Do I need professional images for my product?
Every marketer knows that photos are important but it’s not a matter of just slinging any image onto your website and reaping the rewards.
By ANDON ZHELYAZKOV
If your product shots aren’t crisp, clear and coupled with the right background, you won’t get the desired effect. In fact, a poor image could be more detrimental than having no photos at all.
A product photographer knows the power of the picture. And high quality really does matter.
The process starts with flawless photography, with immaculate attention on every tiny detail. The right camera angles, professional lighting, the correct depth of field – it all contributes to creating a sharp and precise image.
But before the product photography can begin, the staging needs to be considered. What this looks like will depend on your product and where you plan on selling. Some sites such as Amazon require images with a white background, while others such as Etsy encourage sellers to show off their branding.
A white background is much harder to achieve than it sounds, especially if your product is light-coloured. If the balance of lighting isn’t exactly right, your background will appear to be a dirty grey – something no-one wants to see!
Product photography harnesses a combination of lighting, software and skill to create images with a crisp white background.
For those websites which allowed a themed setting, your product photographer will create that too. Art design is an integral part of the role and your photographer will incorporate clever props to maximise the effect of your product image.
Your product photographer will offer you more advanced services too, such as 360 product photography and the ghost mannequin technique. You may not have heard of either of these before but you’ll have certainly seen them on selling sites.
360-degree photography allows your customer to turn the image round on your website and see the product from every angle. It’s achieved by a series of photographs, taken with meticulous attention to detail, each one moved just a tiny fraction from the one before. Compiling these together using special software creates a 360-degree view which gives the customer confidence.
The ghost mannequin technique is another popular style. This is used for fashion clothing where you want the garment to hang as if it’s being worn, but without the model being visible. The right angles on the photos taken and clever use of software allows the photographer to achieve this result.
