There might come a time when it is a cloudy day, and you need to get pictures taken. Or maybe you are not free to photograph during the day, and need to get good pictures at night after the kids are in bed. A tabletop photo "studio" is something to consider.
Professional set ups can cost into the thousands. Average price for photo studio and lamps? $800. There are alternatives though, and if you can do simple edits in your software, then consider this setup: http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=8144811
My Walmart store sells something a bit different, and it costs approximately $45. I couldn't find it on their website, but that link is close enough. It comes with the lights, mini-tripod, and two back drops. And it is easily tucked away when not in use.
Or... Feeling crafty and thrifty? Make it yourself! Here is an excellent example: http://www.strobist.blogspot.com
Have fun and happy picture taking!
~Kirsten
Thursday, March 6, 2008
Tuesday, March 4, 2008
The Fairies Nest
Once a week or so, I will be posting interviews with various online sellers. I am excited to begin with this interview with Cynthia of The Fairies Nest! She photographs her product in indirect sunlight, and uses Picasa as her image editor. Enjoy getting to know a bit about her!
How long you have been selling on the internet? I've been actively selling online for just a little over a year. Before that I only sold through galleries and shows.
What camera do you use to photograph your product? What do you like about this camera? I have a Canon Powershot A520 that I got in 2006. I had never owned a digital camera before so I was really starting from scratch and learning by doing! I love that I can plug it in and load my pictures on to the computer so easily.
Describe your process for taking pictures of your product. What photo set up do you use?
(Okay here's where I show you how little I know about cameras, so try not to laugh!) I try to shoot outside in natural light as much as possible. So here's my fancy setup. I have a sheet of white posterboard that I use for a back drop. I place it on a table in a bright spot but NOT in direct sunlight and lean it up against the house. I usually do this on the front porch of my house, which faces west, at about 11:00 in the morning (although I have been known to use the dining room table, a pillow, and a sunny window inside if it's frigid out! ) I then set my camera on macro, make sure the flash is off and zoom in to where the doll is close but still in focus.Then I take LOTS of pictures from all different angles! That way I'm sure to get a few decent shots.
What is the photo editing software you use most often? I use Picasa2 and I have to say that besides being free, which for a starving artist is really cool, it does what I need. I can crop, adjust light and color, sharpen, and straighten up those shots where I seem to be leaning into the wind...how Does that happen?
Name: Cynthia Toy 
Bio: I am a cloth doll artist, mother of three young men, avid reader, crazy cat lady, wife, corgi owner, believer in fairies, organic gardener, and compulsive fiber collector.
How long you have been selling on the internet? I've been actively selling online for just a little over a year. Before that I only sold through galleries and shows.
What camera do you use to photograph your product? What do you like about this camera? I have a Canon Powershot A520 that I got in 2006. I had never owned a digital camera before so I was really starting from scratch and learning by doing! I love that I can plug it in and load my pictures on to the computer so easily.
Describe your process for taking pictures of your product. What photo set up do you use?
(Okay here's where I show you how little I know about cameras, so try not to laugh!) I try to shoot outside in natural light as much as possible. So here's my fancy setup. I have a sheet of white posterboard that I use for a back drop. I place it on a table in a bright spot but NOT in direct sunlight and lean it up against the house. I usually do this on the front porch of my house, which faces west, at about 11:00 in the morning (although I have been known to use the dining room table, a pillow, and a sunny window inside if it's frigid out! ) I then set my camera on macro, make sure the flash is off and zoom in to where the doll is close but still in focus.Then I take LOTS of pictures from all different angles! That way I'm sure to get a few decent shots.
What is the photo editing software you use most often? I use Picasa2 and I have to say that besides being free, which for a starving artist is really cool, it does what I need. I can crop, adjust light and color, sharpen, and straighten up those shots where I seem to be leaning into the wind...how Does that happen?
What do you like best about this software? Did I mention it's free?! Seriously!
What are some of your struggles with product photography/editing? I wish I had a camera with picture stabilzation, fewer blurry shots in less optimal lighting situations.
What is your favorite thing about product photography/editing? I love being able to take an okay shot and turn it into something that really shows off my product. I've also recently gotten into more staging of my shots, adding a prop or shooting in a natural settting, and that can add some fun to the process.
What are some of your struggles with product photography/editing? I wish I had a camera with picture stabilzation, fewer blurry shots in less optimal lighting situations.
What is your favorite thing about product photography/editing? I love being able to take an okay shot and turn it into something that really shows off my product. I've also recently gotten into more staging of my shots, adding a prop or shooting in a natural settting, and that can add some fun to the process.
Do you have any product presentation tips you'd like to share? A problem I see a lot of people make is trying to get too close to their object. I use cropping when I edit to get more of a close up and that allows me to keep my dolls in focus. Blurry pictures are one of the biggest photo no nos I see on Etsy.
Thank you, Cynthia, for sharing with the OIS blog your experience! I asked Cynthia to send along a before and after shot so we could see what comes out of the camera, to what ends up being the final product photo. I think she has a good thing going!
Be sure to visit Cynthia's website and etsy shop to see more of her beautiful fairie folk.
~Kirsten
Thank you, Cynthia, for sharing with the OIS blog your experience! I asked Cynthia to send along a before and after shot so we could see what comes out of the camera, to what ends up being the final product photo. I think she has a good thing going!
Be sure to visit Cynthia's website and etsy shop to see more of her beautiful fairie folk.~Kirsten
Lighting for Free
Lighting. It is the most important aspect of product photography. You could have the fanciest camera, but if your lighting is incorrect, you will not get good results. Conversely, if you have good lighting, and a so-so camera, you will get surprisingly good photos!
Photo editing can repair some lighting errors, but not all. The heavier you need to correct with software, the greater your image quality will suffer.
So lets talk about lighting! The options are countless, so I would like to focus this blog post on a readily available lighting option. If we start looking at strobes, fixtures and gadgets, we will soon realize we could easily overspend! If photography is your hobby, or your livelihood, then those things are exciting. But this blog is for those selling a product, and needing to get good pictures for the internet. We're not professionals. So, lets spend our money on other things. We can get good pictures with inexpensive lighting.
In fact, the first light source we will discuss is FREE. Yep, that's right! Can you guess? :-)
The sun. It is the perfect lighting for product photos. It is what you do with that light that will make your photos good. Placing your product in sunlight and snapping pictures will most likely not yield good results. The light needs to be INDIRECT, filtered in some way. You want to avoid shadow. Covering pieces of cardboard with silver foil (of the kitchen variety) and positioning them at angles to your product will act as reflectors and help light your product from many angles.
Do you have a counter or table
top that gets good indirect light? Do some experimenting. Start with a white background (Typing paper, poster board, or for larger items, paper on a roll.) Position yourself so you are not casting a shadow. Position your reflectors. No flash. Macro.
A gradient background is helpful for objects that won't be well featured on a white background. It also has a professional look. You can get gradient paper at photo shops. In a future blog post I will talk more about backgrounds.
Another option using sunlight is to add artificial lighting. Doing so will cut down much of your photo editing. Later this week, I will blog about light bulbs. Halogen, LED, incandescent, florescent, warm, cool, high watt, low watt... Wading through the technicalities is confusing! Which is best for product photography, and how can I get the best result for the lowest cost? Later this week, I will tell you!
~Kirsten
Photo editing can repair some lighting errors, but not all. The heavier you need to correct with software, the greater your image quality will suffer.
So lets talk about lighting! The options are countless, so I would like to focus this blog post on a readily available lighting option. If we start looking at strobes, fixtures and gadgets, we will soon realize we could easily overspend! If photography is your hobby, or your livelihood, then those things are exciting. But this blog is for those selling a product, and needing to get good pictures for the internet. We're not professionals. So, lets spend our money on other things. We can get good pictures with inexpensive lighting.
In fact, the first light source we will discuss is FREE. Yep, that's right! Can you guess? :-)
The sun. It is the perfect lighting for product photos. It is what you do with that light that will make your photos good. Placing your product in sunlight and snapping pictures will most likely not yield good results. The light needs to be INDIRECT, filtered in some way. You want to avoid shadow. Covering pieces of cardboard with silver foil (of the kitchen variety) and positioning them at angles to your product will act as reflectors and help light your product from many angles.
Do you have a counter or table
top that gets good indirect light? Do some experimenting. Start with a white background (Typing paper, poster board, or for larger items, paper on a roll.) Position yourself so you are not casting a shadow. Position your reflectors. No flash. Macro.A gradient background is helpful for objects that won't be well featured on a white background. It also has a professional look. You can get gradient paper at photo shops. In a future blog post I will talk more about backgrounds.
Another option using sunlight is to add artificial lighting. Doing so will cut down much of your photo editing. Later this week, I will blog about light bulbs. Halogen, LED, incandescent, florescent, warm, cool, high watt, low watt... Wading through the technicalities is confusing! Which is best for product photography, and how can I get the best result for the lowest cost? Later this week, I will tell you!
~Kirsten
Monday, March 3, 2008
Macro
So what is macro? It is photographing your product at close range. With macro, you can get close sharp details of your product - essential for online presentation.
Whether you are using a point and shoot camera, or a digital SLR like the Canon Rebel, you will need to know about shooting in macro. Future blog posts will talk about special-purpose lenses for your DSLR. This blog post will consider macro of the point and shoot variety.
Almost every point and shoot digital camera comes with a macro setting. Don't know if your camera has macro? A flower is the industry standard icon. Look for the flower on your camera, and select that.
Don't confuse macro with zoom. When you photograph in macro, you do not zoom at all. Zooming will always affect image quality. While great for catching your kid in action on the soccer field, zoom is not used at all in product photography.
A steady hand is important, as macro photography is not very forgiving, and even the slightest waver or vibration can effect your image quality. Some photographers set up on a tripod with a "shutter extension" so they don't even touch the camera, for even that slight movement can affect the image.
Not to say that all of your pictures using macro need to be on a tripod. And I personally have never used an extension button. Just be aware that you will need to be super still when you press that shutter button! Hold your breath.
Whether you are photographing on your kitchen counter on a sheet of typing paper, in a light box with professional photo paper, or out in nature, you will need to use the macro setting to capture your product best.
Future blog posts will talk about tips on getting the best macro shots. My one tip for now is to hold the shutter button down half way, allow your camera to focus, then push down the rest of the way for the picture. If you find your camera is not focusing, back out ever so slightly, even just a quarter inch, and try again. My camera is finicky, and sometimes I will need to half-way push the button five or six times before it will finally focus and I can get my shot.
Of course, lighting is the most important part of photographing in macro. When you photograph in macro, you will not use a flash. Stay tuned for the next blog post, which will discuss certain aspects of lighting.
~Kirsten
Saturday, March 1, 2008
Picasa
There are plenty of photo editing programs on the market today, in all different price ranges. Perhaps your digital camera came with organizing and editing software. For family pictures, this software is very helpful. You can get rid of red eye, crop, and auto enhance.
If you are wanting to showcase something on the internet, you will probably be looking for software that offers you more. The search for the perfect software is daunting, especially if you are price conscious. The adage "you get what you pay for" does not necessarily fit in this situation.
In the coming weeks, I will be blogging about editing software options. Today, I will tell you about Picasa, which is a free download from Google. Link: http://picasa.google.com/
Picasa is similar to the software you might get with your digital camera. It organizes your photos, and performs basic editing such as auto enhance and resizing. It is packed with common sense, and that is worth alot! Editing software tends to come with a learning curve. Not so with Picasa. And if you do find you need help, they have a user-friendly online FAQ and "getting started" guide.
If you want to fancy up your family pictures, Picasa has alot to offer you, with several auto-effects such as sepia, and black and white, with easy controls to adjust brightness, contrast & color saturation.
If you want to improve your product photos, Picasa might leave you frustrated. You do not want fancy effects on a product image. You want bright, crisp and clear details. You can resize your image through "export" but the sizes are predetermined, leaving you with no flexibility.
Surprisingly, one thing I can depend on Picasa for is resizing text graphics. I have found it resizes the text perfectly with no loss of clarity. If you are having trouble with your text blurring when resized, give Picasa a try.
Picasa's strength is in photo organizing, and enhancing family pictures. And it is free. Try it, and post back here about how it went!
~Kirsten
If you are wanting to showcase something on the internet, you will probably be looking for software that offers you more. The search for the perfect software is daunting, especially if you are price conscious. The adage "you get what you pay for" does not necessarily fit in this situation.
In the coming weeks, I will be blogging about editing software options. Today, I will tell you about Picasa, which is a free download from Google. Link: http://picasa.google.com/
Picasa is similar to the software you might get with your digital camera. It organizes your photos, and performs basic editing such as auto enhance and resizing. It is packed with common sense, and that is worth alot! Editing software tends to come with a learning curve. Not so with Picasa. And if you do find you need help, they have a user-friendly online FAQ and "getting started" guide.
If you want to fancy up your family pictures, Picasa has alot to offer you, with several auto-effects such as sepia, and black and white, with easy controls to adjust brightness, contrast & color saturation.
If you want to improve your product photos, Picasa might leave you frustrated. You do not want fancy effects on a product image. You want bright, crisp and clear details. You can resize your image through "export" but the sizes are predetermined, leaving you with no flexibility.
Surprisingly, one thing I can depend on Picasa for is resizing text graphics. I have found it resizes the text perfectly with no loss of clarity. If you are having trouble with your text blurring when resized, give Picasa a try.
Picasa's strength is in photo organizing, and enhancing family pictures. And it is free. Try it, and post back here about how it went!
~Kirsten
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