Snap! Click! Smile! Today, you are behind the camera instead of in front of it. As a business owner, it is critical for your marketing to employ high-quality photos demonstrating your brand, message, and product to your potential customers. Unfortunately, photography is not easy; professionals spend their entire lives learning and honing the craft. However, that doesn’t mean it is impossible for you to do your own photography. By utilizing these five commercial photography tips from digital marketing experts, you can boost your skillset to create enticing, beautiful photos.
5 Commercial Photography Tips
#1: Buy Commercial Photography Equipment
Investing in high-quality equipment is one of the best tips for producing top-tier commercial photography. While some may think they can get away with using an outdated camera or even a smartphone, the photo quality simply won’t compare to that of a professional camera. In addition, it is wise to invest in support items such as tripods, props, and lighting so that you can create a stable environment for every shoot.
Pro Tip: Buying high-quality equipment may seem like a considerable expense, and it can be. That is why we recommend checking out product reviews of your favorite photographers to see which equipment they recommend.
#2: Utilize Proper Lighting
Speaking of lighting, it is a crucial factor in every picture taken. When it comes to professional photography, you will need to bounce between natural and artificial lighting. Natural lighting is the preferred option for photographing people, foods, and clothing. If possible, you will want to shoot outside. However, if an outside shoot isn’t possible, you will want what you photograph to be set up facing a window.
In contrast, artificial lighting is commonly used solely for indoor items, like kitchen supplies or appliances, and small items that require fine detailing. You will want to purchase high-quality lighting equipment to provide the best artificial light for your products.
Pro Tip: When shooting in natural light, the time of day really does matter. Often, mid-day sunshine is too harsh and will cause a glare. We recommend aiming for a shoot during the early morning, late afternoon, or when there is overcast.
#3: Become One with the Rule of Thirds
If you have taken any type of art class, whether it is for commercial photography or a high school art class, you have likely heard of the Rule of Thirds. Adobe defines The Rule of Thirds as “a composition guideline that places your subject in the left or right third of an image, leaving the other two thirds more open.” This rule is widely used because it pleases the eye and creates compelling, balanced photographs.
When performing commercial product photography photoshoot, you will want to become one with the Rule of Thirds, knowing when to use it and when to break it.
Pro Tip: We highly recommend practicing the Rule of Thirds in everyday life to see how you can convert it into photography. Practice with your fashion choices, decorating, and more!
#4: Take “Too Many” Photos
There is a reason why professional photographers take hundreds, if not thousands, of photos at a time. The more pictures you take, the more options you have for the final product. However, this is not a tip saying that quantity is better than quality because it isn’t.
When you are taking photos, you want to take a lot of amazing photos. By changing angles, lighting, contrast, and other characteristics of the shot a little at a time, you will find the perfect balance of what you are looking for. Too few photos leave fewer options in the end.
Pro Tip: Depending on your camera type, you may be able to take multiple photos (known as a burst shot) at once as you move. We recommend exploring this feature!
#5: Aim for Minimal Editing
It can be tempting to shoot a lazy shoot and think to yourself, “I’ll just fix it up during editing.” Unfortunately, a lazy shoot can end in disaster, either by producing poor-quality photos or by having to re-do the entire shoot.
We recommend always thinking of editing as a final touch-up to define an already fabulous photo just a smidge more. Therefore, when you perform a shoot or even take a single picture, you should always aim for minimal editing.
Pro Tip: Even though you aim for minimal editing, you still want to invest in top-of-the-line editing software. The basic program that came on your laptop isn’t going to cut it. We are talking Adobe, Skylum, DxO, or other similar programs.
Bonus Tip: Hire a Professional Digital Marketing Team
Let’s be honest; even with the tips above, it can be a downright pain to learn about photography while running a business. Between the camera equipment, the countless hours of researching techniques, and all the editing…is it really worth it to do it yourself? If you do not absolutely love photography, you will soon grow to hate this extra task as your business grows, often taking the easy way out to only end up hurting your brand.
Rather than getting frustrated or letting quality photos slip away, you can reach out to Spotted Fox Digital Marketing to take care of your commercial photography marketing. If you would like to schedule a photography marketing consultation with us, please complete our online contact form.
