhone generation or higher-end Android will work well enough. Your team can transfer the photos to a computer via Wi-Fi or a wired connection.

At the very least, have your staff take the following photos for each vehicle:

• Front, side and rear profiles
• Angled shots from each of the car’s corners
• Close-ups of all four wheels and tires
• The roof and, if applicable, the bed
• The front seating area captured from each side
• The rear seating area captured from each side
• The front interior captured from the back seat, including the center stack
• The instrument cluster with the odometer reading visible and proof of no warning lights
• The engine bay
• Any special features like navigation and audio systems, the steering wheel spoke buttons, and any other control panels with buttons
• Any included extras, like rubber floor mats, a bed extender, or roof rack cross rails
• Both keys and the owner’s manual

Also, avoid the temptation to reduce photo sizes in order to make them load faster. Nowadays, nearly everyone has a high-resolution screen, so make sure your photos are of the highest quality possible.

While it can be advantageous to watermark your photos, be sure that whatever banners you put on them won’t obscure the vehicle itself. As far as branding, treat your photos like your license plate frames: less is more.