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For Store Owners

Take better product photos with just a phone and a window

Sulitista

A buyer cannot touch your product. The photo is all they have, so it decides whether they trust your store or scroll past it.

The good news is that you do not need a studio or a new phone. Most photos that lose orders have the same three problems: they are dark, they are blurry, or the background is crowded. All three can be fixed with what you already have at home.

Start with a window

Light matters more than the camera. Take the photo in the daytime, next to a window, and put the product where the light falls on it from the side.

If the sun comes straight through the window and makes sharp, dark shadows, hang a thin white cloth or sheet over the glass. The light becomes soft and even. If one side of the product is still dark, hold a sheet of white paper or card on that side so the light bounces back.

Be careful with flash. The flash built into a phone points straight at the product. Direct flash like this makes colours look wrong and leaves a hard, shiny spot, and a buyer who sees a different colour in person may feel misled. Flash can work well when it is bounced. With a separate flash, aim it at a plain white ceiling or wall instead of the product, so the light spreads out and turns soft. A coloured surface will tint the light. A phone's own flash cannot be aimed this way, so for most phone photos a window is the easier choice.

Choose one plain background

A clean background keeps the buyer looking at the product, not at what is behind it. A white or light sheet of paper, a plain cloth or a clear table is enough.

Keep the product a little away from the wall behind it, so the shadow does not stick to it. Take away anything that is not for sale. A few props are fine, but if a buyer might think the prop comes with the product, leave it out or say so in the description.

Keep the phone steady and sharp

Wipe the lens with a clean, soft cloth before you start. Fingerprints are a common reason for hazy photos.

Hold the phone with both hands and rest your elbows on the table, or lean the phone on a stack of books. A small tripod helps if you have one. Then touch the product on the screen. The phone will focus on it and set the brightness for it. Wait for the picture to settle before you press the button.

Take more than one photo

One photo cannot show everything. For each product, try to take:

  • the whole product, from the front
  • a close-up of the material or the detail
  • something that shows the size, such as a hand or a common object next to it
  • any mark, scratch or flaw, if the product has one

The last one matters. Showing a flaw clearly is part of selling honestly, and buyers who see it before they order are less likely to be upset after.

Put the clearest photo first

Look at your photos together and choose the one that shows the product best. Put it first. It is usually the one a buyer sees before they decide to open the page. Then add the others in an order that makes sense: the whole product, the details, the size, the flaw.

You can do all of this in one afternoon with a window, a sheet of paper and your phone. Start with your best-selling product, retake its photos, and see if buyers ask fewer questions.

Cover photo: DS stories, Pexels.