Photo Quoting Asphalt Repair — What to Photograph for a Fixed Price

sp8002

May 15

3 min read

For a fixed-price quote within 24 hours, send three photos: a close-up with a coin or ruler in shot for scale, a mid-range shot showing the whole defect, and a wide shot showing the surrounding surface and access. Add a one-line note on what vehicles use the surface and we can quote without a site visit.

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Quick answers

What's the minimum number of photos?

Three photos covers most jobs: close-up for depth assessment, mid-range for area assessment, wide for context. Two photos can work for a simple isolated pothole; four or more is helpful for sites with multiple defects.

Why is a scale object important?

Photos lie about size without something for reference. A $2 coin, a ruler, or even a phone next to the defect tells us actual dimensions — and dimensions are what drive the material quantity and labour, which drive the price.

What scale objects work best?

$2 coin (28mm diameter) is the easiest because everyone has one. A tape measure or ruler is better for larger defects where the coin is too small to read. A phone or shoe is acceptable if nothing else is on hand — anything beats no scale at all.

Should I photograph in good light?

Yes — overcast daylight is ideal. Direct sun creates shadows that obscure the depth; rainy or dark photos miss surface detail. If the only available time is in poor light, use the phone flash on the close-up to show the defect clearly.

What context do you need?

What vehicles use the surface (residential cars, commercial vans, trucks, forklifts), what the access is like for our crew (gates, height restrictions, after-hours requirements), and whether the defect is on a private property or council surface.

Can you quote from one photo?

Sometimes — if it's an obvious small pothole on a clearly residential driveway with no access complications, one good photo can be enough. But it's faster to send three and get the quote back same-day than send one and have us ask for two follow-ups.

Do you ever need a site visit?

Less than 10% of the time. Sites we do visit before quoting: large commercial jobs over ~$5,000, complex multi-defect carparks, jobs with significant substrate uncertainty. Standard residential and small commercial work quotes accurately from photos.

Why we use photo quoting

Site visits cost time on both sides and add to the quote price. By quoting accurately from photos for 90% of jobs, we keep the fixed-price quote model honest — you're not paying for our travel to come and look at a job we can size up from your phone.

We've quoted 1,200+ jobs from photos and the photo-to-actual-scope match rate is over 95%. The discipline is in asking the right questions up front rather than guessing.

The three-photo template

Photo 1 (close-up): get within 30cm of the defect with a $2 coin or ruler placed inside or next to it. This photo shows us depth, edge condition, and material composition.

Photo 2 (mid-range): step back 2-3 metres. This photo shows the whole defect plus 1-2 metres of surrounding pavement, which tells us about the broader surface condition.

Photo 3 (wide): step back 5-10 metres. This photo shows the access, the rest of the surface, and gives us context on whether the defect is isolated or part of a larger pattern.

What to include in the message

A one-line note covering: address (suburb is enough for the quote), what vehicles use the surface, any access constraints (gate codes, after-hours requirements, height restrictions), and whether the site is private property or you're reporting on behalf of a body corp / landlord.

Anything else helpful — recent repair history on the same spot, drainage issues you've noticed, a deadline you're working to — goes in the same message. The more context we have, the more accurate the fixed-price quote.

Get a fixed-price quote on your situation

Rapidpatch applies this stuff every day across Auckland — fixed-price quotes within 24 hours from your phone photos, booked within 48 hours of accepting, 12-month workmanship warranty on every job. Send us 2-3 photos and we'll tell you exactly what your defect needs and what it costs to fix it properly the first time.