Product Photography | A Beginner’s Guide

As we are living in a digital era, product photography is essential for businesses. It serves as a tool to showcase goods and services with the right captured photo. And sometimes, you don’t need to add information since the image does the job already! If you’re an entrepreneur or new to photography, follow this guide to enhance your skills. But first, let’s discover what product photography is. 

What is Product Photography?

Product photography is a type of photography that is mostly used by e-Commerce sectors. The goal is to represent a clear picture of what your products or services are. As a consumer, you are quite hesitant to buy something that you haven’t seen personally. This means you need to know every aspect of the product before you purchase it online. As an online seller, you want to avoid negative feedback. Negative feedback can cause you to lose potential customers.

Having basic knowledge about product photography can help any business hit that sales and revenue goals. You don’t need to spend a lot to improve your skills. Passion, determination, and a desire to learn are very important for success.  

Product Photography Guide

1. Camera

To get started, you will need a camera to capture images. If you have a camera with you, you’re already good, whether it is an older model or the newest one. A good smartphone with a 12MP or higher back camera can be a great substitute for a regular camera.

2. Use A Tripod

Tripod is essential for photo consistency. A tripod helps keep your camera or smartphone steady, resulting in clearer and better images. When you compare it to a shooting handheld photo, a tripod gives you more convenience and saves you more time.

Although using a tripod is optional as you can DIY using stacked books, this is a good investment in the long run. You might consider having your product photos standardized. Choose the right tripod for your camera or smartphone, as different types are suitable for each.

3. Adjust Your Lighting 

In this part, you have to be very detailed on what you are aiming for. You have to think that your consumer must buy what you sell, which is done by having proper lighting.

Natural Light

Natural light is also known as “soft light,” which directly comes from the sunlight. Using a natural light gives a certain mood on your product and is suited for:

• Highlighting a product that can be worn or used
• Adding the right amount of element or connection between real-life scenario and product

Sometimes, natural light can be too bright, or you might not be able to use it at all because of changes in the weather. 

Studio Light

Studio Light is also known as “hard light” as it produces a smaller but more focused light surface. If you lack sunlight but want to take photos in the evening or get clear results, this is ideal for you.

4. Shoot In Different Locations

Relatively with proper lighting, shooting in different locations sets your product in different ways. You may also add elements and twists while shooting.

When selling swimsuits, it’s best to photograph models at the beach or pool to create the right atmosphere. Another good location to shoot is a modest home setting wherein ceramic plates, utensils, and teacups are the subject. This is to create a “homey” feeling to your customers.

Lastly, you can try having it in an urban street setting. This helps you understand urban clothing, which is stylish, bold, expressive, and focuses on personal identity. 

5. Know the Types of Product to Shoot

Thinking of how your photos can create a “wow” factor? You must know what your subject or product is. That way, you can determine what the things applicable to shoot for a specific product are.

 

 

Jewelry

Jewelry is often associated with class, elegance, and beauty. With these characteristics in mind, try going for close-ups from various angles and make sure to keep the images sharp.

 

 

Shoes

The primary rule in footwear photography is to use a white background so you won’t spoil the color of your shoes. Ensure that the shoe looks its best by creating the illusion that someone’s wearing it.

 

Bags

With bags, there are two things you need to keep in mind: the design and how it’s worn. You can place it in a neutral environment where it stands out or hire someone to wear the bag for you.

 

Dresses

Just like bags, you also need to capture a dress’s design and how it’s worn. Women are very particular with the details – Aztec, floral, glittery, stripes, etc. The best way to highlight a dress is to hire a model and make them pose in ways to accentuate your product.

 

 

Menswear

Men are not that particular with details as they always go with plain designs and neutral colors. What you need to achieve is the clothing should look classy and manly enough. Again, it’s best to have a model. Using hangers is too basic and ordinary, which won’t help you capture people’s attention.

 

 

 

Electronics

When you’re shopping for electronics, you’re not only looking for physical attributes, right? Therefore, you need to take shots of every detail that makes it a functional piece of technology. 

6. Be Creative, Don’t Be Afraid to Commit Errors

There are many ways to do product photography. Don’t be afraid to commit errors and fuel your creativity. This is the part wherein you’re free to do whatever you want. And this is also a room for learning and improvement as you get to build your confidence and know your art style.

But most importantly, make sure that creativeness does not overpower the message. Though you’re given a chance for creativity, never miss highlighting and portraying the message through a single photo. It may look like a simple photo, but it can tell hundreds and different stories.

7. Product Photo Editing

In editing, a lot of adjustments are involved. You have to determine what are the right sizes you need in each platform you’re using. You also need to tweak and adjust the colors of raw photos to emphasize or match it in a realistic scene. Specifically, you need to do the following:

Background Removal

There are times when elements in the background are either too bland or too eye-catching. This prevents your viewer from looking at the main subject. If that’s the case, you may remove the background.

Clipping Path Service

The clipping path method is more tedious when it comes to removing unnecessary elements in a photo. Since it’s a long and dull process, you can outsource photo editing companies to do it for you. Typically, graphic artists use Photoshop to perform a clipping path.

Color Correction

Oftentimes, the colors you see on your camera are not the same when you import them to your computer. Color correcting is the first step when editing a photo. Keep the colors neutral, and don’t make it too warm or too cold.

Resizing

Maybe your clients want to print a photo. However, the image’s dimensions are not quite the same size as with the frame. Fortunately, you can resize your photos in Photoshop.

Product Retouching

Distraction is your main enemy when it comes to product photography. That’s why you need to retouch your images. It helps you eliminate extra parts in your photo, keeping customers focused on the product.

Manipulation

Photo manipulation is an advanced technique. It allows you to do unlimited edits on an image. You need to keep everything balanced, as doing an absurd amount of editing can lessen your image’s quality.

After finishing post-production and exporting photos, review the images since they may look different on various devices.

Product photography isn’t as hard as you think. After learning the basics, try to find your style and take that creativity to the next level. Who knows, you’ll be a pro in just six months or a year!