10 Ways To Improve eCommerce Product Photos In Post-Production
Product photography is one of the most important aspects of eCommerce, yet it is often overlooked or done poorly. Images stay longer than text, so customers will be stuck in them if you provide quality product images. The first impression is all that matters, so you should work on your product photo, so it doesn’t become the last impression.
This article will discuss ten ways to improve eCommerce product photos in post-production. Following these simple tips, you can take your photos from good to great, increasing your sales and conversion rates.
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Ways To Improve eCommerce Product Photos:
A photo can stay up to 13 milliseconds in a normal average person’s memory. It means you must gather your masterpieces in front of your customer so that it lasts longer than that and make them purchase them—professional photographers and marketers are more likely to test the tips mentioned below.
1. Shoot in RAW
Always shoot your product photo in RAW format. There is no way to capture a perfect shot of your subject directly from the camera. You worked in post-production to fix your picture here and there. RAW format is the best to work on later in the post-production because it keeps all the details your camera can capture, whether it is lighting, framing, texture, color, or anything else.
2. Use a tripod
A tripod will help you keep your camera steady and avoid blurry photos. A tripod will also allow you to take pictures from different angles, which can be helpful when trying to show off a product from multiple sides.
3. Get close to your subject
If you want a good picture of your subject, you must get close to it. This means you need to be in the same general area as your subject and close enough to it to get a clear shot. It would help if you also were close enough to it that you could fill the frame with your subject.
4. Use natural light
If you’re shooting product photos, one of the best things you can do is to use natural light. This will help to make your photos look more realistic and will also help to reduce the amount of time you need to spend editing them later. A few things to remember when using natural light: first, ensure that the light is coming from behind the camera, and second, try to shoot in the morning or evening when the light is softer.
5. Take multiple photos
Regarding photos, it’s always better to take multiple images for safety. If one picture is blurry or doesn’t turn out the way you wanted, you have others to fall back on. Plus, it’s always fun to have a bunch of photos to look through later!
Try different angles and shoot using the available angles as well. When you are shooting products for eCommerce, it is better to show your product from all angles.
6. Use a reflector
A reflector is a piece of equipment that helps to bounce light back onto the photo’s subject. This is especially helpful when taking pictures of dark-colored products, as it will help avoid shadows.
7. Use a diffuser
A diffuser is a piece of equipment that helps to soften the light and reduce shadows. This is especially important when taking photos of white or light-colored products, as it will help avoid glare and reflections.
8. Edit your photos
If you have enough time, then I suggest you edit your photos. Give time to image post-production, and you will never regret it. There are four main ways to edit your photos: cropping, filters, exposure, and color correction.
Cropping is probably the most basic way to edit your photos and is simply cutting out unwanted parts of the image. For example, you might want to crop out a person who photobombed your otherwise perfect picture. Filters are a bit more advanced and allow you to change the overall tone of the photo.
For example, you might use a black-and-white filter to make a photo look artier. Exposure refers to the image’s light or dark; you can edit this setting to make the picture look more balanced. Finally, color correction is when you adjust the photos’ colors to make them more accurate. For example, you might increase the saturation of the colors if they look dull.
9. Use photo filters sparingly
If you want to add a bit of flair to your photos, it’s tempting to go overboard with the filters. However, too many filters can make your photos look artificial and overdone. Use photo filters sparingly, and only apply them to specific areas of your image if necessary. This will help you create a more natural and polished look.
10 Ways To Improve eCommerce Product Photos In Post-Production
If you follow the above tips, you can shoot your product photos more accurately and preserve all the detail. Now with these 10 ways to improve eCommerce product photos in post-production sessions, you will become a product photography pro.
1. Use Professional Photo Editing Software
Firstly, never miss this step or make any compromises with it. Always use professional photo editing software in the post-production board so that you get to work with all the possible tools and create a masterpiece.
2. Remove Any Blemishes Or Imperfections
When selecting the software, insert the image you want to edit. After that, the first thing you should do is remove any blemishes or imperfections from the image. Try to zoom in on the image to find the flaws and then retouch them to fix them.
3. Adjust The Levels And Contrast
Start fixing the image’s color tone when you are done with the photo retouching part. Based on the usage, adjust the levels and contrasts of your image using the tools from the software.
4. Enhance The Colors
Next, look carefully at the image and find dullness of ill color areas, if there are any. If you find any place where color is lacking, enhance it to the level till it looks perfect for the image.
5. Add Shadows And Highlights
Use proper natural shadow to make the image more realistic and grounded to its customer. Without accurate shadows and highlights, images can look fake. Add shadows and highlights where needed.
6. Crop The Photo For A Better Composition
Sometimes your image has everything correctly, but they look unadjustable with the situations. Try to crop the photo and get a better composition out of the frame. It can help you change and improve your product image’s perspective.
7. Resize The Photo For Web Use
As you are going to use these images on your eCommerce store, one thing you can’t skip is resizing them for web use. For example, if you have an online store on amazon, you must follow all the amazon product photo requirements. Unlike Amazon, most online stores like eBay, Shopify, and Etsy have their own product image requirements that sellers must follow.
8. Save The Photo In The Right File Format
Saving your product image in the right file format is also essential. Some online store accepts JPEG. On the other hand, some other allows PNG or Webp format. Know what format your image should be in and save them according to that.
9. Optimize The Photo For Faster Loading
If you have your eCommerce site, then this tip is going to give a boost to your site. If your site takes time to load, the customer will skip to another instead of waiting for it. So you might lose a ton of customers because of this issue. To improve your site speed, you must provide a well-optimized product image in your site’s database. You must keep the image file size relatively lower by maintaining high quality so it can load faster.
10. Hire A Professional
Regarding professional image editing services, it’s best to hire a professional. A professional image editor will have the skills and experience to make your photos look their best. They can also help you with image retouching, color correction, and more.
Types Of Product Photography
Based on the product types there are different types of product photography. You can’t work the same style for various products, right?
So, according to some professional commercial photographers, it is better to sort these types and go for the setup if you want to be a good product photographer. Let us know the types of product photography:
Video source: Nick Wichman
Product Photography Guide – 3 types of shots to sell the product
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Lifestyle Photography
If you have fashion and apparel products to sell, lifestyle photography is the best approach. Basically, in this type of photography, models wear the product, and photographers try to create a natural lifestyle scenario to blend the marketing of the product.
When people see this kind of product image, they quickly can think about their daily uses of that product which makes them more desirable.
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Product in Use Photography
This is another type of product photography that you might think is more similar to the previous one. But one slight but distinctive difference of this type is that you don’t use apparel products. In this type of product photography, you showcase products in use.
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Flat Lay Photography
Flat-lay product photography is one of the most used by mid-level eCommerce marketers. In flat-lay photography, photographers use a bare floor surface or plain table where they put all the products in a balanced way and then shoot them. It is a more budget-friendly way of product photography.
Most of the time, you don’t need highly professional photographic gear while shooting. Even for lighting, photographers use natural light mostly.
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Collage Photography
Sometimes you must showcase your product from every angle, like a preview where customers can see the best view of the product. When you merge your product images with the best possible angles and create more like a summary is known as collage product photography.
FAQ:
What is a post-production image?
Image post-production is refining an image after it has been captured. This can include color correction and retouching to more complex processes like compositing. Post-production is often seen as the final step in the image-making process, but it can also be used to create entirely new images from scratch. In either case, the goal is to produce the best picture, given the resources and constraints.
How can I improve product photography?
Here are some general tips:
- Use a tripod: This will help keep your camera steady and prevent blur.
- Use a lightbox: This will help ensure even lighting and reduce shadows.
- Use a diffuser: This will help soften the light and reduce glare.
- Use a reflector: This will help bounce light into dark areas and reduce shadows.
- Use a white background: This will help make your product stand out and look more professional.
- Use a macro lens: This will help you capture close-up details.
- Use post-processing software: This will help you touch up your photos and make them look their best.
How can I make my product stand out in pictures?
You can do a few things to make your product stand out in pictures. One is to use a white background. This will make the product stand out more and be the focus of the image. Another is to use props that contrast with the product.
For example, if you sell a black shirt, you could use a white background and white props. This will make the shirt stand out more. Finally, you can use lighting to make the product stand out. For example, you could use a backlight to make the product shine.
How do you do an eCommerce photoshoot?
There is no one-size-fits-all answer to this question, as the best way to do an eCommerce photoshoot will vary depending on the products being photographed, the budget available, and the desired style and aesthetic of the finished photos.
However, some tips on how to do an eCommerce photoshoot include hiring a professional photographer, using a variety of lighting setups, and shooting various angles and perspectives.
Conclusion
Product photos are the bread and butter of every e-commerce business. They are what entice customers to click and buy your product. But, all too often, product photos are overlooked in terms of importance in the post-production process.
If you are an eCommerce marketer or starting a new product photography business, try to go through this article and follow every one of them if possible. Here you will know at least 10 ways to improve eCommerce product photos in Post-production.
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