Product photographers and their expertise in product photography play a more than important role both in marketing and sales if you are venturing into a product-based business, & that too eCommerce. However, the best of the best product photographer at times is not able to deliver product pictures or images that are not only visually attractive but also relatable, and for which they need assistance from product photo editing experts or learn to work with professional editing and retouching services.
Especially with merchants looking out to encash the boom in eCommerce this Christmas, through sales of cakes and pastries and cookies and whatnot; it is important to understand that, the quality of images should be far better than the product itself. In order to ensure that a worthy product is not ignored by potential buyers, product photographers should follow these basic techniques.
These days food photography is a hot topic as it has evolved big time from being merely for great recipes and writing. And the month-long festival of Christmas, around the corner, has made food photographers busier than ever. An excellent picture or image of a food product, of course from the outside, has the potential to obtain customers’ eye and compel them to purchase the product – right then and there. It is noteworthy that there are culinary artists or cooks as you may say, who love to share their handmade food photos with the recipe for their friends and family on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and so on. There are users who willingly share their food snaps and tag the restaurant as well, in turn increasing the reputation of the food shop. This typically depicts the importance and benefits of good food photography.
So why not check out some of the considerations to be made for taking better pictures of food, which also can help you as a product photographer, develop your own style of taking delicious photos of the food that your clients sell – online?
1. Less is enough
Overlapping too many elements on the food plate is not at all advisable. Using less food than a usual serving will look great for taking a picture that is visually attractive & relatable too.
2. Contrast color background
Opting for a contrasting color i.e., for red-colored food – using green color as the background works well. It will attract the attention of foodies as they will be able to focus more on the food product.
3. Create an outdoor entertaining event
Every photographer looks out for options to capture more and more beautiful product pictures. The outdoor scenario is one of the options as your food shot background. A journey to the farm to capture images of fruits and vegetables, ripe and ready to be plucked cannot be denied.
4. Simple is sober
Crockery with simple designs has the potential to express the actual beauty of a food product; this goes unsaid with the type of tableware as well. Not to forget that uncomplicated backgrounds such as normal design tableware will help the customers focus more on the food images and not the surroundings.
5. The “Yum Factor”
Using human models is something that would help your images if you succeed in capturing their expressions, which depict the taste of the food product. And that too, without even touching the food item; as it might lose creativity.
6. Food products don’t move, leverage this benefit
Food products are non-moving subjects, so food product photographers can certainly enjoy the benefit of capturing still subject photography. The only challenge that needs to be addressed now is to capture the image from an angle that gives that yummy look to the foods. Never forget, the customer is not able to either smell the food product or reach out to the outlet immediately. However; your food pics can set their minds or compel them to taste the heavenly flavor – at the earliest.
7. Artificial lights, only if required
Using artificial lights or natural lights; it’s purely a product photographer’s personal choice. However; using a large diffusion source to create a soft yet stunning light effect cannot be denied. Appropriate attention to lighting, background, camera angles, composition, and exposure; is what can help you capture great photographs and produce mouth-watering results when carefully applied to food.
Conclusion:
Product photography is an art in itself, and food product photographers are the gifted ones. Their talent comes out in the way they represent the subject to their viewer. Capturing pictures of food, like anything else, is really satisfying when it goes well and as planned. But what about instances when it goes off track due to weather conditions, lighting problems, model expressions, and other such adversities, which are purely not in the control of photographers? This calls for a strategy or a plan B to get those excellent results, and that is product photo editing professionals. No need to worry if you fail in capturing expected images, as these professional photo editors are there to correct the shortfalls.
Ritesh Sanghani is a Director at Hi-Tech BPO and a passionate writer with experience of 10+ years of in Business Process Outsourcing.
