You Know What They Say About a Picture... It Might Be Worth a Thousand Sales | Product Photography Tips

March 6, 2022

Before a customer reads a single word of your product description, they've already decided whether to keep looking or keep scrolling. That's why your product photos matter more than almost anything else in an online store. Your goal isn't to create a heavily filtered masterpiece—it's to show customers exactly what they're going to receive. True colors, good lighting, and accurate photos build trust long before they click "Add to Cart." If the item isn't lit well, it can deter a potential buyer from buying it. This is why outdoor photography works so well with natural lighting. Or taking photos in a room full of windows. Not showing enough, or showing too much can hinder a buyer from buying as well! I'm no professional photographer with a fancy setup, I use my iPhone 11ProMax with portrait mode and a little light box, a little easel to take pictures of my keychains!

Here's How My Product Photography Has Changed

When I first started selling online, I took product photos wherever I happened to be working. They weren't terrible, but they weren't doing my products any favors either. Over time I learned that clean backgrounds, good lighting, and letting the product be the star of the photo makes a huge difference.

(Before) This is an example of how I used to photograph my products. While you can still clearly see the turtle keychain, the cutting mat, ruler markings, scratches, and uneven lighting all compete for your attention. The product isn't the only thing your eye notices.

(After) Over time, I learned that better photography helped my products speak for themselves. The details came through, the colors caught people's eyes, and those little handmade pieces started telling their own story.

The products didn't change, the presentation did.

Choosing Props That Complement Your Product:

There's a fine line with this one. This goes from everything from the background choice to little items you put in the photo to "tie" it all together. It's ok to use an item or two to enhance the experience of your photo. If you have a cute seasonal item to put in there so people get into the spirit that may help sell the item! But you don't want to put too much extra stuff in the photo where people are drawn to the supporting objects vs the item you're trying to market in a listing - too many items can actually cause people to want to know where you got the supporting items vs making them want to add to cart.

Picking the Right Background:

You want to make sure you're using a solid color, or simple pattern. Something with not too much detail and something that isn't super busy! Too much pattern in the backgrounds cause patterns within the item (if any) to get lost in the image. The wrong color background or a background too close to the color of your item may give potential customers the wrong idea of what to expect from your product. If you're using a white background and selling a multi-layer item and the back layer is white make sure you can tell where the background ends and the item begins.

Remember, customers can't hold your product in their hands. Your photos have to answer the questions they'd normally answer themselves. What does it look like from the side? How is it packaged? What arrives in the box? That's why I like including packaging materials and care instructions in my photos—I'm giving customers a preview of the entire experience. They should be able to see your work, in great detail and not be distracted by the background or anything else in the picture you've placed in there to enhance the experience. I try and post as many photos as I can so the customer will know how to expect their item when it arrives! Cups are photographed IN the box they ship in, with packaging fillers/care instructions in the photos so it's right there! This is the experience they will get unboxing the item when it arrives to their door!

My Favorite Product Photography Tool:

I had apprehension about this little light box, being from amazon and all that but I was BLOWN away when I got it. There's multiple different background colors (all solids) you could even put a pattern up in the back if you wanted to but you don't want to put up something too detailed that people are going to pay more attention to the background detail than the item you're trying to market.

If you're interested in this item, here's my affiliate link to purchase it! I've had it for a few months and I LOVE it! I would never take pictures any other way! https://amzn.to/3bsaYsE

Using portrait mode on your cell phone (if you have an iPhone) and taking pictures outside can also provide amazing quality photos because it automatically blurs out the background so the focus is DRIVEN to the item in focus.

Until Next Time...

People often ask me what got me into crafting.
My answer has always been the same:

Mental illness.

Crafting became my therapy, my creative outlet, and eventually the foundation of Shop With The Lad. If sharing what I've learned helps someone else grow their business—or simply reminds someone they're not alone—then these blogs have done exactly what I hoped they would.

Happy Crafting,

– The Lad

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