I now run several photography courses online UK. They range from photography courses for beginners all the way through to advanced photography courses.

Photography Courses for beginners

In this article I try and explain how to avoid reflections in product photography. I look at three lighting setups aimed at minimising reflections when photographing products with reflective surfaces.

There are many challenges while photographing highly-reflective products like sunglasses, watches, and other products. However, the photographer who can shape and control light and shade, therefore eliminating reflections and other distractions, such as bright highlights, has a definite edge over their competition. Photographing these type of products become as easy as photographing non-reflective products.

Let’s get Started

In this article I will look at using several different lighting variations and products to hopefully demonstrate how to correctly light reflective objects and achieve high quality images. Following this guide on how to avoid reflections in product photography, should show you how to photograph sunglasses, watches, glass objects, without unwanted glare.

Photographing Glass without unwanted Glare

There are a few different ways to photograph glass products, but the most flattering and visually-striking method is to light a glass product from behind.

This technique is called ‘backlighting’ and it will flatter any glass product by taking advantage of glass’ translucency to give your product a “crystal-clear” appearance.

I go through how to create a photo studio at home at a reasonable cost in this article.

Arranging your setup for backlighting

In order to create a backlighting setup, you will need to position your light source behind the product so that the brightest area of light shines directly through the glass and emphasises the outer edges and highlights the natural curves of each product. You can use continuous lighting or strobe lighting—either way is fine because you will be using a tripod for stability.

Next, you need to diffuse the light source. You can either use a light umbrella or some or thin white fabric, (handkerchiefs are good.). Position the white paper or fabric between the product and the light. If you want a reflection then place a reflective surface under the product; if not, use a something with a non reflective surface, like cloth.

This lighting setup is trying to imitate natural, soft window light, where you want the light to wrap around your subject evenly without creating harsh ‘white spots of glare’ or distracting reflections.

If you want to emphasise the outline shape of the product, try using black foam boards placed either side of your product. This will help better saturate your colours and emphasize the edges of your glassware.

The final step before you adjust your camera settings and start shooting, is to double check that your product has been cleaned with glass cleaner and is free of dust and smudges. I use a pair of gloves and a soft cloth to ensure that the surfaces are blemish free.

How to avoid reflections in product photography with correct the camera settings

Depending on what style of lighting you choose, you could adjust your white balance using your camera’s built in options. I prefer to use the AWB (automatic white balance), setting and take care of any colour cast post shoot.

Obtaining Focus

Manual focus is more reliable than your camera’s autofocusing system, because it needs a defined object to focus on, (usually an edge.) As long as you aren’t using a very shallow DOF like f2.8 or even f1.4 the whole product should fall into the focal plane. If it doesn’t, then assuming you are using f8 or f11, you need to look at  the distance between the lens and the object. 

I normally use a 100mm prime. I tend to shoot in AV mode, with my ISO set at 100, with an aperture of f8. Invariably I am using a tripod with a 2 second timer delay. If the product is particularly deep I move the lens further back from the subject to extend the focal plane.

Expect to take a lot of test shots, and be making making small adjustments to your lighting setup and camera settings in order to capture the best images possible to promote your products. It is time consuming, but pays off big time in the final results.

You will be focusing on one of the outer parts of your glassware because your camera’s autofocusing system needs a defined object to focus on. Choose an element of your subject that is well defined, making it easier for your camera lock onto when focusing. 

However, since it is important to overexpose the background when backlighting images to properly expose your subject, you will probably need to adjust your shutter speed down one or two stops from what your camera’s light meter recommends. Again, play around with the settings until you get the effect you are after.

In order of photo: Too much light, Perfect, Too little light

Using foam boards 

Product Photography Tips for those of you who are just starting out.

Taking photos of static products might not look as challenging as other photography niches. But product photography isn’t as simple as it looks.

The whole point of a product photo is to capture the attention of potential customers and motivate them enough to buy the product on offer.

Don’t get me wrong, product photography is great fun, I love this genre more than a lot of others. It makes me think creatively and this creates great results for my clients.

In this article, I have jotted down some product photography tips on how to improve your images of even the most mundane products.

Product Photography Tips

Tip #1 – Pick the Right Aperture

Aperture determines your Dof (depth of field) so it is very important to select the correct aperture for your image when photographing products. Distance from subject is also a factor here.

The two most common types of product photography are lifestyle and studio.

For lifestyle product shots, the widest aperture (lowest f-stop) is best. Anything from f1.4 to f5.6 should ensure that the product is the centre of attention. Everything else should become a lovely smooth bokeh. As I mentioned above, adjusting the distance of lens to subject will alter the Dof, so make sure that you shoot far enough away from the product. This will help create a smaller depth of field, which in turn will help separate the product from the background. You can see with th image below that the Dof was so shallow that only the front of the product is in focus.

ISO 100, f2.8, 1/30th sec @14mm

You will find that a few test shots allow you to achieve the type of focus you want for a particular image. Unfortunately there isn’t a ‘one setting for all’ solution. For your lifestyle shots featuring more than one product, or a product and a supporting cast, keep the aperture fairly wide, say f/2.8. As long as the main product is within the focal plane, then it should be in focus, with the background blurred enough so that it doesn’t detract from the hero.

ISO 100, f2.8, 1/125th sec @18mm

Your job is to focus your audience on the hero product and not the extra elements in the image.

However, when you are shooting in the studio, you don’t have to worry so much about rogue elements appearing in the background and drawing away the customers attention. 

Tip #2 – Use a Telephoto or Prime Macro Lens

You should avoid distorting the image of your product. Wide-angle lenses in particular can ruin the proportions of the subject in an image. In product photography, it is vital your image is an accurate representation of the product. On platforms such as eBay, you can run into serious problems with your customers and eBay’s customer service reps if ‘the image isn’t as described or represented’.

This image of a keyboard is a bit over the top , but you get the point?

Shorter telephoto lenses, (I use a 10-20mm 0r a 18-70mm), are lenses closest in perspective to the human eye. They don’t cause any form of distortion in the image. I also use a 100mm prime macro lens. I don’t use it to necessarily get any closer physically to the subject, but it is great at picking out small details in my products. This watch is a great example.

ISO 100, f2.8 1/30th sec @100mm

The best focal length for product photos is 100mm, but anything between 85mm and 145mm also gets the job done.

Tip #3 – How to Illuminate your Product

The two main objectives of any product image is making sure the product is separated from the background and is evenly lit. This is where your lighting comes in.

Using soft light in product photography is preferable to harsh light. Using light modifiers, for example, softboxes and reflectors, are great and help you to achieve this in studio. Natural light is also very good for certain scenarios. 

If you are juststarting out you can use a lightbox. You can pick one up fairly cheaply, and they help you evenly light your subject.

As you progress you can look at more bespoke solutions for your lighting. Obviously the more bespoke the more cost there is involved.

You always want to use diffused studio lighting. This ensures an even spread of light across and around your product, instead of creating over and underexposed areas in your images.

Tip #4 – Be Inspired

I am always taking inspiration from images, lighting and techniques that grab my attention. I ask myself, ‘what grabbed my attention here?’. I analyse these images and try to isolate the elements that make the photos so arresting; if they grab my attention, then they will do the same to customers looking for similar items.

What makes an image outstanding to me could be any one of a number of things, from a certain type of background, an interesting lighting angle, or a unique way of editing. I always try to replicate what I like.

This image of a glass and bottle appealed to me because of the simplicity, but also the way the edges have been darkened through the use of black cards and a dark base.

Just be be careful you don’t just end up copying someone else’s style. Instead, experiment with different elements to create your own unique style and that way you will improve as a product photographer.

Tip #5 – Horizon Lines

The problem with working in a relatively small lightbox as a studio, is the background will have an edge where the vertical and horizontal meet. You can pull the background material forward but this restricts the amount of acreage left to work with.

However, once you move away from a lightbox you have options. Using a sheet of a large piece of paper, make a curve which encompasses the horizon line, then secure it to your wall and floor. This helps you achieve a seamless look. This is necessary, especially for e-Commerce photography, where you must have a product on a solid white background.

Tip #6 – Experiment with your Style

Even when photographing something inanimate, you should play around with your photography. This is the time to play around with style because unlike people it never complains.

Experiment using different lighting, backgrounds and sets, which fit the concept of the product, for instance you can shoot a flat lay photo. Don’t forget to create an aesthetically pleasing atmosphere.

Tip #7 – New Ideas to Sell the Product

Most marketers will tell you the key to selling a product is selling the idea of the product; allow the customer to visualise having the product in their daily lives. If it is a very appealing lifestyle, so much the better. Showcase convenience, the benefits and features, and how their life can be enhanced with the product. Prove how significant the product is to a specific interest group. Although, a good product story will sell it better than anything.

As photographers, we are tasked with creating the story, the ambience, and the world in which the product will be. As such, try to capture as much of a story in your shot as possible. This is where your creativity and vision will shine.

Tip #8 – Avoid Needless Clutter

In the image of the perfume bottles above, (which the client never saw), I felt that the product got lost in the surrounding elements.

At the end of the day the client has the final say on whether the image represents their brand or not. Avoid making your image too ‘busy’ by using too many supporting elements. Remember, your goal is to produce images that help the client sell their product.

If you are producing photographs for use on Amazon for example, then you have to use a plain white background. I try to build a story around the product. With this set of antique scales I was attempting to convey an comfortable organic feel, which suited the target audience.

Tip #9 – Use Natural Tones

As well as avoiding distorting the product, keeping the colours true is just as important. This is fundamental for product photography.

If your photograph does not represent the true colours of the product, it is a short step to customer returns.

I always shoot in RAW format. This gives me the greatest chance of ensuring colours are correct in post-processing.

After exporting the image, check the photograph on various devices. Yu might be surprised how the colours vary from one to another. Get your monitor calibrated, it is a fairly simple and inexpensive exercise.

Tip #10 – Avoid Accidental Reflections

The last thing you want are unexpected reflections on your product images. This is one of the most common mistakes rookie product photographers make, I know I did. This is where taking test shots pays dividends. Look at how your lighting helps or compromises the shot.

Either make use of the reflection and include it in the image or remove the reflection altogether.

The best way to remove a reflection is to shift your position. If you are shooting reflective products, you can place a black foam board at the mirrored scene to avoid reflection.

Tip #11. Mix it Up

I like to think outside the box. Come up with images that might not be the norm for a particular product. For example with this candle and box I took it outside into the garden and used natural light. I wasn’t sure but the client loved it.

Don’t be scared to try new things, you never know someone might just be inspired by you!

Closing thoughts on my product photography tips

Product photography is a niche that uses specific techniques including your lighting, background, and product placement in order to achieve images that sell products. I hope that these tips help you with starting your product photography career.

Professional Product Photography

Amazon product photography, is also suitable for platforms such as eBay and Etsy and other e-commerce stores.

Product photography is one of the most important components when trying to sell your products online. The biggest problem with online retail is the inability of the customer to see or touch a product in person. 

Amazon has become one of my biggest customers over the past few years (via their individual product sellers.) Multiple new products are launched daily on Amazon, and these products are all competing in one of the worlds largest and most competitive marketplaces. The standards of sellers have gone from cottage industry, to high-end professional as often thousands of sellers are marketing the same or similar products, usually sourced from the Asian market, which are only marginally differentiated, (namely through price, and of course, image quality.)

In my situation as a professional product photographer, the beauty of this is that I don’t have to do anything to convince my clients that professionally produced images are the way to gain an edge in an increasingly competitive market place. Ultimately the proof is in the pudding when their listings outrank their competitors and sales go up, largely through the implementation of excellent Amazon product photographs.

the eyes buy & images sell

Online shoppers buy more from sellers with professional product photographs – it’s as simple as that. Amazon’s listings allow for 2000 px images to be utilised through their zoom function, so there is very little margin for shoddy work; jagged edges, muddy backgrounds or poor composition. However, I offer the same quality of photography to my Amazon clients as I do to my advertising clients.

As a professional Amazon and e-commerce photographer, I am not the cheapest option, but I like to think that I am certainly one of the best. Visit my product photography page to find out more about my pricing for Amazon product photography, or read about our approach to creating infographics.

Guidelines for Amazon Product Photography

Amazon allows up to 7 images per product listing. Depending on the brief I usually create a mixture of pure white background photos and lifestyle images. I like to inclde detail shots for products that are intricate and where these features might influence the buying decision.

Packshots

What is a packshot? Simply put, a packshot is an image that includes a product and its packaging. Obviously if the packaging is poorly thought out then including it might be detrimental to the success of the image. However, if a lot of time and effort has been put into the packaging then including it in the shot adds to the image. Such was the case with Happy Place Candles where the seller had obviously put a lot ot time and effort into creating her packaging.

Packshots – product photography prices (white or simple backgrounds)

Product shots can vary in difficulty both technically and logistically. For set-rate, simple packshots we offer a fixed price scale. The prices below are based on product packshots on a white or simple, consistent background. All commissions include colour correction & basic digital clean-up. I can supply clipping paths if required for an additional cost.

Please note, there is a 50% deposit on all bookings.

Colour balancing and full retouching is included in the above rates. Any specific retouching needed above our standard (broken packaging, colour changes etc) – will be charged at my standard retouching rate of £40.00 per hour.Depending on your product, different angles, variations or close ups of the same product can be offered at a reduced image rate. Please note that my minimum image rate for any shot is £6.00.

White Background Photography

For examples of my standard white background photography please click here.

Photography with a white background has become increasingly important for online use. Platforms such as Amazon and Etsy have strict regulations about white background photography. I offer high quality, professionally shot and lit, product photography for advertising, print, online stores, packaging, catalogues, Amazon listings and more.

This shot was done on commission for Graffe Cosmetics and shows the image straight out of camera and the retouched version. In some cases I have to match the background to their website page colour, which is what I have done here.

High quality product photography doesn’t have to cost the earth, I understand that smaller businesses have finite budgets, so I pride myself with being adept at finding solutions for all budgets and time-frames. Where required, I can offer a 48 hour turnaround where possible. I provide all image files both high resolution for print and low resolution for the internet. Images are transferred to you via WeTransfer meaning you won’t be wasting time waiting for multiple emails. This makes the whole process painless and efficient.

With Amazon product photography, you want me to create clean, sharp images, free of dust and background distractions, making your product the sole focus and showing it off in the best possible light. This always requires at least a little bit of post-processing for a truly professional look that I deliver for every client.

Please browse through the images in the albums below to get a feel for the wide and varied range of products that I have photographed on a white background.

Various Product Gallery

14 Photos

Happy Place Candle

44 Photos

Fishing Bag

14 Photos

Water Bottles

11 Photos

Charika Creations

17 Photos

Camera Hide Plate

17 Photos

Totely Bags

7 Photos

How to build a product photography portfolio was one of the questions I had when I first decided that I wanted to pursue product photography.

Building your photography portfolio is one of the first steps to towards making money as a photographer. A portfolio should be a window through which you show off your best work to potential clients; showcasing your skills and value as an artist. Every serious photographer keeps their portfolios updated with their most recent work; mine can be found on my commissions page and from there I link out to connected galleries.

If you don’t have a photography portfolio, but want to create one that you can be proud of, and which stands out from the crowd, then you are welcome to follow my brief step-by-step guide below.

5 Key Steps to Building your Photography Portfolio

Do not wait

What do I mean by that? Waiting until you feel you have reached certain milestones in your career before creating a good portfolio is not a good idea. You will always be improving. When I look back at some of my early work it makes me cringe, but you have to start somewhere, and I think people like to see progression.

Here are some tips on how you can start to build your photography portfolio: –

Tip #1 – Shoot More

Without images there is no portfolio. You need take as many [good or great] photos as you can. As a beginner you probably won’t have or even expect to have any paid gigs, but that’s okay. I remember my first wedding shoot. I offered to be second lens at a friends wedding. I neither asked for, nor expected any payment for my time. I let them have all of my images for free because not only was I getting invaluable experience, but also images for my portfolio. The fact that several of my images were used in the final wedding album just confirmed to me that I might just have enough talent to make a go at this photography lark!

Wedding of John & Julia

I took the opportunity to do free or cheaper shoots for people I knew. In fact I still occasionally offer my services for free if I am looking to break into a new market or area. 

Tip #2 – Design and Specialise Your Portfolio

This will depend heavily on your genre or market niche. I was always going to have my own website, so the portfolio had to become part of the overall website structure. I have changed it up a few times since settling on what I thought was the best way to showcase my work. I have no doubt this will happen to a few of you as well.

Some things to consider: –

• plan how you want your portfolio to look
• will you be featuring one image per page or a slideshow?
• will they be in galleries or albums, or a mixture of both?
• will the gallery be in the form of multiple thumbnails or a slideshow?
• will the photos be arranged in a certain order?
• will your portfolio to appeal to a particular market or sector within a larger market?
• will you need separate portfolios for weddings, events, children, corporate, products and so on?

Planning this at the start will save you a lot of time and heartache down the road. Think of it like building a house, you need solid foundations, a planned room structure and ways to travel through the building BEFORE you decorate and fill it with stuff.

Tip # 3 – Choose Your Featured Images with Care

This should be where the fun starts! However, choosing images which represent you as a photographer is really hard. It can be, (no, it will be), very time-consuming, and that’s okay – you really should take your time with this task. 

Try and put yourself in the shoes of your prospective customers. For example, what would someone looking for if they were in the market for a wedding/event/product photographer; what are they actually be looking for? If you find this difficult, grab a couple of mates who tell it straight and get them to look at your portfolio and feedback their thoughts.

Aside from featuring your best images, you should avoid including photos which are too similar to each other. Not only might this suggest that you’re a lazy photographer, but more importantly, it’s boring for the viewer. However, if you do need to show similar images, make sure they appear apart from each other in the order.

Tip #4 – Image Order

Just remember that just because you always look at every single image your prospective clients won’t always finish looking at the entire portfolio. They could very likely be at the start of their search, so they will be doing a lot of surface work, just trying to shortlist a few potential photographers before delving deeper and making a decision.

Bearing this in mind you really have to make sure your images pop, especially the first 10 or so. Making an eye-catching shortlist is crucial. How you build your portfolio is extremely important for your overall success.

Tip #5 – Use High Quality Prints in your Physical Portfolio

So far I have been talking about your online portfolio, but creating a physical book is just as important.

One of the secrets to creating a visually appealing portfolio is to use the highest quality prints possible. If you are exporting from Lightroom or Photoshop set the ppi to 300 as a minimum, anything less will not be of the right depth for printing.

Use a trusted photo printing lab that is known for producing accurate, well calibrated and high quality prints. I would not recommend printing them yourself, but if you do then get a top notch printer.

How to Build a Product Photography Portfolio that Gets Clients

Creating an online photography portfolio website is easy enough if you have the time and the skills. I built this site from scratch, but I have been designing and building websites for a long time. If you don’t have the time or the skills then consider using wordpress and a free theme. I wouldn’t recommend the online builders like Wix because the code is bloated and you will be on shared hosting with a few thousand other sites. This will slow your site down, and with images you need a fast site.

Anybody can create a photo portfolio, but only a few will really make an impact. Here are a few tips to ensure that your portfolio will be professional and worth looking at.

Tip #6 – Weed out the Mediocre – ruthlessly

Think of your portfolio as a sneak peek into your artistic style and abilities as a photographer. It’s not supposed to feature all of your photos, but rather just a handful of images that really speak to your viewers. If you find something off in some of your images, don’t include them. You can always feature your other favorites in a blog or online album.

Tip #7 – Create Impact

If you find that you have to explain why a particular photograph is great, then it does not belong in your portfolio. Your potential clients won’t give two hoots if you had a near death experience in order to capture an image, if the resulting image isn’t fantastic. Remember, your photographs not only have to speak for themselves, but they have to sell you as a photographer. The photography market place is very competitive. The primary function of your portfolio is to get you noticed, onto a shortlist, and then into a conversation with prospective clients. From there it is up to you to seal the deal. 

Tip #8 – Get Second Opinions from people who tell it straight!

If you really get emotional about your images, it helps to get a second (or third) opinion from someone who is not invested in your success. You are after ‘constructive criticism’, and believe me your mother, or your best friend won’t give it.

Ask what their first impression are on arriving at your site or portfolio. Ask them how they think about your images; would they hire you, or even pick up the phone, based on what they see? 

Tip #9 – Identify your Target Audience(s)

If you are going into business, you should already know who you target audience is and who your main competitors are. If you don’t then I suggest you do some research and stop wasting your time.

You portfolio should talk directly to your target audience. Think about the potential clients who will be looking at your portfolio, what will they want to see? Choose images that you believe your audience will want to pay you to create for them. 

Tip #10 – KISS [Keep it Simple Stupid]

A well known business acronym, KISS will help you focus your efforts and only include content that promotes you as a professional photographer. Adhere to your portfolio’s purpose: to show your best images. Keep the focus on your images, avoid using elements that may take the focus away from your work. Make your photos the main feature of your portfolio and allow them to speak for you. As long as you’ve chosen the right kind of images and continue to build your portfolio as you grow as a photographer, you can rest assured that it will do its job.

I hope these tips will be helpful for you. Good luck!

Professional Product Photography

So, exactly how to make money with product photography is quite an involved answer.
Product photography has become very popular and is driven by the increase in e-commerce. Nowadays people are happy shopping online, gone are the reservations shoppers had about security surrounding putting your credit card details into an online shopping form.
Product photographs are used to attract and convince to consumers to purchase one product over another. Competition is fierce and business owners are always looking to gain a competitive advantage in their market place. Having professional product photos is one way of doing this.
Shooting product images is a great way for photographers to earn money. However, in order to make money, you need to treat your product photography seriously. 

Ideas for Making Money with Product Photography

As I have emphasized, a good image has the ability to turn your browsers into purchasers. Having professional standard photographs of your product range is vital if you want to show off your brand without losing credibility due to poor quality images. Professional product photography will improve your image quality, boost your website conversions, and showcase your product in a different way to outshine your competitors through your artistic vision and the skills and experience of a professional photographer.
As far as how to make money with product photography, there are lots of tips which photographers wanting to make an income from product photography can utilise to make that a reality. I have listed some of the top professional product photography tips that will ultimately help you make more money. 

Get a Decent Camera

In order to take quality pictures, you’ll have to invest in a decent camera, a couple of high grade lenses, a tripod and some decent lighting. You can take photos using your mobile phone, but you’ll get way more features on a professional camera that will elevate your product photography. For instance, having the ability to swap lenses dependent upon the effect you are trying to achieve is very important. If you are shooting products that have a lot of intricate detail, it would be nice to have a dedicated macro lens which is designed for just that scenario.
With this leather bracelet, the maker wanted to highlight the detail that went into the leather work and beading. The image below shows a lot of detail, but because I was using a 100mm prime macro lens I was able to capture a lot of information in the RAW version of the image file, which allows me to crop very close to show off that detail even more.

Image dimensions 5427 x 3527 pixels – f/8 ISO 100 59mm 1/100 sec

Image dimensions 3467 x 2227 pixels – f/8 ISO 100 59mm 1/100 sec

Image dimensions 1421 x 1068 pixels – f/8 ISO 100 59mm 1/100 sec

Having access to a DSLR which captures so much information, coupled with a lens of great quality allows me to capture images which can be cropped to ridiculous levels in order to show off the smallest details. In reality I wouldn’t crop in so tight on this particular product, but with jewelry and watches those small details can look spectacular.

Shooting on a White Background

Depending on the platform the client needs to display their products, changes the type of image you have to shoot. With Amazon for example, they require the main image to be on a plain white background.
There are a few options here. If the product is small enough then a light box is ideal for shooting on a white background. This will set you back about £100, but is a worthwhile investment, because it gives you the option of going to the client and shooting on location.
Be warned though, you will still have to edit the image post shoot to get that perfect white background. I use Lightroom or Photoshop, a professional editing software, to create clipping mask to remove the background. From there I can wither export the image as a jpeg or save it back into Lightroom as a tiff file. 

Getting the Images to Your Client

There are a few ways to let you client see your work prior to them getting their hands on the images. Personally I set up a gallery on my site and send them a link. The advantages to doing this are: 

• my watermark goes right across the image
• I have disabled right click actions to prevent downloads
• Images are compressed which prevents decent printing sizes if they manage to circumnavigate the right click restrictions
• AND most importantly, they do not get the images until they have paid my invoice!

Getting Paid for Your Product Photography

So you have done the hard work, and produced some stunning images for your client. They will have an idea of what the finished images look like because you will have been communicating with them all the way through the process. Communication is key. Failing to talk to the client as you progress, almost guarantees you will not fulfill the brief and fail to represent their artistic vision for their products. What this means in reality is that you will have to go back and retake a load of images. This takes time, and time is money. You are reading this because you want to know how to make money with product photography, and this is one way to lose money on a commission. 
Let’s look at an example. You have quoted £295 to shoot a small variety of the same product. Your quote is based on 2 hours shooting time and 4 hours editing. This equates to £49 per hour. Not bad. However, due to a lack of communication you have to redo half the shots and then re-edit them as well. That is at least another 2-3 hours. All of a sudden your hourly rate looks a bit sick at £26 per hour.

Getting Paid per Image or per Session

I actually prefer to get paid per session. I know what my services, experience and skills are worth to me, and I charge accordingly. I quite often see photographers taking flack for ‘not charging enough, and dragging industry prices down’! What a load of bull. I know I could charge more but my viewpoint is that I don’t want just that one job from a client. What I want is for them to be wowed by my work and hire me over and over again.

REMEMBER – It is cheaper to work with existing clients than it is to find new ones.

I hope you enjoyed this article. Good luck with your attempt to make money with your product photography.

Professional Product Photography

I had the pleasure of visiting Jeremy and his brand new bird watching hide, when I delivered his camera hide plate. Of course I took my camera with me! It would be rude not to take advantage of snapping some of the local wildlife, and asking lots of questions of course…

So when did you decide to build a bird watching hide?

Having a bird hide for photography had been a project in the making for around 2 years, I just needed the right property which had the land. Once we had bought the house in Meolfre, near Oswestry, North Shropshire, it was then a matter of watching the sun, where would be the best position for the hide to maximise the light, both in mornings and evenings.

Once I had a rough idea of placement it was a matter of removing trees that restricted the light. There were lots of overhanging trees that needed to go, so they did!

It’s not a small hide, is it?

The next  question was, would I have to build two hides for two shooting angles or one large hide with multiple apertures? Once I had discussed this with the chippy, it was decided one hide would be best, then it was all about size!

How did you decide on the size, because it is huge, easily the biggest hide for photographing birds I have ever been inside.

Over the past few months, any bird watching hides I have been in I would take a tape measure with me and measure the sizes of the openings, the height from the floor, depths of openings etc, any measurement really to ensure my hide would be comfortable but give the optimum view with the land I had available. Then it was the openings themselves, inward or outward, shelf height etc.

The next issue was seating. The hard bench type wasn’t an option if I was going to be spending hours at a time sitting still. Eventually I opted for gaming chairs, for comfort during those long sessions.

Did you build it yourself?

So, once all the measurements had been decided, the drawings made, it was time for the chippy to make a start. 

You can see from the images, how it was erected. I went for a forward slanting roof at the last minute. 

A lot of bird watching hides have the slant front to back to take the rain away, but that means the low roof is at the back, and the high bit at the front where you are seated, didn’t make much sense to me; I thought if you’re seated, the roof needs to be lowest. A water butt and guttering looks after the runoff water.

I added extra canopies over the openings to prevent and rain dropping on protruding lenses, it works a treat!

So following completion, it was 2 coats of paint on the outside and thick heavy duty stuff on the floor inside. Scrim curtains were added to the outside for concealment and I was good to go!

What about the surrounding area?

Then it was a matter of creating the outside area of the bird hide. I researched all sorts of ideas and used some I have seen first hand. I really wanted something of interest for the wildlife to enjoy, but more importantly to help create the images I was after.

Aren’t you worried the images will eventually all ‘look the same‘?

 Actually, that was a big concern for me, so the reserve is constantly changing to keep the images fresh. I have an endless supply of mossy branches and twigs lying around that will all be used at some point. I will also move things around so the birds and other wildlife are seen in different positions and locations. This will keep my images fresh. I can recognise some photographer’s images purely from the setting, and I don’t want that to be the case here.

Now for one of the most important questions, what birds are visiting?

There are a wide variety of birds visiting already, including, Nuthatch, Jay, Jackdaw, Chaffinch, Goldfinch, Greenfinch, Blue Tit, Coal Tit, Great Tit, Wren, Dunnock, Blackbird, Long Tailed Tit, Pheasant and Great Spotted Woodpecker.

I am hoping in the summer months we will see the return of the Siskin, along with the Spotted Flycatchers.

This question is more for my benefit than anyone else’s, but what do you think of the camera hide plate? I know you were impressed when you sat your camera on it in the office. Has your opinion changed now you have had chance to use it in the hide?

It’s great. It has no problem with the weight, and it is as stable as a rock. I just made a small adjustment with the feet to level it up. It makes shooting so easy. I love it.

Camera Hide Plate

https://rogerchapmanphotography.co.uk/how-to-use-a-hide-for-wildlife-photography/

What is Product Photography exactly? Well product photography is a form of commercial photography that involves taking pictures of products for use by businesses on their product pages, and in their promotions and other brand awareness campaigns.

The product can be anything, however it usually is small enough to sit on a table, or in a lightbox.

Product photography should show the product in an attractive or interesting manner that appeals to potential customers. These customers might be shopping online or looking through a catalogue. Whenever you visit a website where items are for sale; you will see examples of product photography. The quality of the images are usually dictated by budget.

Is Product Photography Different from Normal Photography?

From a photographers point of view, product photography is much the same as any other type of photography. As a professional I manipulate the camera and lens to give me the desired result, whatever the genre.

I suppose the goal in product photography is to capture a realistic and detailed image of the item being photographed. The way in which you capture the product in camera should help potential buyers to get a good idea of what the product is like. Without doubt images sell because the eyes buy. Understanding this is very important because the buyer will not have an opportunity to touch or see the product first hand; so it is your job as the photographer to capture the product in enough detail so that it conveys the look and feel of the item well enough to convince buyers to, well buy.

Who Does Product Photography?

There are amateur and professional product photographers. I particularly enjoy the genre as it gives me a chance to explore my artistic side without the pressure associated with my wedding photography.

To be honest, anyone can become a product photographer. There is a proliferation of small business websites, and the numbers are set to increase due to the pandemic encouraging more entrepreneurs online. On the down side for professionals like myself, there are more people are getting into product photography than ever before, but we are not all equal. In order to sell products online a photographer needs to capture great images of products that business owners want to sell online; owners often attempt to take these product images themselves using cell phone’s but the difference between these home cooked images and a professional product image is clear to see.

What is Product Photography & its Importance in e-Commerce

Selling online is a multi-billion dollar industry that relies heavily on product photography. The importance of great product images cannot be underestimated in an extremely competitive online marketplace.

Whether a company is is selling handmade bracelets or a top of the range cosmetics, they all rely on great product images to sell their goods on their e-commerce platforms of choice.

The success of any e-commerce site, is, I believe, largely due to the product images on display. As I mentioned previously, consumers rely heavily on product images to get a better grasp of what they are purchasing. Product images can often be the deciding factor in whether a consumer follows through with the purchase or not.

Types of Product Photography

As I mentioned earlier, there are lots of different types of product photography. Photographers who are interested in product photography can find a niche where they are taking product photos of things that they find personally interesting or inspiring.

Personally, I love product photography; it stretches my artistic muscles.

For example, if a product is shot sitting on a bare table, without any supporting materials, there is a fair chance it will not look very exciting. But if that same product is photographed in a managed setting or while it is being used as it was designed, the image suddenly becomes a lot more dynamic and appealing to the prospective customer.

Take this image of a candle and packaging. Even though the candle is lit in the top image, i is nowhere near as appealing as the bottom image. Without doubt this could be even better if it was taken in the setting it was made for, such as a living or bedroom.

Which image is more likely to motivate the consumer to buy? I imagine if you showed the two images to a selection of potential buyers, they would choose the image with the background. I could be wrong, but I know which is more appealing to me.

Shooting Individual Products

Isolating a product against a white background must be the most common kind of product photography. Sites like Amazon insist on this type of shots for their online products. Making a single item the focal point of the image is a very powerful way to show it off to the best advantage. This kind of shot allows the product photographer to emphasise the features of a single product.

Shooting Product Groups

Groups shots in product photography are used when there are multiple products in a line of products, such as a skin care line of products. Quite often, group shots are used when there is a relationship between the items, such as a ‘buy one get one free’ promotions.

Shooting Product Details [macro]

Detail or macro shots are exactly what it implies. They are close up, detailed shots of one particular feature of the product. An example would be the fastener on this leather necklace. Detail shots are used to emphasize outstanding features on a product that go beyond a competitor’s product image. In order to capture this much detail I use a 100mm macro lens.

Shooting Lifestyle Product Images

Lifestyle product shots are those where the product is shown as it looks when it is being used, such as clothing or jewelry. The power of a lifestyle shot cannot be underestimated because it allows the buyer to imagine what the product might look on themselves. In the image below the maker or retailer wanted to show off the jewely in a way that identified with their preferred target audience. Although the jewelry is front and center, the tattoos and the bike both reinforce the message and help the customer identify with the product.

To Sum it All Up

Product photography is very varied, and there is no doubt that as a business owner you can achieve reasonable results for yourself. The question you need to ask though is, will my product photographs stack up against those taken by a professional using specialised equipment. If not, what sort of effect might this have on potential sales. Look at your competitors images and go from there. 

If you need any help, advice or simply want me to make your products look amazing, drop me a line or give me a call.

Professional Product Photography

Your product photography set up can be daunting when you are first setting out on your journey. For small photography business on a budget, investing in expensive photography equipment can be a risk, and to perfectly honest is not needed to produce great images.

Taking quality product photos is far easier now than it was a few years ago. You can even get great results from your mobile phone. In addition editing software is readily available, and inexpensive. Producing e-commerce photography is probably a lot simpler than you think.

Product Photography Set Up – Home Studio Tips

Here are some tips and practical steps for creating your own DIY photography studio.

1. Create an Appropriate background

What do I mean by ‘an appropriate background?’ Making sure you have a background that compliments and highlights the product you are photographing is one of the most important parts of product photography. In my opinion the image below does not highlight the products enough.

The right background highlights and isolates the product you’re photographing. It also helps the post editing process. Try using a white or light backdrop, as this will make it easier to remove unwanted objects and retouch photos.

This gorgeous bag from Charika Creations was shot on a white background so that the focus is entirely on the product.

You don’t have to spend an arm and a leg on backgrounds to get great product shots. Here are some affordable options that will do the job perfectly well:

A Small Table

One of the simplest product shoot set ups is using a table with your chosen background laid or built on top. You can get a variety of cloth, in various colours, which can be used to isolate the product. Obviously you don’t want to be using a white cloth with a predominantly white product. It would end up looking like a white cat in a snow storm. Here is a perfect example. As you can see there is very little contrast and as a result the product does not stand out.

A Chair

Push the back of the chair against a wall and tape the background cloth on the wall above the chair, and let it fall down the wall and over the chair. This will create a lovely clean transition between the vertical and horizontal planes whenever you position your product on the chair.

However, for larger products you will need to invest in a stand-mounted background. Or, you can use the same method as the chair-mounted sweep by affixing the background to a wall.

Light tent

Another affordable option is a light tent or light box. You can get them off Amazon for as little as £100. Another option is to build your own lightbox. It will need translucent walls and a constant light source, which helps create an evenly distributed light around the object in focus.

DIY Product Photography Set Up

To make your own, you’ll need some kind of plastic storage container or a wooden frame. Cover the sides with translucent material to produce a more evenly distributed light.

Position artificial lights around the container, or near to a window for natural light from a nearby window if you’re working on a budget.

2. Product Photography Set Up

It may seem simple, but setting up your product always takes me a few tries to get the angle, lighting and position just right. Bear in mind if you working with a customer on a paid job, you will have to take and share sample images to make sure what you are producing fits with their creative vision. This isn’t as easy as it sounds!

Place your product in front of your preferred background. How you position the product will depend on what you are photographing and the look you are aiming for. The barbershop image below makes use of a simple piece of drilled wood and a few related props. The focus was achieved through a wide aperture, (f 1.4 in this case.)

For things like jewelry and other accessories, you may want to use something that creates a nice reflection and displays the product at its best. Time spent adjusting the product until it’s precisely positioned is time well spent.

For smaller, more intricate products, here are a few more tools that might be helpful:

• Glue dots and tape for keeping small products in place, such as earrings or necklaces
• Mannequins for clothing and accessories, (real models are better)
• Hangers or eye-catching backgrounds for displaying products at different angles
• A friend or team member for creating fun lifestyle shots, (indoors or out)

3. Lighting

Quite possible the most important part of capturing excellent product photographs is your lighting set up. It is time consuming, but taking the time creating good lighting makes all the difference.

The two types of light sources to choose from are, natural light and artificial light.

Shooting with Natural light

I love shooting with natural light, it isn’t just for those photographers who are on a budget, for me, using natural light is the best option. 

Just be careful when shooting outdoors because the sun can create some harsh shadows and your model might end up squinting.

If you are shooting indoors, place everything close to a window that gets a lot of natural light. If the light is too intense, try diffusing it with a sheet or other translucent material, hung over the window.

Artificial light

If you have the budget to splurge on studio lights or you want to shoot during different times of the day when the light isn’t at its peak, or you want to be able to control the light source, then artificial light might be the solution.

There are a plethora of lighting options, far too many to go into in this post, but once you have your studio lights, you can decide how you want to position them to achieve your desired look.

One light should serve as your key light, placed in front of your product, and the other should act as a fill light, positioned to make the most of your subject. This watch is a perfect example.

4. Stability is Key

True, you can shoot hand held, but there is always a risk of motion blur, so to make sure you take pin sharp images that captures every detail of your product, you’ll want to be shooting at f8 or even more closed. However, if the product has to be in focus from front to back then you may well have to resort to photo stacking.

Unfortunately, using a higher f number results in a lower shutter speed and this makes it all but impossible to hold the camera still enough to avoid ending up with a image blur. However, a tripod solves all of these problems.

f.8 1/40 sec 2 second timer

6. Shoot lots of Images

Finally, it’s time to see if your product photography set up works and produces great images.

NOTE: If you are working with a client make sure to keep them in the loop as you go. It is vital to remember that it isn’t your creative vision you are trying to capture, it’s theirs!

Once you have shot a batch load them into your editing software, in my case Lightroom, where you can have a play and see what has worked and what needs tweaking. I always upload each batch  into an album on my site and send the link to my customer so they can feedback on what I have done up to that point. This saves a massive amount of time in the end.

7. Retouching

When I retouch it involves working with the light and maybe the crop, but on the whole I try to get it spot on in camera. If you are having to remove unwanted objects from your images you seriously need to improve your set up.

Post-production is a vital part of the product photography process and it shouldn’t be rushed. If you deliver quality images to your client which fulfill their creative dream and look fabulous, you will get recurring work and recommendations.

8. Optimising for the Web

There are a lot of software solutions which will compress your images for displaying them on your website in a way that does not reduce the way they look but improving load times. If you aren’t careful, your images can slow your web pages down so much that your visitors simply leave. Not a good result after all that hard work.

Professional Product Photography

In this article I will talk about the most efficient way of taking a consistent style of image is through a product photoshoot. In addition you can have a tasteful mix and match them to your branding. Obviously to achieve this it is very important to understand the difference between each type of product photography and how to best shoot each of  them.

Below we’ve compiled a list of the six most common types of shots you might consider in your product photoshoot, when to use them and how they might appear:

Individual Product Shots

The shot of an individual product is one of the most common types of product photos, as it suggests, the individual shot contains only one object in the frame. These are often featured on platforms such as Amazon and Etsy where they require each image to have a white background.

A great example is this one from Charika Creations, which is shot with a white background to create a clean, simple look and keep the focus on the product. The client requested branding, so her logo was added post shoot.

Product Grouping

You don’t have to be a genius to work out that group shots showcase more than one product in a single image. In this shot several images into one as opposed to shooting them as a group, however the result is the same.

Often used for product kits and collections, such as the reflectors shown below. You can use grouped product photoshoots to show the range and variety of your products. This gives the customer a more complete view of your product variations. These types of images are perfect for social media posts and other advertising channels because they give shoppers an overview of your brand as a whole, rather than just one product.

Lifestyle shots

Lifestyle photography shows the product in an environment potential customers might use it themselves.

Often taken with a model, like this example, lifestyle shots attempt to show your customers how they can use particular product in their daily lives.

In the image above it is fairly obvious what the product is and how it can be used, but also it targets a particular audience. The image below is more subtle but again I think there is a defined target audience.

While lifestyle photos can be used to reinforce your marketing message on your product page, they’re also perfect for lots of other visual marketing channels, because they catch the eye and make your products feel more personal.

Product Scaling Shots

One of the biggest issues with shopping online is the customer not being able to gauge the actual size of a product. While product descriptions may list the dimensions of an item, product photos can be often deceiving, in some cases deliberately so. Using a scale or a reference is a good way to show the product actual size. By using the potatoes it shows the size of the scales in a way which people can recognise.

Detailed Product Shots

For products with small intricacies that require a close-up, detailed macro shots help highlight specific product features that a traditional photo might not emphasise, such as these brass buckles on a fishing bag made by Global Technical Textiles.

It should be noted that this type of product photoshoot often requires specific lighting, camera settings, and also a macro lens, which is designed to to capture those detailed shots.

Product Packaging Shots

Believe it or not, customers care about packaging, a lot! One of my clients, Happy Place Candles spent as much time on their packaging as they did on the product because they understand that the eyes buy.

There is intense competition online, so if your product images do not attract potential buyers from the get go, they probably won’t bother reading how fantastic they are. Despite having an amazing product, if your presentation isn’t up to scratch, your customers might choose your competitors product.

Packaging shots, like this example from Happy Place Candles, feature not only the product itself, but also the product packaging. Having the candle lit just reinforces the lifestyle story of the product.

Professional Product Photography