How to Photograph your Products Well - Product photography 2024
Today's Blog is all about how to get the best from your products, so there is a host of hints and tips below for a variety of different products.
1. We'll start with Jewellery - make sure it's clean - that may sound crazy, but when you take a close up of your gemstones, gold or silver if you have touched it - the grease off your fingers will show up on the item - so get yourself some cotton gloves - or buy a box of those surgical gloves - clean your jewellery and then only handle it with the gloves on.
2. If you are photographing a necklace or bracelet etc. then ensure that the links are all flat and straight and not twisted, make sure it is lying flat and looking good - this will only take a minute to do, but makes such a huge difference to the look of your product.
3. You don't have to photograph your products on white - whilst some websites require white backgrounds- maybe Amazon or NotOnTheHighStreet, you will need some more exciting images for banners on your website and also your social media feeds, so have a think about how you are going to hang your necklaces, position your rings etc to get the best out of them - if there is a gemstone, look for a sparkle or the position where the colour of the gem looks it's truist colour, so the public can really see what they are buying. Find a background that compliments the piece of jewellery and makes it look dramatic, or pretty or whatever image you are trying to create. The key here is that by putting just a bit of thought into what you are trying to achieve you can achieve great results.
4. Think about where your light source is coming from - if you can't afford to have a professional photographer and are taking photos on your phone, you can still get some great results, position yourself by a window and if the light is too bright, hang a piece of muslin next to the window to soften the light, check for unwanted shadows - are they your own shadow? If so move a little until it has gone. I sell Flatlay Photography Backgrounds which are great for photographing small and medium size items on, you can find them in my shop they are just £18.00 and really easy to use.
5. If you sell greeting cards, or any other small items, always make sure they are clean - no bent corners - or fingerprints etc. There's nothing worse than seeing a product that looks like it's dirty - it will make the viewer feel like you don't care - and so why should they?
6. Make the shot interesting - add something in to dress and style the photo - you can use all kinds of bits and pieces that you can find around your home - or garden - flowers from your garden - or leaves from a tree or bush, feathers, pine cones - all kinds of things that can dress the image to make it more appealing to your viewer - both of the above photos are taken on my phone with the Flatlay photo boards placed by a window and I have used just natural light.
7. One product or a range ? Think about how many products you want to get into the photo - sometimes if there are too many products for people to look at people may think it looks nice - but will be distracted and not focus on what you are really trying to show them. You can try this for yourself and decide how many is too many before it starts to look too busy as all products vary depending on size and colours.
8. If you sell a food product that comes in a jar - jam, marmalade or pork scratchings for example - get one out and place it in front of the item in its' packaging - if you sell jam why not put some on a scone or a piece of toast, on a nice plate in front of the jar that it comes in. Tempt people with how good the actual food item looks, by placing the jam on the toast - maybe with a mug of tea next to it too, you are sewing a thought in their head, showing them how good it looks - romancing the idea that they want to it it ;-)
9. Do you care about your packaging - have you got really pretty boxes and ribbons that wrap your product up to look beautiful for your client - then show it in the photos - this adds huge value to the product and can be the difference between somebody buying your product or the product on the next website they look at....... that is proper food for thought trust me - good packaging is worth a lot.
10. Don't be shy - show people who you are - tell them your story - how did you start out? Where did your business idea come from?
I worked in the gemstone and jewellery business for many years and what became apparent very quickly is that people really like to know the story behind the product - they like to see the artist painting - the jeweller creating, the chef cooking etc etc and how they started and hear their story - it connects them to what they are seeing and creates a bond.
If you would like to learn more, or have some help, training or have a selection of photos done for your website and social media posts, please get in touch with me on 07885372010 or email me [email protected]
