How To Take Awesome Product Photos For Your Etsy Store.

Your Etsy listing photos, greatly impacts your organic click-through-rate(CTR). So, it's important you nail them, Inorder to get more sales. You don't necessarily need to buy expensive camera gear Inorder to take good photos. 

All you need is basic knowledge of product photography, a good phone and nice lighting and voilà, you'll be taking professional photos for your etsy store in no time. If done well, you’ll increase sales and conversions fast and be able to grow a successful online business.

Studies have shown that it takes the human brain 13 milliseconds to process images. So you don’t have much time to make a good first impression on your customers.

In this blog post, you’ll learn, step-by-step, how to take great product photos for your etsy store.

DIY Guide To The Perfect Product Photo For Your Etsy Store.📸

The perceived value of your products and your brand in general depends on the quality of your visual presentation. That means that taking high-end product photos for your etsy store can go a long way. 

By following this DIY guide on how to take great product photos, you too can produce amazing images to use in your etsy product listings.

1. Invest in a High-End Smartphone.

If you're thinking of taking professional looking photos for your etsy store, investing in a good phone is essential. This is great if you’re on a tight budget because you can take photos and edit directly on your phone without ever having to transfer files.

Learning how to take photos on an iPhone or Android might seem tricky at first, but with practice you'll get better.

Smartphone technology has come a long way, with most phones nowadays sporting some of the most advanced technology possibly imaginable. I recommend using a Google pixel 4 or higher, or an iPhone x or higher. If you do have a roubust budget then you can get a fancy camera.

2. Use Neutral Coloured Backgrounds For Your Etsy Product Photos.

Inorder to ensure that your etsy listings stands out from the competition, you need to choose a good background for your product photos. The easiest way to do this is by using neutral coloured backgrounds for your photos. 

A lot of Etsy sellers choose these neutral colors for their product photos because they go well with other color types (primary and secondary) and they won't compete with your products (colour wise). I know you're probably wondering what I mean by "neutral colors".

You can think outside the box and try using different coloured backgrounds until you find what suits you aesthetically.

Some professional sellers also use an advanced technique which involves adding decorative items into their etsy product photos to help draw attention and emphasize what the product is. 

I don't recommend this approach for beginners since they can easily clutter and overshadow their photos.

So you can start with a simple plain coloured background until you get a hang of product photography.

Don't take your products photos on the floor unless it's covered properly with a good neutral coloured fabric or wallpaper.

If you have a little extra cash you work with then I recommend buying a sweep. If you're wondering what a sweep is…

It's a large bendable sheet of paper, which acts as a sort of background for your images. The bottom acts as the surface beneath your product and then curves up into a white wall behind the product.

On camera, the sweep's curve is invisible, emphasizing key product details and allowing the item to own all of a website visitor's attention.

3. Take Your Etsy Product Photos in Good Lighting. 

Good lighting is key to taking sensational photos so it's crucial you pick a well lit room for your product photos. 

There are 2 types of lighting to use when taking photos, these are natural and artificial lighting. While these two can be used when taking photos it's not advisable to use them at the same time. 

This is because adding natural light to an artificially lit photo can soften a product that's meant to look sharp, and adding artificial light to a naturally lit photo can sharpen a product that's meant to look soft. This is why it's advisable to turn off your phone's flash when taking pictures outside.

You might probably be wondering what the difference is between using natural lighting vs artificial lighting in your product photos.

Well to simplify natural light as the name implies refers to the light that we get from natural sources like the sun it is otherwise known as "soft light", because the sun casts a larger, softer range of light than, say, a lamp shining directly on a product. 

Artificial lightning on the other hand refers to the type of light that we get from man made sources like light bulbs. This type of light is often used to highlight physical details in a photo. You can find cheap and good ring lights for your products on aliexpress. Remember to purchase a set of two, so they cancel out each other’s shadows.

Whether you prefer taking photos in natural or artificial lighting there are a few things that you need inorder to take your product photos to the next level. These are Light Reflectors and Diffusers.

| Related Post: How To Get Your Etsy Listings On The First Page.

Light reflectors are great for lighting conditions with sharp shadows. So, if you prefer using artificial lighting then you'll find light reflectors very beneficial because you can use them to direct light to your products in order to soften shadows. You can watch videos on YouTube that teaches how to make homemade diffusers.

I always recommend using natural light and avoiding harsh flashes or artificial light.  My favorite places to take photos are beside a window or door or outside under a covering such as a porch or in the shade of a building.

💡Pro Tip: When using natural light, avoid taking your product photos directly under sunlight as it can be too harsh. It can make colors look saturated and will often highlight flaws in your product—things people normally won't be able to see with the naked eye. 

4. Use a Mini Tripod For Your Product Photos. 

If you want to take quality photos then you should definitely get a mini tripod. They cost $20 or less and are used to stabilize a phone.

Inorder to get a crisp-looking photo that captures every detail of your product, you’ll need to set your camera to a low aperture (a high f/stop) and slow shutter speed. 

However, when your camera is on a slow shutter speed, it’s nearly impossible to hold it still with your hands. This can lead to blurry photos, Hence having a tripod will cone in handy.

5. Edit Your Etsy Product Photos Like a Pro.

For most sellers on etsy editing their product photos can be quite tricky. You can use your phone to easily edit your product photos and add them to your product listing quickly. This is really helpful if you're on the go.

Alot of smartphones come with an in-app editor, but there are a lot  of third-party apps that give you everything you need to make your etsy product photos stand out.

Since it’s really easy to over-edit a photo. I advise you to keep it simple. You can watch tutorials on YouTube to learn how to use some of the apps below to edit your product photos.

1. Lightroom

Available for: iOS and Android

Price: Free

It features easy-to-use tools like sliders and presets to create great photos. Lightroom is also a good option if you plan to edit photos on your computer. You can start on either mobile, web, or desktop, and your edits will automatically be applied across all devices.

If you want to get the most out of Lightroom, you can sign up for the Adobe Creative Cloud Photography plan, which gives you extra features to work with for $9.99 per month.

2. Adobe Photoshop Express

Available for: iOS, Android, and Windows 

Price: Free

You’ve probably heard of Adobe Photoshop, but what about Photoshop Express? With Photoshop express you get all of its great photo editing features right on your smartphone. You also have the option to take product photos either from your phone or directly within the app.

VSCO

Available for: iOS and Android

Price: Free

VSCO has all the basic editing tools you'll need to edit your photos. It’s a great product photo app to enhance images and it also a

huge library of filters use.

If you want to share your product photos on social media, you can use VSCO Grid. It's integrated into the app and makes it very easy for you to share your images on social media and email.

Camera+

Available for: iOS

Price: $2.99

Camera+ is a great option for both both noob and pro photo editors. You can use Camera+ not only as an editor but also as a camera for your product shoots. This photography app lets you set exposure and focus and also includes a timer, stabilizer etc to make you feel feel like you’re shooting with a high-quality DSLR camera lens. 

If you’re to edit photos on your computer, you can use Camera+ to capture product photos in RAW, to make sure no information or data gets compressed.

💡Pro Tip: When you’re editing your photos, try only to make some slight changes. Adding too much color or changing any other setting will result in an unnatural-looking image.

Conclusion.

With the help of product photography, you can tell your brand story through your social media posts, email updates, marketing events and digital ads. 

With all of the above info, you’re well on your way to mastering product photography and selling more photos in your store.

I hope you enjoyed this blog post as much as I loved writing it, if you have anything to add to this blog post feel free to leave them in the comments section.