taking photos for Ebay/etsy listings

jonny pallisey

jonny pallisey

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jonny
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This is for folk who are posting stuff on ebay etc what would you say is a great set up just for this ? iv been taking my photos outdoors[iphone or old fujifilm finepix] in good light but my images never have a wow factor .Would you say use an editing programme on each image every time?
 
jonny pallisey said:
thanks for that ,very good info there .Dyou think that taking photos indoors[ of for example a shoe] with good lighting is better for results than outdoors in good light
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The key thing is whether the lighting makes the shoe look like you want it to. Indoors you can control the light, but outside that is more difficult.

As for images having a wow factor, that's extremely unlikely straight out of camera, and some kind of image processing software is likely to help.
 
i also could be overthinking it,the race down the rabbit hole that chasing better things like photography gear can no doubt be .Somewhere i heard if you use really pro camera also take images with a basic gear and interchange using them not sure why that is
 
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This is a very basic tutorial, not only about how to photograph products, but why https://www.talkphotography.co.uk/tutorials/photography-for-amazon-ebay.157/

It's largely about the lighting, and getting the lighting anywhere near right when shooting with natural light depends on weather and luck, it's so much easier, and so much more controllable, indoors.

But, there's far more to it than just lighting, camera position and other obvious ingredients. If you're trying to sell a highly competitive product, where most people buy mainly or completely on price, the photos need to be so much better than if you're selling something that people don't want to buy but actually need, here's an example of a product that sadly I have to buy, so the photos are really of little or no importance. https://www.tayna.co.uk/car-batteries/yuasa/ybx7096/

My approach - but I'm old-fashioned - is to try to get the images perfect in camera, but the reality is that even I accept that a fair bit of retouching is always essential, and that's a separate skill.

The camera, BTW, is neither here nor there.

My advice? Research your competitors thoroughly, concentrate on those who have the highest sales, see what they do in terms of both photos and text, and use that as a model. And feel free to come back with more info, and to ask more questions.
 
been browsing thru this forum at a lot of images taken and the conclusion im coming to is that if taking an image of say a static shoe in good light outdoors at about 6ft distance theres no difference what camera is used, not as far as glance at a titchy ebay or etsy thumbnail ,maybe if it was blown up into a poster of course be different .DSCF6584.JPG
 
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Your problem is that you will have to hope that the light is good or postpone your listing until you can align your time with the right light. And the time of year / day could give colour cast issues.

The advice about setting up an indoor studio should not be dismissed. I used to sell cameras and lenses, etc on ebay. I had some large pieces of white card from an artist's supplies shop that could be assembled into a curved backdrop around a small plinth with white base and top so the flash light distributed evenly with minimal shadows and highlights and no distracting background. Camera and flash on manual, same settings every time.
 
jonny pallisey said:
This is for folk who are posting stuff on ebay etc what would you say is a great set up just for this ? iv been taking my photos outdoors[iphone or old fujifilm finepix] in good light but my images never have a wow factor .Would you say use an editing programme on each image every time?
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Indeed the camera used for this doesn't matter much, as slong as it can produce a sharp image. The lighting obviously does matter, & as mentioned if using daylight you might have to choose when to shoot. Partially overcast can keep contrast within bounds.

I favour RAW files & post-processing to maximise control of colour & tone, but if your lighting control & exposure technique are good that's less important.

That's a fine boot!

A sales shot is usually better not just if the subject is nicely lit, but also if it's isolated from any surrounding clutter - this concentrates the viewer's attention to greater effect.

So the boot photo doesn't really make it. Anyway I'd be needing a pair ;-).
 
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petebuster1 said:
Gear wont make things any better,
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Not so. In order of importance, IMO . . .
1. Knowledge of photography/lighting/physics
2. Knowledge of marketing
3. Care
4. Gear
 
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