Definition

Product photography is a form of commercial photography that has the goal of presenting a product in the best possible photographic representation. Great product photography takes into careful consideration the tools of proper lighting, background materials, sharp camera focus with proper depth of field, advantageous camera angles and careful editing. (We have already talked about some helpful tips for doing product photography in another article.)

Professional ecommerce photography helps customers better choose between rival products. Thus, sellers of goods are best advised to utilize professional product photographs in order to compete in the marketplace of 2021. (Read more about 6 reasons why to use professional product photography services.) There are also some new types of product photographs that were not available until very recently that even better help buyers differentiate between products.

The following will examine the different types of product photographs and their uses for product sellers.

Ghost Mannequin Technique

Photoshop helps us create the ghost mannequin technique. This type of photo looks as though someone is wearing the clothing, but you cannot see the wearer. This is done by carefully taking eye-level shots with a live model and one shot of the top of the shirt, for example, photographed inside-out. The live model’s limbs are carefully removed in Photoshop and the top of the inside of the shirt is blended onto where the neck protruded from the shirt. This leaves the look of the garment being worn. Extra wrinkles can be removed from garments with a Photoshop technique called “frequency separation.” To read more about clothing photography techniques, visit our previous articles about “12 Helpful Tips for doing Clothing Photography” and ” 7 things to consider when photographing T shirts“

Product Photos on a White Background

White background photography allows the product to be the sole focus of the shot. It creates crisp, sharp shots that allow for examination of the product’s details. The white background can be paper, vinyl, muslin or canvas. Careful lighting produces a seamless, white background. Interestingly, if you don’t illuminate the backdrop, only the subject, the backdrop will look gray in the photo. You can also add diffusers that create patterns in the lighting or change the background color in Photoshop or Lightroom. We have previously talked about the benefits of white background photography.

Lifestyle Photography

Lifestyle photographers pose people in very carefully crafted scenes to appear as though they are naturally doing some act at a certain place and time. The pose is to depict something about their “lifestyle.” When we add products to the mix, we are posing people in relation to the product to depict a certain type of lifestyle gain that they have received as a function of interacting with your product.

As an example of a lifestyle photo, think of just about any cell phone advertisement. Often, we see less product photos of the phones and more lifestyle photos showing the phone’s customer enraptured by something they are able to do by using the phone, often connecting or sharing with others. Obviously, it takes a really expert photographer to get these poses to look natural and to take the perfect photograph of the scene at the same time.

Amazon Product Photography

An entirely new category of product photographs are those for products being sold on Amazon. The reason that this is a separate category is that Amazon has very strict requirements for the photographs on product listing pages. For every product photograph on Amazon, they must be a square 1,000 by 1,000 pixel image in RGB format that is saved in JPEG, TIFF or GIF format and that must fill 85 percent of the frame. There are also very specific guidelines regarding filenames for each product’s set of photographs. The reason for the high resolution required for the Amazon photos is that they allow customers to use the zoom tool and zoom into the product image.

The main image also has more requirements, including that it must be set against a white background. Subsequent images can include an info-graphic to show at a glance your product’s features and its benefits. You may need to show other sides of the product. You will also likely want a lifestyle photo of the product being used and/or a video. You can check Amazon image requirements for more details.

360 Product Photography

When photographers take many photographs of different camera angles of a product, they can be assembled, with software, into a 360-degree product view. In order to construct a really great 360-degree view, photographers will use a 360 degree turntable and move the product on the turntable in small increments relative to the camera that remains stationary on its tripod. Software can turn these images into a flowing 360-degree product view. The advantage here is that consumers can see your product from every single angle. A great example of the use of a 360-degree product view would be for running shoes for an avid runner.

Fashion Photography

Unlike simple clothing photography, fashion photography usually entails the clothing being worn by paid models who are either photographed in some exotic location or wear ensembles that have a certain motif. Fashion photography comes out of the studio and onto the beach, the street or the runway. This demands an entirely different skill set than that of the studio clothing photographer. The models are in motion in areas where the lighting may not be as easy to control. The use of fashion photography can provide your clothing line a lifestyle ethos and providing a dramatic means of demonstrating your clothing in action in daily life. (Read more about Trending fashions for Clothing Photography)

Overall, the best type of photography for your product is a function of the product’s type, its usage and where the product is being marketed. Today, with the advent of digital photography, we have a number of new and exciting means of photographing products that really help customers make informed product decisions.

Important Factors in Product Photography Pricing

Prоduсt photography is charged ассоrding to thе number оf images nееdеd, with grеаt ԛuаntitу based diѕсоuntѕ fоr larger orders. Putting a рriсе tag оn уоur photography саn ѕееm like an overwhelming task. Althоugh оftеn overlooked bесаuѕе it ѕееmѕ tоо simple, determining the minimum аmоunt you nееd tо make per ѕеѕѕiоn tо not lоѕе mоnеу саn be a gооd starting роint in ѕеtting уоur рhоtоgrарhу рriсing.

Thеrе аrе ѕоmе certain соnditiоnѕ nееd tо bе considered whеn ѕеlесting a price fоr аn imаgе whiсh are:

  • Mаtеriаl Cоѕtѕ

    Thе material соѕtѕ for a ѕеѕѕiоn will bе different for every photographer аnd will often bе diffеrеnt with diffеrеnt types оf sessions. Thеѕе соѕtѕ frequently inсludе рrооfѕ, a CD, аnd ѕеѕѕiоn frееbiеѕ. It’ѕ аlѕо imроrtаnt to remember to аdd in thе соѕt fоr уоur average print ѕаlе. If you typically ѕеll a fеw ѕеtѕ of wаllеtѕ and аn 8×10, уоur lаb сhаrgеѕ уоu fоr thоѕе and thоѕе аrе mаtеriаl соѕtѕ that need tо bе соnѕidеrеd.

  • Timе Costs

    Fоr mоѕt рhоtоgrарhеrѕ, this iѕ the mоѕt ignored part in determining pricing. While уоur gоаl for a ѕеѕѕiоn might be to pour in as much timе оn a ѕinglе session tо gеt as muсh money frоm it аѕ роѕѕiblе, it’ѕ ѕtill important tо rеаlizе thаt рutting еxtrа effort intо gеtting a bigger ѕаlе mеаnѕ mоrе timе invеѕtеd. Thе time that you’ll need tо calculate toward the session nееdѕ tо inсludе ѕсhеduling the session, ѕhооting thе pictures, еditing, sales арроintmеntѕ, оrdеr fulfillment, etc. Yоu’ll рrоbаblу bе surprised how muсh timе is spent on a ѕinglе ѕеѕѕiоn.

    Thе оthеr side of thе timе costs is hоw much уоu wаnt tо make реr hоur. Thiѕ is not the same аѕ the аmоunt уоu charge your сliеntѕ for an hоur оf рhоtоgrарhу. It’ѕ whаt уоu actually wаnt to mаkе аѕ tаkе home рау. An hоurlу rate can be tоugh to dеtеrminе, but a dесеnt amount tо ѕtаrt with would bе $30 аn hour, аnd $50 аn hоur wоuld bе a gооd gоаl.

  • Studiо Cоѕtѕ

    Bесаuѕе there’s nо еаѕу wау to саlсulаtе all thе еxtrа еxреnѕеѕ аѕѕосiаtеd with running a ѕtudiо intо your ѕеѕѕiоn соѕt, it’s uѕuаllу еаѕiеѕt tо mark uр thе tоtаl mаtеriаl аnd time costs. If уоu’rе running a retail ѕtudiо, thе mаrkuр iѕ gоing tо bе higher thаn with a home ѕtudiо bесаuѕе of the еxtrа overhead. Thе mаrkuр wоuld cover thingѕ likе аdvеrtiѕing expenses, rent, and utilitiеѕ.

Finally DigitalCohort.com shoot сlеаn, сriѕр рhоtоѕ of уоur good ԛuаlitу рrоduсt to ѕwееt your tаѕtе. Eасh image is professionally ѕhоt and еditеd in оur studio by our experienced ѕtаff and we offer bеѕt affordable price in the induѕtrу and оur рrоduсt photography pricing саn bе as lоw аѕ $17 per image. For more information, please visit our Pricing page.

How professional product photography can boost your business

Your business needs to use photography in some regard. If there isn’t some kind of visual demonstration of your products or services, people are going to be unclear and ultimately disinterested. However, you can’t just shoot sub-standard photos and expect them to cut it among the competition. Instead, you need to do all you can to show that your business as seriously as possible. You need the expertise of a quality product photographer. Here are some ways professional photography can boost your business.

  • Credibility

    Imagine you’re shopping for accessories online. How would you feel about buying from a business who’s photos are either poorly shot and framed, their items arranged haphazardly with dull angles and lackluster lighting, or lacking altogether. You can’t afford to let yourself neglect integrity. It doesn’t matter how good you say your product is. If people see it as looking unremarkable or worse, it’s going to have a negative effect on you.

    Instead, you can use a product photographer to assess your inventory and determine how best it could be portrayed. The best ones won’t try to leave you out of the process entirely. They’ll consult with you about what the best possible poses and lighting would be. They’ll show you the settings they intend on using. You need to trust their judgment but also give your own suggestions. Through enough discussion, the two of you should be able to reach some kind of mutual understanding.

  • Stand Out

    If someone has to choose between two similar products with the same price via online retailers, and only one has professional photography, it seems reasonable for them to choose that one. Even if the other one was taken reasonably well, there’s a marked difference between the best amateur work and the best professional work. Professionals have more access to equipment as well as an understanding of it.

    eCommerce photography is a specialized field. Photographers need to be able to highlight the product while also making it look as dynamic as possible. It should be posed properly and given all the necessary lighting. There should also be contrast where applicable. When it comes across the radar of people, whether they’re browsing online or leafing through a magazine, it should pop right away.

  • Learn the Nuances of Product Photography

    Even if you won’t be personally taking the photos of your products, you can still learn a great deal. Depending on your inventory, you might be selling all sorts of different products. A product photographer won’t decide on one aperture, lighting setup, and angle and follow suit for everything in your stock. Instead, they’ll consider each item on an individual basis. Whether it’s clothing photography, jewelry photography, or something else, they’ll give it the attention it deserves.

    Before a product photography session, ask the photographer about what settings they’re planning on using. If you’re unclear about anything, such as aperture or f-stop, ask them. Afterwards, take a look at the different photos for different products. If you notice any clear compositional differences, ask them how they came to be. The more you understand about how photography works, the more you can feel confident in your opinions. Should you feel strongly about why a certain technique or angle would or wouldn’t work for a given product, you should voice your opinion. When hiring a photographer, you should make sure they have experience with your given products. If things don’t work out and seem unlikely to improve, you shouldn’t be afraid of declining further services from them.

  • Tell a Story

    You might have a wonderful story to tell about how your business came to be and how your products were developed. However, you have to understand that people are busy. They don’t have time to read every block of text that comes their way. Instead, you can tell them a story with involving photography. There should be a balance between text and photos. You can have a gallery section on your website. You can present your products in the most captivating ways possible. Underneath or on the side, you can have descriptions of them. People will be drawn in by the photography and then feel satisfied by having questions answered. You also want to make sure that your website is properly designed, in order to make sure the quality photography feel like it belongs as much as possible.

    Product photographers like myself pride ourselves on being able to highlight products in order to give businesses a boost. With all the competition that’s out there, you need to show that you can and do stand out. With the quality product photography that I provide, you’ll be able to demonstrate your business’ value like never before. If you are interested in using a professional service, please get in touch with me as soon as possible.

At Digital Cohort, we specialize in different types of Product Photography. We capture customer attention so that you can close the deal at a price that is sure to give you a great ROI. Simply send us your products and we make them look great with clear, professional, and creative pictures you will absolutely love.

We offer 100% customer satisfaction guarantee with our images. Please visit our FAQ to learn more about our services.

Digital Cohort helps many awesome retailers with their clothing and ecommerce photography. We offer the best prices in the industry and each image is professionally shot and edited in our studio by our experienced staff. Please contact us if you have any questions or if you want to make an order.