Three Approaches to Product Photography

Professional photography is one of the most powerful tools available to drive sales. Exceptional pictures get products noticed, and motivate customers to make a purchase. A great deal of time and money is spent in the design and production of the products that we photograph, so we work hard to present those products with the most creative and eye-catching photographs possible.

Advertising photographs are the ones that really stand out and grab attention. They make people want to find out more. Whether you plan to place an ad in a magazine, on social media, or a banner on your own website, advertising photography offers opportunities to make some truly creative still life images. Techniques in camera and post production, combined with color theory and lifestyle associations allow us to build an image that will pull your target audience in, and boost the success of your campaigns. Every aspect of the image is thoughtfully crafted to achieve the desired look. These aren’t just pictures, they are valuable business assets.

Styled product photography can mean a number of different things. It tends to incorporate aspects of branding more clearly, and might be either a lifestyle image, on location and perhaps with a model, or a more polished still life product shot in studio that has a lot in common with advertising. This is a good opportunity to help position the product in the buyer’s mind. Associated colors, other items in the shot, the environment and background, as well as the lighting, all contribute to the overall feel. This helps target buyers to identify with your product and is an essential part in motivating them toward the buying process.

Finally we have the catalog or e-commerce photography shot. These are typically done on white, however different brands may approach these images in different ways to help their website or catalog feel more harmonious to the brand and distinct from competitors. Whatever the case, these basic but necessary pictures are the final step in helping the buyer to make their final decision, and are therefore just as important as the advertising and styled photographs. Many products benefit from multiple shots to show different views. In general, it is found that the more pictures an items has in it’s listing, the greater the sales, but obviously photography has a cost, so we partner with our clients to determine the correct number of images needed to boost sales without going overboard. These e-commerce photographs are clean, uncluttered, and well edited. The product itself is looking it’s best, and guides the customer through any unanswered questions that might be making them linger on making that final purchase decision.

Click on the links below to see examples of my product photography:

Three Approaches to Garment Photography

Fashion photography is one of the most compelling types of photography because there’s so much good stuff to see! It’s not just the beautiful clothes, the interesting accessories, or even the gorgeous models. It’s the light, the movement, and the way it all comes together to sell, not just a piece of clothing, but the idea of a lifestyle.

Fashion photography is what we might call aspirational. The looks are not necessarily meant to be worn out on the street, but are meant to inspire and entertain. Fashion brands build their clientele through cutting edge fashion photography. These images stand out and require expert level input from the photographer and fashion stylist, as well as a small cache of models who can really make the images come alive.

-For e-commerce photography, we call the images on a model “on-figure.” We still rely on the fashion stylist to pull it all together, and the model to make it look effortless, but the goal of these images is to educate the customer on how they can wear these garments in their regular life.

For e-commerce applications, most brands also incorporate product photography in the listing to help customers see the garments features and motivate a buying decision.

-Flat lays or pinning - two ways to achieve the same goal. For flat lays the stylist will be working on a tabletop surface and the camera will be directly overhead. This method allows for lots of movement and volume, and is an excellent choice for brands that like a more styled approach as the garments can also be layered or paired. Pinning is when the stylist actually pins the garments to a board. This method is easier on the stylist’s back so they can get through more pieces in a day, and it is ideal to create uniform shapes that look cohesive on a website.

-Ghost mannequins are another options that some brands find to be the best solution. For fitness brands and other garments where some volume really helps the garment look like itself (think of yoga pants laying flat versus on legs) and for high fashion brands that want to show the way the item looks on a person, a ghost mannequin shot is often the best choice. For ghost mannequin images, the garments are shot on the mannequin, which is later removed in post. This can be a good choice for brands who choose to forego the on-figure shot and just want to rely on product photography for the catalog.