Ultimate Guide to Professional Ecommerce Product Shoot

The ecommerce product shoot is a professional photography session and post-production process that deals with only high-quality, capable, and inviting photographs of merchandise for sale over e-commerce websites, marketplaces, or digital platforms. They only differ from the usual photos due to a different approach: light is carefully set, there’s always a clean background, multiple angles are shown, and this way it makes your product look like it should visually.

Such a photographic strategy guarantees that the buyers can see what they are going for as it appears, while likewise guaranteeing a tasteful look at a much-cherished product to give them the courage to get it. A customer does not have the opportunity to touch or see an item. But good product photos essentially represent the value and quality of that item.

In this guide, we will walk you through everything you need to know about planning, executing, and optimizing your next ecommerce product shoot. So that your product doesn’t just look good, it sells.

Why a Professional Product Shoot Truly Matters

In online shopping, your product photos are your silent sales team, often making or breaking a purchase before the customer reads a single word.

According to Justuno, 93% of consumers say visual appearance is the most important factor in their buying choice.

That’s not all—once customers land on a product page, 56% of them instinctively start exploring the product images first. This means your visuals are practically the first handshake with potential buyers.

But it doesn’t stop there. Research by Seattle Web Design reveals that:

75% of online shoppers heavily rely on product photos when deciding to make a purchase.

22% of product returns occur because the item looks different in person.

And 40% of high-quality visual content is more likely to be shared on social media.

What These Numbers Mean for You –

▶ Builds Customer Trust

Shoppers are naturally doubtful of products that they can’t judge. Even and high-quality photos ensure their comfortable. Customers will be confident that what they see and what they’ll get. On the other hand, poor images raise doubts about product authenticity. 

▶ Increases Conversion Rates

Research shows that professional product images have 30% higher conversion rates than those with amateur photos. Customers are willing to pay more for products that look premium online.

▶ Reduces Returns

If your product doesn’t match the images, there is a high chance of increasing returns. Cause it doesn’t match customer expectations. Accurate photos, taken under proper lighting and editing, reduce misrepresentation and return rates.

▶ Creates a Strong Brand Identity

Even the image across your website, ads, and social media supports your brand identity. Professional e-commerce product photography instantly communicates your brand values, whether you are going for minimal luxury or vibrant lifestyle vibes.

▶ SEO and Marketplace Benefits

Platforms like Amazon and Google Shopping prioritize listings with high-quality, compliant images. The better your photos, the higher your chances of visibility and clicks.

In short: a professional e-commerce product shoot is not an expense, it’s an investment in your brand’s success.

Popular Forms of Ecommerce Product Shoots

When it comes to selling online, the right style of product photography can make all the difference. Each type of e-commerce product shoot provides a unique purpose, like helping you connect with your audience, build trust, and increase sales.

1. White Background Product Shoots

This is the classic! Every e-commerce store must do well. Straight, clean white background — No distractions, forced to focus on the product only. It is preferable for all platforms, such as Amazon, eBay, and Walmart, among others. A white background makes your store look more professional and consistent, which gives buyers confidence in the brand.

2. Lifestyle Product Photography

Lifestyle product photography presents your product in real life, telling a story that connects with customers. These photos do more than just display products; they highlight how the product fits into everyday life. And it is creating an emotional connection with the audience. That’s why lifestyle product photography is perfect for e-commerce brands, marketing campaigns, and social media.

3. Flat Lay Product Shoots

Flat lay photography is simply taking lots of photos at the same time in an arranged pattern on a flat surface. Fashion accessories, cosmetics, food items, and stationery are particularly popular products for this visual approach. Flat lays can grab your attention and make them more Instagram-friendly and impactful on visual aesthetics.

4. Detailed and Close-up product shoot

These are usually close-up shots that show you all the important details of your product, such as stitches on clothing, the finish on jewellery, or the texture of leather goods. This is a way to gain customers’ trust by displaying accurate product details, thereby eliminating guesswork for the customer and increasing conversion rates.

5. Fashion Product Shoots

Fashion shoots feature models in apparel, footwear, or accessory items, bringing the product to life. Those images demonstrate fit and movement and give styling suggestions, leaving little to your customer’s imagination about what wearing your items would be like. Fashion photography of outstanding quality can help you quickly change your brand’s image.

Prep Product Shoots That Save Time & Money

To create images of your products that bring out the best features and look professional. You do not have to spend all the dollars, but a little equipment can help you improve the quality of your images drastically. It can speed up your workflow and ensure the visuals are good enough for your clients to want them. Read below to learn about the essential tools and equipment for e-commerce product photographer should have.

Camera

For a professional e-commerce product shoot, a high-quality camera is necessary. A DSLR camera is ideal for maximum control over focus, aperture, and shutter speed. Do not believe in YouTube-sponsored videos. Do your own research and find which one is suitable for you. 

Here is another thing to focus on. Are you on budget? Or do you prefer a more user-friendly option? Then go for a smartphone with a high-resolution camera. But it is only for the beginning. For professional work, you need to buy a camera. Don’t forget, you will also need a battery for the camera.

Tripod

A sturdy tripod stabilizes your camera and ensures sharp, blur-free images. Tons of tripods are available, from compact, lightweight models to heavy-duty professional-grade options. Many tripods are available in the market.

An affordable tripod is perfectly suitable for beginners. Many quality options are available for less than $30. Choose one that suits your camera’s weight, size, and working environment.

White Background

For a professional look, a clean white background is important. There are many options for a white background, like seamless paper, fabric, or even a shower curtain as a background. Paper sweeps are useful cause you can cut off the dirty part and roll down fresh material. 

Don’t have a white background, but have a solid color? Then don’t worry, you can use any solid color to create a professional look.

Table

A table helps you to adjust the background, lighting, and products for various setups. You can use folding tables with between 24 and 27 inches. Cause it’s providing enough space for most product setups without being large.

It’s not necessary to buy an aesthetic table cause it’ll cover. So focus on stability and appropriate size.

Tape

Imagine you are trying to capture a photo, but wrinkles are visible. I know it’s so annoying. Securing your setup tape is important. Cause tape can hold your background in place. 

Use strong, removable tape like painter’s or gaffer’s tape to avoid damaging your table.

Lenses

A good lens can improve the quality of your images. Cause it can impact photo clarity, depth, and overall appearance.

A macro lens is perfect for capture close details. Prime lenses provide sharp focus and exceptional image quality. Here I can suggest two popular options:

• 24–70 mm f/2.8: It is flexible for close-up shots.
• 50 mm f/1.8: It is suitable for replicating the human eye’s focal length.

Choose a lens according to your choice.

Lightbox

Lightbox is excellent for product photography. It creates even lighting and minimizes shadows for a professional look. Build a lightbox in the studio, then turn it on and adjust for even brightness. 

Props

Props can improve the visual appeal of your images. It can help people tell your product’s story. Choose items that complement your product and contribute to the overall aesthetic of your photos.

Optimal lighting conditions

Natural light is ideal for photography. Indoors, you need a large window next to a wall, which provides excellent lighting. And outdoors, control light can be challenging and may require additional tools like reflectors. Managing light is very important for capturing a perfect image.

E-commerce Product Editing Service

The best product shoots need post-production editing to look polished and platform-ready. The best photo editing company in the world is Clipping Path CA. They worked with e-commerce businesses worldwide to enhance their product imagery. Their images are well optimized for e-commerce platforms. And they also ensure client satisfaction.

Key Feature of Clipping Path CA:

Clipping Paths: A Clipping path is a technique to remove products from their backgrounds. It is allowing for various backgrounds.  

Background Removal: Removing distracting backgrounds to create clean, professional product images. 

Ghost Mannequin Editing: Apparel photography without distractions.

Image Retouching: Correcting imperfections, enhancing colors, and improving overall image quality to make products look their best.  

E-commerce Specific Editing: Tailoring images for specific e-commerce platforms like Amazon. And ensure compliance with platform guidelines. 

Quick Turnaround: Many services offer fast delivery times, with some even providing 6-hour express options, according to Clipping Path CA. 

Affordable Pricing: Clipping Path CA aims to offer competitive pricing without compromising on quality. 

Expert Editors: Clipping Path CA has experienced designers who manually create perfect photos for your e-commerce business.

Customer Satisfaction: They offer free corrections and round-the-clock customer support to ensure client satisfaction.

Benefits for E-commerce Businesses

• Improved Product Presentation: High-quality images that showcase products effectively.
• Increased Sales: Professional images can attract more customers and boost sales. 
• Enhanced Brand Image: Consistent and high-quality product photos promote a positive brand image. 
• Time Savings: Outsourcing image editing allows businesses to focus on core activities.
• Competitive Advantage: High-quality product photos can help businesses stand out in a competitive online marketplace.

E-Commerce Product Shoot Tips For Photos That Sell

You know that picture sell products. So, here are important tips to take the best picture:

Overediting Your Cheaper Items

If you make a $5 T-shirt look like last season’s Calvin Klein in a photo, you will end up with lots of returns. Ensure you show uneven seams if all of your T-shirts have uneven seams. You’ll have fewer conversions, but free returns and refunds won’t kill your business.

Spending Too Little Time With Your Manager

A client relationship manager at a product photography studio is your secret weapon. They are the bridge between your ideas and the photographer. Make sure to spend extensive time ironing out the details to arrive at the best possible outcome. Building out a solid project alongside your man, ger is also the most practical way to align expectations and the capabilities of your product and the studio.

Leaving Things For The Last Minute

Your account manager will send you checklists, instructions, and reminders to keep things flowing smoothly and on time. We get it if you leave things hanging until the last minute. It’s a choice. It has a price.

Bonus Tips

You are competing with lots of business owners. Why do they purchase from you?

Richard Branson said, “Take the competition seriously, but not yourself.”

So your product image is important to be better than others competitors. Hire a professional product photographer who is an expert in e-commerce. Research about their price, quality, and all other things that fit your business.

Common Product Shoot Mistakes & How to Avoid Them

Common product shoot mistakes include poor lighting, distracting backgrounds, insufficient or excessive editing, and failing to capture enough or varied angles of the product. To avoid these, focus on using soft, even lighting, maintaining a clean and simple background, editing minimally, and shooting from multiple angles with various close-up and distant shots.

Underestimating the Impact of Lighting on the Output

Lighting is critical for the quality of the image, as things look sharp, clear, and professional in the right light. They may look out of focus, unclear, uninviting, and unprofessional with poor lighting. Professional photographers will use lighting equipment, like reflectors, softboxes, C-stands, etc., to achieve perfect results.

Using the Wrong Props and Backgrounds for the Channel

Amazon and eBay are too visually crowded, so they will demand a white background, at least 75% of a product in a shot, and have other stringent image requirements. Your product competes with hundreds of other similar items, and the buyer needs to see the product, not the commercial fluff like props and colored backgrounds.

On the other hand, social media is entertaining, so your image will compete with other bright, emotion-enticing, attention-grabbing content. Here, colored backgrounds, cute props, and fun models work great.

The rule of thumb is that you will need to add emotional touches for category pages, advertising, and social media content. Marketplaces and product page images are best laconic and classy.

How to Photograph your Product: Step By Step

Prepare Properly for the Shoot – Get your shot list all ready way before the shoot, but definitely be guided by it on the day of the shoot. This is where you start and where you finish your session.

TIP: Make sure you sort & group your items by size or type. To get the differently-sized products, you may need to re-adjust the lighting, the tripod, or maybe even change the lens. By preparing for it in advance, you may save yourself tons of time.

Physically Prep your Items – If it means ironing, polishing, dusting, your items need to be ready, spotless. The better condition they are in on the set, the less time-consuming and expensive post-production you need to do.

Prep your Lights – By this time, you will know what kind of light you will be using for your shot, what type of surface, background, and reflectors. If you are relying on the daylight, make sure to use your daylight sparingly and to switch off all other sources of light in the room, so as not to pollute your image.

Getting Ready with Equipment – Set the scene: a table with the white paper sweep or an acrylic sheet, the background, reflectors, or white bounce cards will do the track. Set up your tripod and the camera.

Adjust Your Camera Settings For The Shoot – Depending on your choice of camera and lighting, you will have to play around with the camera settings in terms of the shutter, ISO, and aperture.

How to Properly Expose Light – When you fix your lighting, make sure you make a few trial shots with your light sources and reflectors at different positions until you get just enough light and shadows for your image.

Choosing the Right Background for E-Commerce Photography – Depending on your budget, you may end up with a white paper sweep or a poster sheet. Seamless aper rolls, vinyl, foam boards, and acrylic boards can all serve the purpose. Muslin and fabric backgrounds start at $40 per color.

Post-Shoot Analysis

Post-shoot analysis is the process of reviewing a shot or action immediately after it has been executed. Post-shoot analysis in e-commerce product photography is important for optimizing visual content and improving online sales. This analysis helps to refine product presentation, enhance customer experience, and ultimately boost conversions. 

Here’s an analysis of the key aspects of post-shoot analysis:

1. Image Quality Assessment:

• Technical Aspects – Analyze images for sharpness, focus, exposure, and color accuracy. 
• Composition and Styling – Analyze frame, angles, and style used in the photos.
• Consistency – Analyze for lighting, background, and overall style consistency across all product images. 

2. Performance Evaluation:

• Website Analytics: Track metrics like click-through rates, bounce rates, and conversion rates for different product images.
• A/B Testing: If possible, A/B test different image variations (angles, styles, etc.) to see which ones perform best in terms of engagement and sales.
• Customer Feedback: Gather feedback from customers about the product images through surveys, reviews, or social media comments.

3. Optimization Strategies:

• Image Optimization: Ensure images are properly optimized for web use, including appropriate file size and format, to improve website loading speed.
• SEO Optimization: Optimize image alt tags and file names with relevant keywords to improve search engine visibility.
• Content Refinement: Based on the analysis, refine the product presentation and styling for future shoots.

4. Workflow Improvements:

Reviewing the Process: Identify any bottlenecks or inefficiencies in the product photography workflow, from preparation to post-processing. 

Documenting Best Practices: Create a style guide or checklist based on the post-shoot analysis to ensure consistency and quality in future shoots. 

Training and Development: Provide training to the photography team on best practices and areas for improvement identified during the analysis.

FAQ

Final Thought

An e-commerce product shoot is not just about taking photos. It’s about creating a strong visual identity, building trust, and boosting sales. Investing in professional photography and editing is essential because your product images are your strongest sales tool in the digital world.

Clipping Path CA is the best end-to-end photo editing solution for e-commerce businesses. They always priorities the client’s satisfaction.