High-quality product photography is 90% of online sales success. Due to huge competition in the virtual commerce sphere, every seller tries to attract potential customers with special offers and bright pictures. The customers' opinion about the product is formed in the first 15-20 seconds after visiting the website. For this reason, it is necessary to organize the design of the sales area on the site as effectively as possible.

Preparing products for a photoshoot is a complex process which requires professionalism and creativity. The preparation's main goal is to create an effective workflow to get high-quality and saleable product photo content. A team of professionals, following the customer’s technical task, develops a work plan, prepares materials and images and manages studio organization.

Preparing Products for the Photoshoot

For product photography to result in the desired outcome, the performers need to prepare for it thoroughly. Let’s take a look at the main stages of this creative but demanding process:

• Checking for defects. For the photos to turn out attractive, it is important to favour only quality products. The object is usually preliminarily inspected to exclude any defects. Goods with scratches, stains and other defects will not be suitable for photography. If the damage is minor, it can be eliminated or hidden (only if the work is done by a professional).
• Product care. For certain types of products, it is necessary to work on the product presentability — wash, iron, dust or polish. For this purpose, you can use auxiliary tools — cleaning agents, polishing or degreasing cloths, rollers for removing lint and small debris, and other tools.
• Removal of tags and stickers. The care of products that have been delivered from the manufacturer requires special attention. They usually have branded stickers that can be removed by applying warm air. Carefully inspect the object for tags and remove them if present.

Follow these recommendations, and the process of shooting will bring both creative pleasure and the highest quality result.

Photo Studio Organization

The correct studio organization is the most important criterion that impacts the photos' quality and product promotion in the future. Let’s consider the fundamental points that are important to take into account for preparing the area for a photoshoot:

• Studio photography involves professional equipment. The photographer will also spend time setting up the equipment parameters (camera, tripod, background, scenery and lighting).
• Photoshoot lighting plays an important role in getting the best possible photo. It can be adjusted many times during the process because of changing images, locations and the expected result in general. Many photographers use light boxes, reflections and diffusers to produce soft light and enhance the quality of photos.
• The process of making photos requires creativity and smart solutions. The photographer has to take care of the variety of backgrounds and bases, appropriate scenery, as well as the selection of the right colour schemes.

To create bright and attractive photo content, it is best to give preference to a professional studio. If this is not possible, make sure that the room where the shooting will take place has as much daylight as possible.

Planning the Shooting Process

The final step in preparing for a shoot is planning the work. Preparing a checklist (also called a short list) and a shooting plan allows you to organize the workflow as clearly as possible and avoid slowing down the work because of thinking about strategic moments on the fly. If you plan each step in advance, all participants will be as focused as possible.  

To optimize time, the best solution is to place all the products in a convenient area ensuring quick access to them. Depending on the type and size of the products, they can be placed on a table, in a box or on a rack. Think in advance about the order of taking photos and arrange the items in the necessary sequence.

Just before starting work, make sure that the entire set of goods is in proper presentable condition, free from defects, placed in a quick access area, and its components are arranged in the right order. By following these recommendations, the photographer can eliminate the possibility of unforeseen circumstances that can interrupt the shooting.

Shooting Different Types of Products

The nature and method of shooting usually depend on the type of product. The organization of the studio workspace should be based on the photoshoot object specifics. It is important to make sure that all the necessary auxiliary tools are at hand — tissues, cleaning and polishing products, slips, pins, etc. Effective photoshoots will turn out if the process is led by a specially trained person. Thanks to this the photographer isn't distracted by routine work and can fully delve into the creative process to make a high-quality saleable product. Plus, the project team significantly reduces the shoot duration.

Let’s consider the main categories of objects and their characteristic features of photography:

• Clothing photography requires the correct selection of the model (or mannequin) and the appropriate style and size of the product. If necessary, clips or pins can be used to ensure the product's presentable appearance and harmonious model image.
• Preparing jewellery for photography is not an easy task. Before working with jewellery, you should polish it well and choose the right exposure. It is not recommended to use a lot of details, especially small ones, as decoration. The background should be restrained and monochrome so that the main focus lies on the product.
• Working with shoes implies the participation of a model to demonstrate the quality and comfort of wearing this or that pair. The product should be cleaned, wiped and polished before shooting.
• There are many aspects of furniture shoots. The main ones are creating the right atmosphere in the photo studio, choosing the decoration colour scheme, polishing the surfaces and arranging them properly.
• Transparent objects (all kinds of glassware, mirrors, dishes, glass furniture, decorative items, etc.) should be thoroughly cleaned of fingerprints and dust. Stickers should also be removed. Special wipes, detergents and polishing agents can help in this difficult task.

Product photography is a challenging yet fun creative process that requires following all of the above guidelines.

However, the shooting itself is not always the key to a quality end result. In addition to observing all the main aspects of an effective photoshoot, there are some additional actions necessary to create top content. One of them is the quality post-processing of photos. For the safety of the processed content, it is important not to forget about such aspects as storing and backing up the photos.

Conclusion

The process of creating a product photo for sale involves many steps, and preparation is the most important and complex of them. Different types of advertised products require different preparation with special sets of auxiliary tools. Both the smooth process and fast post-production of the photoshoot, as well as the total outcome and subsequent product promotion depend on the properly organized photography preparation.