Starting My Etsy Business Day 3 - Product Photography

Today's task was creating product photography so that I can list my items on Etsy.

I own a Nikon D5100 DSLR and I used this camera to take pictures of the bags that I want to sell.  I also have the SmithVector Imagermaker Plus Lighting kit which I used to create a well-lit white background for my product photography.  Below are the steps that I used to get clean, sharp images that will hopefully attract the attention of buyers who are browsing through the many listings on Etsy.

Step 1: Creating a Clean, Professional Background with Good Lighting

I wanted to make sure that there were no distractions in my product photography, so I set up a white pop-up light tent and used a piece of white fabric as the backdrop.  This set-up ensures that the fabric patterns that I used to create the bags really pop-out in the image

I also wanted to ensure that my photos were well lit, so that shoppers could clearly see the details that I worked so hard to perfect when I was creating my products. I used my two Smith-Vector flourescent lamps with reflectors. I placed one lamp on either side of the tent to eliminate shadows in the images and to accurately portray the colors of my products.

Step 2: DSLR Camera Settings for Clear Photographs

(The following section pertains to shooting with a digital SLR camera and assumes that you understand Shutter Speed, ISO, Aperture, and how to adjust these settings on a camera.  If you do not already have a basic understanding of these topics, I suggest skipping to Step 3. To learn what these terms mean and how to adjust them on your camera, I recommend checking out http://improvephotography.com for free tutorials, paid online classes, and an excellent weekly podcast.)

I attached my DSLR to a tripod so that I could take a clear image without any camera shake.  Photographers recommend using a tripod any time shutter speed is set slower than 1/60th of a second, because the human hand simply cannot remain still for much longer.

I set my ISO to 200 to reduce the digital noise in the image. ISO 200 was sufficiant to use with the two fluorescent lights and the slower shutter speed allowed by the tripod.

In Aperture Priority mode, I set my Aperture to f/22 so that every inch of my image would be in perfect focus.

I then zoomed in between 35 mm and 200 mm depending on how close I wanted my detail to be.

I shot all of the images in RAW so that I could use Photoshop Lightroom to adjust the White Balance, Exposure, and Contrast in an effort to make the colors in the digital images closely match the colors of the real life products that my Etsy shoppers will receive.

Step 3: Types of Photographs

For each item, I first created a clear simple image that would accurately portray what my item is.

I then zoomed my lens in to get a macro photograph of the details of each item. 

Finally, I took photos with items in my bags to highlight both the size of my products, and to help Etsy shoppers imagine how they would use my products if they choose to purchase one.

 Small Sewing Bag

Medium Make-Up Bag

So that was my first Etsy product shoot! Now I am off to Staples to by some shipping envelopes so that I can estimate what my shipping costs will be.

Until next time, feel free to follow me on Etsy at https://www.etsy.com/people/PearTreeStitches

Thank you for reading!