7 tips for successful product photos

 Do you want to create a catalog or redo the interface of your online store? Nothing better than a photo, the best way to reach your targets in a fraction of a second. Much more than a simple image, a photo is above all a relevant and tangible message.

A simple photo is a very powerful means of communication. She summarizes the words that you might have difficulty formulating and making your customers understand, she argues for you!

Highlighting your products through images represents not only your value, but also your authenticity in the market. How to present your products to make them more lively, modern and human? How to create emotions? Here are some tips to help you with your shots so that you obtain a satisfactory final result.

1. Your identity comes through your product photos

To make your photos more attractive, highlight the specificity of your products, but above all, take inspiration from elements directly linked to the product, such as its history, the culture of your company, or the values ​​around which your company develops. The different images that you share on the different platforms (sales site, social networks, etc.) should resemble you.

Match the environment of your shoot to the branding you have chosen for your products: sport, nature, eco-responsibility... If you are in the sports field, showcase your products in a gym . If nature inspires you, you can take a photo outdoors: bring your originality! It's not just a product that you show, it's your communication that you put into images!

That's it for the identity part; Now let's move on to the ways that will allow you to enhance your products.

2. Product preparation and multiple viewing angles

To begin, before the shoot, take a moment to prepare your materials but especially your product. Clean, polish, style, iron… In short: do everything necessary for a good presentation of the product. Before the shoot, you can already define the kind of visuals you would like to have. Then, place your product on the stand and begin the adventure of your product shoot.

You can start your shots by putting into practice the visual ideas you imagined earlier. Afterwards, you can try other viewing angles. Taking photos of your products from different angles will allow your customers to view your website with greater visual comfort.

It is important to put yourself in the place of the customer who will visit your site or web page. Remember that online, browsing experiences are very different. Unlike a product exhibition in a shopping center, the customer cannot touch, smell or try a product that they discover on a website. The only sales weapon you have is the product photo: so be careful when choosing the visual supports that will help you convince your prospects.

Keep in mind that the image is the key tool that will allow you to demonstrate the potential of your product, and which will allow customers to examine the different aspects of it. Having your product from multiple angles allows your customer to have a better visualization, and possibly have information on how to test the product and use it in their daily life.

3. Color and shape influence the product photo

Once the customer has seen your product, they will definitely want to know the different versions available of your products. It would therefore not be insignificant if he wanted to view your article in different shapes or colors according to his tastes.

Showcase the various variations of shapes and colors you have for your products. Every shape and color should be highlighted. By doing so, you broaden the choice of your customers, and thereby improve the average value of your shopping basket. In addition to the virtual image, color also allows you to have an aesthetic visual of your store or page.

Dare to play with light to bring out the colors of your products. Moreover, for the record, “Writing with light” is the very meaning of the word “photography” in Greek. This definition takes on its full meaning, because light is one of the main weapons for successful photos!

You can use two different lighting sources: natural light or artificial light. However, we advise you to use artificial lighting during your product shoots: you will then have more flexibility. For what ? Quite simply because these lights are easier to control and adjust (flashes, diffusers, reflectors).

It's best to have multiple lights to better help you fill in the dark areas and maximize the bright areas of your product. Just make sure you have good exposure to avoid dark areas and shadows on your product. You will notice that the angle and light combo is the essential duo for having a perfect shot. This light also plays an important role in highlighting your product.

4. Highlighting the product in the photo

First, choose the support on which you want to place your product. Your support must be stable, neutral in color (white, black, gray) or colored (artistic choice). For a more natural and elegant result, we advise you to choose plexiglass.

The next step is to put your product front and center. Remember to center and balance the frame of your photo: the goal here is to keep your customer's attention focused on your product.

When shooting, try to fill in the empty spaces in your frame and keep the same size for each photo of each product. This will provide a form of unity and organization for your online store.

In order to attract your customer's attention, you can choose several types of background. You can of course use the practical and classic white background but we invite you to be more creative and authentic. A creative background can be a simple patterned fabric, but one that expresses the environment of your product and highlights it.

5. Anchored in everyday life or fantasy?

The objective here is to put your product in concrete or fictitious situations, the choice is yours! Why the choice between these two possibilities? Because each client can have their own sensitivity, whether for the real world or a more fictional and creative world.

You probably already know: a product displayed has more impact than when it is simply presented, on its own, on a white background. To this extent, do not hesitate to stage your articles. Bring your product to life by placing it in the middle of everyday life! It can be represented by hands exchanging products or a hand holding up your item like a trophy. Another simple and effective idea: have it worn by models or, the current trend, by influencers.

The second option is to place your product in a more magical environment of your imagination, your creation. With different image processing software, you can merge your photo with already existing illustrations or photos. However, be careful of copyright. If you sell video games or goodies derived from a film like Harry Potter or Star Wars for example, this option will be very useful to you.

The main point in this step is to represent your product on a real person or even just a part of their body. You then encourage the curiosity of your customers to know what is hidden behind your photos and thus your products.

6. Final processing of the product photo

The edits you do on the photo allow you to obtain a sharp, attractive and elegant image. They allow you to correct and add small details that will make the difference. A difference that will set you apart from your competitors. Several tools are available to perform this step. Among these tools, we can cite Photoshop or Lightroom.

These software are easily accessible and have several features. They will help you change several settings like brightness, contrast, saturation and many more. These three settings are the most basic but they are the most important for your editing. Brightness balances the shine of your photo. Contrast adjusts the emphasis of light and shadow and saturation ensures the balance of color density in your photo.

In addition to these basic settings, here are some parameters you will need to pay attention to:

• Straighten distortions in your photos;
• Hide small details like dust, traces;
• Crop your photo to finalize it.

The quality of the images you share gives your customers a brief overview of the quality of your service. It is therefore essential to take good photos of your products, choose the relevant images and take care of them. In this way, you send a serious, meticulous and reliable image to your customers.

One last tip for finishing your work on your product photos: consider protecting your photos by watermarking them. Watermarks prevent people selling the same products from using your photos without your consent. However, watermarks must not distort the presentation of your product. We recommend transparent watermarks, but clearly visible and fairly discreet.

7. Our tip for successful product photos

To summarize, all you need for a successful product photo is an identity, colors that make your product stand out, multiple viewing angles, good lighting and good exposure. Be sure to highlight the product and anchor it in an environment.

Now you are ready to shoot and work on your product photos. You may encounter some difficulties at first. Be patient, practice as often as you can! With practice, you will become more efficient and faster.