7 simple tips for beginner photographers

'Wild & Free' print by May& Belle, dreamcatcher by Made by Mosey, arrow and chevron hoops by Ivy & Lil, baby black bear and wolf softies by Pink Pug, chevron doona and cushions by Petite Bijou,  styling and photography by Tanya Collier

It's true, a picture IS worth a thousand words.

Being a creative magazine, we really do focus on gorgeous images. We love crisp, clear photographs that show-off your creations in their best light!

 

I would always recommend investing in a professional photographer, but unfortunately  sometimes that doesn't fit the budget of a handmade business, especially when you are starting out. So here are a couple of tips for photographing your product (please keep in mind...I am only an amateur photographer and these tips are based on my own experience):

·        styled shots can be beautiful, however if you don’t have experience styling a shoot, stick to the less is more policy.  A crisp white background almost always results in a lovely shot. Try using a white sheet (ironed of course!) or large sheet of white card for the background, placed so that it sits underneath the item and carries on up behind the item to avoid a visible 'corner' line

·         if you have a tripod, use it! If not rest your camera on a steady surface to avoid blurring

·         avoid taking images at night or in a dark room - they generally result in poor quality grainy images

·         experiment with your aperture setting - a large aperture (low f-stop number) creates a shot with a shallow depth of field - meaning you can create a shot where the product is in focus, and the background is out-of-focus. While a smaller aperture (high f-stop) will result in a greater depth of field, where both the product and background can be in focus

·        natural light... try taking your photo shoot outside or in a room that is filled with natural light. Direct sunlight will result in harsh shadows and/or glare on your product so overcast days are best. Afternoon light is said to have a better colour than early morning light - it is generally warmer and softer. You want a soft, even light and  minimal shadows

·         try photographing your product from different angles, being careful not to distort the perspective

·         experiment with your exposure setting. For me +0.7 exposure works nicely.

Gorgeous photography takes time and practice, don't expect to get that perfect shot first time. To give you an idea...it took two days and almost 200 shots for me to capture the 8 images included in the Wild and Free story featured in issue 13 of tickle (shown above).

As mentioned above, these tips are for beginners and based on my experience as an amateur photographer.  I purchased a Nikon D3000 about five years ago and took an 'introduction to photography' course at Central Tafe in Perth and have been experimenting ever since.

If you take any of these tips on board, I would love  for you to share your 'before and after' shots!!

Tx