At the risk of jumping straight to the conclusion, there’s a reason why all of the world’s most successful online retailers work with professional product photographers. From clothing photography to lifestyle photography to packshot photography, the process of shooting, editing and publishing pristine images isn’t quite as easy as most assume.
Still, this doesn’t mean it’s impossible to produce a decent product and packshot images for your online store, now when you have lens rentals available to you. It could be quicker, easier, and more cost-effective to hire the pros, but the DIY option is an option, nonetheless.
Here’s what you’ll need to get started:
As you’d expect, the quality of the equipment you use can and will make a big difference. Shooting product imagery on a basic smartphone isn’t going to produce quite the same results as packshots captured with a commercial-quality camera.
In addition, the process of shooting outstanding product photography will always vary in accordance with the types of products you’re capturing and presenting. Nevertheless, there are several universal guidelines and principles that apply in all instances – the most important of which being as follows:
In the world of product photography; particularly fashion photography, ‘proper’ lighting is whatever lighting you have available that does the best possible job of recreating natural light. This isn’t nearly as easy to achieve as it sounds, which is precisely why making the most of the natural light you have available is the way to go. Otherwise, you’ll have to experiment with different sources of light from different directions (and combinations thereof) until you get it right.
A simple but essential pointer, using a tripod is an absolute must. When shooting imagery in the kind of detail you’ll need to appropriately present your products, even the tiniest amount of hand-shake or movement could ruin the image. Basic tripods aren’t expensive these days and can be great for shooting products and lifestyle shots indoors and elsewhere.
If you’re constantly making excessive alterations to your shots with photo editing software, you’re clearly not taking good enough photographs. Polishing things up using Photoshop (or your preferred equivalent) is fine, but don’t use editing software as an excuse to be lazy with the shots you take. Plus, it’s worth noting that today’s consumer is savvy enough to spot heavily-doctored images from a mile away…and they don’t respond kindly to them.
You don’t need to get overly ambitious, but the careful use of props and the presentation of your products in some kind of context can make all the difference. You want your customers to picture themselves getting some kind of value from your products – why not show them in use?
There’s no harm in seeing how your competitors and brands similar to yours approach their product photography. Not to such an extent as to steal ideas, but to take inspiration from those who know what they’re doing.
Though again, check out any of the world’s most successful online sellers and you can rest assured they’ve hired professional product photographers to get the job done! For more information on any of the above or to discuss your requirements in more detail, contact a member of the team at Freshpack Photo for an obligation-free consultation.
Author Bio: Craig Upton has a fantastic success rates helping Bristish companies increase sales growth by using various revenue streams online. Creating strategic partnerships in the UK and having keen focus to detail, Craig equips websites with the right tools to gain exposure and increase website traffic. Craig is the owner of iCONQUER.com, a UK based company and has been working in the digital marketing arena since 1999. A trusted entrepreneur, SEO consultant and SEO trainer, Craig Upton has worked with popular British brands and SMEs gain exposure online. Not shy to get his face out there, Craig is committed to creating new opportunities working with British companies.
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