Telephone Product Images: How you can Take Footage With Your Smartphone (2023)

So that you’ve determined to begin an internet retailer and also you’ve obtained a minimum of one product you’re excited to begin promoting. Your product may look nice sitting in your bed room or residence workplace, however how are you going to be sure it actually stands out within the period of Instagram filters? 

Don’t sweat it. You don’t should turn out to be an expert photographer to take attention-grabbing images of your merchandise. On this article, you’ll be taught, step-by-step, how one can do cellphone product pictures utilizing some pure gentle and a superb product picture app.

6 steps to grasp cellphone product pictures

1. Use a room with good lighting
2. Select your smartphone
3. Get a mini tripod
4. Arrange your backdrop
5. Use white bounce boards
6. Arrange a diffuser sheet if the solar is simply too shiny

Most ecommerce retailer homeowners know the fundamentals of cellphone product pictures: Discover a white background and a few pure gentle, select the best high quality setting and determination attainable in your cellphone—and click on! You have got a product picture. This can be a nice begin. 

However there are a number of additional instruments and equipment that may drastically improve your images and reveal the worth of your product to let consumers envision it of their lives. 

If you wish to turn out to be an expert photographer along with your smartphone and take superb product photographs, right here’s how one can construct your setup. 

1. Use a room with good lighting

First, discover a room in your house with a well-lit window. The larger the window, the extra pure gentle you’ll have for bringing your product to life.

Taking product images nearer to the window creates a softer gentle with darker shadows. Being farther away from the sunshine supply provides you with lighter, shaper shadows. 

2. Select your smartphone

Most smartphone cameras nowadays make nice DSLR alternate options for product pictures. The upper the megapixel rely, the higher your cellphone product pictures will come out.

You should utilize any smartphone with a superb digital camera, however purpose to get your arms on a more moderen mannequin with a 12 megapixel digital camera or extra.

3. Get a mini tripod 

Mini tripods can vary from cheap to dear, however the excellent news is, irrespective of your price range, they’re a superb funding with excessive payoff. A mini tripod will scale back digital camera shake and assist standardize picture angles and elegance to your product line.

In order for you a easy mini tripod, take into account the Manfrotto Pixi mini tripod equipment. It’s nice for freshmen, it holds your cellphone securely in place with a gripping clamp, and it may be positioned proper in your sweep to simply seize good, high-quality images of your merchandise.

4. Arrange your backdrop 

Place your white backdrop behind your product to present your images a clear and constant look and to eradicate distractions. You might use a white paper sweep or purchase cheap poster board out of your native drug retailer or artwork store. You’ll additionally want a desk to put your backdrop on. 

You should utilize tape or Sticky Tack to carry your backdrop down or stick your product to the backdrop.

At all times maintain your backdrop white. A white backdrop displays pure gentle onto the product and offers you an evenly lit picture. It additionally makes the enhancing course of simpler if it’s essential to take away the background. A cream or off-white coloration will make enhancing and lighting troublesome. Additionally, attempt to place your backdrop not solely behind your product however beneath it as nicely.

5. Use white bounce boards

Controlling the lighting is vital when studying how one can take product images with an iPhone or Android gadget. Bounce boards assist reduce sturdy shadows and create a extra balanced lighting atmosphere to carry out the best particulars of your product. You should purchase a white bounce board made of froth on Amazon.

6. Arrange a diffuser sheet if the solar is simply too shiny

When the lighting is simply too harsh, these sheets will soften the sunshine. You could find diffuser sheets on Amazon or make one at residence with parchment paper, a frosted bathe curtain, or printer paper.

Now that you simply’ve obtained your setup prepared, let’s discuss how one can use pure gentle when taking product images with a smartphone. 

How you can use pure lighting for product pictures

Images lighting could be your finest buddy or worst enemy when studying cellphone product pictures. Get it proper and also you’ll have some superb product photos in your arms. Get it mistaken and no picture retouching will assist save your picture.

There are three key suggestions which might be essential for getting one of the best photos out of your photoshoot. 

1. Shoot in a well-lit room. Pure gentle by way of a window is a superb choice versus a photograph studio with synthetic gentle. First, you most likely have entry to a window (and it’s free). Second, it comes from a single course, which generates pure shadows and provides texture to your merchandise.

Think about the climate: Is it sunny or cloudy? To get the look you’re going for, you could choose slightly overcast versus full daylight. As you’ll see within the instance beneath, it could possibly make an enormous distinction on the shadows and highlights in your picture.



2. Place your setup near the window. Goal for 90 levels to the appropriate or left of your setup. Plan to begin your photoshoot on the brightest time of day. If the solar is simply too shiny, you may all the time use a diffuser sheet to melt the sunshine. 



No matter you do, keep away from onerous gentle in any respect prices, as it could possibly make colours look saturated and can spotlight the tiniest flaws in your product—issues individuals usually can’t see with the bare eye.

3. Management pure gentle with foam boards and reflectors. Generally the solar will out of the blue disappear behind the clouds mid-shoot. If that occurs, don’t fear, use your foam boards to bounce and intensify the sunshine to fill shadows. 

For those who’re utilizing a reflector, you may manipulate the sunshine reflecting onto your product by shifting the reflector nearer or additional away. It will assist replicate pure gentle from the solar again onto the product. 

Bear in mind to check completely different angles with the reflector to search out the appropriate steadiness between shadows and lighting. 

Finest digital camera angles for product pictures

In terms of taking product images to your ecommerce web site, some angles work higher than others. Providing completely different views of your product to a client may assist reply any questions they’ve that your product descriptions don’t clarify. 

Give as many various viewpoints as attainable to focus on key options of your product. An all-around view is extra participating and may help consumers envision themselves carrying or utilizing your product, which might result in extra gross sales in your retailer. 

It’s additionally necessary to incorporate close-up photographs of your merchandise as nicely. Shut-ups allow you to seize options that showcase the standard of your product, together with print element, material, texture, or product utilization, and spotlight particular components of your product that consumers would wish to examine in a retail retailer. 

Whether or not you’re taking pictures clothes pictures or footwear, there are the 5 digital camera angles it’s best to check in your picture shoot:

1. Eye stage. This view reveals the product as you’d see it wanting straight on. 
2. Excessive angle.This view reveals the product as in case you’re wanting down at it from an angle.
3. Low angle. This view reveals the product as in case you’re wanting up at it from the ground.
4. Hen’s eye. This view reveals the product as in case you’re standing over it.
5. Slanted. This view reveals the product from one aspect.



For those who’re new to cellphone product pictures, it’s beneficial you retain your smartphone and tripod in the identical spot throughout the shoot and rotate your product to alter the angle you need to your picture. Whenever you rotate the product versus the digital camera, your last photographs will all be framed the identical, plus, you’ll guarantee consistency and scale back picture enhancing after the shoot.

How you can shoot cellphone product pictures

Now that you’ve all of your gear arrange and perceive the completely different digital camera angles and lighting, it’s time to shoot some images.

Earlier than you begin, use the next guidelines to verify your Android or iPhone digital camera is able to shoot. 

1. Put together your cellphone. Be sure your cellphone is charged and you’ve got backup storage to your photos.
2. Arrange your white steadiness. To set the white steadiness in response to the sunshine temperature in your setup, contact the WB button, then contact the white background.
3. Examine your publicity. Faucet the round Publicity button, then contact your product so the digital camera is aware of to show it.
4. Preserve the whole lot in focus. Contact the round Focus button, then contact your product so the digital camera is aware of to correctly deal with the product.
5. Be sure you lock your digital camera settings. After you’re achieved adjusting these settings, faucet every one once more to lock the settings in place. It will cease the digital camera from mechanically adjusting the settings when you’re taking photographs.

When you lock your settings, you’re prepared to begin taking pictures!

After your first shot, check out your picture and see in case you suppose it must be brightened or darkened as a way to obtain a correct publicity. For those who suppose the publicity wants tweaking, contact the +/- button beneath the round Focus button and pull the slider up or down to alter the publicity. 

Widespread errors with cellphone product pictures

As a result of so many individuals have smartphones, taking product images with them is extra accessible than ever earlier than. That additionally means there are many widespread errors. Making your self conscious of those pitfalls may help you keep away from them.

Bear in mind to keep away from the next three widespread errors in cellphone product pictures so you may get one of the best photographs:

• Zooming in. Your cellphone’s zoom perform isn’t truly an amazing instrument to make use of for product photographs. It drastically reduces picture high quality. For those who want a more in-depth shot, it’s higher to crop when enhancing.
• Utilizing the front-facing digital camera. The front-facing “selfie digital camera” usually isn’t pretty much as good because the again digital camera. This may increasingly differ relying in your cellphone’s specs. However typically talking, the rear-facing digital camera has extra megapixels, which results in increased picture high quality.
• Turning on the flash. Your cellphone’s flash will overexpose the picture and mess up the colours. It’s higher to make use of pure lighting and take into account the recommendation outlined above.

Telephone product pictures tendencies

Ecommerce is continually evolving, and this impacts the way in which you strategy product imagery. It’s good to remain apprised of present tendencies to know what clients are searching for and what is sensible to your model.

Listed here are three common product pictures tendencies to remember as you shoot along with your smartphone:

• 360-degree images. Developments in expertise have enabled manufacturers to supply full 360-degree views of their merchandise. And, although these may seem to perform like movies, 360-degree photographs are literally a sequence of a number of nonetheless photos.
• AI picture enhancing. AI has helped companies turn out to be extra environment friendly in lots of areas, together with product pictures. Whereas you need to use AI to take away backgrounds out of your cellphone product photographs, it’s nonetheless necessary to rigorously test the standard, as these instruments can result in plenty of imperfections.
• Product movies. Not essentially a brand new pattern, moderately one which continues to develop, extra manufacturers are utilizing product movies. Actually, 89% of individuals say watching a video has satisfied them to make a purchase order. Like 360-degree photos, movies give consumers a extra full view of the product. They’ll additionally see it in motion, fairly actually.

How you can edit product images

The thought of enhancing images might sound intimidating, nevertheless it’s truly very easy along with your smartphone.

• Select a product pictures app. Go to the app retailer in your cellphone and obtain an enhancing app for product images. Some smartphone photographers choose cell apps like Lightroom or Snapseed; others choose picture enhancing software program for his or her desktops.
• Open up your enhancing app. Select the picture you wish to put together to your on-line retailer. Most photos want slightly tweaking to actually make them shine. 
• Use the app to make a number of fundamental edits. These embody brightness, distinction, sharpness, highlights/shadows, and white steadiness. Don’t be tempted by filters, borders, tints, and oversaturation. Your aim is to make your product look superb and make it stand out. Attempt to make it look as shut as attainable to what the product appears to be like like in actual life. 
• Save presets. After you edit your first picture, save the settings as a preset so you may apply the identical changes to different images out of your shoot. Whereas presets make it easier to save time, be sure to test every picture after making use of the preset to see if there are any further tweaks so that you can make. 
• Apply a white layer background. Take away any blemishes or creases out of your background by changing your background with a white layer. Because you took images on a white background, it’ll be straightforward to isolate the product and add a layer. 

As soon as your product picture appears to be like clear, crisp, and delightful, add it to your Shopify retailer and put your onerous work to make use of!

5 finest apps for product pictures

Choosing the proper enhancing apps is a vital a part of mastering product pictures with a smartphone. Many include an in-app editor, however there are many third-party apps that offer you the whole lot it’s essential to make your product stand out.

A number of the top-rated product picture app choices are: 

1. Lightroom

Accessible for: iOS and Android.

Value: Requires Adobe Inventive Cloud subscription, beginning at $9.99/month.



Some would say Adobe Lightroom is one of the best app for product pictures in the marketplace. It options easy-to-use instruments like sliders and presets to create images that look precisely the way you need them. Lightroom can be a superb choice in case you plan to edit images in your laptop. You can begin on cell, internet, or desktop, and once you make edits, they are going to be mechanically utilized throughout units.

If you wish to get essentially the most out of Lightroom, you may join the Adobe Inventive Cloud Images plan, which incorporates the picture enhancing app for desktop, cell, and internet, plus the newest model of Photoshop for $9.99 monthly. 

2. Photoshop Categorical

Accessible for: iOS, Android, and Home windows.

Value: Requires Adobe Inventive Cloud subscription, beginning at $9.99/month.



You’ve most likely heard of Adobe Photoshop and what it could possibly do. With Photoshop Categorical, you get all of its nice picture enhancing options proper in your smartphone. You should utilize product images out of your cellphone or take them contained in the app. Then simply regulate the hue, brightness, publicity, and distinction to create superb images to your retailer. 

3. Snapseed

Accessible for: iOS and Android.

Value: Free.



Snapseed is a free pictures enhancing software program owned by Google. The app brings the facility of an expert laptop editor to your cellphone, with many options to edit photos in methods you’ll normally solely discover in costly software program. Newbie photographers even have extra utility with Snapseed utilizing Stacks, which helps you to revert your edits to an earlier model and makes it straightforward to avoid wasting settings and apply them.

4. VSCO

Accessible for: iOS and Android.

Value: Free model out there; annual paid plans are $29.99 or $59.99.



VSCO has all the essential enhancing instruments resembling publicity, contract, coloration steadiness, and extra, letting you create unimaginable images on the go. It’s an amazing product picture app to boost photos and doubles as an efficient Instagram instrument with its large library of filters and limitless choices to customise your images. 

5. Photon

Accessible for: iOS.

Value: Free,

 



 

Photon is a superb choice for each skilled and newbie smartphone photographers. You should utilize Photon not solely as an editor but additionally as a digital camera to your product shoots. The product pictures app permits you to set publicity and focus and features a stabilizer, timer, and extra so it feels such as you’re taking pictures with a high-quality DSLR digital camera lens. 

For those who choose to edit images in your laptop, you need to use Photon to seize product images in RAW. This makes positive no info or information will get compressed and you may produce increased high quality product photos.



Shopify Compass Course: Product Images

Photographer Jeff Delacruz shares how one can create your individual picture studio and take stunning product images for lower than $50.

Enroll without spending a dime

Getting essentially the most out of your product pictures

Studying how one can take images on an iPhone or Android appears onerous at first, however after a number of instances behind the digital camera, you’ll be a professional. With the entire above information, you’re nicely in your solution to mastering product pictures and promoting extra images in your retailer. Sooner or later, you may even take into account promoting your pictures on-line.

Have you ever come throughout any apps for product images or cellphone product pictures suggestions along with these techniques? Share them within the feedback beneath.

Telephone product pictures FAQ

How can I take skilled photos at residence with my iPhone?

1. Select an iPhone 8 or newer.
2. Take a look at third-party digital camera apps.
3. Use a white background to your setup.
4. Place your setup close to a window with pure gentle. 
5. Maintain down the viewfinder to lock focus.
6. Keep away from zooming in on images. 
7. Attempt completely different digital camera angles.
8. Use a photograph enhancing app.

How do I take high quality product images?

1. Use a smartphone digital camera with 12 megapixels or extra.
2. Shoot from a tripod to cut back digital camera shake.
3. Use pure gentle from a window.
4. Bounce gentle utilizing a foam board to melt shadows.
5. Use a sweep or close-up photographs to focus on product options. 
6. Shoot quite a lot of angles and picture sizes.