You have a fantastic product to sell, but how do you convince potential customers to buy it? Product photography brings your products to life in the best possible light, allowing you to use the images for many purposes.
Our main goal is to let your product shine – be the star of the show! Here are five tips on how to take stunning product photographs.
- The Camera:
The most important thing you need is a camera (duh!).
If you have a digital camera or a DSLR, you can take better photos than with a smartphone camera. But if you are on a budget, a smartphone camera with proper settings and lighting can help you capture stunning photographs. It is critical to utilise a tripod for stability and acquire the best angle for your shot. It will also assist you in maintaining focus and consistency, as well as ensuring that your photographs do not turn out blurry.
- Space/Background:
Your designated space could be a room or even a table, but it must be free of distractions; even natural factors such as wind can cause problems – “Be your own wind keeper, Rachel” (Friends)
If you’re using the “space” as a backdrop, minimize inconsistencies because minor flaws will be exaggerated; instead, set up on a smooth background. A “sweep” is a curved screen put behind the product to remove distractions and give the appearance that the product is floating.
Paper sweeps are good since they can be cut off and replaced if they get dirty. Because the sweep’s curves are unseen to the camera, it emphasizes the core product by allowing the product features to shine through.
If you pick a textured background or a dynamic real-world background, it’s easy for the background to steal the focus of the photo. So give your product depth and emphasis by altering the lens settings while photographing.
Pro tip! Product photos don’t have to be taken with a clichéd studio sort of setup. Look for interesting backgrounds and textures and include them in your photography. If the product you’re shooting has a story or a significance try incorporating that story into your set up and you’ll get a much better picture.
- Lighting:
Lighting is super important. When it comes to lighting, there are two options: natural light and artificial light.
The standard form of professional lighting in product photography is three-point lighting. It includes the use of three light sources – the key light, fill light and backlight – at three different locations. You can change how light and shadow fall on an object by adjusting the size, distance, intensity, position and angle of these light sources.
The Key light is the primary light source. It determines the overall exposure of a scene. The fill light, which is mirrored on the opposite side, fills in the shadows cast by the key light on a subject, bringing out details in the dark. This additional light is often less bright than the key. The overall feel of the images can be adjusted by dimming or brightening the fill light. The backlight, the third source, shined on an object from behind, creates an outline around the object, separating it from the background and adds depth.
- Camera Angles:
Once your setup is complete, choose the best angle to make your products appear the most attractive – just like you do when flexing in that gym mirror selfie.
– Front angle, photographed from the front eye level. This is commonly used by commercial production companies that display photographs on eCommerce sites since it’s a structured approach to capture products and make them easily identifiable, like Amazon!
– Profile angle, taken from the side, usually at eye level. This angle is commonly used in fashion photography and on websites (Vans, Nike etc) that feature shoes so that the logo can be seen clearly.
– Three-quarter angle, shot from a high-level angle and is around 45 degrees on either side of the product. It’s ideal for displaying a selection or range of products, like shampoos and makeup.
– Back angle. This is a supporting shot usually taken at eye level. Its sole purpose is to offer context.
– High angle. Consider this a bird-eye perspective from straight above. This angle is also used in flat lay food photography when capturing a variety of dishes, like those used by Buzzfeed’s Tasty YouTube videos.
– Low angle. This is the worm’s eye view, a shot in a low perspective. Shooting upwards helps products appear larger and more heroic. Fun fact – In Star Wars Darth Vader is often shot at a low angle to make him look powerful and intimidating. Pro-tip! Provide clients with multiple angles to get a good idea of the product. And finally,
- Editing:
Even if each product shot is perfect, you need to tweak it slightly. You can make them appear absolutely fantastic with photo editing tools (definitely DO NOT use VSCO).
Editing your photos will help give them a glossy, perfect appearance that will make each item stand out. You can make many changes, but don’t go overboard. Products should appear natural as if they are there in your eyesight, but don’t be scared to experiment with different colours, gradients and adjustments to make your photos pop.
And voila! There you go, the basics of product photography at your fingertips. Now all you got to do is start.
