Written by Sanne
Edited on
28 February 2023
·
13:55
Tips for taking the best product photo
Product photography is a skill on its own. You shoot photos of products that you want to capture as clearly or as attractively as possible for your own webshop, for example. You can read how to best apply product photography in this article. With these 6 tips, you'll ensure that you create a professional website with your product photos.
Tip 1: use a camera with a large image sensor
You want your product photos to be of a good quality. To achieve this, you need a camera with a large image sensor, preferably APS-C or full-frame format. Such cameras provide detailed images. With a camera that you can set up manually, you have the most control over the exposure. With this, you can independently create the desired result. An advanced compact camera and all mirrorless or SLR camera meet these requirements.
Tip 2: make sure you have the correct camera settings
Often, everything is sharp on a product photo. You can get this effect with a small aperture, so a large aperture number (f). Keep the ISO value low, so your photo won't get blurry. To prevent underexposure, make sure the shutter stays open a little longer. But avoid motion blur due to a too slow a shutter speed. You can also solve this problem by using a tripod.
Tip 3: prevent drop shadow with good exposure
Proper lighting might be one of the most important things of product photography. Preferably, you want to avoid drop shadow. You can do this by using even lighting while taking photos. That's why you should use (studio)lights that illuminate the product from 2 sides. It's best to turn off the flash, because you'll create shadow if you use it. In most cases, daylight provides a nice, even, and soft lighting. You can get this same effect with a softbox on the light.
Tip 4: use a suitable background
The type of background that you need to use depends on the type of product photos that you're going to take. If you shoot product photos for a webshop, you should use a uniform background. There are backgrounds available in white, green, gray, and black. With this, you can easily cut the subject from the photo in the post-processing. If you opt for atmospheric product photos, you use a background that matches the product. Think of specific colors or materials such as wood and marble.
Tip 5: always place the product in the foreground
A good composition makes a photo more exciting to look at. In case of product photography, you don't really have to think about the composition unless you're using attributes. Make sure the focus is on the product always, and not on the extras that you added. You can do this by placing the product out front or elevated. If you don't use any attributes, make sure the product fits in the frame and that you photograph the product from all sides.
Tip 6: use a recording tent for more convenience
If you only want to work with an even background and uniform lighting, a shooting tent is very useful. You can take a good product photo in no time. A recording tent can be set up quickly. Most recording tents come with properly adjusted lights and different color backgrounds. This makes this mini studio very suitable for the product photographer who often takes webshop photos. Shooting tents are available for products of different sizes.
Article by Sanne
Camera Expert.
