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How to Take Photos that Sell + July's Gem: Ruby
This month is how to take photos
that sell, & July's
birthstone ruby. Scroll down, or click one of the links below.
To go to our Bead Store click MrBead.com or
MrBead.co.uk
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How to Take
Photos that Sell
The Camera
Illumination
Background
Taking the
Photo
Afterwards - Improving the Image
How MrBead Photographs
Ruby - July's Birthstone
15% Off Offer
If you’re selling online, it’s essential to show good photographs of your
products.
The photo influences the decision to buy more than anything else – good pictures
sell!
Compose close, crop hard, enhance the contrast, and reduce image size for a fast
download.
Almost all digital
cameras can produce good images for the web. Most focus close, recording
sharp images with high contrast. However, the connoisseur looking for the
best tool should favor a digital SLR, where extra manual features make life a
little easier. When choosing a camera, make sure it will focus close
enough to fill its screen with your product.
Illumination
It is possible to use almost any type of lighting, although bright even light is
important for the best results. Sometimes you can use your camera’s flash,
but this usually produces a flat
image with nasty distracting shadows. It’s best to switch your flash off
and stick to daylight lighting.
Daylight
Close to a large window will give lots of soft light, but illustrate your item
un-evenly. To reduce this problem, cut a piece of white card and prop it
up facing the window, so as to reflect the light and fill in the shadows.
Balance the light
Alternatively
use a small mirror or a folding reflector - be sure not to get it in the
picture. Your camera’s flash may fill-in the shadows similarly, but you
need to experiment to prevent the flash being overpowering and leaving a shadow.
Photographing outside will give you a more even light, except early or late in
the day. However, you may have a problem with wind or rain!
Artificial lighting
Tungsten
lighting is simple and cheap, but can be hot in summer. You just need a
reflector dish with a bulb socket which can be purchase from camera accessory
stores. The brighter the bulb: the
sharper the image. However, avoid a dark shadow by illuminating your item
unevenly. If you can’t soften the shadow with a white card, try pointing
your reflector to the ceiling and bouncing the light down.
More-even lighting is given with two reflectors and bulbs, but can produce a
double shadow which looks terrible. A florescent tube will give you a
softer light, although green in color. You can correct this later using
any good image editor on your computer – same with the reddish color of tungsten
light (unless you use expensive daylight bulbs).
Flash lighting
Studio
flash is the best, but you need a camera that can synchronize – most small
cameras can’t. More-advanced cameras may have a hot-shoe (the worst
position for a flash), where an adapter can be fitted to allow an external unit
to be plugged in. SLR digital
cameras should have a normal socket for a flash plug and are the easiest to
synchronize external flash.
Flash light also has the advantage of being daylight color temperature, so you
need less color balancing later. Set the camera to manual exposure at
around 1/60 second. More-even lighting is given with two or more external
flashes, you can trigger extra units with a slave. If you’re using a
studio flash unit, diffuse the light with a soft box, which is better than an
umbrella which gives a harder light.
Plain
white does for most, but some items look better on a dark background, like a
dark-brown. Purchase matt card from an art shop, and curve between a wall
and a table. Avoid shiny backgrounds as they create
hot spots (white spots on the image
caused by reflection from your light). Usually light-colored products are
best on a light background, although there’s no hard rule. Except, keep it
simple – the background shouldn’t distract.
A light-tent, easily purchased on eBay, limits hot spots.
Get in close
Compose the product to fill around 80% of your camera’s screen.
If you can’t focus close enough, then
shoot from further away and crop the image later. Auto focus should work OK,
but if your camera allows, manual is best.
Exposure
Auto
exposure will also work fine, but use a shutter speed of at least 1/60 second to
prevent camera shake - unless using flash, where you’ll need full manual
exposure. If your camera tells you the exposure setting, use the highest f
number (smallest aperture). This
will give you the sharpest possible image.
Experiment to get the
correct exposure - there’s not a lot of room for error, but veer on the side of
over (darker), rather than under
exposure.
How to make your jewelry look good
To make your jewelry appear important,
photograph it from the same level. With the item on a table, it’s easily to
bring the camera down to the same height.
Take a few pictures of each piece, re-focusing (if using manual) in
between. Check the first pictures are sharp and correctly exposed before
photographing many items.
Afterwards – Improving the Photo on your Computer
Getting the picture into your computer
To
transfer your image from the camera to your computer, you can either plug the
memory-card into a USB socket using a card-reader adapter, some newer computers
have one built in. Or you can run a
lead from the camera to a USB socket - all cameras come with one.
Image software
However good the image, chances are it’ll still need enriching on an image
editing program. This will crop, enhance the contrast, adjust brightness,
and reduce the image’s size so it downloads fast online. Those with a slow
connection won’t wait for big images.
One of the fastest and easiest image editors to use is ACDSee - not as
sophisticated as Photoshop, but much cheaper and simpler to use. It may be
enclosed with your camera’s software, or to download for under $50 go to
http://www.anrdoezrs.net/.
Image Size
I find the best size for auctions and websites is around 450 pixels wide for a
large landscape-shape picture. Your camera will record the picture as a
JPEG, and it’s best to leave it in this format. The other common format,
GIF, is for simple line images like logos or cartoons.
I use a digital SLR with a wide-angle zoom macro lens, usually set at between
f28 and f32. The shutter is 1/60 sec, but this isn’t important with flash.
I focus manually, but on very-small items I pre-focus then move the camera back
and forth to get the sharpest image in the viewfinder.
The
camera’s screen is only viewed as a quick check after the photograph is taken.
ACDSee is used to balance the color, enhance contrast, crop, and reduce the size
of the image. I then save to a hard-drive and upload a copy to the host
server.
Ruby
– July’s Birthstone
Like a perfect red rose, the Ruby's rich color speaks of love and passion. July's birthstone is among the most highly prized of gems throughout history. The Ruby was considered to have magical powers, and was worn by royalty as a talisman against evil. It was thought to grow darker when danger was imminent, and to return to its original color once safe.
The word Ruby comes from the Latin "ruber," meaning red.
Ruby is the hardest mineral after diamond, a variety of the mineral Corundum,
and is found as crystals within metamorphic rock. It comes in a variety of
colors, and is called a sapphire in any color except red. Rubies range in hue
from an orangey red to a purplish red, but the most prized gems are a true red.
Large rubies are very rare and valuable. The most beautiful crystals are
thought to be from Burma, but they are also found in many other countries.
Rubies were thought to represent heat and power. Ancient tribes used the gem as bullets for blowguns, and it was said that a ruby would boil water instantly. Ground to powder, this crystal was used as a cure for indigestion - and it has been said that the ruby's red glow comes from an internal flame that cannot be extinguished, making a gift of this stone symbolic of everlasting love. And if worn on the left hand, ancient lore has it that the ruby will bring good fortune to its wearer. to top
This newsletter is from our new book soon to be published: How to Make a Killing Selling Bead Jewelry
15% Offer
Sample our beads with 15% off in the MrBead bead store, just key in "pictures" at the checkout (without the
commas) and click "Redeem Coupon".
Offer valid until Wednesday 6th July 09 only - so act now! Only for use in our store at the checkout and not valid with any other offers.
To see all our beads at MrBead click http://www.mrbead.com or http://www.mrbead.co.uk
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