Shooting Your Own Product Photos
Believe it or not, it’s not as difficult as you think! You just need to invest the time, patience, and maybe a little bit of cash into the tools you’ll need each time, but the results will be worth it.
Here are some tips to capture the perfect product photos:
1. Lighting
Giant ring lights are a staple when it comes to shooting product photos. However, natural light is always the best source! Know where the natural light is coming from during the time of day you’ll be shooting and take advantage of this free resource. A ring light is still a recommended investment to ensure clean, clear photos and will enable light to come from all directions.
Disco Tip: make sure the light is not behind your product! You don’t want any back-lit, foggy-looking photos.
2. Your Background
You can definitely buy large or mini professional background hanging props, but if you’re not there yet, you can get single yards of fabric or nice and smooth paper to create the effect! Need a specific marble or wood countertop but don’t have access to one? Go to your local improvement store and get samples of flooring!
When in doubt, take lifestyle photos. Ex: if you’re showing off a collection of shampoos, clean your shower and use what you got!
Disco Tip: when in doubt, a white backdrop is always best. It’s clean, and you can keep it dressed down or play it up with graphics and other elements.
3. Make Use of Props
Are your photos turning out a little...blahhh? Use elements and products you have around the house (preferably ones that wouldn’t also advertise a different brand): related foods, decor, jars, glitter, string...any prop that doesn’t overshadow the product and is relevant to your brand could work!
4. Angles and Locations
Keep the same set up and try taking your photos from a few different angles and moving around the additional props you’re using. Whether you’re taking photos on a camera or phone (yes, certain phones still allow for high-quality content!), play around with the settings as well to see what different effects you get.
There are endless possibilities!
5. Add Humans
Show your products not just sitting there, but being put to use! Whether it’s their full face, just their hands, etc, show people in your product photos to offer a warmer, more inviting side to your content. There’s of course plenty of psychology behind social media (another topic for another time), and having real people in your photos can allow customers to feel safe purchasing your product - after all, they’re seeing other people using it!
Disco Social is a creative agency, which means if you’re struggling with product shots, we have a team dedicated to enhancing your brand on social media, from photography to captions and hashtags, to community management.
All you need to do is inquire within!
