Product photography that really works

Cherry Beesley at Simply C Photography shares her product photography tips to help businesses to really capture the essence of their brand and drive sales and enquiries.

Regardless of whether your business is in fashion, beauty or technology, professional product photography that reflects your brand, as well as the intended use of your product(s), can do wonders for your bottom line.

That’s why it’s so important to think about the bigger picture when arranging a photo shoot for your products, rather than viewing it as a mundane ‘must do’ when updating your websites or producing a brochure or and catalogue for your business.

Online/Ecommerce Photography – When most people think of product photography, they may conjure up images of items centred in the middle of a white or styled plain background. This is just one way to showcase a product and is most likely to be found on an e-commerce website or product catalogue, both of which rely on simple, consistent imagery that clearly displays product features and functions.

Producing high quality images of this nature is essential when it comes to converting sales. This is true whether you are selling a diamond ring, item of clothing or piece of agricultural machinery…

There is a reason why online selling sites such as Amazon or Ebay display a range of images for each product – with high quality photos also providing an option for viewers to ‘zoom in’ on their selected picture for a close up view without losing any clarity.

Product Photography for Printed Literature – Whilst the world wide web may appear to have taken over of late, it’s still the case that brochures, magazines and printed literature all have their place in modern marketing.

In fact, with many of the clients I work with, we have found that discerning buyers still love the feeling of something tangible they can flick through.

This is great news for people like me as it means I can still create fantastic images that really come into their own when coupled with beautifully designed, high quality stock literature like the below:

With this type of format, there are certain considerations that need to be made in terms of image quality and resolution. A professional commercial photographer will understand this and produce your images accordingly, ensuring that your products are displayed in the best possible way.

Lifestyle- led Product Photography – Taking photos of your products isn’t just about showing off their features or letting potential customers know what they look like.

The purpose of much product photography is to ‘bring them to life’ in front of the eyes of your intended market, and allow them to picture them in-use, whatever that may entail.

This style of photography is ideal for setting the scene and you will already be familiar with it through formats including magazines and outdoor advertising. It allows viewers (who are your potential customers) to imagine themselves living out their desired lifestyles wearing your clothing products, using your coffee maker or relaxing in your furniture for example.

TV advertisers have understood this concept of storytelling for decades (think of every coffee advert you have ever seen – “Nicole..? Papa!”), and now professional photographer like myself can use this knowledge of how the human mind works to help you sell your products.

There is so much more to product photography than meets the eye, and it’s an area where you can get as creative as you like – so long as your ideas match your goals for your business and will help to differentiate your brand in the right way.

Contact Cherry on 07775 851827 for high quality, creative product photography that will help tell the unique story of your company and all it offers. To view samples of recent product-based photography, take a look at Cherry’s gallery here.