Setup Your Own Studio for Product Photography in 2024

product photography

Last updated - January 12, 2024

Any brand’s worth is usually determined by its products or services and its level of credibility. Therefore, every content’s visual presentation is vital, which means that high-quality product photography is essential.

As significant as it is to produce high-quality photos, not every company can afford to engage a professional photographer if you’re starting as a business owner and need to develop product photographs.

Your own product photography studio for your eCommerce business is a cost-effective option, along with getting yourself an eCommerce photo retouching service. However, this process can be easier and simpler if you have the correct tools and know-how to use them.

The photos will determine whether your products sell or not. If you plan to promote your business online, this will be considerably more difficult because you will be competing with hundreds of other companies.

Why is Product Photography important?

Customers commonly use photo quality to assess the product’s worth. Therefore, the poor photo quality will have a negative influence on your business.

Often hiring professional services can be very expensive, especially if you’re a beginner; however, there are dozens of tutorials and advice online that will show you that product photography can be done flawlessly at home. 

This style of photography isn’t nearly as challenging as many people believe.

You can utilize a variety of ways to successfully capture product photos, such as one of the most widely used is the technique to use the light streaming in from your windows.

How to build your own product photography studio?

product photography

If you’re a small business owner on a budget who wants to do your own product photography, here are a few essential guides that will teach you everything you need to know about gear, methods, and tips.

It’s a comprehensive, straightforward approach that will help you in taking perfect professional photographs.

The Room

Along with a camera and tripod, you need numerous basic things to create a photography studio. The first step to do that is to have the perfect room that satisfies your requirements. 

You should find a place with a window against a wall.

By positioning your table near the window, you can quickly generate a natural light effect that is visually more appealing.

While moving further away from the window may allow your setup to get more light, it will also result in lighter and sharper shadows. However, fixing it with a larger window is better since more light streams through and fall on the product. To manage the light spill in a room with a lot of natural light, lower each shade.

Camera 

Another one of the essential components in a photography studio is to have a good camera.  There are various high-end digital cameras available; you don’t necessarily need an expensive camera. .

If you don’t yet have a camera and want to get one, you must first conduct the proper research to find the one that meets your demands and fits within your budget.

Check into the characteristics of a decent camera online, then look for those suited explicitly for product photography from different websites.

If you are using a smartphone instead of a camera, you can still look for helpful techniques appropriate for phones.

Table for Platform

If you want to place and organize your goods appropriately, you’ll need a photography table to keep your products on it. However, If your product is too high or low, you won’t be able to take photos of it comfortably or quickly.

Easy-to-use folding card tables are the best option you have to achieve a successful shoot with maximum efficiency.

A folding table’s portability helps you do your work even better since you can change locations and bring it along with you to use. You will easily find tables like these in shops or online for less than $50.

Tripod

The tripod is a crucial component of any home photography studio since it enables the device to be stable and operate in dimly lit areas.

You don’t need to purchase a tripod for a large sum of money.

There are many different types of tripods to pick from, and you can acquire an excellent one for as little as $20 from any shop or online site.

A higher-quality tripod will provide more stability, which is a requirement when you photograph small items where you want as little movement as possible to prevent fuzzy images, especially during focus stacking.

Background

One of the most crucial parts of a photograph is a well-chosen background that enhances the subject’s appearance.

It improves the overall viewing experience of the image. Finding the correct background is worthwhile because it makes the editing process much more straightforward in the long run. When it comes to product photography, what you should always go for is a white backdrop.

There are numerous methods for photographing your goods against a white background.

There are two methods for obtaining a white background photography shoot. The first way is that you can photograph your product against a white backdrop. 

The second advantage is that you can photograph your product against any background and then, in the post-production process, erase the background from the photograph in Photoshop.

Using A Reflector

You can improve product visibility by using reflectors. When photographing a product, this can be useful for increasing the quality of the image. 

Though professional reflectors can be pretty costly, makeshift reflectors like white foam boards do the job perfectly. In addition, these tools make controlling the light with reflecting materials such as metal and glass more accessible.

Tips for in-house product photography

product photography

While the guide mentioned above is essential, they almost always need additional support and work to be fully utilized. Here, we have compiled a list of a few extra tips that are very important to keep in mind and use along with the basics:

Extra Lens 

An excellent macro lens is something you should look into if you’re taking pictures of items that are smaller than an inch broad. 

The 18-55mm works great for everything else though it is also recommended to have a variety of lenses as it allows you to have more options for you to utilize. For e-commerce and product photography, a moderately high amount of clarity of details is sufficient.

Lighting

Lighting is one of the most important techniques to know when it comes to photography. For tiny products, use a professional lightbox for greater detail and higher quality. While natural light is the top choice, it is recommended that you carefully choose your artificial lightings like studio and ring lights. 

Memory Backup

Always have extra memory cards in hand to make sure your production isn’t halted because your memory card ran out of space. A modestly-sized SD card (+16GB) should cost no more than $10 these days. 

Backdrops

While the white background is the standard in product photography, sometimes taking creative liberties helps to break the pace and increases customers’ interest in the product and your business. 

Using multiple colored backdrops or even printed backdrops contextually with the products enhances the image’s visual appeal. An excellent alternative to background backdrops is to use a roll of solid colored paper for a seamless background. 

Multiple Angled Shots

Take pictures from various perspectives. Head-on images are used for simplicity, but alternative views can help customers see and understand more of the product. Using a sideways position to photograph a product helps bring out the product’s textures and characteristics.

Use Clamps And Tape

It may seem irrelevant, but these are pretty vital as these small things help to maintain the set. In addition, duct tapes and clamps are handy to hold the backdrops and props in place. 

Post Production Process

Even if your product shot is flawless, you can’t present it to your customers without post-processing. To explain why, it’s because raw photos might be riddled with imperfections, including scratches, blemishes, and poor lighting. Image retouching is the only way to fix these flaws and make them more visually appealing.

Suppose you are unable to make these edits yourself or hire professional graphic designers. In that case, there are many e-commerce photo editing services including UK Clipping Path online that give you high-quality image editing at highly affordable rates.

However, finding an eCommerce photo editing service can be challenging to cater to what you need. Hence, you can start with the UK Clipping Path eCommerce photo editing services who are well known in the market for their high standard service and price ranges. 

You can also check product retouching services for better product photography.

Final Words

When you’re a beginner in photography, starting from setting up your own studio to the post-production process. All these processes may seem overwhelming, but it will be worth it when you get to shoot.

However, it is essential to note that no one gets everything right on the first try, especially in photography; the process takes time and practice to perfect. We hope this article has helped you understand and get started with your photography studio or made you aware of things you weren’t before. 

Further reading

2 COMMENTS

  1. There’s a new AI-powered product photography app at Stylized ai that lets you go from phone photo to virtual lightbox in 10 seconds. It uses 3D modelling technology for realistic shadows and studio lighting so you’ll get both silo photography and assets for content marketing.

    • Hi Boyang,

      Thanks for your recommendation.

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