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Sunday, March 27, 2011

Blog Refab: Product Photography

Remodelando Blogs:
Fotografía de Producto


Blog Refab Part 3

Remodelando Blogs Parte 3

I felt the need to divide my blog refab photography posts in two. Family and fun photos shouldn´t be treated the same way as product photography as far as I´m concerned, unless of course there´s a model involved. So here are some quick tips for an inexperienced photographer. Making your lovely creations or finds look their best is definitely no biggy. Read my basics for photography posted on Blog Refab Part 2 and use Picnik (or photoshop) to guide yourself through the following steps.


Step 1:

Take your photo on a background that doesn´t "outshine" or take focus away from the "product" (I usually choose white, but there are other ways of going about this. I´ll share some great examples at the end of the post). Use natural lighting. Try to find a time of day and a room in your house where the light shines in indirectly and kindly. Experiment with different settings and times of day with the same "product" and see which works best for you.



Step 2:

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE crop! There is nothing worse than a piece of old rug or the corner of the kitchen calendar accidentally poking into the picture. Plus, cropping helps composition.


Step 3:

Exposure and contrast. Boost your exposure when using a white background. This helps make your background look super clean cut.


Step 4:

Boost the contrast in moderation. Play around with exposure and contrast till you get the look you want, if you´re looking for a softer look try not to contrast too much. Remember we still have to boost the color, so don´t panic if your "product" looks a bit pale, it´s normal, especially when it has a lot of white in it like this one.



Step 5:

Taking pictures can also take the color away. What I like to do is try to replicate the color I see when looking straight at the "product" by boosting both contrast (step 4) AND color (saturation and temperature). I want people to get the same feeling I do when looking at what I´ve created, and that´s why simple people like me, with simple cameras like mine, are saved by wonderful inventions like Picnik and Photoshop. Remember to always boost color in moderation and take temperature down only if necessary.


Step 6:

Play around with your angles and composition. Don´t be afraid to get too close, it´s nice to be able to grasp texture through a simple picture, and quite important if you are trying to sell your "product".


Step 7:

Never forget to have fun, look for beautiful in everything, and kick the fear to experiment!







As I mentioned at the beginning of the post, there are ways to pull of "product photography" on other types of backgrounds. Dana, from MADE is, for me, an absolute genious when it comes to making simple look gorgeous.


And she probably didn´t get as good as she is by playing it safe.
(which brings us back to step 7)


Thanks for stopping by!
Have a beautiful day!

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