If there’s one thing that’s always been true about good marketing, it’s that we buy with our eyes. Oftentimes the decision-making process is completely driven by the aspects of a product that we find most attractive—and in the case of your eCommerce website, it pays to dedicate time to your product photography.
At their core, product images should serve one single purpose above all else: capturing the attention of interested shoppers. Good product photography is characterized by so much more than high-definition photo quality, it’s a particular art that should invoke positive emotions and draw browsers into becoming customers. Though this may seem like an impossible task, there are a few clever tips you can use to up your product photography game. Let’s take a look at some trends in photography that are making a big difference for entrepreneurs taking their products to market.
Tip #1: Embrace the plain white background
When it doubt, opt for a white background that puts your product smack-dab in the spotlight. Whether you’re selling baked goods, vintage clothing, or kitchen accessories, tangible products are easiest to display on a plain white background. Here’s a straightforward and clean example of how a simple white template can be used to showcase products:
Consider opting for a curved white backdrop (made possible by a good roll of photo background paper) to help eliminate shadows when shooting.
Tip #2: Play with angles
Think about it: before you buy a product (especially one you’ve never seen or used before), you want to make sure you know exactly what you’re getting yourself into. In order to get that comprehensive look you need, you slick through every available photo of the product, examining every angle to get a true feel for the item.
By playing with angles and taking multiple shots of your product, customers will be better equipped with the vision they need to envision themselves using and owning your product. To sweeten the deal, having more shots to work with will give you plenty of content left to sift through should you find you some photos to be unsatisfactory.
Tip #3: Use proper lighting
Good lighting can make a world of difference when you’re shooting product photography. Without it, your photos may not adequately detail your merchandise. There are two primary types of product photography lighting: studio lighting and natural lighting.
- Studio lighting: Typically performed inside where the photographer has complete control over the lighting elements.
- Natural lighting: Typically performed outside (but can be manipulated indoors) with natural sunlight.
Pro-tip: Skip the flash photography
Bright, harsh lighting can create nasty glares or shadows, making your products look anything but attractive to buyers. Get creative or learn how to capitalize on the sunshine so you can nip flash photography in the bud altogether.
Tip #4: Provide context for your products
It’s important to keep in mind that your customers aren’t just shopping for a product. They’re looking for something that will make them better, more modern, or more stylish. In order to get them to see your product as something that checks all of those boxes, show them. Providing context for your products means photographing them in their natural habitat. With a quality camera, it’s not hard to take engaging photos for your brand’s blog or social posts and the more photos you have the better. Take this creative look at product photography:
Pro-tip: Avoid using props that could distract from the product
The last thing you want browsers to be asking themselves is “what’s for sale in this picture?”. In the case of the food processor, skip the high-tech blender or toaster in the background to keep the focus on the actual product for sale.
Tip #5: Use simple props
If you do decide to use props in your product photography, be sure to keep them simple and practical. Always keep in mind that the center of your photo should be your product, but don’t be afraid to embellish your photos with aesthetic touches.
Tip #6: Invest in a good camera
With so many cameras available on the modern market, it can be difficult to understand which cameras are the best. The expansive price spectrum cameras exist on don’t make it any easier to decide which specifications to look for, which are necessary, and which you can pass up.
For product photography, there are three primary types of cameras you should choose between.
- DSLR: Short for digital single-lens reflex, DSLR cameras allow you to experiment with different lenses and accessories.
- Mirrorless: Offering a lighter, sleeker form factor than a DSLR, mirrorless cameras sacrifice the mechanical mirror that makes an optical viewfinder possible in favor of a digital LCD monitor.
- Bridge: The in-between camera that takes elements of both DSLR and point-and-shoot cameras. These cameras typically feature a fixed lens.
Tip #7: Learn how to edit and manipulate your photos
The steps you take after you have taken and uploaded your product photos are sometimes the most important ones. Learning and mastering the art of photo manipulation can be quite overwhelming if you’re a beginner photographer, but there are plenty of beginner-friendly applications that can walk you through photo and web design basics.
It may also be beneficial to first try your hand at mobile photo-editing apps. These easy-to-use applications are far more straightforward than diving straight into photoshop. Equipped with a number of preset filters and manipulation toggles, you can transform your regular photos into professional-level masterpieces.
Tip #8: Use a tripod
Using a tripod to capture product photography brings a necessary splash of consistency, stability, and focus into the mix. An unsteady hand or a budget-quality camera can leave you with blurry images you’d never dare to upload onto your eCommerce site. Having a tripod allows you to handle your photography completely hands-free. Not only are tripods affordable for any budget but they’ll also last you years of use with proper care.
There is no one-size-fits-all answer to nailing your product photography, and that’s the beauty of it! There are so many different ways to make your products stand out, and it all begins with creative and effective product photography.
