The importance of having good product photos
A clear and consistent look across your products is visually appealing and can increase customer engagement, while unclear, dim, or blurry imagery can have the opposite effect. Additionally, the more appealing your product catalog looks, the greater the likelihood of repeat customers will be.
The key to product photography
The single most important aspect of product photos is light. This is relevant to any photography, but particularly so in product photography. The quality of the equipment used to take the photos Is leveled by how well-lit you can make your product.
An example of a poorly lit photo and one of a well-lit photo can be seen below:
Low contrast and poorly lit, the food is not discernible:
Better lit using diffuse lighting creates a much more striking image that has each item clearly visible.
Finally, using directional light can create further contrast, though with an increase in hard lines that may not fit your brand.
None of the above shots was taken using expensive equipment, and a decent cell phone camera can be used in a pinch, with the appropriate lighting considerations.
If you have access to artificial lighting, this can be used to greatly impact the look and feel of your product photos:
A simple bare 2-flash setup can create a strong visual representation of the food with clean lines and each part of the image lit evenly:
A snooted flash shot creates a certain amount of drama in the image and emphasizes the food over the rest of the image:
In all of the above, light is the number one factor in changing and defining your product’s appearance, more so than composition and props.
Adding clean and crisp images
The more striking the image and consistency across your product the more likely your customer will order them. If you have any professional images, they generally work best.
Please remember to ensure that they are under 5 MB and under 1000 x 1000 pixels. A square crop is important to ensure appropriate thumbnails are visible in your Slerp Space.