Photographing your handmade items

As I learn about different aspects of making and selling and running a little craft business I like to share what I have discovered. I don't feel I've mastered any of these topics, but I know there must be people who are one or two steps behind me for whom the information will be useful. You can see previous posts on such things as pricing, branding and advertising here.

For my next challenge, I have been attempting to get my head around photography. This has been quite a steep learning curve. When I first started out nearly 18 months ago I put all my time and effort into making the items, then just took a quick photo wherever I happened to be at the time and stuck it up on my Folksy shop. I cringe as I look back and see the photos I was using to 'sell' my items.

The first photos I took of my handmade items

Wooden floors, my desk, stripy rugs and coloured folders all appear in the backgrounds. The photos were often out of focus and dark, and really did not represent my items at their best. It didn't take me long to agree with what I was reading on other blogs and handmade sites - the customer only has a few photos to get a feel for the product as they cannot pick it up and hold it in their hands, therefore these photos are the key to selling your item. I knew I needed to make my photos as good as I could.

So ever since then I've been learning everything I can about what my photos need to look like and how to take them. I am definitely not an expert, but I have picked up some tips that are worth sharing. I think there are three stages to getting good photos:

1. Setting up the shot
2. Taking the photo
3. Editing the image

With the help of some fellow Folksy sellers, I will share with you how you can do the best you can at each of these stages. And without any fancy equipment, expensive cameras or professional training, I hope to encourage you that you can take very good photos that will do your handmade items justice. 

Click on each stage above to read the blog posts. 

My new and improved product photos