Burak Bakay

Product photos with white background

And lifestyle shots – Instagram style

 

High End fashion products – white background almost finished

 

Why does this matter?

• We are asking people to buy a physical product but they don’t gave no direct experience of
• More images is better – but not the same type, detailed photos, show the scale
• Checklist of different
• Ecommerce has a problem of tangibility
• The more you show and tell, the more you sell

 

BURAK Can we update ugly Amazon photos with ours?

 

People started browsing products by browsing images, not just Instagram but google image search as well.

 

AGENDA

• Putting together a shot list – types of images you may need
• Deciding on aspect ratios – shape of the image, square or rectangle etc
• Two approaches to controlling light
• General shooting tips
• Optimizing images
• Image manipulation and software
• Styling and lifestyle images
• When to hire a professional

 

Types of images you may need

• Flat, straight, plain background, product shot

 

Type	Purpose	Check	Number
Product	To show the product clearly against a white or plain background. Required by many marketplace platforms	x	1
Product Angle	To show a 3D product form various angles	x	2
Product Detail	To show detail of a product, – pattern, texture, finish, grain
With packaging shot	To show the product with packaging – can include gift packaging – if packaging is part of the experience
Variants	Show variants of the product, color, size, finish, customization
Scale	To show the true size of the product by comparison to a known object		3
Related Products	To show the product with other related products that complement it and are available
In context	To show the product in the way in will be used or the space it will occupy		4
Lifestyle / Styled	To show the product as desirable by association with a desired or attractive environment, occasion or collection of artefacts		5

 

ASPECT RATIOS

 

Square is the allrounder

Where will you else use them?

dSLR spec might not be OK

 

LIGHT APPROACHES

 

• Diffuse natural light plus reflectors (or LEDs or bounce flash fill)
• Light boxes
• Anything small and flat, scan it
• Rembrandt light

 

• Natural light
  • You are seeking strong but diffuse light – a difficult combination
  • Natural light – north facing window is ideal
  • High cloud cover is good
  • Middle of the day is good
  • Fill in shadows with reflectors (or lights or flash)

 

• Get rid of the shadow with reflector
• If you get the lighting right, even iphone camera would be enough (with tripod and timer)
• Light tents

 

GENERAL SHOOTING TIPS

• Shoot to allow cropping
• Perspective control – distance to shoot from
• If you shoot up very close, closer edge might look bigger
• Pay attention to horizontal and vertical
• Take lots, reject most- bracketing
  • In photography, bracketing is the general technique of taking several shots of the same subject using different camera settings.
• Professional photographers scrap 99% of their shots
• Instructor does not prefer flash shots , difficult to work with

 

EQUIPMENT

 

• Spaces and windows
• Reflectors including mountboard
• Tripods, including for phones and tablets

 

STEPS and PURPOSE

 

• Aspect ratio
  • Choose best aspect ratio
• Light source
  • Find a suitable diffuse light source
• Fillers
  • Choose your tools to fill in the shadows
• Platform
  • Support your camera with a stable platform – tripod or similar
• Perspective
  • Choose a distance from the product that makes it look in natural proportion – not too close
• Cropping
  • Leave enough space around the outside of the frame to allow cropping
• Level
  • Use a grid to check your horizontal and vertical
• Timer
  • Use your timer to keep your hands free for light control
• Take many
  • Bracket by taking lots of little variations. Choose only the best

 

LEDS ARE THE FUTURE

 

• Continuous light – see what you do
• Run cool (very little heat)
• Can use a wide range of diffusers
• Can buy daylight, same colour temp as natural light
• Use less energy and long lasting

 

OPTIMIZING IMAGES

 

• Image manipulation – any changes to colour, contrast etc first
• Crop to the aspect ratio
• Resize to your largest need
• Compress and optimise file size
• Name your file

 

LEVELS

 

• To make slight white background to 100% white – play around with Levels in photoshop

 

IMAGING SOFTWARE

 

• Photos (free, apple)
• Pixelmator apple only – pro not necessarily better
• Serif affinity photo
• Gimp
• Adobe photoshop
• Free trials
• Apple aperture – not supported

 

STYLING IMAGES

 

• Images can be styled to appeal to the desired lifestyle
• Typically use:
  • A complementary colour palette
  •  Textures
  • Desirable backdrops
  • Cherished items
• Lifestyle images can use filters or color grading to give a distinct “look”
• This is very much like setting up a stage, eg much in a film

 

WHEN TO HIRE A PRO

 

• Critical color management
• Using studio flash
• Hero images
• If your time can be spent more profitability doing other things
• Don’t listen, look for a portfolio in your category

 

PRODUCT DESCRIPTIONS

 

• People don’t read, they scan for the info
• Use headings
• Lists are easier to read
• Availability
• Copy format for scan reading: headings, lists, tables, symbols/icons, short sentences and paragraphs
• https://readable.com/

 

CUSTOMER CONCERNS

 

• Outcomes, what does the customer get?
  • Psychological objectives
• People buy my products so they can ….
• Features
  • Put them on the product page
  • Origins
    • Made where?
    • By whom?
    • Under what conditions?
    • Environmental impact
• Variants, options, customizations
• Availability
  • Limited?
  • How soon?
• Warranty and risk
  • What if something goes wrong?
• Longevity
• Uniqueness
• Social proof: Other people and this product
  • Customer reviews
  • Social media
• Aftercare

 

PRODUCT DESCRIPTION STYLE GUIDE

 

• Paragraph length
  • Keep paragraphs short – no more than about six lines
• Sentence length
  • Keep sentences short to aid readability
• Headings
  • Use headings and sub-headings to make text scan-readable
• Lists
  • Use unordered (bulleted) and numbered lists
• Tables
  • Use tables and diagrams where appropriate eg size charts
• Symbols / icons
  • Use symbols and icons where appropriate eg. handmade, made in Britain
• Internal links
  • Link to other related products