I've been blogging for over four years now as a lot of you will know, yet I'm still constantly picking up new tips and tricks on how to run and design my blog. I was initially one of those people who fully believed that buying a fancy camera would instantly give me great product photos, oh how wrong I was. All of the gear with no idea. Whilst a top of the range Canon camera is pretty foolproof when it comes to taking outdoor shots, you really need to get to know all of it's settings and functions when it comes to product photography. I still haven't read a single manual or how-to guide, everything I've learnt to this point has been through brief googling and my own practising. Once you've cracked a good understanding of how your camera works, you have good lighting and have practised on photoshop then you are well set up for good photos as a result. If the thought of photoshop scares you, don't worry, just have a play around with it and discover what works for you.
Pixelmator | If you have a Mac then just go through the app store to download this straight to your computer for £20.99. It's by far the best user friendly and easy to use photo editing software that I've ever found, I've also used it to create all of the graphics on my blog too. It's worth every penny and more.
Levels and Curves | I don't know the specifics of exactly what these are and what they do but I just have a play around with them both until my image has been brightened and looks more vibrant. You can see the different between the first and second image, it's subtle with this photo but with many of the examples included within this post having a play around with these is what has made the biggest difference.
Luminance | If you are just a beginner and are wanting to use the most simple of editing functions, try out the luminance button. It instantly brightens up a dark image and is so quick and easy to do.
Edges and Sharpness | Images very rarely come out absolutely crisp and sharp which is where these two tools help out. Again, having a play around with them is the best way to see what works for you, though don't sharpen your images too much as it just ends up making them look unnatural.
As you can see with all of the outcomes above, my personal preference is to end up with a bright and radiant image that sparkles with vibrance. It is impossible to get these kind of results purely based on them coming straight from your camera, trust me I have tried. Believe it or not all of the before images were taken against a white background, using studio lights and I had adjusted all of my camera settings for optimum results. I have a lack of natural daylight in my house as the windows are quite small and my photographing desk is never in direct sunlight but natural daylight is definitely your best friend when it comes to product photos if you are lucky enough to have it, otherwise you will have to just cheat it. Please do let me know if you have any tips and tricks and what kind of look you like product photos to have.