Tips on taking better photos of your products
Light
Use natural light, an overcast day is perfect
Shoot in the morning or late afternoon, you want soft
diffuse light, not direct sun which causes shadows and bright spots
If working inside, shoot near a window, you may need a
tripod or use a light box
Focus
Make sure your product is in focus and avoid any motion blur
A tripod is a must in low light situations
Framing
Think about the composition of your product in the camera
Move around and try to see your product in different angles
Make sure your camera is at the right distance from your
product to avoid odd perspective and distortion
Style
Show your style by using props and different backgrounds
Don’t overdo it though as the product is the focus and you
don’t want to distract the viewer by using out of place props or bright
patterned backgrounds
Natural Environment
Show how the product is used, people want to see how a bag
looks on someone’s shoulder or how earrings look on someone’s ears
Product Details
Show your products fine details by taking some close ups
Make sure you also have photos of the whole product for your
viewer
Variety
Don’t be afraid to change things around when photographing,
change backgrounds and props regularly
Vertical &
Horizontal
Take both vertical and
horizontal photos of your products as you may later need to use your images for
labels, business cards etc
Camera Settings
Make sure you get your
camera settings correct so your photos aren’t overexposed or underexposed
Turn off your flash and set
your white balance, i.e. low light, shade, cloud setting
Set your ISO* as low as
possible and use your tripod
A lower ISO equals sharper
photos
*ISO (equivalent) speed on a digital camera gives an indication
of the sensitivity of the image sensor
Use the self timer to
prevent any camera shake from pressing the shutter
Check your camera’s LCD
screen after each photo and adjust things as they are needed
Post Editing
Always edit your photos even if it’s just to adjust your
levels
Use editing software or free online editing sites such as www.picmonkey.com
- Crop
- Adjust levels
- Adjust saturation
- Colour correction
- Sharpening
- Remove any dust or marks
- Any other post editing
Styling Your Photos
·
Get inspiration from magazines, websites, blogs
but do not copy other peoples images
·
Put your unique style into the shoot by thinking
about your product
What is it? It’s qualities, its use, the
process in which it was made, inspiration behind making it
·
Your product needs to be enhanced not lost in a
mismatch of backgrounds and props
·
Try to tell the viewer a story of your product
within the photograph
·
Once you feel more confident try using different
angles, different environment, lighting
