Product Photography for

Designer/Makers
“The Designer/Maker’s Favourite Photographer”

Worked with
100’s of independent designers, shops and small businesses

Shot
1000s of products covering every material and use

Plus
Web, film and animation with Yesh&Tash

Recommended by:
The Design Trust / New Designers
Cockpit Arts / Crafty Fox Market / Craft Central / Just Got Made
ETSY / Folksy / Not on The High Street
London Design Fair
WeMakeWebsites (UK’s leading Shopify Experts)
Squarespace

www.yeshen.uk Twitter: @yeshen Instagram: yeshen.venema

 The Visual Web
Your customers are more likely to remember a
strong image than text.

But we have very short attention spans - less

than goldfish at only 7 seconds. Make your shots
count.

Source: Buffer/Hubspot 2016

 Planning

Detailed preparation for your shoot is essential.

Start planning 2-3 months ahead.

Use my Shoot Prep resource.

Sketch your shots, pre-visualise the scenes.

How will you use your images in the year ahead?

Product listings, category blocks and banners

Markets/Show applications
Press
Leaflets, posters, business cards
Seasonal Promotions
Social campaigns
Newsletters
Competitions
 Pro or DIY?
As a designer/maker you will always need to take some photos
yourself, even if only for social.

For full shoots, best to work with a professional in a studio.

You’ll get more done in the time and you can focus on your products
- this is true for both product shots and lifestyle.

One off or bespoke? You may need to shoot yourself, but at least
learn from a pro so you can replicate at home or in your studio
space.
 Gear check
Camera with option for manual (M) mode

Tripod/Tripod head

Surface: Flat table, or folding trestle legs and table top

Background papers/card: Ice White/Quartz Grey/Dreadnaught

Grey

White perspex (jewellery, cosmetics, food/drink)

Foamboard: Black and White

Diffusion materials: white muslin or shower curtain, tracing paper,

thin white curtain

Blu tac, masking tape, gaffer tape, small clips and larger clamps,
small wooden blocks and wedges

If shooting tethered (connected to laptop): usb-micro usb cable

 Tethering

If shooting tethered (connected to laptop): usb-micro >> usb cable

Software: Adobe Lightroom or Capture One.

You see images as you take them, can make preview edits/crops
during shoot and you always work ‘non-destructively’.

Edits can be applied to a batch or simply applied to next capture.

Images are exported at end in chosen format (JPG/TIF/PSD) and

pixel size.

You can return to the ‘Session’ at any time.

 Format&Crop

It’s crucial to know your crops before shoot.

Common Crop Ratios are:

Product listings: 1:1 Square

Category images: often 7x5 landscape
Etsy: Square, but cropped on thumbnail
Web banner: 16:9 for example
Facebook/Twitter Header
Instagram can be any but square/portrait work best

Search for:
‘social media sizing cheat sheet 2016’
 DPI

DPI is only relevant for print. 300dpi min.

Web is all about pixel dimensions, ie. 1500x1500px

The max you will need a screen is 2500px wide for full
bleed banners.

Always start large and make image smaller, never

upscale. View ‘Actual Size’ or ‘100%’ to see how large
the image really is.

MB size is determined by pixel size and colour data.

So a cutout will usually be smaller MB than a lifestyle

image.
 Angle of view

Spend time discovering the most flattering and efficient angle

from which to shoot your products.

The angle should not distort the form, i.e. watch out for
perspective on edges of product and props/walls.

Usually it’s one of 3 views:

● ‘3/4 view’ like looking at table from standing

● Directly side on
● Overhead (flat lay).
 Depth of field

Easy to get confused here.

‘Aperture’ or ‘fstop’ setting is how you control how much depth in

the image is in focus.

Lower the number, like f3: the less is in focus, the wider the lens
opening. You can shoot in less light.

High number like f12: the more is in focus, the more narrow the
lens opening. You need more light or a tripod.

Image source: Petapixel.com

 Depth of field

This is often the difference between an amerature and

professional photo - control over the depth of field.

The higher mm the lens, the more pronounced the depth of field
will be.

A 100mm macro will give a very fine focus point at f3.

Be careful not to loose focus on your product.

You can also control your lighting to enhance this, by separating

the foreground and background areas.
Styling
Minimal
Minimal
Traditional
Texture/Natural
Rethink your setup
Deconstructed
Get Creative
Custom made props
 Creative
Custom background + spray-painted mdf
blocks
 Creative
Custom painted background/surface
 Creative
Custom painted boards
 Creative
Custom painted boards with block colour background
Materials
Location
 Behind the scenes

Show your:

Workspace
Tools
Materials
Process
Work in progress
Mistakes
Pets/colleagues
Yourself/your hands
Supply chain
Discoveries
Local knowledge
 Apps and Tools for
editing and sharing
your images.
Test of a range of apps for what you need, find the right ones for
you.

Photo Editing/Shooting Tethered

Capture One/Adobe Lightroom
Affinity Photo/Photoshop/
Aviary/Photoshop Express Online
Canva
JPEG Mini

Scheduling
Buffer
Later

Resources
https://blog.bufferapp.com/
http://blog.hubspot.com/marketing
http://www.shotkit.com/
 www.yeshen.uk/shoot-prep

studio62

www.yeshen.uk Twitter: @yeshen Instagram: yeshen.venema

 Questions?

www.yeshen.uk Twitter: @yeshen Instagram: yeshen.venema