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Product Photos – Do’s Don’ts  (Part 1)

Product Photos – Do’s Don’ts (Part 1)

Product Photos – Do’s Don’ts (Part 1)

Welcome to the Crystal Clear Podcast where we strive to empower the everyday creative boss to elevate and grow a business that matches your creativity and passion for creating products.

 

Things mentioned in this podcast episode:

 

Are you looking to DIY your product photography? I am sharing my top 5 do’s and don’ts when taking product photography. This is helpful if you are trying to take the pictures yourself at home or to help you know what to expect if you are outsourcing your photography for the first time. 

Do’s and Don’ts of Product Photography:

 

  • Do branch out and use more than a white background. My favorite place to go for backgrounds is Stile and Co. They have a wide range of backgrounds that are great for any type of photo and they are easy to clean and store.
  • Don’t leave your images unedited. Even if you are just using your phone to take your pictures there are still ways that you can edit your photos. The lightroom app with some presets is a great place to start! 
  • Do collect props that fit your brand aesthetic. This will allow you to switch things up and still stay on brand. This can be as easy as picking something up from Target that fits your brand.
  • Don’t aimlessly pull random things from your home. This will show in your images. Especially if it is something that is used like shoes or make-up. 
  • Do look for clay and hand made items. Clay is very trendy right now so look for these types of things on etsy or even your local goodwill or antique store. 
  • Don’t forget to play with your lighting. This could be playing with how the sun hits your window and blinds or by adding dramatic lighting or shadows. This is a great place to start with more education in your DIY photography journey. 
  • Do incorporate pops of color. But only if it fits your brand. It doesn’t have to be bright or crazy. It can be a subtle pop of color that you use on your website as an accent color. 
  • Don’t stray from your branding. This leaves your business looking busy, lacking direction and zero consistency. So when you are looking for props and other ways to add color don’t stray from your branding. 
  • Do refresh your images periodically. Don’t keep your images in a constant loop. You have to devote time to create new images and content in order to keep everything up to date and fresh.
  • Don’t underestimate the power of professional photography. Even if it is just one shoot to give you new and fresh content to allow you to have a consistent brand appearance take the jump and outsource it. 

Have more questions about product photography? Shoot me a DM on Instagram. I am happy to answer anything for you! 

Like this episode?

Comment, share on Pinterest, or even snap a screenshot and tag me on Instagram! I’d love to hear what you think about props for product photography.

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About Crystal

Crystal is the Creative Director, Photo Stylist, and Commercial Photographer behind Crystal Clear Creative Studios. From increased sales, visibility, and trends to conversions and full production, Crystal and her team, experts on the subject matter, provide clients with confidence to take your photography and videography needs off your plate. We support you in your growth with the creation and implementation of transformative ideas.

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Developing New Ideas for Product Photos

Developing New Ideas for Product Photos

Developing New Ideas for Product Photos

Welcome to the Crystal Clear Podcast where we strive to empower the everyday creative boss to elevate and grow a business that matches your creativity and passion for creating products.

 

Things mentioned in this podcast episode:

 

As a creative director, I share my secrets on gathering inspiration for photos and using it to create something unique that will attract your ideal customer. This week I share my top 3 tips on creating unique product photos that will help your ideal customers stop their scroll and absorb what you are promoting.

Tips for Developing New Ideas for Product Photos:

 

  • Source Inspiration – Gather different pieces of things that you like and create something that is unique to you and your product. Look for the different ways people are using a product similar to yours, check the backgrounds they are using, the textures, and the lighting. Instagram, Pinterest, Google, and even magazines are all good places to go when looking for inspiration.
  • Get Specific with Color, Unique Details, or Specific products – Search on Pinterest for your brand colors and see what is popping up. Look up ideas by your industry and then by unique details that make your product stand out. Maybe that is how it is made, a specific ingredient or the way you package it.
  • Organize your inspiration ideas and centralize them in one place or folder – This could be done on a folder in your photos, a Pinterest board, or even an app like Collect to organize all of your photos and screenshots of inspiration.

After sourcing all of your inspiration it is time to sit down and pull out all the things that don’t fit. Once you pull out the things that don’t fit you can start to narrow ideas down and combine ideas to create something unique to you and your brand. When you are evaluating all of the bits of inspiration be very honest with yourself on what you do and don’t like about the images. Looking at the lighting, the shadows, the placement of different things in the images, and the colors. All of this will help you to create something unique to yourself.

 

If all of that overwhelms you then reach out to me and let’s talk about the ways I can help you as a creative director.

Like this episode?

Comment, share on Pinterest, or even snap a screenshot and tag me on Instagram! I’d love to hear what you think about props for product photography.

Keep Listening

About Crystal

Crystal is the Creative Director, Photo Stylist, and Commercial Photographer behind Crystal Clear Creative Studios. From increased sales, visibility, and trends to conversions and full production, Crystal and her team, experts on the subject matter, provide clients with confidence to take your photography and videography needs off your plate. We support you in your growth with the creation and implementation of transformative ideas.

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Product Photos – Studio lighting VS Natural light

Product Photos – Studio lighting VS Natural light

Product Photos – Studio lighting VS Natural light

Product Photos - Studio lighting VS Natural light

Welcome to the Crystal Clear Podcast where we strive to empower the everyday creative boss to elevate and grow a business that matches your creativity and passion for creating products.

 

Things mentioned in this podcast episode:

 

This episode is not to debunk one source of lighting over the other but rather to talk about the difference in the two. My background is in natural lighting. Its the main source for all of my photography since I started my business. However, in the last year I have found many uses in studio professional lighting.

So to dive right on in… the true difference in studio lighting and natural lighting is control.

Continued… 

With studio lighting, the whites are whiter, in other words providing a crisp and more actual depiction of the colors. The shadows can be more direct and controlled in a professional setting. Though they can also appear a bit more harsh unless your light is balanced. The best part is getting to add or take away the lighting, shadows and drama in your images. Lastly, the clarity and focus is infinitely better and reflected in the end result.

So why might a photographer still choose natural light over professional lighting? The natural lighting provides a realness and softer appeal that the studio lighting lacks. There’s a better, intrinsic balance without shadow. As a photographer myself, I like the option of having the option to backlight my images and add an element of overexposure where needed. The natural lighting can also provide a warmer tone. I’ve also found in my work, that models’ skin tone, in natural light, to show more true because of that warmer tone from the sun.

The past few months I’ve really enjoyed mixing my lighting sources and options to fit each clients brand even better. So, tell me, are you a natural light kind of gal or is something more dramatic ideal for your brand?

Take a screenshot and share with me on Instagram as I dive in to more tips and behind the scenes of my product photography.

Like this episode?

Comment, share on Pinterest, or even snap a screenshot and tag me on Instagram! I’d love to hear what you think about props for product photography.

Keep Listening

About Crystal

Corporate America had me at hello for 10 years. And just when I thought I was where I was supposed to be, God changed the narrative and helped me find more time for my husband and two beautiful girls through my own photography business. Now, I live for all things styled photography and serving the business community exclusively through styled imagery and personal brand photography.

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My Top Tools for Editing Photos and Creating Graphics

My Top Tools for Editing Photos and Creating Graphics

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My Top Tools for Editing Photos and Creating Graphics

top tools for editing and creating graphics

I get a lot of questions and wonderful compliments about the graphics and the branding in the way that I do things.

S

o, I thought I would dive more into how I edit my graphics and photos and share my tips with you. 

 

First Things, First 

When it comes to editing, I have a set of presets that I have tweaked and developed based on how I like editing my photos. They’re bright with loads of contrast. I shoot in a RAW format on my camera, which means I’m allowing the file to absorb as much data on the color and lighting as possible. Then, I cull through my photos and narrow them down to the best ones before bringing them into Lightroom. This is where I’ll apply my presets because I know they already have the tweaks needed to make the photo better most of the time. And then I go through, and I have to make subtle adjustments. 

The Types of Adjustments I Make 

One of the most common adjustments I make to my photos is tweaking the brightness. Every day could be different, as well as the time of the day. So sometimes, I’ll go through and make subtle adjustments if everything wasn’t at the prime time that I tried to shoot that day. I adjust my whites and bring them up about 20 points or so. I like to drop the shadows down to keep the dark contrast and keep things that are dark, dark. Then, I will also adjust my lights and make them lighter.

 

From there, I’ll bring my photos into Photoshop for some final touchups. I’m not a big fan of Photoshop, but I do use it for things like overlays. If there’s a screenshot or blank tablet and I want to put a nice overlay – you get better mobility in Photoshop by manipulating the screenshot. If you have some fuzz on a shirt or lint on the floor of a flat lay and need to edit it off quickly – Photoshop is the best option.

 

If I need to add a screenshot or make any quick edits, I use the “healing tool” to take out little imperfections and things here and there. Then, I export my edited photos into Canva, which I use to create all of my graphics to avoid the rabbit hole that comes along with Photoshop, InDesign, and some of the more advanced programs.

Creating Graphics 

I’d say about 80% of the graphics I create are done in Canva. You can use Photoshop, but I find it time-consuming since the program is more complicated and detailed than what I need. In Canva, I can quickly plug in my photos to pre-made templates, and they still have a high-quality resolution. I can make a quick design, export it fast, and get it out there.

Conclusion 

Having these platforms makes my process for editing, creating photos, and graphics more efficient. I can rapidly produce lots of content and social media posts. So if you want to edit more like me or try to edit your flat lay, and you want better whites and brights, I recommend you check out my Presets Mini-Course.

 

I created a mini-course that includes videos of me pulling up a few photos and showing you how I make specific tweaks and adjustments based on common things that you’ll find wrong. For example, why some images look very gray or the whites aren’t white enough, different color tones based on the time of day the photo was taken, things like that.

 

I give you both Lightroom for mobile and desktop, in case you would rather stick to having the mobile format. If you have any questions about my process or some of the things that I do, send me a message. I answer questions like this all the time. You can also find me on Instagram.

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About Crystal

 

Crystal is the Creative Director, Photo Stylist, and Commercial Photographer behind Crystal Clear Creative Studios. From increased sales, visibility, and trends to conversions and full production, Crystal and her team, experts on the subject matter, provide clients with confidence to take your photography and videography needs off your plate. We support you in your growth with the creation and implementation of transformative ideas.

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